Justin’s Japan: Discover the Joy of Sake
Anecdote Article, Events, Food & Drink, Justin's Japan 
Comments Off on Justin’s Japan: Discover the Joy of Sake
Click image to read story
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Shukan NY Seikatsu. Visit his Examiner.com Japanese culture page here for related stories.
Now celebrating its 10th anniversary in New York City, The Joy of Sake—the world’s largest sake tasting event outside of Japan—returns to the Altman Building in Chelsea on Sept. 26, with a staggering 172 breweries serving samples of Japan’s most celebrated alcoholic beverage.
While current statistics show that sake is losing ground to beer in Japan, it continues to make inroads in the U.S., especially among drink-savvy New Yorkers with a palate for the record 384 premium labels to be offered at the event.
“In the last 10 years the amount of sake imported into New York has doubled as more and more people discover how good the premium labels can be,” says event organizer Chris Pearce. “The Joy of Sake is a celebration of the pleasures of the sake cup—and it’s also one of the best annual food and beverage events in New York.”
This popularity is bolstered by the spotlight on sake at other Manhattan events this fall, including the JFC International Sake Expo and Food Show (Sept. 14) and the New York Mutual Trading Japanese Food and Restaurant Expo (Oct. 12). These annual industry gatherings pair the freshest of Japanese cuisines with some subtle, yet powerful, selections.
If you’ve never experienced The Joy of Sake, now’s the time! For more information, visit www.joyofsake.com.
Job: Program Director – Global Experiences (London)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Program Director – Global Experiences (London)
Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
————————————————————————————————————
Position: Program Director
Posted by: Global Experiences
Location: London
Salary: DOE
Overview:
location in London. At Global Experiences we recognize our success is built on our values: commitment to our university partners, innovative thinking, collaborative teamwork, industriousness, optimism and unwavering focus on the student experience. We have a highly selective, multi-step recruitment process that not only screens for the best, but also for the best fit. For candidates with the right skills, values and enthusiasm to enhance our team, we welcome your applications.
Read More
JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Tom Byer on Life in Soccer, Japan
Article/Journalism, Celebrity, Interview/Profile, JQ Magazine Comments Off on JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Tom Byer on Life in Soccer, Japan
“I believe we may see Japan win a World Cup within my lifetime, and I certainly think they will be the first Asian team to do so. They are the type of team that the current world powers would not like to have in their group during a WC tournament.” (Courtesy of K.K. T3)
By Lyle Sylvander (Yokohama-shi, 2001-02) for JQ magazine. Lyle has completed a master’s program at the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University and has been writing for the JET Alumni Association of New York since 2004. He is also the goalkeeper for FC Japan, a New York City-based soccer team.
Tom Byer (a.k.a. Tomsan) is an American soccer coach who has lived in Japan for nearly 30 years. The first professional American soccer player in Asia, he has been a major figure in Japan as a coach and educator. In fact, many people in Japan see him as a major catalyst behind the country’s rising status as a global soccer power. Byer is responsible for increasing soccer’s popularity and teaching fundamental skills to hundreds of thousands of children, including many of the nation’s most celebrated players. In the process, he has become a well-known media personality and has even extended his influence to China, where he signed a contract with the Chinese Football Association to be a technical director for youth teams.
Where are you from? Was soccer popular there when you were growing up?
I was born in the Bronx, New York City. I grew up in Rosendale, Ulster County, Upstate New York. Soccer was just becoming popular when I was a kid. I first started playing baseball and changed over to soccer after my brother and his friends started to play. But soccer was still a very minor sport.
How did you end up living and working in Japan?
I was introduced to Hitachi FC, which is currently playing in the J-League as Kashiwa Reysol, back in 1986 because my college coach at Ulster County Community College had some connections here. So I had a short stint with them, which gave me experience in Japanese soccer. And when I hung up the playing boots I decided to get into youth development. I also did many things on the U.S. military bases for kids playing soccer.
Can you tell us about your company T3, which aims to educate Japanese schoolchildren about soccer?
