Job: Dormitory Supervisor for Japanese organization (NY)
Jobs 
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via Actus. Posted by Dipika Soni (Ishikawa-ken, 2003-06). Dipika has recently moved back to London as is currently looking for new work opportunities related to Japan, translation, or other fields. She is also the former vocalist for the Japanese hardcore punk band DEGRADE.
*Note: If you apply for this position, please let them know you learned of it from JETwit. Thanks.
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Job Position: Dormitory Supervisor
Job Details:
A well-known Japanese Educational Organization seeks a Dormitory Supervisor starting from September 1st. Main job duty is being responsible for the management and daily operations of campus residence dormitories.
Hibari-sensei: Southlake, Texas holds benefit concert for sister city, Tome
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Jen Wang (Miyagi, 2008-09) is a lab tech in Dallas and a staff writer for the Japanese music website Purple SKY. Her love of cosplay and her junior high school students inspired the name for her own Japanese pop culture blog, Hibari-sensei’s Classroom.
In response to the Tohoku earthquake, community initiative Southlake Working As a Team (S.W.A.T.) joined forces with Southlake Sister Cities, the City of Southlake, and the Carroll Independent School District to form Southlake 4 Japan. The organization dedicated itself to helping Southlake’s sister city, Tome, which suffered damage to its buildings and roads and struggled to accommodate the evacuees from neighboring cities. Southlake’s relationship with Japan began in 1991, long before Toyoma and neighboring towns merged to form the city of Tome. Since then, the two cities have engaged in cultural and education exchange programs.
Harrison Edwards’ band, Vibe Zoo, plays in the Southlake 4 Japan concert.
Southlake Sister Cities had already set up an earthquake relief fund and collected messages for a scrapbook, but more needed to be done to raise awareness within the community. Carroll Senior High School students Harrison Edwards and Carter Humphrey proposed the idea of a benefit concert.
Edwards felt a connection with Tome as a former student ambassador of the Sister Cities exchange program. He and Humphrey already had experience organizing such an event, having been the masterminds behind last year’s Rock for Haiti earthquake relief concert. Southlake 4 Japan was quick to help with providing a venue, publicity, and volunteers. S.W.A.T. founder and Southlake Baptist Church Lead Pastor Clayton Reed was in charge of the event programming while Edwards and Humphrey sought out bands to fill the line-up.
The concert was held on May 7 in Southlake Town Square. Attendees were encouraged to donate at least $5, which got them a wristband and a cell phone screen protector. There was an origami booth with bumper stickers for sale and food supplied by Qdoba Mexican Grill. Southlake Sister Cities provided information about Tome and collected signatures for a banner being sent to Tome’s mayor.
To read the rest of the post, click here.
Job: Japanese Instructor Needed (San Diego)
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via East Asia Center, UVa. Posted by Dipika Soni (Ishikawa-ken, 2003-06). Dipika has recently moved back to London as is currently looking for new work opportunities related to Japan, translation, or other fields. She is also the former vocalist for the Japanese hardcore punk band DEGRADE.
*Note: If you apply for this position, please let them know you learned of it from JETwit. Thanks.
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Job Position: Japanese instructor needed (San Diego)
Job Details:
The NCPACE Faculty, Central Texas College located in San Diego are looking to hire anyone who has a Masters/Bachelors to teach Japanese or at least 18 semester hours of Japanese courses.
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Japan Times: JET teacher aids school rebuilding
Blogs, Cultural Outreach, Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, Japan Local, JETs in the News, Local Government, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Volunteer, Writers Comments Off on Japan Times: JET teacher aids school rebuilding
“My name is Andras Molnar, an English teacher from Yamamoto Town in Japan, a place recently devastated by the earthquake and tsunami. I am trying to raise funds for the reconstruction of the schools in my town, as well as buying school supplies and uniforms for children who lost everything in the tsunami.”
U.S. teacher aids school rebuilding
SENDAI — An American English teacher at a middle school in Miyagi Prefecture has set up funds to solicit donations for rebuilding elementary schools damaged by the tsunami following the March 11 earthquake.
Pennsylvania native Andras Molnar, 25, said that although he is leaving the prefecture’s town of Yamamoto in August when his teaching contract ends, he is “hoping to stay connected” with the town through the fund.
Molnar said he became interested in Japan through “anime” such as “Gundam” and spent a year in the country as a high school student and again while at university. He came to Yamamoto, a coastal town of around 16,000, in August 2009.
He said he got along well with locals through a drum circle and surfing, a hobby of his.
“Everyone is very open, kind and I like them a lot,” he said in Japanese.
After the town was engulfed by the tsunami, he stayed at the junior high school for a week, busily checking the whereabouts of his students and doing what he could at evacuation sites, he said.
