One of the bonuses to getting a visa and all that is that i now get to try and change the registration and ownership on a car from someone else to me. this is such a hassle over here in the birthplace of bureaucracy, that people who buy cars, either from a dealership or from a friend, hire a middleman to change it for them. as a testimony to the amount of red tape involved, the fee for this is usually in excess of $150. it is not necessary to hire some third party, but every person i know who has changed the registration and plates and everything themselves tells me it's worth every yen of it.

Before i can even do that, though, i have to own the car. and before i can do that, i have to have proof of parking. that's right- i have to prove to the police that i have a parking spot. i went and got the paperwork today. on of the pages is largely blank, and on one half i get to draw a map of my neighborhood, as close to scale as possible, and on the other half i have to zoom in on my house and give accurate measurements of my parking spot. i have to turn that back in to the police, and a few days later, i'm told, they will come by in a little patrol car and check to see that the information is correct, and give me an official "certificate of parking", and a coupon for sushi.

i wish. sushi would be nice.