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Category Archives: Uncategorized
On Watching a Baseball Game in Japan
American baseball spills beyond pastime and into national ritual, with more performances of the national anthem than the most fervent political race. But baseball in Japan strips the bleachers of their red, white and blue flare and keeps it firmly in … Continue reading
Posted in Fun, Uncategorized
9 Comments
J-Cin Sundays: “Air Doll.”
Title: Air Doll Director: Hirokazu Koreeda Year: 2009 Notes: Based on the comic “Kuuki Ningyo,” by Yoshiie Gōda. TLDR: Amelie, if Amelie was an inflatable sex doll that magically came to life, and if Amelie made you really, really sad.
Posted in Movies, Uncategorized
1 Comment
On Being Homeless in Japan
I mistook her for a hump of discarded flannel until I saw her face, the unmistakable color of braised meat. She’s sleeping, sprawled across a cardboard box in front of a taxi stand. Her head rests on a plastic shopping … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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How to Bow in Japan
On the first day in the office I met an intern I had mistaken for a teacher. I had taken a default position of addressing everyone with safe formalities and bowing at an angle just short of tying my shoes. The … Continue reading
Posted in Culture Shock, Tradition, Uncategorized
7 Comments
Golden Week Vacation
Taking Golden Week off to entertain a friend from home and celebrate my birthday. But, I post my toy-camera and iPhone photos from Japan at least once a day over at The Birdwatcher’s Report. You can also check out some … Continue reading
On Japanese Funerals
My first conversation about the earthquake was a week and three days after it struck. In the office, we talked about the peripheries of disaster: Blood donations, fundraisers, TV coverage. We didn’t talk about victims. When the media focused on … Continue reading
Posted in Earthquake, Photography, Shinto, Shrines, Temples and Ruins, Thinking, Tradition, Uncategorized, Zen
Tagged buddhism, death, earthquake, funerals, japan, photos, shinto
6 Comments
