And how is the weather today, class?

Perhaps it was a mistake to complain about the snow last week-- because it's only picked up since. Did I say the snow was too great in quantity for my first, non-dump snow shovel? I accidentally snapped its head off on Thursday.

A night scene on the way back from Higashi, my short drive home. 

My staffroom contacts assert that things are worse than they should be at this time of year-- and though I doubted at first, lately even the mighty Japan Rail network has been hobbled by the weather: Although shinkansen service to Tokyo and points south continued as normal, the little two-car dinkies of the Oga Line were running (with five minute delays!) on a restricted schedule on Saturday, an event of such magnitude that Kenny was summoned to evacuate his country girlfriend from her city job, and I overheard local tongues wagging in Oga as if the Earth had suddenly reversed in its orbit. Did I lightly accuse the Japanese of leaning too heavily on the weather as a topic of conversation when first I came here? In Akita, they're entitled to it!