Earthquake: Interview with Spokane JET in Fukushima
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Via PNWJETAA. 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.
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The following is an Interview with Matthew Giles from Spokane who is a JET in Fukushima. This article was published by the Spokane Review.
“The earthquakes just keep coming.”
For recent Gonzaga University graduate Matthew Gilles, his dream job of teaching English to schoolchildren in Iwaki, on the northeast coast of Japan, has become something else.
“I hate it,” he said Friday. “Even when we’re not having an earthquake, my body is shaking.”
Gilles, 23, who has been in Japan since August, said small temblors are fairly common in Iwaki, so he didn’t respond at first when the big one hit Friday, shortly after he’d gotten off work earlier than usual.
For the rest of the article, click “Read More”.
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Earthquake: Perspective From Japan
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Written 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.
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“How can we help?” is the most frequently asked question I have been hearing over the last few days. For my neighbours in the small coastal town of Hodatsushimizu in Ishikawa prefecture, situated on the Sea of Japan, the horror of last week’s tsunami which effortlessly wiped out whole towns is only too poignant. Friends in my local JET and foreign communities are struggling to understand the truth of the situation due to the disparity between the seemingly down-played reports in the Japanese media and sensationalist approach to reports by certain western press. However, everyone is ready and willing to help in whatever way they can. Also eager to help are family and friends around the globe, who are constantly being bombarded with shocking headlines and devastating images of the disaster, causing tensions to run high as my presence in Japan makes them all the more connected.
When the earthquake struck shortly after 2:45pm Friday March 11th, I was sitting at my desk at work, when I started to feel a strange dizziness. It wasn’t until a minute later when other colleagues mentioned the same that we realized we were experiencing a tremor. Registering at only magnitude 3 here in Ishikawa prefecture, the earthquake was largely unfelt, with most people only noting a slight swaying and a seasick-like feeling. However, the length and number of aftershocks indicated the seriousness of the situation at the epicenter, as confirmed by the news reports that started to come in.
Like everyone else around the country (and world) we followed the news in disbelief and shock, uncertainty and a feeling of helplessness taking over. As the extent of the disaster began to unfold over the following days, these feelings have only intensified. While things remain calm and ‘normal’ here in Ishikawa (we are all going to work and have no shortages of food/water/electricity/gas), the nerves of the Japanese, foreign community, and family & friends back home are being tested daily. Although we are not directly affected here, we are all suffering from mixed feelings of fear, confusion, heartache and love for a country that is our home. For all of us now, remaining positive in the face of so much sadness and uncertainty is key.
How Can We Help?
[Donate Money]
This is the most effective and encouraged way to help. Various different funds and suggestions of organisation accepting donations have been doing the rounds. For direct donations to specifically address JET needs in affected areas, AJET has set up the AJET Relief Fund. (There are other recommended relief efforts supported by AJET also listed on the site). Also, the JET Alumni Association (JETAA) is organizing a large fund raising effort as well. Details to come.
Other suggested ways to donate:
Be careful to donate through official channels as reports of criminals using this tragedy for monetary gain are already being reported.
[Volunteer]
Planning is underway to assign volunteers once official groups can be coordinated. People are urged to stay where they are until official groups are in place. (The strain on limited supplies and infrastructure in the affected areas is already too great and unorganized volunteers would unfortunately cause more of a hindrance rather than a help).
Volunteer information once available will be posted on JetWit as well as on http://ajet.net/. Various groups that you can join have been set up on facebook, such as this one: I am/will be in Japan and want to volunteer in Tohoku
[Give Blood]
Check where you can donate locally. Here’s one resource listing blood donation rooms: Blood donation rooms etc. Do make sure to check if you can actually donate as there are strict rules. Here’s a good source of info on this: Who can and can not donate blood in japan
[Save Electricity and Don’t Over-Stock Supplies]
As scheduled blackouts are in place for most areas in the North-East, the whole country is being encouraged to save as much electricity as possible. Over stocking of supplies is being discouraged as panic has lead to stores selling out in the Tokyo area, raising concern that this will cause further strain on supplies needed in the worst stricken areas.
[Offer Your Couch]
A group has been setup on CouchSurfing where people in Japan can offer their homes as temporary accommodation for those affected by the earthquake. Check here: http://www.couchsurfing.org/group.html?gid=39703
Justin’s Japan: Earthquake and Tsunami Update ~ JET Alumni Aid and What You Can Do
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People take shelter as a ceiling collapses in a bookstore during an earthquake in Sendai, northeastern Japan March 11, 2011. (Reuters/Kyodo)
By JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his page here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Friday’s Sendai Earthquake and Tsunami has devastated Japan, with Prime Minister Naoto Kan calling it the most difficult crisis for the nation since World War II. At this time, the death toll is expected to exceed 10,000, and the country’s workers are racing to prevent a nuclear crisis in the wake of aftershocks.
