Business The Kitchen Economist: Reading Japan’s Economy Through Everyday Life
Where Economics Meets the Grocery Aisle Every Friday morning, I grab my eco-bag, slip on my sneakers, and head to the lo...
Mother
Business Family Between Tatami and Twitter: Balancing a Life of Rice Balls and Retweets
The Quiet Tug Between Two Worlds When I wake up each morning, the first thing I touch isn’t my husband’s arm or my child...
Mother “Screen Between Us: Navigating Family Closeness in a Digital Age”
The Glow of the Screen, and the Space Between Us The other day, I looked around the dinner table and realized we were al...
Health “Reclaiming Time: How I Made Room for Myself in a Life Full of Others”
The Moment I Realized I Wasn't in My Own Life There was a moment—quiet, almost forgettable—that stayed with me like a sp...
Family “Stolen Moments: Finding Myself Between Laundry Loads”
The Quiet Space in Between In the heart of Tokyo, tucked between two loads of laundry and a pot of miso soup simmering g...
Mother The Smell of Simmered Pumpkin: A Letter from Early Autumn
"(Letters from My Japanese Kitchen: Family, Work & Society Through My Eyes) Dear Friend, It’s early September here in To...
Family Letters to My Younger Self: What I Wish I Knew Before Motherhood
“Dear Me, Before It All Began” Dear Younger Me, You’re probably sitting in a quiet café, latte in hand, scrolling throug...
Family “The Smell of Miso in the Morning: My Ordinary Life Isn’t So Ordinary”
“Setting the Scene” The scent hits me before I even open my eyes. It’s that unmistakable smell of miso—warm, salty, and ...
Family Bento, Bills & Big Dreams: A Real Life Blog from Modern Japan
“Waking Up in Japan: Where the Dream Begins with the Dishwasher” Every morning in Tokyo begins with a familiar sound—the...
Family What’s For Dinner?
Why Meal Planning Feels Like Emotional Labor (Because It Is) “The Question That Breaks Me” Every day around 4:30 p.m., i...