Still here...more or less.

I've had this blog for a long time, and the road it's built on was paved with good intentions.  My intent was to speak of my love for Japan, namely its rich culture, fascinating history, and odd, quirky charms.  I also intended to detail my efforts to travel there one day, something I claimed was my one big "dream", my one-item bucket list.

But, as with many things in life (not just mine), time slips away from you, priorities change, and reality rears its ugly, relentlessly logical head.  The "dream" of Japan still exists for me, and always will...but I've come to realize it will most likely be only that - a dream, not a reality.  The most I can hope for is maybe visiting the Japan-centric area of San Francisco, which I'm told is rather lovely and still rich in Japanese culture while still nestled within a major American city.  Until then, there are my occasional trips to Mitsuwa Marketplace, my many books about Japan, and a paper-thin line of hope that will forever exist despite the odds.

Anyway...

Lately I've felt an overwhelming need for a place to upload my brain.  I've come home every day from work filled with a maelstrom of thoughts that I can't off-load.  I'd do it on my Facebook account, but more and more I find that I have to censor myself there.  My wife, my friends and relatives, people who've known me for a long time are there...who better to share your thoughts with, right?  Well, not so much.  When I'm feeling melancholy, frustrated, or just plain pissed about something, I can't rage about it on Facebook without having people do one of the following:

1. worry about me more than they actually need to
2. Comment on how much worse they've got it than me (like it's some kind of freakin' competition!)
3. utterly ignore me

Those elements don't make for a comfortable forum to air one's grievances about life in general.  It's not that this blog will be much better a place.  Odds are almost no one will even read it and if they do, they won't respond to any of it.  But, that's not really the point.  I don't really care if another living soul reads any of what I have to say here; I just want a place to speak my mind without having someone bitch at me for it.  I'm not seeking counsel; I'm not looking for solutions to my problems, because the things I'll rage about here will most likely have no attainable solutions.  If anyone reading this WANTS to offer their thoughts, they're more than welcome to, but they will be doing so with the knowledge that I'm not soliciting for them.

My one objection is that I didn't create this blog for that purpose.  This was my place to gush lovingly about the beautiful, fascinating, and exciting country that I've longed to visit ever since I was a little boy.  However, with the hope of getting to Japan  fading ever further into the distance, it's time to branch out and use the space rather than let it sit in the World Wide Wasteland.

So, watch this space...or don't. ;-)  More is coming.