My company is called T3—the T stands for “Tom” and the 3 for “san,” Tomsan, because I am known by Tom-san throughout Japan from my appearances on daily television for 13 years. The name of the TV corner was, “Tom-san’s Soccer Techniques.” We try to help every child we come in contact with to “realize their potential.” We are technical specialists helping kids, coaches and parents understand the importance of developing technique. I have performed over 2,000 events for more than 500,000 people over the years. I established another company which I headed up for 16 years which established over 100 soccer schools throughout Japan. It’s difficult to find almost any player in Japan today who hasn’t been influenced in some way regarding our activities. This means either they’ve grown up watching my daily TV corner, read the monthly KoroKoro Komikku manga, or have played in one of our 100 schools, camps, or bought our DVDs or books.
Around Japan in 47 Curries: Yamanashi Fruit
Uncategorized Comments Off on Around Japan in 47 Curries: Yamanashi Fruit
Tom Baker (Chiba, 1989-91) is writing a 47-part series of posts on his Tokyo Tom Baker blog, in which he samples and comments on a curry from a different prefecture almost every week. Here’s an excerpt from his 14th installment, in which he explores whether or not Yamanashi Prefecture fruit is a good curry ingredient:
Grapes and wine are Yamanashi’s most famous products. The cultivation of grapes dates back about 1,300 years, apparently beginning with a monk who had a vision of Buddha holding a bunch of them. Wine production didn’t get started until the 1868-1912 Meiji era, but there are now more than 80 wineries in the prefecture, making about 40 percent of Japan’s domestic wine.
In 2007, the prefecture was No. 1 in grape production, at 51,400 tons, well ahead of second-place Nagano with 30,700. It was also first in peaches (54,100 tons, ahead of then second-place Fukushima at 27,800) and plums (6,660, ahead of second-place Wakayama at 3,280).
While driving through Yamanashi Prefecture a couple of weeks ago, I picked up some grape and peach curries at a highway rest stop…
Book: “This Japanese Life” published by JET alum blogger Eryk Salvaggio
Blogs, Books, JET Alum Author Beat, JETs in the News, LifeAfterJET, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Writers Comments Off on Book: “This Japanese Life” published by JET alum blogger Eryk Salvaggio
Thanks to AJET Chair Kay Makishi for the heads up on Fukuoka JET alum Eryk Salvaggio who writes the blog “This Japanese Life” and recently published a book by the same name. You can read more about Eryk in this Japan Times interview with him from 2012.
About the book: http://thisjapaneselife.org/this-japanese-life-the-book/
Most books about Japan can tell you how to use chopsticks or say “konnichiwa.” Few tackle the real stress of life in a radically different culture.
The author, a three-year resident and the writer and researcher behind one of the best Japan blogs, tackles the thousand tiny uncertainties of life abroad with honesty and wit.
Perfect for anyone about to leave home for Japan or elsewhere, This Japanese Life will deepen any reader’s understanding of Japanese culture as it’s fused into a method of dealing with the hardships of working and living there.
About Eryk:
Eryk Salvaggio was an American newspaper editor in Bangor, Maine before teaching English in Japan with the JET Program. He lived in Fukuoka City from 2010-2013, writing a blog, This Japanese Life, about Japanese culture and the tiny anxieties of being an expatriate.
The site was named one of the best Japan Blogs by Tofugu and was spotlighted by The Japan Times. Salvaggio has written for McSweeney’s, The Japan Times, Tofugu and Kulturaustausch.
His work as a visual artist has been covered in The New York Times and elsewhere.
He currently lives in London.
WIT Life #250: Mochi, mochi and more mochi!
Food & Drink, Translating/Interpreting, WIT Life, Writers Comments Off on WIT Life #250: Mochi, mochi and more mochi!
WIT Life is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends along with her own observations.
