New Year Catch Up

So, I succeeded in expressly doing the opposite of what I said I would do this time last year, which was to be more active. In fact, other than the occasional peak, I haven't visited here at all since around the beginning of August. And I should even be here now since, since this is the busiest time of year for me, but here I am nonetheless.

So, first, apologies to all, especially if I left you hanging for a reply.

Not much has been going on outside the soul-stealing abyss that is accountancy. Only two big changes, even in all these months.

First and foremost, after years of not having a pet, I now have a cat - a grey tabby kitten named Oliver, from Dickens' "Oliver Twist". His mother was a stray who ended up having her kittens in my back yard in September; but unfortunately Oliver is the only survivor of the litter. While the other kittens were alive, he was very standoffish, but (because of loneliness, maybe?) within a few days of his siblings' deaths (from fading kitten syndrome or poisoning, since it was close to Halloween?) he was trying to break into the house any way he could. We gave up finally, and now he's a full time inside cat. And a very good one too: he has not touched the tree once since we put it up.

Secondly, I have applied for the Japan Exchange Teaching (JET) program sponsored by the Japanese government, to become an English language instructor for a year beginning in July. Most of my friends think I'm crazy, but accountancy isn't really an interest of mine (I went to school for Finance); it's just that even failing companies need accountants, so it's been something to do since I graduated in the low point of the Great Recession. But I didn't really think about language instruction until a met with a friend from high school, who is an instructor in Vietnam. It interested me, and if JET goes well, I look towards formal certifications in EFL/ESL language instruction. Anyway, the results of the first application round are due this month, so wish me luck.

I realize that I am behind on viewing and responding to the things you've all done in the past few months, so, again apologies, expect a barrage of me catching up with all of you.