Long Time Expat In Japan
I kind of like my kanji submission this month. I still feel awkward and clumsy with the size, especially with the non-cursive style I have to use. But this month was fun if not skillful. Below is my kana submission. While I think I could have done better, I feel like I know more specifically … Continue reading January Shodo
Kanji hasn't really improved since last year, but my rankings among the 3 kyu skews a little to the top. I'm going to try to test up in February. Until then, I plod along with the following, which means think a thousand (times), ponder ten thousand. Which is kind of saying the same thing twice, … Continue reading December Shodo
I feel like I'm starting to get the basics. The below is still pretty pedestrian, but the balance was good, and I feel like I started to "get it" a bit more than usual. This month's kana is a waka (和歌), a 5-7-5-7-7 syllable poem. When I was writing it I didn’t really understand the … Continue reading November Shodo
Japan loves mascots. I suspect that it might be Disney where the phenomenon started, but I have nothing to back that up. The only places that I see mascots where I'm from, Boston, Mass., is for sports teams and Disney. You take pictures with the mascot because you want to remember your association with the … Continue reading Japan is Awesome – Mascots
So what does summertime fun have to do with floating melons and submerged plums, you might be wondering. Well, I'm glad you asked. Another four character idiom for shodo this month. See the bit of kanji below (yes, my brush was a little too soaked with ink, but it was the best of the bunch): … Continue reading End of Summer Fun
The word "semiconductor" changed my life, but it has nothing to do with computer chips, the Internet, or cat videos. It's just me. This blog is a little long and very navel gazey. Forewarned. I got a real kick outta learning languages back in the day. I'm feeling like I lost that a bit, which … Continue reading On How the Word “Semiconductor” Changed My Life – and not in the way you think
B.S. Donovan 