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CLOUDS AND SUN
The consumption tax increase next April will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people's financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the impact of the hike, experts say.
Every parent is all too familiar with The Tantrum. The screaming, the flailing arms, the angry head butting — and the timing (normally in the most inconvenient public place possible).
International events undermine Japan's democracy. Shame on the International Olympic Committee for being a party to it.
Tucked away behind the main museums in Ueno, the Tokyo University Art Museum may not be on most people’s radar, but it is definitely one of the city’s top museums in terms of curatorial quality. Whenever I go there, I am always delighted by ...
Francisco Liriano showed up at PNC Park on Tuesday afternoon in a suit with his suitcase packed for a trip St. Louis. The message reverberated through the Pittsburgh Pirates clubhouse. After 21 years away from the playoffs, it was time for the best story ...
A variety of queries from readers have arrived at Lifelines over the last few weeks, so we’ll address some of them in this column. • JL will be coming to Japan in the fall and wants to bring in several types of prescription psychotropic ...
Buying large shoes in Japan is a bit like trying to find a prime-time TV show that doesn’t feature at least one past or present member of AKB48: You know they exist, but it often takes perseverance and a measure of luck to track ...
Jo Ebisujima describes herself as “a hybrid of MacGyver and Martha Stewart.” In the popular American TV show “MacGyver,” which aired from 1985 to 1992, the hero gets himself out of sticky situations by constructing ingenious devices with everyday materials. Stewart, on the other ...
Life in Japan just seems tailor-made for certain foreign residents, who slip into the fabric of this society as smoothly as a hand slides into a glove. American Curtis Patterson, a professional koto player and music teacher, is a case in point. Not only ...
Candace Adachi is one of those people who can turn heads without even trying as she walks by. With a spring in her step and a dazzling smile to match, she radiates self-confidence and well-being, and it comes as no surprise to learn that ...
Today’s younger generation may be more used to getting their entertainment from the Internet or other high-tech sources than from the stage, but nothing can perhaps replace the magic of a live theater performance.
For the past year, Tokyo sixth-grader Manami has had dinner at home an average of four times a week. The rest of the time she has had to make do with a juku-ben, a boxed dinner prepared by her mother and consumed between classes ...
As international marriages rose in Japan in recent years, the number of bicultural families increased, and many children of such families are being raised to speak the languages of both parents. American Mary Nobuoka, director of the Bilingual Special Interest Group (B-SIG) and parent ...
Emotions during pregnancy and childbirth run the gamut, from excitement and trepidation to joy and even fear. Foreign women who find themselves pregnant in Japan may experience additional stress as they cope with cultural differences, language issues and being away from their own families. ...
For the next few weekends all over Japan, mothers will be up at dawn preparing elaborate bentō, while fathers toting plastic mats will set off to school to claim a prime spot (or perhaps vice versa in some households). It’s undōkai season! Undōkai is ...
Steven Morgan creates instant harmony with the wave of his hand. For 15 years, he has been conducting some of Tokyo’s leading English choirs, bringing the pleasure of choral music performances to both singers and audiences alike. Since 2009, Morgan has served as assistant ...
German Birgit Zorb-Serizawa has lived and worked on four continents in her career in special education, and she has spent many years providing opportunities and support for international families in Japan with special-needs children. She has also amassed an impressive collection of books during ...