Posts

April 17, 2022

Even after receiving my visa, I couldn’t get over the fear that my chance to travel to Japan would once again be yanked out from under my feet. In some ways this whole experience still feels unreal.

My trip to Japan was thankfully rather uneventful. I flew from Cincinnati (CVG) to Chicago (ORD), which only took 1.5 hours. After a 3 hour layover, however, the real challenge began. I then flew from Chicago straight to Tokyo (HND), which totaled just under 13 hours. Given the border restrictions, the plane was fairly vacant. I had an entire row of seats just to myself. The 13 hour flight was made at least a little easier by the fact that I was able to move and to recline without restriction.

March 29, 2022

It's been a while since I last sat down to write up a new post for this website. The last year or so has been a chaotic maelstrom between school and work, not to mention the effects of living in a world with COVID-19. For the time being, thankfully, things have slowed down. I thought I'd take the time to lay out where I am in life.

I'm an undergraduate mechanical engineering student studying at the University of Cincinnati. I'm on year 4 of the 5 year program and will be graduating in May 2023. The program lasts 5 years rather than the usual 4 due to the inclusion of alternating co-op semesters. I selected UC because I wanted to gain as much work experience as possible before I even obtain a degree.

July 28, 2021

I made my 2021 New Year's resolution to begin learning Japanese. It is now July and I am continuing to learn Japanese each day. I think this is the first New Year's resolution that I've actually stuck to. It's been hard to build up the habit and consistency of practicing Japanese each day, but I am proud of the point that I have reached.

While the best method to learn a new language entirely depends on the learner, I figured that I would detail what works for me. Up until July 6th, I had been entirely studying on my own. I am now taking an Extended Basic Japanese course through the University of Cincinnati in addition to studying 1.5 - 2 hours each day. The course is based off of the Genki I textbook and workbook. However, everything that I've done on my own has leveraged a variety of resources.

June 17, 2021

I had been having some issues getting my XZ550 to start and fortuitously stumbled upon a write-up about the YICS system through an archived version of XZ550.com. One of the tell-tale signs of a leaky YICS is a difficulty in starting the motorcycle. Another symptom is engine hunting at idle. I decided to write up this post to explain my process for repairing the YICS, there doesn't seem to be much information about the repair left on the internet.

The first step is diagnosing whether your YICS has an internal or external leak. Begin by removing only the screw holding down the chrome cover. To check for an internal leak, attach a length of hose to each port and blow. You should feel resistance. If you feel air coming out of the other hose, then you have an internal leak. To check for an external leak, plug one of the hoses, submerge the YICS in water, and blow through the open hose, making sure to test each port. If you see any bubbles, then there is an external leak in the YICS.