Hi Mom, I’m not coming home for Christmas this year. Don’t overthink it. See u when I see u.

Figure it out or go home. The mental health issues could be about cultural cognitive dissonance, especially as part of the culture shock cycle. Physical health, you have clinics.

Maybe have a canine Korean BBQ for your friends back home before you leave. Good event to celebrate your adventure and frees you from the bonds of karma.

First, ditch the dogs if you want to move abroad. You can get more dogs overseas. Hard to accept, but dogs are not kids. Phnom Penh is my first choice these days, followed by KL or Osaka. 10 years ago, those choices would have been Chengdu and Chengdu—best food in the universe.

Why not try? Americans are the most annoyingly admirers of British people and accents. If you can sort out your visa, you’ll find more nutty people that will let you do anything you want with that accent. We’re crazy like that.

Let’s see you speak with your hands. That’s a fundamental requirement to being Italian.

Absolutely! Not happy? Go home and back to the farm. Geez, all these people looking for credibility of their choices. Make your choice, make it happen, or don’t. Haha.

Doesn’t efficiency come with bureaucratic? Or at least strict rules/policies in order to be efficient? Freedom to do what you want requires less bureaucracy or more?

Yep, that is a solid insight. What is fascinating about working globally is that while we always hope others appreciate our cultures and who we are as individuals, the species of homo sapiens—like mallard ducks, humpback whales, and western diamondbacks rattlesnakes—are just animals. And we are always surprised by our collective inability to be anything other than what we are.

Just travel to Netherlands on some trips. Fun! But you may not like living there, and Texas is a pretty darn good place to live. But we never know that until we try others. Traveling there for longer trips can give you a good sense. You’ll likely not make many friends there. People stay within their orbit and not interested in becoming friends with foreigners—most of Western Europe is like that.

Of course the USA. That’s why honestly, it is the best place to work in the world. And this is coming from a China guy who worked and lived around the world for 30 years or so.

After 30+ years of adventure and prosperity living in Asia, I’m actually headed back to my home country. It’s a great life, indeed.

Canada looks like a great option and path of least resistance with your child.

Good man. It opens doors. I even use my Irish accent when I need an edge. Thanks to my grandparents.

Have you been to Slago or Belfast? Oh my, we Irishman can make Americans look like prima donnas.

Hey, being Irish and playing it up works better in the US than any other cultural background. French? Nope. Spanish? Not quite. German? Rigid. But Irish? All love. Play it up. That’s what all of our relatives have done since the potato famine . 😀 ☘️

At 25. Hit a couple of banks in the US West with not the best choice of partners. One got caught, started singing about us. Got over the border to Mexico with the cash, found my way to Ecuador. Went legit to help companies develop low cost supply chains until the IRS started inquiring, then found my way to China, built factories, a lot of them, learned to read and speak Chinese. 25 years later, a completely different cat now in Vegas banging cocktail waitresses two at a time.