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November 22, 2024
 

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Amy Chavez

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Amy Chavez
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 2, 2002
Metal horse, stun gun: I'm ready to roll
I have always been hesitant to drive a car in Japan. I'm afraid I'll run over pedestrians. I'm from the countryside in Ohio, where we have no pedestrians, just possums and raccoons. You're allowed to run over them. Sure, I had seen pedestrians before, but they were always on signs. They never actually...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 23, 2002
Martha Stewart does a Japanese house
Today I will give Martha Stewart a tour of my house.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 16, 2002
'Couch rice' unwrap grains of wisdom
In the U.S., we have "couch potatoes." Japan has "couch rice." These sleepy little "onigiri" spend most of their time curled in the fetal position in front of the TV. Many of them are in my English Speech class at the university. Now that it's final exam time, the couch rice must break out of their safe...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 9, 2002
Ueda-san: busy staying home no more
On our island, the passage of time is measured in lives. With the passing away of my neighbor Ueda-san, I feel like a part of Japan has gone with her.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 2, 2002
Five ways to ensure classroom collapse
All the talk in Japan about classroom collapse, where teachers have lost control and students wander in and out, brings back memories of my junior high in the United States. There was no such thing as classroom collapse in those days. Instead, it was called normal.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 26, 2002
No snow tires allowed in your carry-on
Surely anyone who has tried to fly recently has found themselves mumbling, "Osama bin Ladin, you weenie!"
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 19, 2002
Who am I?
Traveler A: For my winter vacation, I tried to join the "Around the World in 60 Minutes" campaign tour but lost the lottery. So I booked a different package tour: five days and three nights in Thailand and Cambodia. The package included airfare, hotel and some meals.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 12, 2002
Time for an ant, frog and cement facial
Most university students I teach have part-time jobs. These girls aren't using their money to pay for school fees, though. They use it to buy new clothes and go to "estee" facial treatments, starting at 25,000 yen for five visits.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 5, 2002
The trucks and bolts of perfect massage
Anyone who has spent some time in Asia has become familiar with massage. You can get all kinds of massage here: Japanese "shiatsu," Chinese foot massage, Thai, Vietnamese and even Swedish massage. But all the different methods can be confusing. Let me set it straight for you.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 29, 2001
Kitchen tips for the year's leftover snake
It's the end of the Year of the Snake and you're wondering what to do with that pet snake you bought last year to celebrate. You have just three days left to dispose of Sammy so you can make room in that aquarium for next year's animal -- the horse.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 22, 2001
Finally, English made simple!
It would be nice if learning a foreign language were as simple as learning to drive. We ought to be able to buy a language manual, study the rules, practice a few weeks, and pass a test. But learning a foreign language, especially English, is far more complicated. Therefore, I propose we simplify the...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 15, 2001
Merii Kurisumasu ando guddo naito
Dear Santa,
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 8, 2001
Making central heating cool
It's wintertime and I'm huddled under the "kotatsu," the only square meter of heated space in the house. Sitting under the kotatsu is like grilling your limbs under a broiler or sticking your feet inside a toaster oven. I've taken on the two-tone look: blue upper body and red lower.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 1, 2001
Uses for the Japanese Proficiency Test
Tomorrow, foreigners from all over the world, from China to Mars, will be sitting for the Japanese Proficiency Test.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 24, 2001
Thank God it's Fwaiday
This morning I taught English at the Shiraishi kindergarten. Nothing like a little chaos for breakfast. This class is so active, I recommend teaching kindergartners as a way to lose weight. Just walking into the classroom, I can feel the calories leap from my thighs as they realize I will soon be engaged...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 17, 2001
The first step to happy marriage . . . zu
Today I bring you "Real Conversations From the English Classroom."
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 10, 2001
Exotic Japan found in mundane things
I had just purchased a sweat shirt at the Gap, picked up some shampoo at the Body Shop and ordered pizza from Pizza Hut when I received an e-mail saying: "You live in Japan? How exotic!"
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 3, 2001
Japanese relieve stress in strange ways
Westerners typically take a vacation to relieve stress. We might go to the Caribbean, lie on the beach, read trashy novels and sip cocktails. Not so the Japanese.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 27, 2001
Cars that levitate and suitcase houses
When you come to Japan, one thing you notice is shapes. Shapes are different here.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 20, 2001
The next tech boom: explosive electronics
Don't call me, fax me or ask me to watch TV. Don't even ask me to heat up a cup of water in the microwave. 'Cause I'm having a bad electronics month. Judgment Day has come for all the electronics in my house -- a collective kaput, consensual hara-kiri.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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