Today is the 3rd day of the 3rd month in the lunar calendar and I can’t resist making a comment on the Japanese Dolls festival, also known as “Girls Day”. That Japan is a modern country is taken for granted these days but there remain many traditions and customs still woven into her cultural fabric. [...]
Thinking about “following your passion” but not sure how to combine your “day job” with your “hobby”? (Note: there is some adult content on Danny’s site and it may not be safe to access from work.) Danny Choo’s story is worth spending some time on. I like how he continues to use skills acquired in [...]
Today is Valentine’s Day and in Japan that sees the fair sex leaving small chocolate presents on the desks of selected male co-workers. Over the years I’ve received beautifully wrapped and absolutely gorgeous gourmet chocolate – all anonymously of course. And all above board.
Would you move half a world away in your early 40s and start over? That’s what one of my mentors and now good friend, Charles Burke, did in the 1980s when he moved from the US to Japan. His story inspired me to seek him out and we have talked on the phone every couple [...]
Christmas in Japan is a strange affair indeed. Shops, department stores and the mass media do their best (at least in the big smoke called Tokyo) to make folks spend a bit more right up to Xmas eve. Then an interesting transformation occurs – seemingly overnight. While Rudolph and friends were busy coming down chimneys [...]
