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
A few days ago, Kenji asked me a question that caught me a little off guard: Why don’t I write posts about Japan, anymore?
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
Who knew that a drought in Australia would have such long-lasting implications for the rest of the world? In 2008, the land down under suffered a devastating blow when it failed to reap sufficient yields of staple grains like wheat. As a result, countries like Japan that rely heavily on imports to feed its people [...]
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
A few days ago I had mentioned that a client of mine has been considering a rather large career change and had asked me for some advice. I was ill-equipped to act as his career counselor, so opted to ask anyone who wanted to comment for their insight. That said, changing careers is something that [...]
09.7.09 | Business, Japan, Windows Mobile | Jason
Wireless internet has become ubiquitous throughout much of the world, and it’s something that many of us enjoy using while out and about in the world. I regularly search new locations for open access points where I might check my email, fire off a few Tweets, and update my RSS reader while away from [...]
Sixty-Four years have passed, but let’s never forget.
Many of us have never lived through the horrors of war, and let’s hope most of us never have to.
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
There’s a rather sad story on Page 2 of the Daily Yomiuri newspaper today that states “Suicides climb in 1st half of ‘09“. While Japan has long had more suicides per year than the rest of the planet combined, it’s a little unnerving to see the number continue to reach higher. According to the article, [...]
07.29.09 | Working 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...