I am at the tail end of my State Department interpreting gig here in Hawaii, and was glad to find that even when you are far from home you are never far from other JETs. I sat down to breakfast the other morning in my hotel, and who did I see but fellow NY JET alum Mark Flanigan! He was here on ICU business, and I was lucky enough to catch him before he flew back to NY that night. Small world! Tomorrow when work ends I’m planning on Read More
Job: Cultural Engagement and Study Away Program Manager-University of Minnesota Rochester Campus (Minnesota)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Cultural Engagement and Study Away Program Manager-University of Minnesota Rochester Campus (Minnesota)
Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
————————————————————————————————————
Position: Cultural Engagement and Study Away Program Manager
Posted by: University of Minnesota Rochester Campus
Location: Minnesota
Overview:
The program manager is responsible for managing Study Away from Rochester, which includes Education Abroad and National Student Exchange, advising undergraduate students at UMR on Study Away from Rochester, coordinating general travel advising services, creating and updating all advising related publications online and in print related to Study Away from Rochester, administering UMR travel scholarships, facilitating pre- and post-travel learning experiences, serving as Designated School Official for SEVIS, and working closely with Global Programs & Strategic Alliance on the Twin Cities campus (50%); serving as the liaison with One Stop Student Services as it relates to travel and capstone experiences, such as explaining financial aid policies, procedures and scholarship options (10%); facilitating curricular and co-curricular integration as it relates to cultural competence, global perspectives, diversity and inclusivity initiatives (35%); and other duties as assigned (5%). This position includes some teaching of appropriate courses and seminars.
Job: Student Services Specialist III–Study Abroad at University of North Texas (Denton, TX)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Student Services Specialist III–Study Abroad at University of North Texas (Denton, TX)
Posted by Jayme Tsutsuse (Kyoto-fu, 2013-Present). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
————————————————————————————————————
Position: Student Services Specialist III
Posted by: Study Abroad at University of North Texas
Location: Denton, TX
Overview:
International (UNT-I) is the administrative unit charged with directing all aspects of UNT’s international operations and partnerships. UNT-I is a growing and strongly supported organization, and is central to the university’s strategic internationalization.
In collaboration with more than a dozen colleges, schools and academic programs, UNT-I is aggressively expanding the university’s global reach. The division serves more than 2,600 international students and more than 100 foreign scholars, primarily on the Denton campus, with departments and offices ranging from International Student and Scholar Services to the Intensive English Language Institute.
Postings from Idealist.org 9.19.13
Jobs Comments Off on Postings from Idealist.org 9.19.13
Via Idealist.org. Posted by Geneva Marie (Niigata-ken 2008-09) Geneva is a contributor to both JETwit and JETAANY. Geneva is on a continuous (epic) search for Japanese-related jobs in the United States. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
InterExchange Au Pair USA North Shore, Long Island Local Coordinator
Posted by: InterExchange, Inc
Type: Part-time
Location: Jerico, NY
Salary: Fee-based
Application Deadline: September 23, 2013
InterExchange Au Pair USA is looking for a professional and dynamic self-starter to oversee our North Shore Long Island Au Pair Cluster. While upholding Department of State guidelines, this individual will help promote a cultural exchange program that provides a unique solution for families seeking affordable and flexible childcare. This is a rewarding opportunity to work with a group of lively international au pairs and American host families. The right candidate will work from home, part-time (15-20 hours per week), with the opportunity for growth.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/XgfGJ5XWKmfP
File Processor
Posted by: American Councils for International Education ACTR/ACCELS
Type: Full-time/Temporary
Location: Washington, DC
Salary: Not Specified
Application Deadline: Not Specified
File Processor is a temporary, full-time position that reports to the Senior Program Administrator for AIS Operations*. The primary responsibility of this position is completing operational and administrative tasks during scholarship applicant selection for the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX), Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES), American-Serbia and Montenegro Youth Leadership Exchange (A-SMYLE), National Security Languages Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y), and other programs. Hours may vary from week to week, as necessary, with five (5) days and 35 hours per week to be the expected norm. Some weekend and evening work might be available or required. Multiple File Processor positions are projected to run from early October and early November 2013 through March 28, 2014.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/tW2bmtsHFgnp
JET alum publishes new book on corporal punishment and discipline in Japan’s schools
Academic, Books, JET Alum Author Beat, LifeAfterJET, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Writers Comments Off on JET alum publishes new book on corporal punishment and discipline in Japan’s schools
Thanks to AJET Chair Kay Makishi for passing along info about this interesting new book by Aaron Miller (Ehime-ken, 2002-04).
About the Author (via Amazon.com):
Aaron L. Miller, PhD is Assistant Professor and Hakubi Scholar at Kyoto University, affiliated with the Graduate School of Education, and Visiting Scholar, Stanford University Center on Adolescence. His academic research explores the relationships between education, sports, discipline and culture. His website is www.aaronlmiller.com.
