At long last, my bathroom is set up.

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Originally uploaded by Yage Danchi.

First, let me explain how the shower water works here. On the right is the boiler. There is one dial which you turn one notch and hold while turning a crank that makes alarming banging noises. Then release the original dial, and - bingo! Hot water. If successful, you should be able to see the pilot light come on in the little black window. There is another dial to adjust the amount of gas, and another even to adjust the temperature. Another controls whether it should come out of the bathtub or the shower, etc. Very complicated.

When I first moved in to my apartment, I had no way of cleaning myself. The bathtub was disgusting and had no drain stopper, and the shower hose disconnected from the water boiler (left) when the water was turned on. We had the gas man come take a look at the situation, and he said he wasn't sure he could fix the problem without replacing the whole boiler, which would cost roughly US$1500. Replacing the bathtub would be $400.

In the meantime, I showered in my Ozzie neighbor's apartment while he was away on business. The first morning was a disaster. I didn't know how to use the shower, and after cranking to no avail, I started to smell gas. I opened all the windows, threw on some clothes and ran outside barefoot. (Jeez, how much would it suck to die by shower in someone else's apartment my first month in Japan? Yeah, it wasn't particularly funny at the moment.) With the help of the only two people I could find - an eight-year-old neighbor and the Japanese equivalent of the UPS guy - we made sure the gas was turned off and UPS man called some people from town hall, who came and decided there was no smell of gas, but they had no idea how to make the shower work. Let's just say it was a pretty grimy first week.

My boss told me that there were no funds reserved for apartment upkeep, and I'd have to figure something out. I mentioned it to Mr. Nanahara, who apparently inspected the apartment and deemed it unacceptable. Funds appeard, and now I have everything up and running, including my dream bathtub (with plug!). It's so deep that when I sit in it, the water comes up to my chin. I can even reheat the water when it cools off! Beautiful.