The Pressure to Hear English
I take being surrounded by English speakers for granted. I imagine I’d feel completely liberated in one way if I were to return to Japan and begin my life with the Japanese people, but, in a far more accurate way, I’m slowly forgetting what it’s like to be in the language minority (never mind my white face; that’s a talk for another time). “Shibuya in Action”, digika

My Deadly Sin of Choice
Gluttony. It isn’t necessarily restricted to the delights of chocolate, sugar, sweets, spices, and savory. Rather, this particular sin focuses on the carnal pleasures of all experiences. I know, I know: you’d think by this point, my studies on Buddhism would have alerted me to the fact that the path to enlightenment and true happiness lies not in indulging in sensual pleasure or depriving yourself to the point of an ascetic, but rather finding the middle path. Well, it has… but it has yet to hit home for me. “GLUTTONY (Seven Deadly Sins)”,

Barefoot Running Progress
I finally have a chance to blog on my latest evolution in running: barefoot style. After reading Born to Run by Christopher McDougall and learning of Barefoot Ted’s Adventures, I decided to shuck the shoes, start at zero mileage, and feel the effects of this natural form of athleticism. My legs still feel a little off-balance on occasion, like I never fully recovered from my wrist injury in 2007 and my left side is still adapting to the extra weight. Never

My Religion
That which is impenetrable to us really exists. Behind the secrets of nature remains something subtle, intangible, and inexplicable. Veneration for this force beyond anything we can comprehend is my religion. - Albert Einstein After going head-to-head with a commenter of Can Christianity Be Rescued From Fundamentalist Christians? and tweeting a lot on my latest Dawkins’ read, I thought I’d give this topic a shot. Excuse me if I’m not too

Swallowing Naki
I’ll say it again: Japanese culture is stalking me. Not only was I able to find a cherry blossom festival in the heart of New Zealand, but my next destination was, unknown to me, the site of most of the filming of The Last Samurai. I know what you’re thinking… Japanese stars, based in Japan, why not just film over there? Well, they did a little: - Katsumoto’s temple is in fact the Shoshazan Engyoji Temple in Himeji - The fake