Meanwhile, back in Kobe...

Since returning from Tokyo, my last few days here in Kobe can be described much more simply...

- Unpacked and gave Mutsumi her gifts from Tokyo, which she enjoyed.
- Went out on Christmas Eve with Mutsumi and her mom and had a nice yakitori and raw chicken meal.
- Slept till noon on Christmas. Santa didn't come. :(
- Talked to my family over Skype as they drank and decorated the tree at my brother's house.
- Read the new issue on INC. mag and had some new branding and marketing ideas for 2009.
- After a few vivid dreams, started seriously self-analyzing and began a list of New Years Resolutions.
- Had a wonderful Christmas dinner with Mutsumi, her mom and my buddy Izumi.
- Then went out with an old friend we hadn't seen in 13 years. Spent the evening catching up and getting very drunk with him.
- Spent most of the 26th hungover.
- More self-reflection followed between naps and episodes of Battlestar Galactica Season 3.
- Got into an online fight with my mom, of all people. Worked it out over e-mail and Skype.
- Vowed to get more work done when I woke up on the 27th.
- Wrote more Astonishing Tales.
- Had a new screenplay idea I jotted down notes on.
- Read a fascinating article about the growing popularity of foreign pop culture in Taiwan, which gave me a few ideas of my own.
- Watched an entertaining series of Japanese coffee commercials starring Tommy Lee Jones on YouTube.
- Finished BSG Season 4.0, as well as Razor and all the webisodes.
- Went to a local game center to check things out.
- Had homemade katsu kare for dinner.
- Found and made gummy takoyaki. Pics soon.
- Read GQ's Men of Year issue.
- Realized I have never read a Philip Roth novel and want to change that.
- Talked to Tom Brevoort over Skype and got caught up on things at home and on the Marvel front.
- Found out my brother was hurt in a skiing accident but will be OK.
- Talked to my sister before she flew to Atlanta for New Years.
- Went out on the 28th for a nice Italian meal with Mutsumi's old high school friends.
- Watched the four women polish six bottles of wine between them.
- Hit a ramen joint at 1AM as everyone was still hungry.
- Ended the evening on a depressing note over a sad incident involving our taxi and a cat. :(
- Realized how much we miss Lotto and Clyde.
- Brother and sister-in-law flew home for the holidays today.
- Called out the owner of my local bakery on his love of Hall & Oates.
- Caught up on football scores and highlights over the internet. Go Dolphins!
- Spoke with my folks for a bit this morning about their year end plans.
- Sent out a few Tokyo thank you notes.
- Took a long, contemplative shower.
- Blogged, Twittered and Facebooked.
- Heading out for our first Japanese family dinner in over two years now.