He then moved to Tokyo for around one month at the suggestion of his parents and friends.
But after getting email from friends in Yamamoto inquiring about him, he wondered why he was not giving his best when all the people in the town were doing their utmost, he said.
Molnar said it was this that prompted him to return to his apartment in Yamamoto.
“It was really good that I returned,” he said. “I feel encouraged by the children.”
He set up relief funds in Japan and the United States to help rebuild two elementary schools where buildings were devastated by the tsunami, and is soliciting donations through his blog.
JETAA British Columbia Newsletter – May 2011
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The JETAA British Columbia Newsletter May 2011 issue is now available online. (Really nice look and layout, by the way.)
It also has some very good articles, reactions and perspectives on the Tohoku earthquake/tsunami and subsequent relief efforts and activities by JETs and alumni.
For more info on JETAA BC (which is hosting this year’s JETAA Canada Conference in June), go to their website at www.jetaabc.ca
Volunteer: JETwit seeks help tracking JET disaster relief efforts
Earthquake Tsunami, Jobs, Notable JET Alums, Volunteer Comments Off on Volunteer: JETwit seeks help tracking JET disaster relief efforts
I know there a slew of JETs and alums involved in a variety of volunteer efforts in Japan right now. And I don’t have time to capture and post on JETwit about it.
For example:
- A JET named Paul Yoo in Akita helped organize something called The Fruit Tree Project to bring fresh fruit to affected areas and posted information about that and other volunteer efforts on a website I believe he set up called volunteerAKITA.
- Mike Maher-King (Fukui) of Smile Kids Japan has been doing all kinds of things with orphanages and delivery of supplies and connecting people and groups who are trying to help in various ways.
This is just the tip of the iceberg. These are just two examples I happen to be aware of.
Would someone out there be interested in doing occasional posts on JETwit that simply list recent efforts, activities and updates along with links to the source of the information? Sort of a JET Volunteer Round-up?
Familiarity using WordPress preferred but not absolutely necessary.
Contact Steven at jetwit [at] jetwit.com if interested.
Thanks and yoroshiku.
“Return on JET-vestment“ is the term I’ve been using (along with “JET ROI“) to connote the “return on investment” that JET and JETAA have been providing for Japan in various ways, both directly and indirectly. And it’s now particularly important for us to demonstrate Return on JET-vestment to the Japanese government and taxpayers, particularly at the prefecture and local government levels as those are the ones making the decisions as to whether to hire JETs or some other form of ALTs (e.g., dispatch companies).
Translation Challenge:
What’s the best way to convey “Return on JET-vestment” in Japanese?
Please post in the comments section below or e-mail to jetwit [at] jetwit.com. (Commentary and thoughts on the translation is welcome as well.)
Yoroshiku!
Tohoku Earthquake benefit: Rock Chicks’ Revenge (Tokyo – June 4)
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JET alum Sarah Cortina is one of the co-organizers of the Rock Chicks’ Revenge (Rock Gods Must Die) which will happen June 4 in Tokyo’s Shibuya Milkyway from 6pm-10pm with a special guest appearance by the Blue Man Group.
See full details at Metropolis Magazine.
Surviving in Japan: A Guide to Mosquito Repellent in Japan
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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.
That wonderfully hot and humid time of year is upon us – summer. And of course, the rainy season and along with it, mosquito season. I still remember my first apartment in Japan, next to a large drainage pool area where I can only guess thousands of mosquito eggs were hatching every day. And then they show up at 3am – that high-pitched buzzing whine in my ear as I attempt to sleep.
Since being in Japan, I’ve struggled with the best ways to control them, and though not every solution is always 100% effective, hopefully some of these options may help you get through the summer with a few less uncomfortable, itching bites and restless nights.
Words to know
First of all, wherever you’re looking for mosquito repellents or related items, you’ll probably want to know some of the following words and terms:
蚊 か ka mosquito
虫 むし mushi insect
虫よけ or 虫除け むしよけ mushi yoke insect repellent
防虫 ぼうちゅう bouchuu protection against insects
忌避 きひ kihi avoid, evade
殺虫剤 さっちゅうざい sacchuuzai insect killer/insecticide
蚊取り かとり katori “remove mosquitoes”
天然成分 てんねんせいぶん tennen seibun natural ingredients
室内用 しつないよう shitsunaiyou indoor use
屋外用 おくがいよう okugaiyou outdoor use
Ingredients in Insecticides and Insect/Mosquito Repellents
You’ll generally find most insect repellent products in Japan fall into one of two categories (although a few will be part of both):
Natural mosquito repellents usually contain oils such as citronella (シトロネラ油), lavender (ラベンダー油), lemon eucalyptus (レモンユーカリ精油), and other essential oils. Some may also contain pyrethrum (a certain kind of flower), such as the natural mosquito coils, in which you’ll want to look for these kanji: 除虫菊. Many natural products will use 天然成分, though, keep in mind some of these still contain some chemical or harmful ingredients – so best to check the ingredient label if that is something you’re concerned about.
