Sneakers and Sushi

Yes, I really can make those two things exist in one blog post!

A couple weeks ago, I ran in my third (and what will probably be my last) Sapporo "Marathon" here in Japan. I say "marathon" because, in Japan, a running race is called a marathon (マラソン) no matter what the distance. Don't be fooled by large throngs of Japanese high schoolers who tell you they've completed a marathon. In this case, my marathon was a 10K:

Lady colleagues out for support...until the cold rain chased them away (which I totally don't blame them...who wants to watch people run for fun?):

This year there are no photos of me actually running (yay!), but have no fear...you can still get a view of my seemingly artificial white legs (a color quite revered here by the Japanese, thank you very much!):

So, the race was good, the weather was the perfect blend of overcast coldness that I love for physical activity, and I hopefully had a personal best as far as time goes! All around, not too shabby for my "retirement!" And I have to admit, I never really tire of casually telling people that I just ran a marathon.

In other healthy news: SUSHI!!!

One of the incredibly generous regulars at Jacob's restaurant gave us this beautiful gift of expensive sushi not only because he loves Jacob so much, but also because he hadn't seen me in quite awhile. Seriously! It HAD to be blogged:

Did you ever think that $150-$200 worth of raw fish in Japan could look so beautiful (and be so tasty)?

The generosity of its people. The variety of its marathons. The arrangement of its fish. Yes, this is a triad that I will definitely miss when it comes time to leave Japan.