Sorry it’s been all quiet on the Eastern front. I was travelling back from Japan to the UK.
Being in Japan and seeing how they interact with riichi always re-invigorates my motivation to continue working to spread the game in the West.
What I do find demotivating is how much I’ve forgotten since I was playing regularly in JPML league. I spent some time in the dojo and my results that day left a lot to be desired. After playing mostly in Europe over the past few years, I’ve lost the speed I used to have in reading discard pools, assessing my efficiency and value and all of the other things that go into the game of riichi.
Speed is definitely the toughest riichi skill to cultivate outside of Japan and I don’t see many options to do so apart from the fast tenhou games or other like-minded people who want to play fast.
That aside, I have a stack more of mahjong books to read through so the next few weeks of blogging will probably be me summarizing that information. If anyone is reading, look forward to it! ;)