Unlike Me, The Dead Are Never Lonely

I've always been somewhat skeptical of these newfangled mental disorders that always seem to originate in the States. Yet I'm starting to wonder about SAD, which until recently always reminded me of a type of clown. The weather here on the Sea of Japan really can drag you down. There are occasional periods where cold rain falls for ten straight days. I mentioned before that this is my first full winter here in three years, and I've seen my mood darken steadily since late January. In splitting my week between the 'Nog and the Kyo, I thought I'd be able to enjoy the latter city's fairer (though cold) weather. But this week, I seemed to time the rain perfectly, and by today was pretty cranky.
The train ride home wasn't much help. I forgot that it was O-Higan, and everything was full. (Interesting to watch the demographics. College students on spring break de-trained in the cities, while the grave-visiting old timers chose the backwater stations.) My usual three hour-plus bus ride became five by train. I had three people change seats once they saw that I wasn't "from 'round dese parts." C'mon people. I showered, brushed, deodorized, and kept my volume at low levels and my eyes in my book. Time to face the future...

On the turntable: Tom Waits, "Swordfishtrombones"
On the nighttable: "Salon.com's Wanderlust"