JETs with J.D.s >> A Guide to Picking a Law School
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Andrew R. McCarthy (Akita-ken, 2005-08) is a recent law graduate from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law and is packing up his bags for Houston, Texas . He currently runs the blog JETs with J.D.s, an information source for current JET alumni law students and prospective law students for career paths and approaches within the current legal market. For those considering law school and trying to comprehend the costs and the risks of such an endeavor, he also recommends The Law School Tuition Bubble.
“You’d think that with the rigors of getting through undergrad, studying for and taking the LSAT, and making sure you perfect your law school applications, picking the law school of your dreams should be the easy part. It isn’t. The advice provided below isn’t the only way to go about picking your law school, but hopefully it will show you where your priorities should be.”
The post, in full, is available here.
Japan Times: U.S. students invited in memory of JET victims
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Via Japan Times/Kyodo News Service, June 1, 2011:
U.S. students invited in memory of JET victims
Kyodo
Japan will invite 32 U.S. high school students who are studying Japanese to take part in a program in July to study the language and culture in memory of two American teachers killed in the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Foreign Minister Takeaki Matsumoto, during a speech at a symposium in Tokyo on Monday, referred to the program intended to nurture people who will serve as a bridge between Japan and the United States in the future.
The program is in commemoration of Taylor Anderson, 24, and Montgomery Dickson, 26, who were taking part in the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program.
Anderson of Virginia was found dead in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, and Dickson of Alaska was found dead in Rikuzentakata, Iwate Prefecture.
According to the government-linked Japan Foundation, the organizer of the program, the 32 students selected from about 250 applicants in the United States will attend Japanese-language lessons, take part in cultural events, including a drum performance and wearing kimono, and have exchanges with high school students in Osaka.
They will stay at the homes of the Osaka high school students during the two-week program. It will run for five years starting this year, the Japan Foundation said.
Surviving in Japan: 40+5 more ways to survive the rainy season
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Posted by Ashley Thompson (Shizuoka-ken, 2008-2010) of Surviving in Japan: without much Japanese and Lifelines columnist for The Japan Times.
Bleak, gray, rainy season, or 梅雨
The rainy season (梅雨, つゆ) has arrived.
Apparently beginning 12 days earlier than last year in central Japan, according to tenki.jp, and also earlier than normal in southern Japan as well. Though it doesn’t feel all that humid yet. I typically associate the rainy season with tropical jungle-like humidity that makes you feel like you’re living in a sauna.
Don’t be fooled though – it will likely sneak up on us before we know it. For now, my pregnant self will enjoy the moderate temperatures and bearable humidity levels.
Oh, and for those who may not know, it doesn’t actually rain constantly during the rainy season in Japan – it will either spontaneously downpour or sometimes rain for a while in variations between sprinkling and heavier rain, with some breaks here and there.
Before coming to Japan, being from Seattle (U.S.), I rarely, if ever, used an umbrella. In fact, it’s usually quite easy to tell the difference between locals and tourists in Seattle for this very reason. (Everyone thinks it rains there all the time, but it doesn’t – it’s just cloudy most of the year).
So I came to Japan with no umbrella, figuring I could just buy one somewhere easily (but in no hurry). Except that my friend and I got caught in the rain on our second day here. Not Seattle drizzle we were familiar with. A downpour. Sheets of rain.
As we were outside with no cover, we were instantly soaked (as if we’d fallen into a pool or something), and spent the next 10 minutes or so running from building cover to building cover to the nearest convenience store to buy an umbrella. (With bystanders laughing at us good-naturedly, of course).
Of course, by the time we bought the umbrella and walked out of the store, the rain stopped. That’s Japan for you. Everyone gave us strange looks when we entered the hotel again, dripping all over the floor. Lesson learned: During the rainy season, Always. Carry. An umbrella.
So, in honor of the arrival of this year’s rainy season, I pull from the archives:
40 tips to survive the rainy season in Japan
There are also some good suggestions in the comments, so be sure to read those as well!
And of course, a few more to add:
41. Forget number 4 on the previous list – with all the energy conservation we should be doing, go out instead and share the A/C instead of using it at home. (Although with the temps the way they are right now there really isn’t much of a need for A/C…) — CLICK HERE to read the rest of the post.
Earthquake Recovery News 05.31.11
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Hello, everyone! My name is Emily Duncan (Hyogo-ken, 2005-2008). Currently I live in Atlanta, Georgia and I oversee the Facebook discussion group “Japan Earthquake Disaster Relief Idea Exchange.”
Originally my friend Mellissa Takeuchi (also a former Hyogo-ken ALT) and I established this group to discuss ideas which could help Japan in the aftermath of the March 11th earthquake. In the beginning this was fairly helpful, but as time went on it became increasingly obvious that the recovery story in Japan would not stay on the front pages of newspapers and websites so I decided to share news stories that I thought would be of interest to our discussion group. My hope is that these stories will inspire other people to get involved.
Originally I was at a loss as to how I would start this series of posts for JETwit. But as yesterday was Memorial Day I thought it would be best to acknowledge the hard work of the American military during Operation Tomodachi. All branches of the American military – Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines worked together to help the region affected by the earthquake and tsunami. (See more here with a nice slideshow here).
I was really proud of the initial response and would love to have one of those patches!
