So lovely to hear the update - I have been thinking about you and wondering how you are doing.
Thank you! We were going to have a thread about Mormonism Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saintism but then I got really busy. I may still do that once things settle down. It would be really interesting to hear your perspective on things.
Thanks! How is Hawaii treating you? Do you suddenly have many more friends now? My buddy said he was never as popular as when he retired there.
Like most expats, there is a love-hate relationship with the adopted country. Some things I really like about Japan and some things annoy the hell out of me, but I’d feel that way about anywhere.
Work related conversations in Japan take two to 12 times as long as anywhere else. After you apologize for eight random things you hint about what you are going to say, wait for the all clear to discuss signal then say 3/4 of it, wait for the person to confirm then finish.
Well, slight exaggeration, but only barely.
It feels like there is as much of a cultural difference between Japan and Taiwan as between America and either one but maybe that’s because I haven’t lived in the States for a long time.
We are! Unfortunately, all the sticky thoughts people sent 14 years ago have remained and left one very stubborn adolescent, but we’re doing well.
Luckily, we have a break between when we arrived and when we have to start school and when my job starts. Moving sucks and it takes a long time to get everything settled in.
Because shipping costs have skyrocketed, we decided to not ship our furniture so we’ve been replacing things. All these things take time.