How I Almost Got Un-Engaged At Starbucks

Shortly after my husband and I got officially engaged, we set off to the nearest Starbucks to plan our wedding, armed with a notebook, a checklist his dad had printed off the Internet, and a pile of magazine clippings his mom had been saving since… what year does that one say? 200…2? Had we even met […]

From Vancouver To Sochi With Love

Dear People of Sochi, Hello, Bonjour, Privyet. I’ve been meaning to write you for awhile, but as the dust settles from the Sochi Olympics this seems like as good a time as any. There is something that has been nagging at me since before the beginning of these games, and I’m sure it hasn’t escaped […]

Here There Be Dinosaurs

I have found a surprising new addiction. Surprising probably to me alone – as I know a lot of people addicted to it – because I didn’t think I’d ever be susceptible to something as silly as this.

Side Effects Of Anthropology May Include Marriage

There is something in my bag that would make this whole situation a lot better. But from the front row, I’ll have to be pretty covert about it if I don’t want the professor to catch on. I have a “good student” reputation to defend, after all, and I can’t ruin that in my first […]

When We Share Our Stories… (A New Year’s Post)

I will not miss 2013. It was a long year, a challenging year, a busy year, and at times a depressing year. At some point, without me noticing, my perspective changed from “Every day is a magical adventure in Japan, challenges are fun!” to “What am I doing wasting my life in this dark and […]

No Place Like Home Base On Christmas

I remember clearly the first time I didn’t make it “home” for Christmas. It was Christmas Eve, and it was snowing. Christmas snow is rare in Vancouver. I was happy, but my family was worried. My uncle, a pilot, was set to take my cousins and I in his 6-seater twin engine plane, to the […]

To Be Male Or To Be Female, That Is The Question

If you could start over, start from the very beginning, recreate yourself in entirety, which would you choose: male or female? Part of what I love so much about video games, RPGs in particular, is the opportunity to take on a new persona. Become someone new. Someone different. Someone bolder, braver, more heroic… or less […]

On The Fear of Boxes: International Label Day 2013

I am not a fan of labels. Labels, to me, are what you affix to a box after you have stuffed something inside of it and sealed it shut. And I have a slight to moderate case of Pygmachophobia, that is, “fear of boxes or of being sealed in a box.” In a metaphorical sense, […]

A Whole Entire Day Just For Blogging

9:30 – *yawn* That was the first good sleep I’ve had in months. I’ve got a magical day off work and the house to myself. I haven’t had enough free time to blog in weeks, today’s the perfect chance! But, I’m not quite ready to wake up yet… 11:30 – Wow, it’s already almost lunchtime! I’m just gonna lay […]

The Other “F” Word

My Japanese high school students are doing group work on the pros and cons of the Internet, and I’m challenging them to come up with something more creative than “The Internet is bad because danger!” when a word pops out at me. A student has doodled a cute wide-eyed character on the bottom of her team’s paper, and drawn a […]