Helping those affected are participants of Japan’s international education exchange initiative the JET Program, along with its alumni association here in New York (of which this reporter is a member). Another member, Brooklyn resident Steven Horowitz, serves on JETAA New York’s board of directors and is the founder of JetWit.com, a global JET alumni resource site now featuring a significant stream of relief and support efforts updates via its 55,000 members worldwide.
“My goal is to make information available to people that might not be able to find it elsewhere, or in English,” said Horowitz, who worked on JET as English teacher in Aichi Prefecture in the 1990s. “JETs are ideal conduits for information, because so many JETs and JET alums are great at absorbing Japanese information and putting it out there in English through social media and other ways.”
While no integrated system has been set up at this time to accept donations in Japan, Horowitz has been sharing ways people can help, whether they’ve lived in Japan before or just have a desire to help.
“Since JetWit is a central communication platform for the JET alumni community, I’m trying to gather and disseminate as much information as possible,” Horowitz explained. “I’m doing my best to support the efforts of the Japanese government and disseminate the information to people who might need it.”
Click here for a listing of donation resources.
JET alum Washington Post reporter seeks contacts with relatives in Sendai
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Via JETAA DC:
Hi all — I’m a Washington Post reporter and former JET (Hiroshima ’02) looking for any local dc-area connections to the quake for a story on local reaction. In particular seeking anyone who might have relatives in the Sendai region or any of you who were based there for JET and have friends/former colleagues there that you are trying to reach. We are on an immediate deadline, so please email me asap with a contact phone number if you have such a story to share.
Domo,
David Nakamura
nakamurad [at] washpost.com
JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Yumi Tanaka of the New York Peace Film Festival
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See ‘A Thousand Cranes’ at the New York Peace Film Festival March 12-13. (Daiei Motion Picture Co.)
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02). For more Japanese culture, visit his Examiner.com page here.
Manhattan’s Upper East Side kicks off the weekend with the 4th Annual New York Peace Film Festival, which promotes a deeper understanding of international relations from films and presentations worldwide. Saturday focuses on the devastation of the atomic bomb, beginning with the 1958 Japanese film A Thousand Cranes, the story of young Hiroshima bomb victim Sadako Sasaki. JQ caught up with Yumi Tanaka, the festival’s co-founder and executive producer, for this exclusive interview.
Tell us a little about yourself.
I was born and raised in Japan and came to the States to attend college. Upon graduation, I landed a job and remained in the country. When I moved to NYC for a job, I also started taking an acting class. I thought it will help me at business meetings when I have to do a presentation. I loved theater since I was a child. My first experience was with the Takarazuka Revue at the age of three with my father. I studied theater, as literature helped me taking these acting classes, and I was recommended to do a stand-up comedy workshop then. That’s how I started doing stand-up comedy while holding a real job. Then, I pursued the entertainment industry. I took serious acting classes from a teacher who had taught many famous comedians like Ray Romano, and the list goes on.
It was 9/11 that changed my life. I wanted to do something more meaningful instead of being onstage at smelly comedy club to make drunks laugh. In 2005, I met a Hiroshima survivor visiting New York for an NPT [Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty] conference. He told me his life story; how he was hiding as a hibakusha [atomic bomb survivor] for a long time. Then, he said, “Hibakusha are getting older. If we all die, the, there’s no people who carry on to tell our stories.” That was the moment. I thought I could use my knowledge and experiences with theater to tell their story.
In 2006, I met Jonathan Fluck, who used to run children’s theater for over 20 years. He had just produced a poetry performance of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A mutual friend introduced us. Although Jonathan had never been to both cities, his passion towards nuclear abolition was in sync. So we started the New York Peace Film Festival in 2007, and we’ve held one every year except 2009 due to the bad economy.
Exploring Eastern and Western Creativity: Q and A with Michael W. Morris – by Jennifer Olayon
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Michael Morris and Jennifer Olayon. Photo by JET alum Francis Lee.
Here’s a JET-relevant interview titled “Exploring Eastern and Western Creativity: Q & A with Michael W. Morris“ that appeared recently in AsianLife.com magazine and was conducted and written by former JETAANY President Jennifer Olayon.
Jennifer is a Contributing Editor for AsianLife.com magazine and previously served as a Senior Program Officer at Columbia Business School’s Center on Japanese Economy and Business. She is currently open to work and consulting opportunities in Human Capital Management and Diversity and Inclusion areas.
