Leaving Japan/Going to California

Work finishes on Friday! Most people seem a bit more cheerful in the office now that the end is near, and this weekend should be a good time to celebrate this milestone with a party under the cherry blossoms. I may decide to go out even if it rains (a hanami party in the rain is truly underrated).
I’ve been in Japan for so long that I feel as comfortable over here as I did back at home. In spite of this, I’ve decided to return to Southern California. It will be nice to connect with old friends and relatives, and I am in dire need of a tan. The Japanese winter makes one pastier than a Canadian!
I wouldn’t mind living in Japan, and in fact, it’s still an option. However, if I were to do so, I wouldn’t want to continue being an ALT. Should I choose this path, I would first get my masters and then teach at a university.
As far as I can tell, the eikaiwa market (along with contracts for ALTs in the public school system) is slowly but steadily declining in regards to the quality of services provided and salary and benefits offered. If you are on the JET program, you are doing much better comparatively than those who came before you. If you are teaching in Japan and planning on staying, I highly recommend applying for JET (best-case scenario) so you don’t have to go through the hassle of working for a company (better-case scenario), a private or corporate eikaiwa company (worse-case scenario), or one of those notorious companies that have a high turnover rate of gaijin fresh off the plane (the worst-case scenario).
I’m planning on leaving on the 18th of April, but before that I will be taking a week long trip with my father around Kyushu. It will be nice to visit southern Japan again, the place that I consider my home away from home.
It will be nice to see everyone when I get back. See you soon!

Posted in Uncategorized

Asobo?

another_cute_puppy.jpg

Posted in Uncategorized

Hit and run

smoking_is_bad.JPG
These stickers are made by Japanese Tobacco (JT), who also runs a salt and tobacco museum up in Tokyo.
A few ads from a bygone era:
tengu_tobacco.jpg
peacock_cigs.jpg
(from here)

Posted in Uncategorized

Hankyu at night

hankyu_night01.jpghankyu_night02.jpg
I need a tripod!

Posted in Uncategorized

Chayamachi Fishtank Diver

fishtank_diver.jpg
At first, I thought that the diver and his spotter were performing some sort of perfomance art, and they kind of were. Amazingly, no one stopped to watch him except for me.
This guy also has to jump into tanks with giant Amazon catfish, sharks, and cichlids. It amuses me that the colorful ciclid tank likely poses the greatest risk to this diver (though it wouldn’t be amusing if any harm actually did come to him).

Posted in Uncategorized

Sky Building Mimicry

kita_bldg.jpg

Posted in Uncategorized

On the way to Kita

thewalkhome.JPG

Posted in Uncategorized

Vernal Equinox Richard Pryor Story

Friend of mine just lit a cigarette on my stove, and he got too close to the flame. Hair still smoking, he asked “Oh, what happened?”. Now it stinks like burnt ass in my mini kitchen.

Posted in Uncategorized

Red Jump Green Jump

green_jump.jpg
(Original picture courtesy of Justin)
This is dedicated to a fun, 3 hour hike in the rain with Justin and Taro, followed by a night of kushikatsu, drinking, karaoke, and onsening in Nara.
red_jump.jpg

Posted in Uncategorized

Tanuki Ponpoko

ponpoko.jpg
Ponpoko pon no pon is the onomotopoetic Japanese expression of how tanuki move. When I saw one running, I was impressed by the accuracy of which ponpoko pon no pon captures their wobbly gait.
Known erroneously as a “badger” or “raccoon” and more accurately as a “raccoon-dog”, Tanuki is the only word that fits this animal. The same goes for words like sushi, ramen (translated as Chinese noodle soup), tsukemono (Japanese pickles), miso (fermented soy bean paste), or samurai. The English translation takes something away from the native word by giving an unsatisfactory description.
Apparently, some people eat tanuki in the more rural areas. One of my brother?s friends from Tenri Daigaku described the meat as being gamy and tough. She said that a friend of her family came by the house and dropped off a parcel of meat, which they prepared in a miso-based broth. Miso, it was explained, is a good complementary base to use with gamy meat.
One of my friend?s grandfathers, who lives in Kita-Kyushu, is an avid huntsman. He regularly shoots tanuki but only keeps the fur. His daugher, my friend?s mother, makes the pelts into hats and other rustic clothing, which I like to think he wears on his hunting trips.
Recently I watched an excellent animation produced by Miyazaki Hayao called 平成狸合戦ぽんぽこ(Heisei Tanuki Gassen Ponpoko). At first glance I didn?t expect this anime to be anything that I would be interested in, but it actually deals with such serious issues as social, economic, and environmental problems, the chief one being urban sprawl in the Kanto region of Japan. I highly recommend this film to anyone who is interested in Japanese culture, folklore, or history, as it is bursting full of references to almost everything you can think of.
One thing that still alludes me about the tanuki is why udon with age on top is called tanuki udon, while putting this on top of soba makes it kitsune udon. Does anyone know anything about the history or lore dealing about these two popular meals?

Posted in Uncategorized