I’ll Make It Myself!: What I Ate in Nagano, Day 2: Yamanouchi
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan; 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 in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Day 1: On the Road to Yudanaka Onsen (長野の名産を食べる旅：第一日)
On our second day in Nagano, we headed to Yamanouchi to see the snow monkeys at the Jigokudani Monkey Park. We kind of took the long way around, but eventually we got on the right path.
Life After JET: Teaching perspective from Kevin Stein
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A great post about teaching from “The Other Things Matter,” a great blog by Osaka-based ESL teacher Kevin Stein. Kevin is also the author of the article “Even a Native Speaker Stops Sometimes: Helping Japanese Learners to Understand What is Said.”
As many flavors of failure…
I came over to Japan for my first English language teaching job on the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program. It was 14 years ago. I was living way out in the countryside and always looked forward to our big prefectural trainings. At that time, the program directors gathered up the assistant language teachers twice a year and plunked us all down in a hot-spring hotel for three days. During those trainings, I first learned how to use the International Phonetic Alphabet as a tool for pronunciation work. I learned about how to help students adjust to ambiguity in the language classroom (something I recently revisited thanks to the spring issue of The English Connection). And oddly (or perhaps not oddly at all), I met John Fanselow for the first time. He gave a lecture on partial information which has stayed more than partially with me for over a dozen years.
I also remember one more presentation from the first training I attended. It was only thirty minutes or so long. It was given by a very unassuming high school teacher from Japan. He wore a short-sleeved cream colored button-down shirt with a brown necktie. He stood at the front of the room and started telling us about his bullet-train ride into the conference. He hadn’t brought much cash with him, so he bought a cheap Japanese lunch-box before getting on the train. He put his luggage and Japanese lunch-box on the rack above his seat, nodded to the business man sitting next to him, and then promptly took a nap.
When he woke up, he felt a little hungry, so he pulled down his lunch box. He was pleased to find that, even though it was a cheap lunch-box, it was filled with all sorts of strips of beef, some fatty tuna, and quail eggs. He was particularly happy about the quail eggs as they were his favorite. About half way through eating his lunch-box, the businessman next to him also woke up from a nap, stood up, and took down his own lunch-box. But as soon as the businessman opened the lunch-box up, he seemed to get very angry. The presenter said, “I wasn’t sure why he was angry. I guessed that maybe he was disappointed in his lunch-box. It wasn’t as nice as mine. It was the kind with sausages, not steak. Fried fish, not sushi. I felt very bad for him.” Then the presenter started laughing. A real solid laugh that, I think, made everyone else in the room want to laugh as well. “In fact, I was feeling bad for him when he turned to me and said….
Click here to read the full post on Kevin’s blog.
WIT Life #229: Shaking things up
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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 together with her own observations.
This week the New York Times has had a host of articles about recent economic, business and political decisions in Japan. One that came out today discusses the efforts of Haruhiko Kuroda, the new Bank of Japan governor, to drastically change Japan’s economic policy in order to escape the deflation that has plagued the country for an extended period of time. He will attempt to achieve this by doubling the amount of money in circulation and bringing annual inflation to about 2 percent. However, some experts question whether monetary policy alone can end Japan’s deflation, as the country has other deflationary pressures like an aging/shrinking population and heavy regulations burdening the economy. A certain result from these new policies will be a weakening of the yen, which is a boon for Japanese exporters.
Another article talks about the changes the Japanese Cabinet has proposed in regard to Read More
I’ll Make It Myself!: What I Ate in Nagano, Day 1: On the Road to Yudanaka Onsen
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Craft beer wasn’t the only delicious thing I had on my trip to Nagano. Let’s recap!
I’ll Make It Myself!: Homemade Sakura “Latte” (Sakura Steamer)
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Nothing heralds spring like seasonal menu changes! Starbucks’ sakura latte (henceforth not italicized) is much like the pumpkin spice latte in the US: people go crazy for it and it sells out long before sakura season is over. Or, in Kanazawa and the rest of northern Japan, before it even starts.
