My Father’s Shop
My father had a unique approach to business. He wasn’t a salesman, at least not in the traditional sense of…
A Canuck’s Guide to Staying Warm
Fall is in full swing in Japan. Finally we have been released from the insufferable temperatures and now…
栗ご飯Chestnut Rice
The temperature has started dropping and the autumn season is fast approaching. This means swapping out clothes, pulling…
Matsushima Ya: The Wonders of Miyagi-ken
Perhaps Miyagi’s most well-known denizen is the daimyo that founded Sendai, Date Masamune. His likeness can be observed in…
Sometime Last Week: Chapter 4
A Different Point of View The human is imbecilic. The human is dangerous. The human is beyond our help. Oh…
Shenanigans, Cliff Dives and Bagels: The Annual Hyogo Rafting Adventure
The annual Shikoku rafting trip has, over the past few years, become a permanent fixture in the Hyogo AJET…
The Nerd Cafes of Tokyo
With the (recent?) closure of Osaka’s Sailor Moon themed cafe, Cafe Talisman, I’ve needed to look elsewhere to get my…
WATN: Mike Bass (Shiga, 2006-2009)
“I Like Basketball and Tomatoes. See You!” I was an ALT in Otsu City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan (Lansing’s sister…
Penmanship
Recently, when I was visiting my godson, he was amazed by my daring, revolutionary and transgressive method of writing…