Have A Wonderful Christmas

Yes, it’s that time of the year again. Today is my last full day “in the office.” Tomorrow morning, I have a couple of Skype meetings, then a few emails to send and things to tidy up. Then, I’m taking a solid two week break. There will be one more article here next week, then I won’t be posting again until January 5.

It feels like a lot of folks are taking a longish break. Maybe it’s because of the way the dates fall this year. Here in Japan Christmas day is observed, but it isn’t a public holiday. However, the 23rd is a public holiday (Emperor’s Birthday) as is New Year’s day, with many businesses closed from the 31st of December to the 3rd of January, as New Year’s is an important family holiday for the Japanese.

A lot of people I know have been grinding away at the work pretty hard over 2014; some of them for quite a few years. We always hear the “I need a holiday” cry at this time of year, but it seems to be a little louder than normal right now.

However you choose to celebrate this time of year, I hope you find it to be a time full of rest, wonder and hope. Thank you for taking the time to read this blog and for all the comments, emails, tweets and messages during the year. I’m deeply thankful that you’ve taken the time to look in on my journey during 2014 and I look forward to offering you some great new stuff in 2015.