Don’t you just hate it when you’re driving down the road, see an exciting-looking sign, then find out later that the place is not what you thought it was? That happened to me the first time I came to Japan, and today I had another chance to snap a picture of the building that raised my hopes before they were so expertly dashed by my wife….
03.10.10 | Living in Japan | Jason
Believe it or not, I had a terrible habit back in Canada. It wasn’t one with drugs, alcohol, women, or even excessive weight gain. Instead it was something much more insidious. Something that, once you’ve been bitten, it’s very hard to break: swearing.
I loved to swear. Not so much for its therapeutic results, but for [...]
01.20.10 | Living in Japan, Working in Japan | Jason
We’re often told: be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it. While this is often the response when a person wishes for fame, fortune, or other life-altering items, it was also true for me this morning.
Last month, when I was pleasantly surprised by an overnight bout of snowfall, I had said:
Hopefully [...]
01.1.10 | Home, Living in Japan | Jason
Yesterday there was a strange little icon on my cell phone. One of the great things about many cell phones in Japan is that they can show you a weather forecast for the next day or so. Mine was showing a snowman. The first thing that ran though my head was “Really? Could it be?”
Since [...]
12.19.09 | Featured, Home, Living in Japan | Jason
There are several things that I like about the public transportation system in Japan. It’s almost always on time, relatively quick, and clean enough that we don’t have to examine the seats for various unpleasantries before sitting down. Very rarely do I ever have a problem with the system which has become my most effective [...]
12.16.09 | Featured, Living in Japan, Working in Japan | Jason
The countdown is almost up on this year’s winter Japanese Language Proficiency Test, and thousands of people residing both inside and out of Japan are studiously preparing for this important rite of passage. So, with only a few days remaining before the big test, I have one question: are you taking it this year?
Since having [...]
12.2.09 | Living in Japan | Jason
An odd thing happened on Friday: my “Get out of English Free” card didn’t work.
Friday evening, while I was making the trek from 本山駅 to 名古屋駅, I was stuck on the subway with a bunch of over-active high school girls. Like most high school girls, these kids were loud, laughing, and causing a scene. Being [...]
11.30.09 | Japan, Living in Japan, Working in Japan | Jason
Do you ever wonder about your neighbours? I wrote a few months ago about how one of my neighbours has the same camouflaging skills as a chameleon or ninja, and now this. It seems that someone who lives in the apartments across the street has way too much money available. Correct me if I’m wrong, [...]
09.24.09 | Home, Japan, Living in Japan | Jason
As part of their regular maintenance schedule, JR had a repair crew outside my home all night to perform some minor fixes to the Takayama Line that runs 10 meters in front of my bedroom. At 11 pm, it sounded like they were putting up aluminum ladders to peek into my 2nd floor window, and [...]
09.10.09 | Home, Living in Japan | Jason
There are many things that I like about living in Japan, but very few can beat this country’s infatuation with stuff in a can. In addition to being able to buy beverages such as soda, beer, water, juice, jelly, vodka, sake, wine, cream, milk, tea, coffee, and sport drinks, we can buy them in ever-friendly [...]
08.8.09 | Living in Japan, Working in Japan | Jason
The public train systems in Japan’s urban, suburban, and semi-rural areas is second to none in the world. Millions of people every day make their way to stations by car, foot, and bike, which acts as both a cost savings and environmental 1-Up mushroom as people are not required to drive dozens of kilometers to [...]
08.3.09 | Japan, Living in Japan | Jason
A few days ago, while telling me how stupid I was for saying that I wanted a notebook computer to last at least 15 years...
The countdown is almost up on this year's winter Japanese Language Proficiency Test, and thousands of people residing bo...
Do you ever wonder about your neighbours? I wrote a few months ago about how one of my neighbours has the same camouflag...
Believe it or not, I had a terrible habit back in Canada. It wasn't one with drugs, alcohol, women, or even excessive ...
Over the last decade or so I've been battling a bunch of minor problems such as insomnia, headaches, chest pain, and blo...