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May 16, 2024
 

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JAPAN LITE

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 6, 2012
Teaching compassion for all living things
As the distinguished gaijin on the island (ie: the only foreigner here), the Shiraishi Island Elementary school asked me to come and give a speech to third- and fourth-year students. All four of them.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 29, 2012
Pro tips on how to act like a native Japanese
This column is for Kim Bostwick, who is moving to Japan this week. I've made a list of pertinent things to know for her smooth transition into Japanese culture. Do these things, and people will mistake you for a native Japanese:
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 22, 2012
Japanese as a second body language
Continuing a lifetime study of how the Japanese can be so darn polite, today we look at body language.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 15, 2012
Bone up on your tax audit ninjutsu to fight back
Our island of 602 people has a PA system that is used to make important public announcements. While these announcements usually concern typhoon warnings, ferry cancellations and funeral announcements, the PA system is not limited to these. Temple ceremonies are announced too, such as Buddha's birthday and the anniversary of his passing into Nirvana.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 8, 2012
Do you overestimate your dental IQ?
I really feel sorry for dentists because they have to deal with difficult patients, especially those who have inflated ideas about their own dental IQ.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 1, 2012
You can swim even after O-bon — the truth about jellyfish
Despite the temperature being hot as blazes, mid-August is still considered the end of the swimming season in Japan. In our area of the Seto Inland Sea, it used to be said that after O-bon (around Aug. 15) the enko (sea nymphs) come out and can grab your legs and pull you down under the water to drown you. But these days the Japanese have abandoned that old-fashioned myth for the new-fashioned one — that the jellyfish come out after O-bon. So no one in their right mind would go swimming now.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 25, 2012
Veterinary clinics for the rich and famous pets
I walked into the veterinarian's office with my disgruntled cat. I'd been worried about my cat for a week already. Her health was steadily declining and I knew something was seriously wrong when the 4 a.m. Kitty Alarm stopped going off — that feline screeching that takes place outside the door to our bedroom every morning announcing the start of the day. In our house, if that cat's up, we're all up.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 18, 2012
Japan's career fairies — they're ready to help you
One job that exists in Japan that doesn't in my country is that of the career fairy. These are people, usually women, who work at places like the central post office or the bank and are on hand to help customers as they walk in the door. And as a customer, of course you need help.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 11, 2012
Who can afford a day on the beach?
"We went to the beach on the mainland," said a foreign friend, "and it wasn't very nice."
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 4, 2012
Cataclysmic circumstances lead to neko strike
Fed up with long working hours, minimal job security and paltry remuneration in Japan's depressed economy, maneki neko cats all over Japan are going on strike.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 28, 2012
Conversation with the long-haired shamisen cat
When my cat turned 13 recently, I knew it was time for the dreaded "cat discussion." You know, the one where you tell them about the happy hunting ground in the sky. Since cats usually die before their owners do, it's tough for me to be the one to suggest that she be optimistic. I told her about cat heaven, where there would be unlimited bonito flake buffets and I told her about the extended family waiting for her, from little runts to lion king ancestors.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 21, 2012
Raw beef liver not alone in Japan's big menu of extreme foods
The ban on serving raw beef liver at restaurants in Japan is a small victory for the bovine community. The question now is, will this cause a black market to fill the gap? Could mere cow tipping turn into liver-stealing? Will we have little yatai restaurants inside pastures with cows on display the way some sashimi restaurants have tanks of live fish? Go ahead, choose your cow liver.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 14, 2012
Why we came to Japan — a different realm
"Why did you come to Japan?" We've all been asked this question. I still can't give a good answer.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 7, 2012
The price you pay for electronic bells and whistles of businesses
The setsuden (power-saving) campaign is now in full force, as residents all over Japan are being encouraged to conserve electricity so there is enough to get through the high-use summer months. Even on my small island of 609 people, each household received a list of suggestions on how we can help Japan save energy.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 30, 2012
The toad tax and other ways to raise money
Read my lips: no new taxes! Just old ones raised.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 23, 2012
The most exciting season
Welcome to the rainy season. Welcome to the invasion of insects! Contrary to what most people will tell you, I think the rainy season is the most exciting part of the year in Japan. Believe me, you're gonna see plenty of strange things. Every June, I'm filled with unbridled curiosity of what new, never-seen-before creature is going to come out of nowhere.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 16, 2012
The midlife crisis hotline — dreams to fulfill before you get too old?
I've recently been reading books about athletes. Lance Armstrong's "It's Not About the Bike," Andre Agassi's "Open," and more recently, Scott Jurek's "Eat and Run." All these books are memoirs, but they have something less obvious in common. They all had ghostwriters.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 9, 2012
Anti-aging tips for the elderly — don't let the society age you
I can never remember my mother being younger than 50. I'm sure she was born 50, and married my father at 60. Then they went to a store and bought me when they were both 63.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jun 2, 2012
A 100-mile race — it keeps you runnin'
Paul Walsh has just finished running 156 km. For fun. Around the bottom of Mount Fuji.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
May 26, 2012
See Japan by car? Well, it does sort of make sense
As I started to plan our trip to Mount Fuji from Okayama, I was met with obstacles at every turn. The local trains would take too long, the shinkansen would be too expensive and not direct enough, and to take the express bus, we'd have to go to Osaka first, wait a few hours for the next overnight and then sleep on the bus overnight. Or my husband and I could rent a car and drive the 10 hours to Mount Fuji.
Japanese stripper bids to have her porn movies taken off internet
Plaintiff Miyuki Ariga (left) speaks at a news conference along with her lawyer, Yoshitomo Morohashi, after filing a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
In Japan, 68,000 people over 65 projected to die alone at home this year
As Japan grapples with its population's rapid aging, supporting people who live and age alone is looming larger on the policy agenda.
Kishida defends planned rule to revoke foreigners' residency
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks during a meeting of the Lower House Judicial Affairs Committee on Wednesday.
Japan concerned over U.S. officials' remarks on atomic bombings
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham speaks to reporters during a news conference in Washington on Thursday.
Was Onosato's defeat of Terunofuji an era-defining bout?
Onosato (right) defeats Terunofuji at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo on May 12. While nothing in sumo is guaranteed, it seems almost inevitable that Onosato is destined for the top of the sport's pyramid.
New Taiwan president to set tone for ties with China at inauguration
Taiwan President-elect Lai Ching-te arrives at the CyberSec 2024 Exhibition in Taipei on Wednesday.
Ishin struggles to set itself apart from other parties
Nippon Ishin no Kai Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita (right) speaks beside Yui Kanazawa, the party's candidate in the Tokyo 15th district by-election on April 28. Nippon Ishin lost in this by-election as well as another in Nagasaki held on the same day.
In Japan, 68,000 people over 65 projected to die alone at home this year
As Japan grapples with its population's rapid aging, supporting people who live and age alone is looming larger on the policy agenda.
In a rare event, the Northern Lights show up in Hokkaido
The Northern Lights in Nayoro, Hokkaido, on Saturday
Is black the new green for Japan’s flagging tea farmers?
George Guttridge-Smith brews tea at Kyoto Obubu Tea Farm in Wazuka, Kyoto Prefecture, where he serves as head of international development.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan
By Mai Yoshikawa

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Live like a lord or lady for a night at Ozu Castle
Live like a lord or lady for a night at Ozu Castle

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