*Fried*

I'm beat.
I haven't disappeared... just ultra-busy. Working is tough work! But... considering the fact that I get almost 5 months of vacation time a year, I'm willing to put in the work now and play hard during my breaks.
As many of you know, I'm NOT a morning person. This getting up to be at work by 9am isn't so good. I'm having loads of trouble trying to get into work on time. I've been pretty good... except on garbage days - because I have to get the trash out before 8am. So I get up to take the trash out, then fall asleep again only to oversleep. BUT the latest I've gotten into work is 10 minutes late, so I think I've been doing pretty well...
I've felt tons of tremors here. I think we've had about 3 or 4 big-ish quakes here, but nothing that has toppled things over yet. It's all pretty interesting, this earthquake business. You feel agitated if you haven't felt a tremor in a while, and when it happens... it's like a sigh of relief.
Japan's been fun. I have made some good friends, and we're always doing something crazy. Not as crazy as life in New York, but I think Nic and I get the party going pretty well when we're out together. Karaoke has become a weekly workout. It's pretty tiring! We jump about, and we only sing the fast, rock 'n' roll-y stuff.
I'm working on several research projects now... My main focus is on improving students' learning experience and making it more enjoyable and effective - a bit of a fusion between my psych interests and my linguistic interests. It's funny how things kinda come together in the end.
Right... gotta try and get some work done so that I can go home early today. Oh... did I mention that I have a pet named Lola now? She's the cutest hamster in the world! I'm trying to train her to do tricks... so far, she can only walk into my hands for food. It's a start though!~