Chemical mosquito repellents/insecticides: Nearly all of the chemical repellents and insecticides contain pyrethroid, which is a chemical imitation of pyrethrum. You’ll typically find ピレスロイド系 in the active ingredient list, sometimes in parentheses, as most of the ingredients listed among chemical repellents are pyrethroids of some kind, even if the name is different. Though pyrethroid is considered safe for general use in certain amounts by the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. (and of course, considered safe in Japan as well), it doesn’t make it necessarily healthy, especially if you have respiratory problems – so feel free to read up on it, learn more about it, and decide for yourself if it’s something you feel comfortable using. Also, please remember to take appropriate precautions when using any product with pyrethroid – try to keep areas ventilated, wash your hands/skin if you come in contact with the chemical surface, etc.
The other chemical commonly used (in body/skin repellents), and which I’ve also mentioned in the skin repellent section, is deet (ディート), which you may already be familiar with.
Important note: when looking for the following items at your local daily goods store or home store, keep in mind that some of the insect repellent items for your body are actually located in the pharmacy area, while the others, such as insecticides and other insect repellents, will be located in another area, most likely under: 殺虫剤.
Electronic Vapor Repellents — CLICK HERE to read the rest of the post.
JET Alum Authors: Ari Kaplan – “The Opportunity Maker: Strategies for Inspiring Your Legal Career”
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I recently learned of yet another JET alum author, Ari Kaplan (Hyogo-ken, 1993-94) who practiced law for nine years at a big firm before setting out on his own and, among other things, writing The Opportunity Maker: Strategies for Inspiring Your Legal Career Through Creative Networking and Business Development which became a big hit in the world of lawyers and especially among law students facing an increasingly uncertain job market and career prospects.
It turns out Ari, who speaks regularly at legal career events, has a new book coming out soon on the theme of “reinvention” intended not just for lawyers but for all professionals re-thinking their careers in a society where the ground increasingly seems to shift below our feet.
For more information about Ari, visit his website at www.arikaplanadvisors.com. You can also see media coverage of him on WGN-TV Chicago, in the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog and in the Houston Chronicle
Earthquake Support Event: WE ARE HERE – Little voice and art 311 Japan (NYC)
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Posted at the request of CLAIR New York:
WE ARE HERE – Little voice and art 311 JAPAN is an exhibition of messages from Japanese children of areas affected by the disaster as well as photos of the area. The exhibition is being held at the AIGA Gallery in New York on 22nd St and 5th Avenue in Manhattan from today through May 20. They are also collecting messages from visitors to those children.
Job: Admin Assistant to the Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN (NYC)
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via JETAANY. Posted by Dipika Soni (Ishikawa-ken, 2003-06). Dipika currently works as an in-house translator for PFU (a Fujitsu company) in Kahoku-shi, Ishikawa-ken. She is also the vocalist for the Japanese hardcore punk band DEGRADE.
*Note: If you apply for this position, please let them know you learned of it from JetWit. Thanks.
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Job Position: Administrative Assistant at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN
Job Description:
The Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN is seeking an Administrative Assistant in the Social Section at the Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN.
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JQ Magazine: Book Review – “The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet”
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"Brimming with potent imagery, the novel is suffused with a generous dose of personal observation and philosophical musing, much of which sounds strikingly contemporary." (Random House)
By Sharona Moskowitz (Fukuoka-ken, 2000-01) for JQ magazine. Sharona works at a literary agency in New York City. She is interested in fresh, new voices in fiction and creative nonfiction.
A former Japanese colleague of mine once described his homeland to me as an “island of repression.” He spoke with mixed emotion of the burdensome pressure Japanese feel to fulfill their cultural and societal duties and how his lifelong dream was to escape for a year and live abroad. He lamented his kinsmen’s gradual loss of “Japaneseness,” fearing that despite the superficial Westernization, or perhaps because of it, Japan was barely keeping up with the rest of the world. Interested to hear more I pressed him to elaborate. He shifted his eyes downward, paused a moment, and took a long deep breath before finally responding, “Maybe…it’s complicated.”
Complicated indeed. David Mitchell’s historical novel, The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet which takes place at the turn of the 19th century, paints a vivid portrait of a bygone Japan with its rugged landscape, samurai lords and characters who commute by horse and palanquin. Medicine is administered in the form of crude herbal concoctions and the natural world is generally viewed through a lens of superstition. Nevertheless, those who know Japan well will recognize a familiar current running throughout the narrative. To read the book is to get a feel for the seeds of what would eventually flower into the complexity of modern day Japan as we know it.