Michael W. Morris is the Chavkin-Chang Professor of Leadership and Director of Program on Social Intelligence at Columbia Business School and leading expert on relationships, conflict resolution, decision-making, and creativity, with a special interest in the role of culture.
Here’s an excerpt from the interview:
“There is a popular stereotype that Easterners are less creative; that they are imitative rather than inventive. While this stereotype is heard in the West, it is heard even more so in East Asia, which surprised me when I first began studying this topic. The creativity problem is a central topic in the social discourse of many East Asian nations, worried about making the transition from manufacturing economies to design and innovation-based economies. In bestsellers with titles like Can Asians Think? Asian polemicists have advanced theories about ways that Asian culture, language, socialization and schooling stunt creativity through hindering abstract critical thinking and molding conformist characters. This sells books, but I think it’s inaccurate.”
Justin’s Japan: NYC Hosts March Anime, Yakuza Film Fests
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'Welcome to the Spaceshow,' an animated entry for this year's New York International Children's Film Festival. (Aniplex)
By JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his page here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Anime sci-fi and a Studio Ghibli-inspired effort from China are the Eastern animation highlights at this year’s New York International Children’s Festival, running March 4 to 27 in Manhattan. The acclaimed festival received national attention two years ago when it hosted the premiere of The Secret of Kells, a European fantasy film that was later nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
North America’s largest film festival for children and teens, NYICFF offers an eye-opening selection of the best new animated and live action film from around the world for ages 3 to 18, with gala premieres, filmmaker Q&As, filmmaking workshops, pre-screening giveaways, audience voting, and the NYICFF Awards Ceremony. Its jury this year includes Uma Thurman, Matthew Modine, Susan Sarandon, Gus Van Sant, James Schamus, Christine Vachon, Michel Ocelot, and John Turturro.
From March 9-19, New York’s Japan Society simmers nearly 50 years of yakuza (Japanese mafia) movies—a mainstay of Japanese cinema—in the Globus Film Series Hardest Men in Town: Yakuza Chronicles of Sin, Sex & Violence, featuring 15 of the genre’s sharpest selections.
In addition to acclaimed classics by directors Hideo Gosha (The Wolves) and Kinji Fukasaku (Cops vs. Thugs, Battles Without Honor and Humanity), the series includes lesser known titles and overlooked treasures by Seijun Suzuki (Youth of the Beast), Takashi Miike (Dead or Alive), Rokuro Mochizuki (A Yakuza In Love, Onibi: The Fire Within), and Academy Award winner Sydney Pollack (The Yakuza), as well as contemporary incarnations of the genre such as Takeshi Kitano’s Outrage. Among eight premieres, four will receive their first screening outside of Japan.
The fest ignites Wednesday (March 9) with a special introduction and live Q&A by celebrated filmmaker Paul Schrader for The Yakuza, Sydney Pollack’s overlooked 1970s gem starring Robert Mitchum and Ken Takakura. The film was Schrader’s debut as a screenwriter (in collaboration with his brother Leonard and Chinatown scribe Robert Towne), and he would go on to pen the scripts for Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and Raging Bull and direct such diverse works as American Gigolo and Mishima, among others. Few films show more deference and respect to Japanese film culture than The Yakuza, which has been lauded as the most original introduction to its eponymous genre.
- ‘Outrage,’ a new crime drama by Takeshi Kitano, left, premieres as part of Japan Society’s Hardest Men in Town film festival, March 9-19. (‘Outrage’ Production Committee )
JETs quoted in article on English teaching in Japanese elementary schools
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New AJET Chair Matthew Cook (Osaka) as well as Beppu City JET May Schlotzhauer are both quoted in a nice Epoch Times article titled “Japanese Elementary Teachers Take On Teaching English.” (Yes, Epoch Times is the paper connected with Falun Gong, but they have a mix of regular reporting together with propaganda.)
While the article includes some cynical, provocative quotes, it’s also nice to see that the JETs quoted are the voice of experience, perspective and reason in thinking about and commenting on the new requirement to have English in 5th and 6th grades in Japan. This makes sense as JETs are actually working in the schools with teachers and students and positioned to be informed commentators.
Also interesting, toward the end of the article is a description of a proactive attempt by Cook to help prepare the elementary school teachers in his district for the coming requirement. A good example of a role that JETs can (and likely already do) play in school districts around Japan.
“Hoping to help prepare elementary teachers to teach English, Cook lobbied the board of education to host a training seminar, but was turned down. Later the board agreed to allow his school to offer a voluntary seminar to teachers from three local elementary schools. The seminar will be offered once, lasting no more than two hours.”
