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July 16, 2024
 

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JAPAN LITE

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 6, 2003
Drive! Hokkaido! -- turn left at the cow
I decided to "Drive! Hokkaido!" as the brochures say. When I left the Sapporo airport in my rental car, I was amazed at the surrounding scenery. Wow -- trees! I was so excited, I started barking (a trick I learned from years of driving with a dog in the car back home).
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 29, 2003
East lies down with West in hotel room
Western-style hotels in Japan are a curious mix of East and West, leaving people feeling like their body has been pulled all the way to the East and back to the West several times.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 22, 2003
Don't let Cat from Hell out of the bag!
My veterinarian is known in town as the Vet from Hell but I still take my cat there because, you see, while he very well may be the Vet from Hell, I have the Cat from Hell. Whenever I take my cat to the vet, I wonder if it's really fair to expose him to the beast. She's almost as bad as a virus.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 15, 2003
Definitely don't go to this restaurant!
What would the Japanese do without all those magazines telling them what to do and where to go? There are fashion magazines with detailed instructions on how to apply eye makeup, recreational magazines that suggest "date courses" in which you take your date on a pre-planned route that includes a trendy...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 8, 2003
Lazy Invertebrate Consumption Medal
I just finished polishing off a plate of "iwashi" and "tsukudani," and frankly, I think I deserve a medal. Why? It took me over a decade to accomplish this feat! Iwashi is sardines. Tsukudani is, well, no one really knows. It's black, it kinda glistens, and has a dark but sweet taste. Even my dictionary,...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 1, 2003
Human slingshot flings herself overseas
Today I'll tell you my own experience with The Beckham Phenomenon, when Japanese women turn themselves into human slingshots and launch themselves at a man to get his attention. When a young Japanese woman wants a particular guy, get out of her way. Especially if that guy is a foreigner.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 25, 2003
I am Eiimi: a beautiful, excellent twig!
As promised, today I will translate names of foreigners into Japanese to reveal their true meanings. Since I did male names last time, I'll do female names this week. However, I decided to highlight famous women in order that we might find out a little more about them than we would ordinarily be allowed...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 18, 2003
Your fortune through name translation
Look at any list of foreign names written in "katakana" and you'll see that people's true names -- their identities -- are hidden behind unrecognizable clods of katakana. The name "Tim," for example, becomes "chee-moo." But by looking at the possible combined meanings of katakana spellings in Japanese...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 11, 2003
Dogs in Japan bow-wow before masters
Stray cats can be seen all over Japan: under parked cars, in alleyways, or in the parks being fed rice by "o-baa-chans." But you never see stray dogs. Why not? Is it the fault of Viagra? Cats are getting it but not dogs?
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Oct 4, 2003
'Good old Japan days' gone -- whew!
It used to be said that you know it's time to leave Japan when you start bowing on the phone. Have you been in Japan too long? Maybe. But to prevent you from becoming one of those old Japan-hands relenting the present and waxing lyrical about the past and the "good old Japan days," first tell me if you...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 27, 2003
Public baths: naked amusement parks
Want some culture? Go the "sento," or public bath. Not one of those fancy, remodeled ones, but an old, downtrodden one. The best sentos are found in old neighborhoods. Look at the people going in and out. No one should be under the age of 80. These people have been going to the sento their whole lives...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 20, 2003
Summer insect tourism slows to a crawl
Good morning, thanks for joining "Good Morning Insects!" for today's top news. My name is Goki Buri.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 13, 2003
You gotta have wa, and good chi as well
The front door to your house is where chi enters the home. So spruce up your front door with decorations to make it more inviting and to attract only good chi inside.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Sep 6, 2003
Drawing the line at the gentle bovine
Did you know that there's a dairy farm in Tokyo? Forty bovine residents live in Nerima Ward, where the city grew up around the Koizumi Bokujo diary farm. I myself, would be honored to have mooing neighbors. Especially as opposed to arguing spouses, screaming children and washing machines that start at...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 30, 2003
'Hari': acupuncture or body piercing?
I had already tried massage, but my back and shoulders were still hurting from a pinched nerve. So, I tried "hari." Hari is acupuncture. "Hari," also the Japanese word for needle, but with a different kanji, is almost always written in hiragana, perhaps to make it seem less threatening. I had spotted...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 23, 2003
Is Japan changing? Utterly, and not a bit
Japan is changing. Or is it? The young Japanese people are changing while the old Japanese are holding on to their traditions. Whether you witness the changes in Japan, and to what degree, largely depends on where you are.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 16, 2003
Friends, the biggest of Japanese ships
This summer I opened an "omiyage" shop on our local beach in an attempt to help promote Shiraishi Island.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 9, 2003
Bon preparation: something must die
Bon is when the spirits of the dead come back to their ancestral homes to visit. When I moved into my house, the grandfather's "ihai" (ancestral tablet) was still in the Butsudan (family shrine) and stayed there for years. I always enjoyed leaving sake, fruit and other offerings out for his return at...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Aug 2, 2003
A day at the beach -- Japanese style!
Today, we're going on a trip. Are you ready? OK, here's a list of things we'll need: a large vinyl ground sheet, portable picnic tables, a tent, boxed lunches, a cooler for the beer and a thermos for the cold tea. Have you guessed where we're going yet? No, not camping. A few more hints. We'll also need...
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jul 26, 2003
Japanese English: crime and punishment
Recently, I received some letters from readers criticizing me for making fun of Japanese English. These people said that this kind of humor has been "played to death" and, moreover, that Japanese English is "not interesting." Ha!
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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