My Annual Birthday (plus a week) Post

I haven't been in a 'produce content specifically for the blog mood' in awhile, which is nice for those of you who just like to look at pictures, but it was brought to my attention that I skipped out this year on my annual review of data on my birthday.  So let's do it a week late.

[fatter or more muscular?]

Birthday height: 181cm (71.25 inches, 5'11.25")

Birthday weight: 186kg (189 pounds)*

Files in my iStockphoto portfolio: 174

Downloads on iStockphoto: 264

Roundtrip airline trips in the last year: 3 (America, Tokyo Marathon, Hiroshima/Kyoto)

Marlin caught this year: 4 (I think)

Average number of hits on zamamienglishguide.com last year this time: 2-3/day

Average number of hits this year: ~30 (50% from Google, 33.5% from referring sites, 16.5% direct traffic)

I've just finished my fourth year and am entering my fifth and final year.  It's strange - the last couple months I have been a lot more unsure of that decision than I was when I made it in February.  I wouldn't say that I regret it - and I doubt that I will since I just passed through one of the tougher times of the year (for me) - but I got close.  I've seen/done most of what I want to see/do here and my mind has begun wandering off to everything out there in the rest of the world that I'd like to do.  I'm getting into dangerous 'feeling trapped' territory, but luckily I have a few things to keep my content.

I am working on a photo project which I will soon officially announce on the blog, but that is and will be taking up a lot of my time over the next year.  I'm excited about that because it makes me think about my life here from a slightly different perspective (one of recording it, which is a good way to remember this place by, I suppose).

I will be heading to America in a month for some hunting, then I'll jump into running season.  I have a couple races I'm interested in doing, but nothing even close to decided.  Going to Kyoto next spring for the cherry blossoms is on my ideas list, but otherwise I'll keep being an awesome teacher, plan for my successor and my next phase of life, take lots of photos, and continue sharing it all with you.

(I just reread last year's birthday post and here was the last line: Hopefully by next year the pictures I post to the blog will have gone from 'straight-out-of-the-camera' to 'wow!' Haha.. are you wowed?)

*I am not sure where those extra pounds came from as my clothes all fit the same and I have been running a lot more this year than normal at this time?  Does muscle weigh that much more than fat?