So This Is Canada: 12 Unguarded Observations of a Returning Canadian

Reverse culture shock is an interesting beast. It’s been six weeks that I’ve been back in Canada after living in Japan for four years, and I am in a weird headspace. People ask how the adjustment is going; it is certainly bewildering. I feel that I have not actually adjusted a single bit, but that I have […]

What Does A Canadian Look Like?

A. B. C. D. E.

Arrrrr, Here There Be Pirates! Pirate Lore as Cultural Literacy

Ahoy, me hearties! Yaarrrrrrr, I’ve not seen yer faces fer awhile on the high seas. Alas, I’ve been locked up in the bilge, teachin foreign tongues to some green landlubbers. But t’night I be scribblin in me Captain’s log, so pillage yerself some grog and let some other scallywag swab the deck fer now. Illustration […]

What’s The Opposite Of A Banana?

When I tell people I’m part Filipino, they take one look at my pasty white skin and thin blonde hair and unsurprisingly raise their eyebrows. This is usually followed by an impromptu interview of sorts, to discover the basis of my curious claim.