Category Archives: Uncategorized

My Five Most Popular Posts of the Rabbit Year H.23

Posted on December 28, 2011 by

The Japanese have taken to representing the “Year of the Dragon” (2012 in the Chinese Zodiac) as the “Year of the Seahorse.” Apparently the seahorse is occasionally called a “Baby Dragon,” so the early days of the dragon year are … Continue reading →

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Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

The Special Administrative Region… of Christmas.

Posted on December 20, 2011 by

I’m spending Christmas in “Ho-Ho-Hong Kong” and “Merry Macau,” where I will try to find used Cantonese funk records and possibly eat a pigeon. So there’s no blog post this week and, most likely, the next. All the more reason … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

On Japanese Cats

Posted on December 14, 2011 by

This week: Japan, in five cats.

Posted in Fun, Shrines, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

On Being Selfish in Japan

Posted on December 7, 2011 by

I remember my high school French club. The kids smoked too young, wore black turtlenecks and talked about Camus, or more precisely, “spoke of Camus.” The German club ate strudel, listened to unbearable polka and occasionally invaded the French club.

Posted in Culture Shock, Teaching, Tradition, Uncategorized | Tagged | 11 Comments

On Being Cute in Japan

Posted on November 30, 2011 by

“Battle not with Hello Kitty lest ye become Hello Kitty; and if you gaze into the abyss the abyss gazes into you with huge eyes and a helpless disposition.” - Friedrich Nietzsche

Posted in Fun, Tradition, Uncategorized, Weird | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

9 More Foods to Try (Or Try to Avoid) in Japan

Posted on November 21, 2011 by

A few weeks ago, the fellows at Nihongoup, the online Japanese-language community, invited me to do a guest post. I went to my default Japanese conversation tactic: I started spewing out the names of foods I like. So I’ve got … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Fun, Travel, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 8 Comments