Here’s the link to the full article:
NYT Column: Take Back the Trash by JET alum Bruce Feiler
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“Take Back the Trash“ is a thoughtful column on whether to throw out food in your refrigerator by JET alum Bruce Feiler, author of Learning to Bow, Walking the Bible and several other best-sellers including his recent book The Council of Dads:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/fashion/06ThisLife.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2
Justin’s Japan (or America): Oscar Winner + Film Director Q&As
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Academy Award-winning songwriter Randy Newman. (Pamela Springsteen)
JetWit is proud to announce that JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) is now the official Music Q&A and Perfoming Arts Q&A reporter for Examiner.com‘s national page! Kicking off his new channels are exclusive interviews with Academy Award-winning songwriter Randy Newman and filmmaker Kevin Smith.
Visit Justin’s site here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Writer/actor/director Kevin Smith. (Mark Mainz/Getty Images)
Justin’s Japan: Q&A with Billy Sheehan of Mr. Big
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- Billy Sheehan of platinum-selling rock group Mr. Big. (William Hames)
By JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his page here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Considered by many to be the Eddie Van Halen of bass, Billy Sheehan launched his recording career in the late ’70s with the Buffalo-based rock trio Talas, then joined original Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth’s band in the mid-’80s for two platinum-selling albums. After parting with Diamond Dave, Sheehan formed Mr. Big in 1988. Best known for its hit ballad “To Be with You”—which went to number one in 15 countries including the U.S. in 1992—Mr. Big called it quits a decade later, but in 2009 the original lineup reformed for a massive tour of Asia and Europe.
In February, the band released What If…, the first album in 15 years from the reunited rockers, which instantly went gold in Japan upon release. I spoke with Billy about the new album, his long relationship with Japan, and Mr. Big’s future touring plans.
What are some of your favorite “culture shock” memories from Japan?
Let’s see. Well, I toured with a Japanese band called B’z [in 2002], and they’re a huge band. One of their singles released that I played on [1999’s “Giri Giri Chop,” with Pat Torpey] sold, I think, three or four million units in a day; they’ve sold more records in Japan than Madonna has sold. Amazing statistics; wonderful bunch of guys, too. But we’ve played in little, tiny places where very few Western bands have ever performed. We did a thing on this little island where at the hotel there weren’t even Western numbers on the doors, so I had to remember the character of the kanji on the door to try to remember which door was mine, and that was an interesting moment for me.
It must have been a thrilling experience to go on tour with them.
We played all over. In Mr. Big, that’s one thing we’ve done, as well. Most bands [play] Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and that’s it. But we’ve done Sendai, Kagoshima, Niigata, Sapporo, Fukuoka; all kinds of little places, a lot of places where many bands don’t get to. In Sendai, the first time we played there, we found out that they were having a petition to have Mr. Big play there. It had 30,000 signatures on it, and the place we were playing could only hold about 5,000 people, so we asked, what happened to the other 25,000 people that signed the thing? It was pretty fun; a sweet, sweet beautiful little city, great spot. We were very lucky to see a side of Japan that not a lot of Westerners see. It’s a very inspirational experience.
In your opinion, how do you think Japan has changed from the time you first went there up until now?
I know the economy’s been in trouble for a while, so now we’re starting to see things like discount stores and prices that aren’t set anymore; that’s a new thing for them, to go into a store and not pay absolute full retail for something, which they did for a long, long time. Now, they’re actually looking for bargains. That’s an interesting cultural change that not a lot of Japanese folks are used to. Also, the idea that once you work for a company, you are there for a lifetime of work; it’s not as secure anymore. So, I do believe there is a little bit of concern and worry amongst the average folks now that things are changing, and it’s sad to see. It’ll be interesting to see how things play out in the end.
When you played the Mr. Big reunion shows in Japan in 2009, did you notice any shift in the people who were coming to the shows?
We were very, very surprised at how many young kids were in the audience. We had a few gray heads of hair out there, too, of course, but there was amazingly a very large amount of very young kids, because I guess like any band, when you’re fortunate enough to get to some plateau of success, things start to kind of become timeless, as with this whole Beatles fans thing—I’m not comparing ourselves to them, of course, but same principle. So, we’re pleasantly surprised to see a lot of very young people whose parents probably turned them on to it, or their older brothers or sisters. So, that was a great thing.
You’re spanning generations now over there.
Yeah, I think there’s probably three generations easily being represented in the audience. We’re so thankful.
