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Expat

Posts tagged under Expat.

Are You Too Comfortable? A Question To Consider

Updated on December 4, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
A farmworker strolls through vast fields, carrying trays of seedlings. Working hard, but peacefully alone, in watercolor.

It is easier to teach English than to care for a parent with dementia. Sometimes we choose the service that feels good over the service that actually costs us something.

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When You Get Good at Things You Never Felt Passionate About

Updated on December 9, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
A pair of worn, muddy work boots representing consistent effort and hard work.

I used to think passion had to come first. But after 505 days of Japanese practice, I realized I had it backwards. Here is why competence creates passion, not the other way around.

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When AI Summarizes Your Life (And You’re Not Sure If It’s Being Too Kind)

Updated on November 30, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Watercolor style illustration of a robotic AI hand shaking hands with a human hand

AI analyzed my life choices and I wasn’t sure if it was being too kind. From helicopter pilot to Japan teacher to farmer – do my decisions show purpose or drift?

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What Do You Hope Heaven Is Like?

Updated on November 25, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
An Angel standing in Heaven

I left my cat Simon behind when I moved to LA. My roommate said he used to call for me in my empty room. I hope he is the first one to greet me on the other side.

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The Balance Between Talking About Pain and Getting On With Life

Updated on December 23, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Shut up. Suit up. Show up. Sticker on fridge.

I have a slogan on my fridge: “Shut up. Suit up. Show up.” It reminds me that sometimes talking keeps you stuck, and action is the only way forward.

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Are You Trying to Turn Your Life Around? I Am!

Updated on November 25, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Watercolor Signpost Under Pastel Sky

I went from night shifts in the UK to flying helicopters in Florida. I know what it feels like to make the impossible happen. So why am I living paycheck to paycheck at 57?

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The Family Outsider: When You Love Them But Live Differently

Updated on December 3, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Watercolor of an older guy happily video chatting with relatives on a smartphone

My sister sent a photo of her and my dad eating at McDonald’s. It reminded me of everything I am missing. But it also made me realize something else: I am the family outsider.

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It’s All Relative (But Is That Comfort or Cop-Out?)

Updated on December 23, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Watercolor of a middle-aged guy cycling to his farming job in the pouring rain. He's wet but content. It's all relative.

Yesterday, I cycled to work in the pouring rain. At 56, it felt both liberating and slightly absurd. Part of me felt like a happy kid. Another part wondered if this is “failure to launch.”

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It’s Okay to Be Broken (Sometimes That’s When Love Looks Most Real)

Updated on December 23, 2025by OldDogZeroTricks
Watercolor of a red broken heart, expressing themes of pain and loss.

We said goodbye with a fist bump in the rain. Twenty years reduced to a simple gesture. She knew it was the right ending. I was just trying to survive it.

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