kick me in the crunch berries

here it is the 2nd of july, but it don't matter until it is the 2nd in france, cause that is where Le Tour is, and it starts on the 2nd, yay. now that lance armstrong is riding, it seems americans finally kind of care about cycling, so that is one good thing that came out of it. once he stops racing, i assume the majority will no longer care, but those of us who watched Le Tour before lance will continue well after he is gone. damn i wish i had the outdoor life network channel. anyway, the Giro d' Italia (italian tour) is a way cooler race, cause it's in italy. still...Vive Le Tour!!!!!!!

i went to the waterfall as i said i would, and although it was raining, it was still quite beautiful. the gray light of the sky was filtered through the vibrant green of the wet leaves, the rush of the water was echoing off the rocks, i was wrapped in the smell of wet earth. i could imagine zen monks sitting there practising thier meditation, which is what that place was, an old training place for monks. the cool thing is, although there is a (very small) sign on the side of the road about it, it is empty of people, totally void of humans, which is strange in japan. the small shrine house for ancestors that is there was freshly stocked with piles of salt and inside was a fresh basket of crackers and doritos (i assume the ancestors love the cool ranch flavor?), so people tend the area, but the two times i've been there, i was the only one. it was serene, and wonderful. of course, the batteries on my camera went dead as soon as i turned it on for the first picture, so, there is that then. no pics, sorry.

i was supposed to go to Nikko, an over touristed place chock full o' temples and beautiful things (google it, you'll see). i even recharged my camera bettery and was all sorts of ready to go, and the guy i was gonna go with flaked on me, so i didn't go. there is that then.

but that is ok, because i kinda didn't want to go, i had this wierd feeling about it, and i took it as a sign that i shouldn't have gone. no big deal, i guess, because in a few days, i will depart for vietnam and cambodia to eat tasty food and see ankor wat and maybe not get kidnapped and ransomed and killed, which always puts a damper on a holiday.

so, i won't be writing here for a week or so, but i will make sure i have fresh batteries for the camera and lots o pics and as long as my plane doesn't crash and i don't get shot by khemers, i will come back and write all about it. i should be posting by the 15th. if i don't post by the 16th, i'm dead, just like luther vandross.