June 17, 2005
Remembering
The other day I had some time to take pictures. I was in Takadanobaba. I took out my camera and started to walk around the back alleys, took a turn onto a wide street, and then crossed back in front...To continue reading this entry click here
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June 07, 2005
Taking Better Photos in Japan
Recently I decided to start taking my photography more seriously. I haven't said much about why. Or why now. One reason is that I stumbled into Dan Heller's amazing website. I didn't recognize him by name, but I saw...To continue reading this entry click here
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April 21, 2005
Mortality, Life and Falling Cherry Blossoms
I hope you'll click these two pictures. I really liked how they each turned out. A wind came up at the park and the Cherry blossoms fell. We said goodbye to my parents yesterday and explained to the kids...To continue reading this entry click here
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April 13, 2005
Spring in the Air, Heading for Nagano with Family
Spring is here! The blossoms in Tokyo have mostly fallen from the trees, but I have this feeling that Winter has passed and things are changing. I was so busy in March and the first half of this month......To continue reading this entry click here
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April 08, 2005
In-Laws, Allergies, Horse Head and Bubble Baby
There's not much time to write. It's late; I'm sick; I need to get up early. And, in case you're wondering, I'm doing well. My parents are here, and that's great. They're helping out with the kids -- and,...To continue reading this entry click here
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February 10, 2005
Part 1 - Building a House in Japan
I mentioned in a previous post that we've been thinking about building a house here in Japan. We're not in a rush; we're thinking at least two years out. But we've talked to some people to begin learning about...To continue reading this entry click here
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February 07, 2005
Influenza and Noodles
It's almost bedtime. The twins are running around with their toothbrushes, and the toothbrushes are talking to each other. Anything can talk in their imaginary world, but their favorite talking items are crayons, chopsticks and toothbrushes. Of couse, actual...To continue reading this entry click here
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December 22, 2004
Living in Japan, Outside the Matrix
The pictures are: 1) our family Christmas picture (on a red bridge at Odawara Castle), 2) our three girls, 3) Odawara Castle in the evening, and 4) a hand painted kite (see Men Flying Kites for more kite photos)....To continue reading this entry click here
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December 02, 2004
Fall and Friends in Japan
Don't you love kids!? I took these pictures at Toshimaen, an amusement park near Nerima (Tokyo), a fun place for families with some decent rides for youth and up, including a rollercoaster with a little loop. Someday I'll ride...To continue reading this entry click here
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November 28, 2004
Thanksgiving in Tokyo
Yesterday we celebrated Thanksgiving with several friends we've met in the past year since moving from Yokohama to Tokyo. Actually, all of them are connected with the Starbucks where I hang out so often (some are regular customers and...To continue reading this entry click here
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November 18, 2004
Family, Kids, Study, Trees in Japan
There are some interesting comments on my last post. I'll post a follow up soon, because I think it's important. Feel free to throw in your 2 cents (respectfully) in the mean time. Do you save some of the...To continue reading this entry click here
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November 09, 2004
A Few More People Pictures in Japan
I wanted to post a few more pictures from the Undo Kai, and you can always visit the gallery to see more. You can figure most of these out yourself. The kids who are frozen into odd poses are...To continue reading this entry click here
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November 05, 2004
Japanese Bentos and Moms
Here are some more pictures from the Undo Kai (Sports Day) that I wanted to highlight here. A couple of days before the weekend when most schools have their Undo Kai's we saw a TV program about mom's making...To continue reading this entry click here
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November 03, 2004
Undo Kai Pictures and My New Gallery
Shooting 300 pictures at my daughter's Undo Kai really sent me for a loop. It takes time to...well, you don't want to know all of that. But I'll say this. After some consideration and searching, I changed the gallery...To continue reading this entry click here
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October 23, 2004
Undo Kai Pictures and Plain Talk in Japanese
I've started working on pictures from the Undo Kai last weekend. I'll post more soon and a new gallery page, so come back to see. These are two of my favorites so far. Click on them to see them...To continue reading this entry click here
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October 17, 2004
Undoukai Update, About Those Pictures
I took 300 pictures today at my daughter's Undoukai (a preschool sports day), and about 30 minutes of video. I dumped all the pictures in the computer, but I don't want to think about them now. Well, I looked, and...To continue reading this entry click here