The story is set near Nagasaki on the island of Dejima where the eponymous hero lives and works for a Dutch trading company. Dejima has been designated a Dutch trading post and its foreign denizens are strictly forbidden from entering the mainland, their interactions with the Japanese governed by rigid rules and careful monitoring. Jacob’s original plan was to come to Japan for five years, accrue a nice fortune and return to Holland to marry his fianceé Anna. His plan, however, is thrown off kilter by unforeseen complications including dubious business practices, a bleak future and most profoundly, his burgeoning secret love for Orito Aibagawa, a Japanese midwife on the island. Orito is highly educated and hardy, unlike the other women we encounter in the novel. Something of a feministic anachronism, she is more concerned with scholarly pursuits than domestic life. With her ironclad will and opinions expressed without equivocation, one imagines that even today she would stand out in Japanese society. (And due to her strong character she still wouldn’t care.)
Orito’s physical appearance is marred by a burn scar on her left cheek, putting her at a considerable disadvantage in finding a suitable Japanese marriage partner. To Jacob, though, her beauty is unique; he is unfazed by her scar and perhaps even more intrigued with her because of it. Unfortunately, he knows that as a foreigner she is entirely off limits to him. Captivated by her exoticness, he ponders, “to what God would a Japanese midwife pray?”
SeattleJapanRelief.org 05/16/2011
Earthquake Tsunami, Events, Fundraising, JETAA Chapters Comments Off on SeattleJapanRelief.org 05/16/2011
Pacific Northwest JETAA has been forwarding updates from SeattleJapanRelief.org, which is a collection of Japan earthquake/tsunami-related fundraising events and activities in the Seattle area. Below is the latest, and there’s more good info here as well. These are not necessarily JETAA events, but I’m guessing various JET alums are involved in some of these.
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Weekly Highlights:
May 16 – 22, 2011
What’s happening around town?
Fri (5/20) 1st Annual Japan ISD Matsuri
6-8pm @ Commons- Issaquah High School (Issaquah)
Japanese clubs and classes will be presenting many family-friendly activities. Donations to Peace Winds. Contact: Tammy Haldeman 425-837-7792
Sat (5/21) Japan Relief Now: University Street Fair
4:15pm @ music stage- 42nd & University St (Seattle)
See The People Now for event details
Sat (5/21) The Sun Always Rises: Japan Relief Benefit Concert
7pm @ ACT Fall’s Theatre (Downtown, Seattle)
Artists: Sarah Rudinoff , Miss Mamie Lavona the Exotic Mullatta and Her White Boy Band, The Live Girls! Ladies Choir, Jacqueline Tabor, One World Taiko, Kaze Daiko, and Seattle Kokon Taiko. For tickets: www.acttheatre.org
Upcoming!
Thu (5/26) One Night: Relief Concert
8pm @ Neumos (Capitol Hill, Seattle)
See Nuemos for event details & tickets
Justin’s Japan: Japan Day @ Central Park Hosts Music Stars from Keiko Matsui to D.M.C.
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This year's edition of Japan Day @ Central Park kicks off May 22 at Rumsey Playfield.
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his page here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Now in its fifth year, the upcoming edition of Japan Day @ Central Park on Sunday (May 22nd) will feature a galvanizing stage performance with other family-friendly activities under the theme ”Ganbare Japan!” (You can do it, Japan!) in light of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that occurred in March.
After holding its traditional four-mile Japan Run on May 8, this year’s Japan Day Festival at Rumsey Playfield will feature stage performances and activity tents. Its special guests, introduced in three distinctly-themed acts over seven full hours, will include Circus, Senri Oe, Darryl “D.M.C.” McDaniels (of New York hip-hop legends Run-D.M.C.), AISHA, Keiko Matsui, Mai Fukui, Yuka Takara, Lainie Sakakura, and TEN-YOU. Co-hosting the event are Sandra Endo, a national correspondent for CNN Newsource and NY1 alumna, and Brian Nishii, a Tokyo native and veteran of New York City’s performing arts scene.
Matsui—whom this Examiner conducted an exclusive interview with last year—will also be headlining two concerts later that night at B.B. King Blues Club and Grill, a stone’s throw from Times Square.
Throughout the Japan Day Festival in the Naumburg Bandshell area near the stage show, there will be several activity tents for New Yorkers to experience Japanese culture firsthand—and “hands on.” A language tent will introduce key Japanese words, and other activities include origami, robot sumo battle, the Hello Kitty photo booth, and calligraphy. Patrons can also enjoy Japanese snacks, drinks and special festival food.
For the complete story, click here.
