2013-05-13 SAPPORO, JAPAN -- 3 years ago, we stopped having a phone at home. The only phone we have is at the office. Noriko has a cellphone for talking with her family, but I don’t.

We’ve never had a television. I might watch television when staying at a hotel, for instance. The commercials are all new to me. I’m glad I don’t have to watch them every day.

I’ve been renting DVDs from GEO and Tsutaya. I pay for each rental. Their monthly plans don’t work for me. GEO costs less, and they seem to have a better selection of DVD titles, but their rental period is shorter (10 days including shipping time both directions). Tsutaya costs more but their rental period is longer (30 days), and they have a better web site.

I also watch anime online. Niconico shows for free the latest episodes of my favorite programs such as ハヤテのごとく Hayate the combat butler and 進撃の巨人 Attack on titans.

2013-04-10 SAPPORO, HOKKAIDO -- What I used to call “frisbees” are correctly called “flying discs” because “frisbee” is a trademark. Many games are played with flying discs. “Ultimate” (formerly “ultimate frisbee”) is one of them.

I’ve been the academic advisor of Hokudai’s ultimate team “Paddy” since they formed 4 years ago. They’ve grown to have both a men’s and women’s team. One of our men was selected as a player of the team representing Japan. He will compete this summer in an international match being held inToronto, Canada.

Paddy seeks new members regardless of experience. Watch the team trailer.



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2013-03-15 SAPPORO, JAPAN -- I received the Hokkaido University president's award for teaching excellence (教育総長賞). Although I am the only person named on the certificate, the honor is shared by Noriko and our fantastic teaching assistants. Everyone who guided our students over the years jointly earned this award.

The president's award for teaching excellence was established in academic year 2011 along with its sister award, the president's award for research excellence (研究総長賞). The president's award for teaching excellence is Hokudai’s highest honor in teaching, and is given annually to Hokudai instructors who, among various other qualifications, have received at least 2 first-place teaching excellence awards. For academic year 2011, 7 instructors received the president's award for teaching excellence, of whom 3 teach languages (1 each from Chinese, French, and Japanese), showing that language teaching is strong at Hokudai. I do not know yet who all the recipients are for academic year 2012. I do know that 2 colleagues (sociology and English language) whom I respect won this award.

My sole disappointment is that receiving the president's award for teaching excellence permanently disqualifies us from receiving further teaching excellence awards. This limitation creates vacancies in award positions so that others may follow. While I agree with the spirit, I will miss the pride of having our future TAs mention in their resumes that we taught award-winning classes. (Maybe there is a way around this restriction. If I find one, I'll exploit it.)

Thank you, students, for the opportunity to assist you. Thank you, colleagues, for recognizing my teaching team.