Each summer when I have been in Kazan, my apartment has been without hot water for a period of time. I wondered whether it would be the same here in Bishkek. When I arrived, I was told that the summer maintenance of the water system had already been completed, which means I have hot water all summer. I'm quite pleased. Nothing reinforces my sense of well-being quite like a hot shower.

Today I did laundry for the first time in this apartment. Considering the state of the apartment's furniture, etc., I had worried about the washer's functionality. It worked great. It's one of those small front-loaders. The amount of water they use seems significantly less than our American top-loaders, which makes good environmental sense.

My brother is a frequent world-traveller. He mentioned to me the other day that melatonin helps him more rapidly adjust when he is dealing with jet lag. I'm not a fan of using non-medical herbs, but my jet lag is still a bear. I'll start going to the gym on Monday. Hopefully the elliptical running machine will exhaust me enough to finish the adjustment. If not, I may have to seek out the melatonin.