Not so very often I recall the following words of advice from my dear old mother, a tiding of the heart delivered straight from parent to child. "Whatever you do," she would instruct, "be sure to change your underwear." For what if I forgot and then ...
The time has come in this column to finally discuss that passionate act that lies at the core of many an international romance. Yes, it's time for the "S" word. Shopping. Like many males, my own interest in shopping can best be expressed by the well-known ...
Here is a scenario that happens in the first hour of every single new English conversation class in Japan _ a sort of annual rite of spring. The teacher allows the students a few free questions. Sooner much rather than later someone raises an eager ...
Many years ago when she was studying for the TOEFL exam, my wife asked me to explain the difference between a main clause and a subordinate one. She somehow had it in her head that as a native speaker I would instinctively know what ...
Now it can be told. When I first came to Japan, I didn't believe in yakuza . Yes, I had seen Robert Mitchum and Ken Takakura wipe out a whole nest of them in their 1975 action film "The Yakuza," but left the theater that ...
When asked what part of Japan they would most like to take back home, many foreigners respond by saying, "a Japanese bathtub." I myself, on the other hand, usually answer with, "my wife." It is also true that I am one of the great many foreigners ...
Come on. Admit it. Toilets are funny. Go ahead. Put the paper down for a second, walk into the nearest lavatory and throw a belly laugh at the john. It will make you feel great all day. Who cares how the toilet feels about it? Like ...