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September 07, 2004
Our Family Onsen Vacation to Hakone
Saturday morning we woke up intending a trip by train to Ueno Park so the kids could go to the zoo. But it looked like rain, so we decided to drive to a ryokan (Japanese inn) at the foot...To continue reading this entry click here
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September 02, 2004
Growing Up in Two Cultures & Too Many Places
My daughter went back to Japanese preschool today. It was hard getting her to leave the house after a 2 month break in the USA this summer. Later in the day, I asked if the teacher had talked about...To continue reading this entry click here
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August 28, 2004
Boke, Boke but Feeling OK in Japan
The day I shot this photo of my daughter, three days ago, I figured I was finally adjusted back to Japan. We slept in that morning, and when I woke up my head felt more clear. One nice thing...To continue reading this entry click here
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July 05, 2004
More Reflections from Abroad
I'm still here in the USA, in the home where I grew up. Tomorrow, we're driving to Colorado for a week. I've been looking forward to this trip for the past year. I love Colorado. We're going back to...To continue reading this entry click here
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May 21, 2004
(Feeling Like) A Baby in Japan
This is a continuation of a previous post talking about my adjustment to life in Japan. The post covered a time period ending somewhere in 2003. At that time, I wondered if I would ever learn Japanese. I was...To continue reading this entry click here
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May 18, 2004
Jikka in Japan
"Jikka" is an important place in Japanese life. Your jikka is the place where your parents (and possibly grandparents) live. The Kanji forming this word mean: "real/true" and "home." It doesn't exactly mean "home town," because if your parents...To continue reading this entry click here
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May 13, 2004
Dark Days, a Festival and a Phone Call
Recently, someone commenting in the blog asked if I am always happy about living in Japan. That comment was a surprise. Actually, the past two years have been some of the hardest years of my life. When we moved...To continue reading this entry click here
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May 08, 2004
Mother's Day and a Private Bath...
Happy Mother's Day May 9 (Sunday)! This is really a convoluted way of reminding myself. I'm terrible with remembering important dates and celebrations. My wife is an amazing mom, and she works very hard to give our kids a...To continue reading this entry click here
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April 19, 2004
Children, a River, Green Grass and Sun in Japan
Saturday was one of those days to remember. We loaded the kids up on bicycles and traveled a short distance to a wide, green spot on the stream near our house. Tokyo is a funny place. I've seen some...To continue reading this entry click here
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April 17, 2004
Japanese Food, Mochi and a Movie
I shot some really nice pictures at the river near my house today. Someone asked for the river's name, so I'll make a post about that with the pictures soon. It's amazing the kind of nature you can find right...To continue reading this entry click here
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April 15, 2004
Connecting with Real People in Japan
I was talking with two Japanese men not long ago and told them in my limited Japanese that I want to connect with people. I want my Japanese to improve enough so that I can talk about things that...To continue reading this entry click here
Posted by jw at 10:45 PM | Permalink
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March 15, 2004
Making Udon and Friends
A couple of months ago I signed up for an udon making class through one of the community centers near here. Yesterday, the day arrived. I admit that I wasn't exactly looking forward to it. My Japanese is just...To continue reading this entry click here
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March 09, 2004
Kids, Ideals and Yochien in Japan
Comme Ca Du Mode stores always have mannequin kids lined up like plastic infantry. It's kind of disturbing, though not as bad a the crying baby posters at Gap stores. What's up with that? My daughter is about to...To continue reading this entry click here
Posted by jw at 01:14 AM | Permalink
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February 24, 2004
Dogs and Starbucks in Japan
All over the world dog lovers hang out with dog lovers, and cat lovers hang out with cat lovers. I hope you enjoy these pictures. They don't say a lot about Japanese culture, but I will say this. When people...To continue reading this entry click here
Posted by jw at 12:23 AM | Permalink
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February 17, 2004
Frozen Moments and Digital Dreaming
Perhaps I'm finally getting a taste of the freedom that comes with speaking Japanese. Just barely, but it's noticable. I'm talking about real things in Japanese, not just functional necessities. My conversations with my language tutors have been getting...To continue reading this entry click here
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