Akemi's Blog

Kumamoto Earthquake: Emergency Response Online Donations Page

I was searching for some online donation pages for the disasterous earthquake in Kumamoto.

Peace Boat Volunteer Center is one of such sites.

My thoughts are with you, Kumamoto.....

What I want to share

For a while, I will keep exploring the features of Typepad when I write my blog.

What do I want to share with my future readers?  

As my name indicates, I'm originally from Japan, having lived in the US for 22 years.  Over the course of these years I have noticed that people in the US are more interested in things Japanese.  Were there so many sushi restaurants as there are 20 years ago?  How many new house ads have you seen with "a Japanese-type soaking bath tab" or "zen garden"?  Or photos of a living room or a bedroom that has shoji-like screen?  What about a tansu used as side table?  

While I have seen so many Japanese influences entering into people's lives in the US, whenever I go back to Japan, I hear things like "Mr.xx is the last person left who can make this traditional kimono weaving method." or "After I retire there will be nobody that has this gold leafing technique left." Or "I'm a very skilled tansu joiner but I have to work as a taxi driver by day because I can't make a living with only  tansu making."

Japanese traditional arts and crafts are dying because there is not enough demand.  On the other hand, here in the US there is definitely increased interest in Japan's high quality arts and craftsmanship.  How can we fill the gap?

So I started to do my research, and I found out that there is very little information about Japanese traditional arts and crafts in English.  Most information available online is either outdated (The Book of Tea written by Kakuzo Okakura in 1906 is till the best-sold English book on Chanoyu), hard to read because it's merely a direct translation from the Japanese text ("News of Japan Traditional Crafts Aoyama Square temporariness closing".... Is Google Translator good enough?), or wrong or stereotype (who said you can't use chopsticks to eat sushi?) 

My goal is to introduce Japan's wonderful craftspeople, their impeccable skills, their beautiful artwork, the history behind it, and the current situation, in my own words. My English may not be great, but hopefully it's easier to read than mere translation. And I hope it will get better as I continue blogging.  And by blogging I will seek a way to fill the gap I mentioned above.  

Today I learned to use "Recommended links and posts" feature of Typepad by adding two links.  Cool!

 

My April Fool's Resolution

My first blog in English

My April Fool's resolution: to write blogs in English everyday.  

Why not hedging my bet?  If I can't do it, because my resolution was an April Fool. But it's worth trying anyway.  

Why did I decide to start a blog?

Because there is something I want to share with the world. I believe there are some, if not many, who are interested in what I want to share. My assessment is that what I want to share with the world is not widely written in English. Somebody has to translate it from Japanese to English.  Or somebody, a non-English native like me, has to take part in.  

I know my English is far from being good, but it won't get better unless I push myself. Writing a blog everyday should be a good way to do just that.

For the first few days I will focus on learning how to use Typepad.  Anyway, enough for today.