Good Times, Bad Times

Well, mostly Good Times. The Bad Times would be the Good Times I missed Saturday afternoon/evening when on my way to the festival I got sidetracked by my neighbor's barbecue. Good Times were had there, but I was sorry I missed the matsuri.

As you can see from the above picture, M-chan and I went hiking yesterday at a nearby mountain, and found a super-fabulous view from a spot that used to be used for hangliding or something. We managed to climb up and down 691 stairs, not including roots used as stairs and the flat parts. We got our hearts going, our muscles crying - and then shaking after the downclimb - and felt good.

Today I was at my GES, where the kids were super genki, so it was hard to get things done in class. These kids are loud. After school I was dismissed while some of the kids were also on their way home, so I met up with them on the way out, on my bike. One of them was concerned about my lack of helmet (bad role model), but another walked with me the whole way home - so cute! Elementary School kids are awesome!

After school I ran to the PO and picked up my birthday package from my mom and dad, some UnderArmour for the colder weather. Nice! That will keep me running on the streets and not freezing in the classroom. Post-PO, it was a long-awaited run during which I ran into a whole mess of kids from GS and GES, which I was kind of hoping would happen. Of course the GES kids wanted to talk to me, tell me that they hated chocolate so I'd "get mad," and hear what music I was listening to on my iPod. One gaggle of girls even ran alongside me for a stretch. It all slowed me up a bit, but that was cool. I got my run on, I schmoozed with the kiddles, and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

On that note, I'm waiting for that second coffee to wear off so I can hit the futon/foam mattress and get some decent shut-eye tonight.

Keep it Excellent, my friends.