About the Book:
This book is about the many “discourses of discipline” that encircle the issue of “corporal punishment” (taibatsu). These discourses encompass the ways that people discuss discipline and the patterns of rhetoric of what discipline should be, as well as what discipline signifies. By scrutinizing these discourses of discipline, this work disentangles the allegedly intimate ties between culture, discipline, and pedagogy in Japanese schools and sports.
For more information on this monograph, including how to order it,please visit http://ieas.berkeley.edu/publications/jrm17.html
Full IEAS catalogue: http://ieas.berkeley.edu/publications/catalogue.html
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Discourses-Discipline-Anthropology-Punishment-Monograph/dp/1557291055
Reviews (via Amazon)
Corporal punishment of children by teachers and coaches is a widespread practice in many countries, but especially in Japan, where it has become a front-page issue involving Olympic athletes. Miller explores this issue both historically and in contemporary practices and analyzes how various discourses regrading disciplinary actions have shaped Japanese understandings of their ‘educational reality.’ To understand this phenomenon, Miller rejects Ruth Benedict’s culturalist theory and, instead, places physical discipline (taibatsu) in the contect of Michel Foucault’s theory of violence and power, offering an incisive analysis of a complex issue. —Harumi Befu, professor emeritus, Stanford University
An intriguing and well-written analysis on molding character in Japanese schools and sports through the widespread use of corporal punishment. Miller frames his discussion in the contexts of Japanese cultural ideals about discipline, toughness, and self-improvement, as well as in Japanese perceptions of such forms of discipline as something uniquely Japanese. This book is an important contribution to understanding the social and cultural dynamics of core institutions in contemporary Japan. —Theodore C. Bestor, Harvard University
Corporal punishment as a discipline of pain and an abuse of adult authority is a troubling presence in Japanese classrooms and sports fields. This is an insightful and wide-ranging analysis that overturns simple judgments with a nuanced exploration of the historical development, sociocultural locations, and heated national discourse on corporal punishment in modern Japan. It is a significant contribution to our understanding of Japanese education and sports, and it is an original anthropological perspective on how we might theorize power in Japanese society. – —William W. Kelly, Yale University
Let’s Talk Japan Podcast, Episode 16 – It’s all about the sake´ at Seattle’s Sake´ Nomi
Food & Drink Comments Off on Let’s Talk Japan Podcast, Episode 16 – It’s all about the sake´ at Seattle’s Sake´ Nomi
Let’s Talk Japan is a monthly, interview format podcast covering a wide range of Japan-related topics. Host Nick Harling (Mie-ken, 2001-03) lived in Japan from 2001 until 2005, including two great years as a JET Program participant in Mie-Ken. He practices law in Washington, D.C., and lives with his wife who patiently listens to him talk about Japan . . . a lot.
In this episode, Nick speaks with Johnnie Stroud, the owner of Sake´ Nomi, a premium sake´ shop and tasting bar in Seattle, Washington. Together they discuss how Johnnie discovered sake´, what motivated him to open a business specializing in sake´, and why you should be drinking more sake´, preferably bought from Sake´ Nomi!
Kanpai!
Nick
If you have not already done so, be sure to “Like” the podcast on Facebook, and follow the podcast on Twitter @letstalkjapan. Additionally, please consider leaving a positive rating and/or review in iTunes.
I’ll Make It Myself: New Resource: Food Substitutions for Cooking and Baking in Japan
Blogs, Food & Drink, I'll Make It Myself, Writers Comments Off on I’ll Make It Myself: New Resource: Food Substitutions for Cooking and Baking in Japan
L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. Ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan and the US; curates The Rice Cooker Chronicles, a series of essays by JETs and JET alumni on the theme of cooking/eating and being alone in Japan; and admins The JET Alumni Culinary Group on LinkedIn.
Throughout my four years in Japan, I had to figure out solutions to issues with ingredient availability and cooking equipment to be able to eat the food I wanted. I’ve just started a new resource with some of my tips for what to substitute and what to make at home. Some of them seem really obvious, but they weren’t to me at the time.
