From Screen Door to Mosasaur

AM

Least: At about 9:10am I opened our rickety screen door and once again pulled it off the rails. Like the washing machine, the screen doors has never recovered from those spring days when Sanshou Mansion was painted. Although it never really slid smoothly, the door now has the infuriating habit of leaving its tracks every time it is opened. And every time it comes off the rails, I have to spend time flexing it back into position, knowing full well my battle is futile. Extremely boring. It will take a dangerous turn when the time comes for me to throw it onto the tram tracks below.

Most: It was close to 9:30am, when I felt confident enough to think to myself that the yoke of Osaka's summer has been broken. For several nights it has been cool enough to sleep without the airconditioner and for several days I have had little sweat drip down my chins. As the the other changes of seasons, it has been if a switch has been flicked and an autumnly cool northerly breeze has swept the humidity and heat away. Having survived the summer, I can now say that while it was brutal, it was not completely soul destroying as predicted by various Canadian types. And if wasn't for wearing ridiculous work clothes, the summer would have been far more bearable. I wonder when the hot coffee will return to the vending machines?

PM

Least: At about 1:20pm, I sat down to a fishy meal at an all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant in Shinsaibashi. I'm still trying to work out if it was worth it given the amount of sushi I could've eaten and didn't. The food was pretty poor, even for sushi-trains and although I had to try the salami and pastrami sushi , I didn't think it was much chop. The guy sitting next to me though, had other ideas. He had eaten at least thirty plates of sushi and no less than ten desserts, mostly creme brulees. The only word he said to me was 'bamboo' as he pointed to a dish that tasted a lot like dishwashing liquid. Some of the other customers included, close-to-bums and obvious tight-arses determined to get their yen's worth. A one time only experience and one that proves the never-skimp-on-food rule.

Most: At close to 2:00pm, Rosie and I walked in the doors of Tokyu Hands in Shinsaibashi. Our initial aim was to simply have a look, but as it turned out we could have our watch batteries replaced while we browsed. The vast array of goods included watches, backpacks, homewear, beauty products, stationary, craft and hobby supplies. The most interesting floor was the hobby and craft section which was full of nerdy guys inspecting train sets. Close to the astronomical instruments were a shelf-full of fossils. I was mose impressed by the dinosaur bones and the teeth from a mosasaur (right). I wonder if Australian customs would let bring a large trilobite back - it might just be worth a try.