Sho mo nai!

Christmas Confusion

So presents are half of the stuff that I need to sort out way in advance of Xmas. The other half is just what the heck I'll do for xmas. The last two years I have gone and spent the new year's holiday at my friend Atsushi's family's place. It's been the best possible thing I could imagine doing because aside from the fact that we're good friends, he's a friend from home. True that he's from here, but I met him and got to know him in Winnipeg, so as far as Japan goes, he's from Winnipeg to me.

And of course you want to spend the holidays with someone from home.

This year, however, his grandfather died in the spring. That means that they will be spending New Year's this year, "Frugally and without celebration." Taking that into consideration I can understand that they wouldn't really want a visitor around at that time.
It could be really strange for them as a family, too, and the visitor could add undue tension.

And I'm not going to come back to Canada, either.
1. I don't want to lose the $1000 of savings
2. I'll be back just a few (9 or 10) months later
3. My family visited this year already, as did Tom.

Downsides of this decision:
1. I won't see my brother at all, who I really have no communication with throughout the year.
2. Phil Miners (and maybe Dan Mutch?) will be around, and who knows when my next chance to see them will be...
3. This could mean a cold lonely holiday in my apartment. Or at school?

Seeing as how I have gotten behind (read: lazy) on the whole renewing the passport thing, any travel out of country is probably improbable. So I'll be in Japan one way or the other, and given that the whole country shuts down over the New Year's holiday, any travel in the country is probably just a dumb idea unless it's to visit someone I know.

It also looks like the time I'll be leaving Japan next fall could cause me to miss up to three weddings. Boo-urns.

Maybe I should look into borrowing a ps2 for the vacation... at least that way I'd cease to notice the passage of time. And maybe even get some way backlogged gaming done.

Anybody have a ps2 I could borrow for the holidays?
Or games I should play? Or just suggestions for games I ought to play? I go for the rpgs mostly, maybe I should give ffX a second chance, hoping the japanese voice acting is good... or perhaps ico or a metal gear game. Really, I haven't played any ps2 games at all.

posted by Fletcher @ 10:23 p.m.