This year, the latte was replaced by a sakura white hot chocolate, which I really liked, but unfortunately it’s been gone for a month and the sakura only started blooming this week. Luckily, a sakura “latte” (technically it’s a steamer since there’s no coffee) is really easy to make at home. All you need is preserved edible sakura, boiling water, and milk.
JET alum children’s book author Rob Weston keeps producing
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Rob Weston (Nara-ken, 2002-04), author of the one-of-a-kind children’s novel Zorgamazoo, continues his uniquely rhyming ways. In February, he published Prince Puggly of the Spiff and the Kingdom of Spud. And in November he will be publishing a phosphorescent children’s book–The Creature Department.
About Prince Puggly:
Prince Puggly of Spud and the Kingdom of Spiff is the story of Puggly, a commoner chosen to be the prince—not the king, definitely not the king—of the extremely unfashionable Kingdom of Spud.
The newly-crowned Puggly is surprised to receive an invite to a party in the kingdom next door, the painfully chic Kingdom of Spiff. When Puggly shows up in plaid trousers and a polka-dot cape, the stylish Spiffians are not amused—especially when when it turns out Puggly’s invite is a forgery.
But hark! All is not lost. Puggly soon discovers an unexpected ally in Francesca, the bookish Princess of Spiff. Together, the two friends set out to teach the Spiffs an absurd lesson in style…
For more info, go to: http://robertpaulweston.com/
Here are clips of Rob from the 2009 JETAA NY JET Alumni Author Showcase.
Job: CUNY Start – Cooperating Teacher and Writing Assistant (NY)
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Thanks to JET alum and JetWit founder Steven Horowitz for sharing this post. Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Various positions including Cooperating Teacher and Writing Assistant
Posted by: The City University of New York
Type: Various
Location: New York, NY
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Note from Steven:
CUNY Start is a unique and innovative adult education program, and I thought it may be of interest to any JETs or JET alumni seeking to work in adult education. More information available at the website listed above. Additionally, I’m currently teaching in this program and would be happy to answer questions for any JETs or alumni interested in applying.
– Steven
______________________________________________________________
Program Overview:
CUNY Start provides intensive preparation in academic reading/writing, math, and “college success.” The program enrolls prospective CUNY students who have been accepted to college because they have a high school or GED diploma, but are not ready for college-level work based on their scores on the CUNY Assessment Tests.
Students who have enrolled in CUNY Start re-take the required CUNY Assessment Tests. Past students have shown significant skill gains when they re-test; many have bypassed required remedial coursework entirely.
Spring 2013 and Fall 2013 Job Opportunities at CUNY:
- Associate Program Director – CUNY Start
- Cooperating Advisor
- Cooperating Math Teacher
- Cooperating Reading/Writing Teacher
- Writing Assistant
http://www.cuny.edu/academics/programs/notable/CATA/cti-cunystart/cunystart-employmentopps.html
JET Bloggers’ Food Posts Roundup (3.26.2013)
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
These posts by JET bloggers were featured on the JET Alum Culinary Group on LinkedIn:
“How to Earn a Black Belt…In Front of the Conveyor Belt” by Alexandra Brueckner (ALT, Aomori, 2011-) at The Globe-Trotting Geek.
This piece about kaitenzushi was Freshly Pressed on WordPress on March 12, 2013. おめでとうございます！
“Weekend: 3月17日: Osaka meals” by Sarah (ALT, Takaoka, 2012-) at Daily Nibbles.
Sarah takes gorgeous photos of Osaka’s famous foods. Takoyaki has never looked this good!
“A quick break at Kiharu” by Brittany (CIR, Matsue, 2012-) at San’in Monogatari.
Brittany drops by a cafe in Matsue for some wagashi and matcha.
Join us on LinkedIn and share your own food stories, blog posts, or articles of interest: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=4803196&trk=hb_side_g
I’ll Make It Myself!: Snow Monkey Beer Live 2013 (スノーモンキービアライブ)
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
I finally got to attend the 2013 Snow Monkey Beer Live, an annual craft beer and live music festival in Shiga Kogen, Nagano, which took place from March 16-17.
I’ll Make It Myself!: A Bento is Not As Big As the World
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
This is a companion piece to “‘Deeply Ingrained Advantages’: American Media Discovers Kyûshoku.”
