From a fairly early age, my two children have done modeling work. They've posed for clothing catalogs, appeared on magazine covers and in J-pop videos, rubbed elbows with TV celebrities. They aren't mini-supermodels or chaidoru (child idols) -- thank God -- just your garden-variety kid models.

My son and daughter are, in case you were wondering, "hafu" (literally "halves"). It's not the nicest term, but one that's regularly used to describe a genetic mix, in this case of East and West. (I'd prefer to call them "doubles," but whatever.) Yes, they are kawaii, which is what most people squeal when they see their big eyes and long eyelashes.

Of course, they are my pride and joy, but I don't carry 8 x 5 glossies of them or instantly bring them up in conversation. Hence the pen name above -- lest I be accused of trying to drum up publicity.