You’ve been known to get extra work and gigs in Japan over the years, like the B’z tour, Hard Rock Cafe radio spots, bass clinics, and other appearances. Do these usually come to you by reputation, or do you have to actively campaign for them?
Generally, they come to me, which I’m humbled by. It’s awful nice of them to consider me for their endorsement things and what have you. Fortunately, the press in Japan is thorough and omnipresent, so we really get a lot of coverage, and if we get fortunate enough to have a reputation that precedes us, that’s pretty cool. And it’s been an incredibly lucrative thing, to be frank—we’ve made a lot of money from Japan. And when we played there, we realized that. So, we played, and I came off the stage and practically collapsed from exhaustion a couple of times, because we push hard in our appreciation for what we have now as a result of the fans there. We don’t forget it for a minute. That’s pretty awesome.
Click here for the complete interview.
JET alum sake expert spotlighted in Japan Times
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Today’s Japan Times makes mention of JET alum and leading sake expert John Gauntner (a.k.a. The Sake Guy), author of the Sake World E-Newsletter. In the article, which highlights sake’s growing popularity around the world, Gauntner recalls his long journey with the rice-based beverage — from love at first sip to his current status as the first and only non-Japanese certified “sake expert assessor”.
Check out the article, “Foreign sake experts win over hearts, palates”.
Gauntner is a noted lecturer on sake who travels the world speaking on the topic. He has published a score of books on sake and spoke at Japan Society last May. To learn more about him and sake, visit his website www.sake-world.com.
Justin’s Japan: Q&A with Yuki Chikudate of Asobi Seksu
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Asobi Seksu singer/keyboardist Yuki Chikudate. (Polyvinyl Record Co.)
By
JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his pages here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
Formed in New York City in 2001, the band Asobi Seksu and its core members Yuki Chikudate (vocals, keyboards) and James Hanna (guitar) cut their teeth in the indie shoegaze and dream pop scene as it graduated from a dense, textured guitar-based sound to a more abstract, atmospheric approach.
Fluorescence, the band’s fourth and latest studio album, hits stores today (Feb. 15). I caught up with Chikudate prior to the band’s sold out show at New York’s Mercury Lounge later this week for this exclusive interview.
What kind of goals did you and James have recording Fluorescence?
We knew that we were interested in making an album that better captured what we sound like live. We wanted it to be colorful.
How did you approach the recording compared to your other albums?
The approach was to let go and have fun. I think we felt a lot more relaxed this time—it was summer.
Do you have any other special plans for promoting the album in addition to touring?
Hoping to play some festivals this year—outdoor shows are the best!
I read that you grew up in Southern California and attended a school for children of Japanese expatriates who planned to return home after several years abroad. Was this your first brush with Japanese culture outside the home, and how do you think the experience influenced your view of Japan or the way this aspect of its society operates?
I was born in Japan, so no, it wasn’t my first experience with Japanese culture outside my home. My view of Japan was that all my family was there. Sometimes I wished that it wasn’t so far away. As a kid, the strict disciplinary nature of Japanese school sucked!
Click here for the rest of the interview.
Justin’s Japan: Tak Matsumoto of B’z wins first Grammy
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'Take Your Pick' was named Best Pop Instrumental Album last night at the 2011 Grammys. (335 Records/Vermillion Records)
By JQ magazine’s Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his NY Japanese Culture page here to subscribe for free alerts on newly published stories.
While Justin Bieber came up empty, Takahiro Matsumoto of the J-rock band B’z won big at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles last night (Feb. 13).
The famed 49-year-old guitarist, commonly known Tak Matsumoto, netted his very first Grammy gold (Best Pop Instrumental Album) for Take Your Pick, a collaboration with the equally legendary American guitarist Larry Carlton.
Carlton, whose licks Matsumoto admitted to copying as a teenager, has been recording since the 1960s and has played on over 100 gold and platinum records, including discs by Steely Dan, Michael Jackson and Billy Joel. Take Your Pick, which contains original compositions by the duo supported by American session players, was released last June and goosed by a two-month Japanese tour by the axe slingers.
“I had never told anyone until now, but the Grammys was one of my dreams and a big goal,” Matsumoto said yesterday after winning the award. This was Carlton’s fourth win and 19th nomination overall.
Click here for the rest of the story.
NYTimes column: “Dominating the Man Cave” by JET alum Bruce Feiler
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A thoughtful column in today’s New York Times on the topic of ESPN and man culture by JET alum Bruce Feiler, author of Learning to Bow, Walking the Bible and several other best-sellers including his recent book The Council of Dads:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/06/fashion/06ThisLife.html?_r=1&src=twrhp
