It's been almost a week now since I've fixed the old Honda Dio scooter that I rescued from the scrap heap in the basement of our work parking lot. It's been great! It's undoubtedly the most fun I've had in a long time. I can understand why people ride these things -- they are seriously fun! Whoever I talk to can scarcely believe that I was able to disassemble a scooter, fix it myself, and get it back together in working order. I'm not sure whether to feel proud or insulted. Do I look like the type of person who can't fix something? Or is it the Japanese cultural norm of scrapping anything that needs repair and just buy a new one? It seems that even many foreigners tend to adopt this philosophy here, which would certainly explain the awed and amazed looks on peoples' faces when they find out I can fix stuff!

The next step is going to be to find a scooter for Bonnie so we can both go places and ride together. It's no fun when only one of us has motorized transportation and the other is stuck with a crappy bike with only one gear. Maybe we can start taking some day trips to nearby towns and areas. It's not the most comfortable (or quickest) ride in the world, but it gets you around quite nicely for distances less than 15-20km.

Just for fun, I'm including some photos of my blue beast. They are HERE. I still haven't decided what to name her; I'm sure I will post that up here as soon as I have it figured out.