The Invisible Enemy in the Air

My flatmate is one the nicest guys I've ever known and I don't want to diss him, but I've realised recently that I am actually living with the stereotype of someone obessed with something. In his case, it's karate. This is a good thing, because it's got me doing karate again after a six-year break and it's fun going to the dojo with him and meeting new people, none of which I would be doing if it weren't for him. And his obsession is paying off, because even though he's a green belt (about half-way to black), he's way better than many of the people above him.

But somehow I can't get over the bizarre novelty of living with someone who gets up in the morning and watches videos of karate first thing, actually rewinding and replaying certain moments several times over. Obviously I don't mind cos I have my own idiosyncracies which he doesn't hold against me.

So yes, my main idiosyncracy at the moment (and it looks like it's going to last some time) is my ongoing battle with the moisture in the air. The first thing I noticed when I got here is that the atmosphere is like a wet sponge. The pages in almost all of my books and magazines are going wavy as if I'd left them in the bathroom - some of my writing paper is so moist that it fucks up the felt pens that I use to write with; I'm having to go out and buy ballpoints. I have to hang my clothes up to dry in the living room/kitchen because I refuse to add yet more moisture to the air in my room. So I decided to buy a dehumidifier. This was not easy because it's winter and the Japanese seem to find this season dry!! They're actually selling humidifiers in the shops, which are a sight to behold: dozens of little machines filled with water which have twizzling little nozzles that spout out steam from the top. So of course I got funny looks when I asked for a dehumidifer, but luckily, of the very few they had in stock they had one that looks more like a Bose speaker and matches my iPod aesthetic very nicely.

That was ten days ago, and I emptied it for the first time yesterday. It hadn't been on all the time and yet it had accumulated about two pints' worth of water - just from the air!!??