I believe the following to be a beautiful and insightful piece of writing and very appropriate as the calendar turns over and 2008 begins…
… and in another year everything will be different yet again. It is always like that, and always will be; you are forever standing on the brink, in a place where you […]

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First of all I wanted to show you all my finished elephant Amigurumi rattle:

Isn’t he just adorable? Well I think so and I hope my friends baby enjoys playing with it.
I also discovered an new item for my Japan to do list - I want to take part in a Stamp Rally which I […]

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In you have read my about me page you will know that I love to knit and crochet. A couple of months ago I found out that two friends of mine are pregnant so I decided to make them baby blankets and amigurumi dolls as gifts. I was very fortunate to run across […]

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A newly graduated train conductor in Japan opened the doors of the train after it had started to move. This was reported by the Mainichi Daily News and I must admit that I wondered on how this had made the newspaper since no one had been hurt. I then pondered the discipline […]

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If you are in Japan, there is no official Christmas holiday and you are probably working like any other day. You probably just assumed that Christmas would be a day off and it must have come as a bit of a shock when you moved to Japan and found out that it isn’t a […]

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Seasons Greetings to you and all of those that you hold dear! Regardless of faith, I think that this poem reminds us to celebrate the wonder and awe that is present in our lives everyday. The best gift that we can give to ourselves is a good outlook on life […]

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This has been a busy week for me but I did come across some interesting items that I wanted to share.
An article fro the Japan Times noted an exhibition that I will not be able to see in person titled Culture Filters. The artist, Osorio Zapata created the fabulous work to the right and […]

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I’ve been pondering a lot lately on all of the reasons that I am looking forward to my return to Japan. I’ve been having a hard time nailing down my thoughts so I created a top ten list….
The ability to continue the journey that I started in 1994 and revisit my favorite places. […]

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This week I read a really cool article from the Daily Yomiuri on yokai or supernatural beings. Yokai stem from the Shinto belief system in which all things, living or inanimate, have a spirit and can turn into a supernatural being with mystical powers. Some yokai are simply mischievous and some are downright […]

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I’ve noticed something lately that’s beginning to trouble me. When I tell someone that I am moving to Japan they immediately tell me how lucky I am and that they wish they could do it too. Often, if they have been to Japan, they tell me about how great their visit was and […]

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