It’s come to my attention that this site has been neglected for the last few years. I think I’m averaging 1~2 posts per year for the last few years. I’m not sure that’s going to change anytime soon, but at least I can take a moment to catch anyone who is still interested up.

Last year, I had my first encounter with death.
One of my friends from college passed away from leukemia. A lot has changed from that experience. First of all, I want to say that Brian (yeah, his name was the same as mine, but spelled wrong) was the best of our circle of friends. He was the person who kept everyone together. He is the one who planned all the outings and events, and he did everything he could to maintain all the relationships. His last birthday was February 8, 2022. We sent a few emails back and forth, and everything seemed great. The next thing I heard about him was from a mutual friend that he had passed.

That was a tough message to read. For a few days, everything in my life stopped. I really couldn’t think clearly. He was younger and a better person than I have ever been. He was the first person who visited me in Japan from the states. I was really looking forward to introducing him to my family, but now he’s gone, and we’ll never have the chance to enjoy his light again.

It’s only a year later that I’m even able to talk about it, and I honestly don’t know why I’m brining it up. That’s not what I set out to do when I sat down at my keyboard.

Good luck my friend in your final adventure.

Since then, a lot has changed in my life.
His death was a loss for the world, but I hope that I can do a little more to hope to add even a fraction of what has been lost.

I have reaffirmed that I will not waste time. I’ve continued to expand my responsibilities at work, and also my family.
In February, Ryu was born. He is the happiest and cutest little guy that you’ve ever seen. He’s certainly a handful. He gets that from me, but he’s also kind and sweet. That’s from his mom.
Here are some photos (his first 6 months): Baby Ryu’s First 6 Months

I think I’ll leave it with that.
More later (hopefully sooner, rather than too much later)

~B