It's been a hell of a month, really. I won't go into everything, but I had more than a few sleepless nights and more than enough scares to last me a good long while. I've learned some lessons and hopefully they'll help me on to something new, but in the meantime I guess I've neglected things here at Eastern Smooth a bit too long.

Constant readers will have noticed that we've suspended sales of Kanayama strops. This is not a good thing, but it's not as bad as people are naturally inclined to assume. It's beginning to look like we'll be able to start again soon, so that's one thing to be glad of.

And so we are coming to the close of the year. It's common to do a bit of reflection at times like this, consider the year past and what it brought us. Indeed, this has been a bit year for us--we moved from Blogger to this nifty new site, and got a lot bigger in terms of products and such. But really, I'd much rather think about what's to come.

One thing that will change, I think, is the frequency of posting around here. The simple reason for that is, I'm gettinc ut from a full time job to 10 hours of teaching a week so I'll have a LOT more time on the PC, and with the razors and stones...boredom alone is sure to drive me to trying some new things. I also hope to have some more meaningful things to say about Japanese stones both natural and artificial as I have some more time to do some serious testing.

But right now, as I enjoy some 20 days of unemployment with my wife, I think I'll focus on things less tangible and just let the season roll over me. New Year in Japan is lovely, really, like Christmas without the insanity. Cold weather and warm food and family together, enjoying some time away from the ratrace together.

So I hope, wherever you are and whomever you're with, you are safe and healthy and happy, and next year let's talk a spell.

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