Yesterday down in the Kansai area I took care of some business in the morning, then headed off to Osaka Municipal Gymnasium to watch the ninth day of the spring sumo tournament.  It was a fine day of matches with no real suprises.  I caught my first glimpse in person of Yamamotoyama, an upcoming wrestler who combines extraordinary girth (248 kilograms) with surprisingly agile technique.  In the box next to ours was a little boy, perhaps 20 months old, who was in love with Kisenosato (the boy has good taste in wrestlers) but who mostly wanted just to stand up and clap his hands together. 

   I got back to Tokyo late last night and reconnected with my family.  Today was spent at the National Diet Library, plus some quick visits to bookstores and CD shops to gather up some needed items.  Tonight, we're off to dinner at a restaurant we frequented when we lived here in 2005-2007, and tomorrow night we're off to a hotel near Narita airport.   We fly home to Chicago Thursday morning--whereupon I'll be swept up into the madhouse of the Association for Asian Studies Annual Meeting this weekend.   No rest for the wicked....