The Zen-est Zombie

That's what I've been feeling like this week. Between my new busier schedule at work and biking at least 30 miles a day for the last 8 days straight... I've become a zombie. But don't worry about your man/woman flesh. I'm almost too tired to eat. Considering the amount of exercise I'm getting, that's not really a good thing.

What's wrong with your schedule?

Well, we used to have 3 teachers doing the job and now we only have two. Then I got a private student coming 3 times a week.

Total classes 27
Total kid classes 22
Total pre-school classes (including the private student who is only 2yrs 8months) 14.

Now, I love love love kids. And many of my individual kids I love so much I want to steal them. So, that's all good. I could talk about kids and blog about kids constantly... but I'll spare you.

I love them, but kids classes are a lot of energy.










but look at the super cute, albeit misguided, gift one of my 2nd graders gave me. It was followed by a huge hug and then an insistent, "magic! magic!" ... if only I could do more magic.

I'm sure if she remembered how to spell my name she would have written that instead of "KKK" .... I figure.




Now, my longer days look like this
alarm goes off at 8. I pull myself out of bed 8:30
ideally, I leave my apartment by 9:30, though sometimes I don't manage till 10
when I get to work I change my clothes. It's hot now, feeling like over 90 everyday. I strip buck naked in the shopping center bathroom, give my self a wet wipes wipedown and start teaching at 12. When I finish teaching at 9, I get home 10:30 or later.
I shoot to go to bed by 11:30 but that doesn't always happen.

zen zen zombie.

all the exercise is making me super calm. this is a good quality for a kids teacher.
it's also making me a little brain dead. so I'm not riding my bike today and maybe not tomorrow before I kill myself trying to keep up with the Tokyo Cycling Club on one of their rides on Sunday.

Anyways, it's all great 'training' for my Tohoku adventure that starts on Aug 1st and I feel totally unprepared for.


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Basically, I'll take a night bus up to Aomori (note, no reservations made yet nor have I check that I can actually take my bike (albeit taken apart and in a bike bag) on the bus... i.e. not prepared) and cycle up around the peninsula and then down the Eastern coast along rt. 45 etc.

How far am I going?
Well, I have to work on Aug 13th so I should be back for that. How far depends on how much I cycle and what goes wrong. Knock on wood for me. I'm hoping to do 60 miles or more a day.

Isn't this all expensive?
Well, considering that I haven't upgraded anything on my bike in the 5 years I've had it... kind of. But it's been about time.

I did get totally cool shoes.
My old petals were basket style.


















I have now finally upgraded to clip in. Actually, only one side of the pedal is clip-in and the other is flat so I can petal with any sort of shoes/sandals I like. The shoes are "spd" shoes, which means they have tread and only kinda suck for walking. Overall, they seem really versatile and make me go faster with less effort.












My old tires looked like this- frayed and unhappy. So, I bought new canary yellow tires. They are hideous and lovely all at once. The pedestrians are much quicker to get out of my way. I'll try to put up a picture by the end of the day.

So, that's most of that... now I'm off to teach the munchkins.