for a change, something on my schedule other than to sleep late! i was meeting james for lunch in chinatown. i toyed with the idea of motorcycling into the city, but the weather, though it wasn't raining, was foggy enough that i decided it'd be better if i took the T. by the start of next year it'll cost $1.70 to ride the MBTA so i better take advantage of the "discounted" rate while i still can (currently it's $1.25 to ride the subways here).

i met james at suishiya, the place where i used to go to get great box lunch specials but now i know it as a good sushi spot. the last time i saw james he was still unwed and i asked him how his life is different now that he's been married for well over 3 weeks. he inquired what i was up to these days ("nothing" was my response) and we ruminated over the possibility that boston is heading into an economic slump as more independent shops and restaurants go out of business and the cost of working/living here gets more expensive every year (especially in light of the soon-to-be MBTA price increase). as for food, james ordered the sushi box lunch (surprisingly robust, maybe they finally learned their lesson and stopped skimping on the ingredients) while i had the godzilla maki roll. the godzilla roll is to die for and i was never quite the sushi lover until i tried it: avocado and imitation crab in the center, a layer of eel on top and sprinkled generously with multi-colored caviar. james ended up treating, which i felt a little embarassed about because i ordered the relatively more expensive meal ($17, thought i'd splurge), but i told him i'd pay the next time we lunch.

while james returned to work, i checked out the below ground fish pet store in chinatown, but everything seemed a little bit expensive, and i wasn't ready to buy any fish just yet. after getting a few grocery items for my aunt (who's manning the cafe since my parents are away), i took the train back to cambridge. though the weather remained foggy, i decided to risk it and ride the motorcyle to the allston petco to look for aquarium ornaments and live plants. the people who worked there seemed to have better things to do then help me out so i ended up getting a tube of artificially-preserved live aquatic fern (instead of something from the bubble tank). i also checked out the fish, making a mental note of possible candidates for my aquarium. instead of going straight home, i went to my parents' place to trade my bike for the car, since i'd need it tomorrow to pick up more cafe supplies for my aunt.

the foggy condition makes for great running weather, but i rationalized myself out of exercising for the day, deciding instead to set up the aquarium. first order of business was to wash the bag of fish tank gravel. i felt like i was panhandling for gold as i rinsed out the tiny stones in the tub. into the aquarium went the pebbles, followed by 7 gallons of water. i plugged in the filter and waited for the pump to draw enough water to start cycling. the water was cloudy from the remaining dust particle in the gravel, but it was sort of mesmerising watching the filter swirling the water around. at this rate, with already so much water movement, there's no need to buy an aerator to put more oxygen into the tank. throughout the night the tank would gradually get clearer and clearer.

i watched about half of weeds season 2 before deciding it was time for a hot soak in the bath. by then i had already had dinner, the fennel pork chops i made on saturday night. this week's issue of entertainment weekly never came so i have to go buy it from the newsstand tomorrow (it probably got delivered to a neighbor, who's taking advantage of my guilty pleasure).

back in the living room, lying on the couch under a blanket, i fell asleep after forcing myself to watch yet another episode of heroes. i've decided i don't really like that show, despite all the buzz. the problem is i don't like any of the characters, and i also don't like the serialized aspect of the show (a trend these days), like it's trying too hard to be the next lost, now that most people agree lost has become a crappy show (not that i really know or care, since i also don't follow lost). my serialized poison? jack bauer's 24. even prison break, which was great last season, has completely deteriorated this season (ever since they killed off robin tunney's character).