Olympick Your Battles (with Rochelle Kopp)

Rochelle Kopp tackles the question of whether or not Japan has finally crossed the Rubicon when it comes to going forward with the Olympics? If they have, we hope they checked out the really nice Rubicon River Cruise while they were in the area.

Ollie takes a river cruise that lets you play the second most dangerous game.

Bobby withdraws his name from consideration for something that he probably wasn't being considered for.

Topics discussed on this episode range from:

How to Get in Shape to reintegrate into Japanese work societyWhat Rochelle gets for being our most frequent guestBrian's cat hair consumptionThe cat that shut down Fukuoka's highwayThe cat that almost got Ollie arrestedAnother cat story with no real endingWhy Ollie's cat is in a better legal position than he isHow an owner's culture affects pet behaviorWhether or not Ollie is funny, and how the question affects his ability to be funnyJBRC Press Club reporting on Kirin's home beer dispenser from @PaulJNadeau and @olofhellmanWHY THE OLYMPICS HAVEN'T BEEN STOPPED YET (Other than the financial obligations to the IOC)What shape the Olympics are going to have to take to be able to be heldWhat the IOC really cares about in terms of having the Olympics happenThe overseas spectator mess and the cost of refunding their ticketsHow the lack of overseas spectators might be the perfect opportunity for some very unique Japanese people to shineWhat are the financial consequences of not being able to recoup Olympic spending through tourism dollarsHow Japanese taxpayers feel about funding this money pitThe optics around letting Olympians in and not visa holdersHow far we've come from the cultural moment when Japan being awarded the Olympics, and the subsequent wave of "The world loves Japan" mediaWhat media trends Japan's horrible public missteps might inspireHow Japanese organizational decision making can explain how things have unfolded with the Olympics, plus how other cultures might have approached the same processHow the Japanese concept of "kaizen" (continuous improvement) actually gets implementedHow Japan might put to use the lessons it's learned here during their NEXT Olympic hosting turn (LMAO)The inertia that's been built up to the point where Japan is actually taking steps to DO the Olympics nowThe people who are stepping up by stepping downThe odds of the Olympics being called off at this pointHow Japan could still make their Olympic critics eat their words

The extras this week are a random recap of all kinds of catch-up with Rochelle, and are well worth a listen, especially if you like us.

Topics Discussed on the Extras:

Rochelle's exhausting move to TokyoOllie's Japan moving advice, including don't move during "moving season"How far away Tokyo and Fukuoka really are Ted LassoScrolling to pick your country out of a menu option listFiling US taxes from Japan and why Taxes for Expats SUCKSOllie's accountants got hackedWhy Ollie's burrito shop did better by him than his accountant did, and how he's repaid the favorRochelle comparing pandemic Tokyo to Fukuoka and Tokyo back in the day when she used to live thereHow her quarantine is holding upHow Ollie and Bobby's Japanese stand up comedy changed someone's life

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Social Media Links:

Rochelle Kopp: Twitter | Homepage

Ollie Horn: Twitter | Instagram
Bobby Judo: Twitter | Instagram | YouTube

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