A bilingual Mandarin and English episode filled with Christmas nonsense, food talk, and some heavier life planning.

We talk about UK food labels, sugar overload, and why buying cheese feels like a health exam. Then we drift into real life. Stress. Pressure. Planning the next five to ten years. And why that feels very different when you have kids, bills, and responsibilities.

Tom talks through moving to Taiwan with almost no plan. Ula talks about goals and why planning triggers old student stress. We look at how to balance enjoying the moment with taking care of future you.

If you want to practise listening to natural Mandarin and English in a real conversation, this episode is perfect.

You can book a free trial lesson at mandarinmonkey.com.

Send your emails for the Friday mailbag to [email protected].

CHAPTERS

0:00 Intro

0:33 Christmas, turkeys, and the turducken problem

2:20 Giblets, guts, and Taiwanese menus

3:40 UK Christmas decorations and candy canes

5:15 Sugar, food labels, and supermarket misery

7:30 Comparing food labels in Taiwan and the UK

8:20 Sleeping positions and being the big spoon

10:50 Christmas hats, hoodies, and decorating the house

11:24 The smoke machine debate

12:40 Christmas lights and buying more nonsense

13:48 Teaching our daughter Mandarin

14:50 Talking about old homes and old decisions

16:10 How planning shapes the next 10 years

18:00 What peace, fun, and goals mean

20:00 Moving to Taiwan with no plan

22:30 Making mistakes when you’re young

24:40 Why planning feels heavier as an adult

27:00 Arriving in Taiwan with total freedom

30:00 Mixing living in the moment with long-term goals

33:00 Having things to look forward to

35:00 December Hangouts and lesson schedule

36:00 How to book lessons and send mailbag emails

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