Phew, we did it, we made it to another Christmas in Japan. Well done reader, I know it was hard, and I’m proud of you.

This week was split between Nagoya and Tokyo.

What did we learn this week? 🤔

• Firstly: Don’t share a tatami room with someone who is sick. I had a sniffly nose for the duration.
• Secondly: KFC is kinda bland, and even if you’re able to pick the fabled “Party Barrel” up last minute, it really isn’t worth your while. I was right to dodge it last year.
• Thirdly: Karaoke snack bars are the place to be, and you absolutely must make friends with the hostess. Meanwhile karaoke open bars are more of a gamble, and making friends here is optional.
• Fourthly: Quite a lot about how to architect a workflow engine, and how approval flows work in Japanese companies.
• Finally: Bucyo Coffee do the best モーニング in Nagoya, and you’d better play by the Bucyo’s rules.

What else went on? 🤔

• Invented a cocktail that RM would approve of, but it would horrify AG. Sorry lxds.
• Some very good 1:1s this week.
• My objectives/expectations for next year now include me learning to sing Candy Tune’s Fight. When I agreed to this, it didn't seem to have many words. Is this what regret feels like?
• I really enjoyed working from the Nagoya branch office for a few days, since it's pretty small. I haven't worked in such an intimate environment since the early days of the Specialist in Sofia, and I forgot how nice an experience it it is when the entire office heads out to lunch.
• There's pretty good hot chocolate there too, or so I'm told.
• On Christmas day, I worked from home, and as background noise put on nine lessons & carols from a variety of British minsters and cathedrals. It helped a bit with setting a festive atmosphere. If you’re noticing that this is a mere bullet-point in my notes, that’s kiiiiind-of what celebrating Christmas in Japan is like?
• Fusion speedrun ended badly. sob sob.
• Texted nearly my entire address book with semi-personalised Christmas messages, and nearly everybody replied, which also helped with the atmosphere.
• Closed the work-year at sake club where I learned a few new words and made some new friends.
• Closed the busy era, or at least, tried to, my todo list is still quite long.
• And, closing these notes, as I introspect on the most change, people and distance I have ever experienced in a single calendar year, I keep coming back to the same few intrusive thoughts.
• Don’t worry, I’ve learned from my mistakes this year.