Tod’s leaving for a last-minute business trip tomorrow. He’ll be in Zurich for two weeks, in the wake of a big computer outage, interviewing developers and checking systems to make recommendations on ways to avoid similar situations in the future, but basically, he’s going to go show off his mad tech mojo and flex his studly problem-solving skills.

I’d like to go along, but I’m not. An economy-class ticket to Zurich is 350,000 yen (about $3,000). It’s a great opportunity to see Switzerland and venture out around Europe, but too expensive.

At first, I was disappointed. But now I am looking forward to two weeks of uninterrupted time to edit Hello Tokyo, drink too much coffee and be alone.

So if I’m not answering the phone, my e-mail, or the door, it’s because I’m plugged into my video software. Gomen, ne. I’ll still blog. Beginning on Sunday, I’ll post a daily progress report of the video. I expect that I will have it done by September 7th, when Tod returns.