As 2017 came to a ridiculously fast, but inevitable, and frankly highly anticipated end (not that 2017 was a particularly awful year, but I like the idea of a “new” start too), 2018 began with a strangely motivated Monica, who, whilst breaking out of her creative rut, edited, and enjoyed editing, her footage from Kyoto.

While I’m wallowing a bit in self-pity because I had an amazing holiday in Japan, I managed to pull myself up by my good ol’ bootstraps and edit this video for you (and also me, like a little souvenir memory of sorts). I would also like to point you to the fact that I just used the phrase “pull yourself up by your bootstraps,” which may just be the most southern thing I’ve ever done.