Job: Executive Director for World Boston (Boston)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Executive Director for World Boston (Boston)
Thanks to New England JETAA‘s Jason Currier and Christina Omori for passing in this very interesting opening. It seems that the World Boston Executive Director position is vacant because JET alum Bill Clifford (Shizuoka-ken, 1987-89) has left it to take a new position as President of the World Affairs Councils of America in D.C. According to Jason and Christina, Bill had participated in a number of events with NEJTAA and the Boston Consulate over the years. Posted by blogger and podcaster Jon Dao (Toyama-ken, 2009-12). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
————————————————————————————————————
Position: Executive Director
Posted by: WorldBoston
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Type: Full-Time
Salary: Commensurate with Experience and Ability
Overview:
This position, a highly visible platform in Boston, reports directly to the Board of Directors. The successful candidate will be entrepreneurial, energetic, and a strategic thinker – one who will provide vision and creative leadership to advance the mission of WorldBoston. The successful candidate will: expand WorldBoston’s programming and outreach to the organization’s members and the public; strengthen its civic presence and brand; cultivate relationships with local, national, and international stakeholders.
Requirements:
- Leadership: 7+ years as Executive Director/CEO, COO, or Development Executive with strong record of providing leadership to complex organizations that serve people with interests in international and current affairs. Experience working with a nonprofit board of directors and leading strategic planning efforts strongly preferred. Collaborative, inclusive team-based management style. Talent for mentoring younger professional staff to develop them as leaders.
- Fundraising: Demonstrated ability to grow organizational revenues by identifying and securing private support as well as increasing public funding. Experience in grant writing, annual fund campaigns, corporate and foundation gifts, fundraising events, and planned-giving efforts.
- Fiscal management:High degree of business and financial acumen. Experience in effectively managing annual operating budgets of $500K+ and expanding organizational capacity. Solid understanding of federal grant funds, including their management, reporting, and compliance requirements, is preferred. Read More
Job: Sales and Marketing Position at Actus Consulting Group (NY)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Sales and Marketing Position at Actus Consulting Group (NY)
Posted by blogger and podcaster Jon Dao (Toyama-ken, 2009-12). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
————————————————————————————————————
Posted by: Actus Consulting
Location: White Plains, NY
Type: Full-Time
Salary: 40-50K with Benefits
Overview:
The candidate will be involved in the sales and marketing activities of plastics additives and resins, mainly for North American. There’s also a possibility for some South American exposure. He/she will be required to travel 35% of the time to visit clients and find new customers.
Requirements:
- Recent college graduates with less than 2 years of experience.
- Chemical/ polymers background is a BIG plus.
- Japanese language skill is not required but a plus.
Application Instructions:
(If you apply, please make sure to indicate that you learned of the listing via JETwit.)
【RocketNews24】Ninja language skills: Boost your Japanese with the power of onomatopoeia
Article/Journalism, Writers Comments Off on 【RocketNews24】Ninja language skills: Boost your Japanese with the power of onomatopoeia
Posted by Michelle Lynn Dinh (Shimane-ken, Chibu-mura, 2010–13), editor and writer for RocketNews24. The following article was written by Philip Kendall (Fukushima-ken, Shirakawa-shi, 2006–11), senior editor and writer for RocketNews24, a Japan-based site dedicated to bringing fun and quirky news from Asia to English speaking audiences.
There are in fact three distinct types of onomatopoeia in the Japanese language: 擬声語 giseigo, 擬音語 giongo and 擬態語 gitaigo.
It rarely appears in beginner or intermediate textbooks, but spend a day with any native Japanese speaker and you’ll soon realise that onomatopoeia is a vital part of the language. Utterances such as, “The rain fell like ‘pssshaaaa’” and, “My heart was going ‘boom boom boom’ the whole time!” may come across as a little ineloquent when said in English, but in Japanese these kinds of mimetic words are not only considered perfectly acceptable, but pop up absolutely everywhere.
So if you’ve ever wondered what sound a Japanese pig makes, how best to describe a rolling boulder as opposed to a tiny marble, or would be perplexed if a doctor asked whether the pain you’re feeling is more shikushiku than kirikiri, now’s your chance to hone your language skills and add a few new words to your Japanese vocabulary!