At the same time as Japan’s school lunch programs got picked up by the media, there was a burst of articles about Japan’s other distinctive lunch: the bento.
Bento and the Cult of Cute
In the lead-in to Carlsen’s and Turner’s “In Japan, Food Can Be Almost Too Cute To Eat,” there is a slideshow showcasing the cuter side of Japanese food: tofu character goods, a kyaraben (character bento), and images of Anpanman in cartoon and pancake form.
WIT Life #228: Japan Week!
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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 together with her own observations.
Yesterday began the second annual Japan Week here in NYC, a bit of a misnomer as it only goes for the three days of March 19-21. The venue is Grand Central Terminal’s Vanderbilt Hall, where you can find 18 booths featuring Japanese food, drink and culture. Last night I was lucky enough to attend a kick-off event at the Japanese ambassador’s residence that highlighted Japan’s unique food culture and traditional arts.
One of the gue
st speakers was Michael Romano, director of culinary development for Union Square Hospitality Group, whose restaurants include Union Square Cafe and Gramercy Tavern. Romano was also instrumental in the creation of Union Square Tokyo in 2007. He spoke of his love affair with Japan which began later in life, but has become a full-fledged passion. Romano espoused his devotion to Japanese knives, and shared how a craftsman in Sakai, a city once known for samurai swords but now famous for its kitchen knives, made him a Read More
I’ll Make It Myself!: The Blanton’s Cake (Apple Bourbon Bundt Cake)
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
The set-up for this cake: Blanton’s Bourbon, of Kentucky, is actually sold in Japan but some varieties are only sold in international markets: Black, Silver, Gold, Special Reserve, Straight from the Barrel; Original Single Barrel are sold in the US and abroad.
New JET Alum Parenting Blog: “US-JAPAN FAM”
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Heather Wilson Tomoyasu (ALT Ibaraki-ken, 2004-06), previously Manager of Public Relations at the Japanese Chamber of Commerce, is now a newly established stay-at-home mom blogging in Brooklyn on her site US-Japan Fam to hopefully compile the ultimate resource for Japanese-American cross cultural families, delving into the matters of raising children bilingually, bi-culturally, and bi-racially in the Big Apple.
The first 8 entries are up and ready to roll:
A Little about Me and the Blog: find out more about me and my family (yes, I met my husband at a gay bar, WHAT??), and my plans for the blog.
Marathon of a Birth: discussing my 50 hour labor, natural birth (no meds – YIKES), and the whacked out medical system that billed $25K on a 36-hour hospital stay!
Back to Work – To Go or Not to Go, a New Mother’s Dilemma: you guessed it, this one is all about maternity leave, comparing the US system to that of Japan and a few other countries, and what went into my decision to stay at home.
My Roommate is a Grunter and Poops his Pants: about co-sleeping (same room or same bed) with your children
Sleep Training: Am I the Trainee or the Trainer?: how we got our little one on the Babywise schedule and I’m back to a heavenly 6+ hour consecutive nighttime sleep again!!
Shoot ‘Em Up: The Vaccination Debate: a bit controversial, but in the end you just gotta be informed and make the right decision for your family!
Baby Wearin’ & Stroller Struttin’: I weigh the pros and cons of different ways to get your baby around the city!
What They Don’t Tell You to Expect When You’re Expecting (And Afterward): a hilarious list I compiled for moms and dads alike!
Comments on entries are always appreciated, and guest bloggers are welcome to use the contact form on the blog site to submit ideas!
JETwit note: CLICK HERE to join the JET Alumni Parents group on Facebook.
I’ll Make It Myself: Kitchen Library – 2013.3.7
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
With all the cakes and analyses lately, I’ve really missed doing this series!
I’ll Make It Myself: Foodpia Land 2013
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L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and 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 The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Last year, I wrote about Foodpia Land, Kanazawa’s big winter food fair, in the context of street food and food culture in Japan. This year, a bunch of my friends and I went again to celebrate a birthday, so while I’m working on posts for the last two geeky/nerdy birthday cakes I made, I thought you all might like to see some photos.
