This is the new flavor of Pringles I saw in the conbini the other day. Night Club, you say? Intriguing. I’ve always wanted a potato chip that tastes like cigarette smoke, tequila and desperation. How nice of the Japanese Pringles sector to predict my needs. Alas, friends. As I soon discovered, popping the top reveals […]
The Acquisition of Language
Un-wrappers’ Delight
January 8th was the 2-year anniversary of my move to Japan. Because it’s my third January here, I can now notice the common signs of the new year in Japan: bright and nippy weather, massive New Year’s sales, giggling 20 year-old girls clomping down the streets in vibrant kimonos on Coming of Age Day, bamboo […]
The Mystery of the Ubiquitous and Radiant Train Station Ad Model
She’s everywhere. Serene and regal, her image stalks me from ad posters plastered all over the walls of almost every commuter train station I pass through. She’s always photographed against iconic Japanese backgrounds: a serene temple surrounded by deer and cherry blossom trees, a ryokan inn heated by the steam of a nearby hot spring. […]
Once Bitten
From a student’s homework: My son practice the kendo, that is traditional Japanese sport using a wood sord [sic]. He always come home after practice with crying because he was bitten by his teacher for learning the Japanese samurai’s spirit. “For,” is a tricky beast, with about as many grammatical uses as an octopus has […]
Just Because
It’s rare for Japanese people to strike up a conversation with a complete stranger but, for some of the older generation, foreigners are outside of Japanese society and therefore not subject to its limits. They also haven’t figured out yet that foreigners are just like any one else who travels to a foreign country; be […]
Your 168-Word Mini Japanese Culture Lesson
“The Karate Kid” helped make it cool in America to use the Japanese honorific “san,” but Mr. Miyagi was only telling part of the story. The Japanese will often use honorifics at the end of someone’s name to designate their relation to themselves; “san” is just one such term. “San” is used for someone you […]
Rice Fever, Rice Fever … We Know How to Do It
I’ve got hay fever or cedar fever or rice husk fever, or whatever kind of allergies people in Japan get in the fall, so I’m sneezing often and powerfully. The Friday five year-olds laugh uncontrollably every time I let loose a storm of sneezes, and sassy Miho with the dimpled smirk and side pony is, […]
In Which I Alienate Half of My Readers
It must be done: the once-a-year Well Woman check up. My doctor – advertised as English-speaking – happens to have a sign in both Japanese and English in the ante room behind a heavy curtain. Automatically, my eyes went to the English first: Take off your shorts and assume the position. “Gulp” is right.
If
My father was born in Antigua, Guatemala, and grew up in the country’s capital. He and his friends made balls by wrapping pantyhose around a wadded-up newspaper core and played futbol for hours in their courtyards. They watched the garbage man collect the city’s refuse in a mule-drawn cart. They swiped candies from the corner […]
I Am Bob
Our Visas say we’re English teachers but we’re not; not really. He’s an engineer. She’s a photographer. Him over there? He’s having a little adventure before he starts med school. Yet we’re parsing the sentences. We’re highlighting the difference between “l” and “r.” We’re wearing the suits, cracking the textbooks, bribing children into behaving by […]