The strength of outward courage is like fire; the strength of inner courage is like water. Fire is forceful yet weak, while water is yielding yet so powerful nothing can oppose it. One with outward courage, like fire, has a weakness; one with inner courage, like water, is extremely powerful. –Adachi Masahiro The most common…
Eyes Speak: Understanding Anime Eye Designs
The eyes have it. And by it, I mean our interest, our attention, and even our love. Anime and manga uses eyes as the foundation for character expressions. Eyes dominate most character faces, especially moe characters. Because of the expressiveness of eyes, the dominance is logical. But enormous eyes can unsettle and put off people…
Insomniacs After School
After I had hit puberty, my ability to sleep through the night disappeared as my circadian rhythm shifted to the “owl” range. This was helped by my work schedule. I worked until 10pm, 11pm, or even midnight on weekends throughout high school. Even now, some 30 years later, I’m a natural owl who is forced…
I Started a Substack For Topics I Don’t Cover Here on JP
So I’ve started a Substack to post all my other random essays and short stories that I spare you from here. Most of the essays languishing on my file server focus on Christianity and Zen and where they intersect. Other unrelated essays and short stories will also meander to this Substack, depending on whatever strikes…
The Usefulness of Japanese Proverbs
Proverbs and folklore preserve the wisdom and hard-learned lessons of the common class. Both pass down orally, taking on regional flavors over time until someone comes along and writes them down. Proverbs, because of their pithiness and use of metaphor, tend to remain in regular speech long after folktales become literature. Sometimes proverbs become folded…
Japan’s Rice Shortage Problem
In Japan’s history, rice was once a currency and a commodity. Rice remains a staple grain throughout Japan and Asia. No doubt you’ve heard about Japan facing a shortfall of rice supply against their rice demand, causing prices to rise. But this problem has been gaining momentum since at least 2023 for a variety of…