NaNoWriMo

Good morning!  Even on non-work days I find it difficult to wake up late.

My hopes for this fall/winter are to stay inside, read as many books as possible, study for the JLPT, and figure out what I want to do with my life once I leave Japan in approximately nine or ten months.  I have the study and leisure books already prepared, but I don’t really have enough information on job hunting.

Last night I met up with a friend in Kofu.  She is also in the process of trying to make a career change, so I asked her to bring along the books she has regarding employment.  We talked a lot about our interests, and what kind of markets cater to them.  She has been talking to various career coaches and had a lot of useful information to share with me.  The main book that she’s been using is called Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters 3.0.  I’m also interested in learning a little about this on my own, so I looked online only to discover that there are about 20 different versions of this book, all geared towards different needs and occupations.  For example there are some that focus on using technology, some for using social media, for entrepreneurs, writers, and the list goes on.  There are a few that I’m really interested in reading, but I was unable to find any copies that were cheap enough to be worth my while.  I also checked the e-libraries and couldn’t find them for free for the kindle.  I’ll either have to suck it up and buy some of the ones I’m interested in, or find equally useful information for free on the Internet.  I’ll consider this a little longer before I make a decision.  At this point, I'm trying to avoid buying anything new because I’ll have to spend a lot of money to bring it back with me to the US.

Lately I’ve been trying to expand my writing ability, so I’ve been doing some volunteer writing.  I mentioned this in my last entry about the AJET online magazine.  For those of you who guessed that my nom de plum is “Rosie - the advice columnist,” you’re right! I’ll be writing the advice column monthly, as long as there is an interest from the editing staff and readers.

In addition to article writing, I found out about this event in November called NaNoWriMo.  It stands for Nation Novel Writing Month.  From midnight on November first to midnight on December first, a group of individuals from all over the world will make a pledge to dedicate the month of November to writing a novel.  Each person will attempt to write 50,000 words, or approximately 175 pages, in 30 days.  The purpose is not necessarily to walk away with something you can publish on December 1^st, but to write for the sake of writing.  Many people who want to write often let doubts get in their way of ever sitting down to the task.  “I’m not good enough, I don’t have enough time, and I don’t know what to write.”  The deadline constraints of this event force people to write as much as possible, creating a writing flow that is important for practice and idea generation.  The point is to get people away from using excuses, and simply WRITE.

I will be participating in next months NaNoWriMo.  Anyone can join (as long as they have access to the Internet), and there are various communities within the event to help motivate one another with the task at hand.  Although my schedule is busy and  I may not pass the 50,000 word finish line, I figured it was still a good chance and opportunity, so I'll give it a try.  Ultimately, anyone could make this a project for themselves at any time of the year, but having a community going along through the same process at the same time as you is integral to getting the job done I think.  Getting inspiration and motivation from others is often important when trying to push yourself toward a seemingly unachievable goal.  Every year people “pass the finish line,” so perhaps I will join them either this year or next!  Also, maybe the work I produce this month will eventually be turned into a novel.  You never know!  Check out the website if you’re interesting in the program, and please let me know if you decide to join in!  I have put a “participant’s badge” at the bottom of my website.  I’d love to share this experience with you!  We can share ideas, story lines, and encourage one another along the way!  I will try to keep my word-count up on my blog during November to let you all know if I’m making any progress or not.

http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/about/whatisnano

http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/about/hownanoworks

http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/dashboard

http://blog.lettersandlight.org/

No Impact Experiment Week - Day 2

 Day 2! - Trash

"Discover how wasting less improves your life."

Today I moved onto the trash phase of the No Impact Project.  Yesterday I was told to collect my trash so that I could analyze it a little today, and from today on for the rest of the week I am supposed to cut back as much as physically possible on the amount of trash and waste that I produce.

Steps:

Day 2, Step 1

Empty my special trash bin from yesterday.  Separate the items into two columns, stuff that I used for more than ten minutes and stuff that I used for less than ten minutes.  How does this make me feel?

More than 10

-plastic straw

-french fry paper

Less than 10

-facial oil tissue (x4)

-receipts (x3)

-plastic sugar and milk container

-hand wipe (unused)

-purikura backing

-piece of paper from bag

-toilet paper


-It makes me sad that almost everything I threw away yesterday was only meant to be used for under 10 minutes!  The only reason the two items in "more than 10" ended up there, is because I took my time drinking my coffee and eating my french fries.  The second thing that I regret, is that nearly everything on this list could have been avoided.  The only thing on there that I haven't (and probably won't replace any time soon unless we install toilets like in Thailand and Cambodia) is the toilet paper, but everything else was simply unnecessary and wasteful.  I received the majority of the items unknowingly, and didn't know how to refuse them politely.  If everyone in Japan is expected to carry around small hand towels because they don't have paper towels in most public restrooms, why are we given napkins and disposable goods almost everywhere else?  Why are so many stores and households switching to disposable chopsticks and paper napkins?  The more I think about these things, the more I don't understand how society ever got to be this way.

Day 2, Step 2

Put together a no-trash travel kit for the week with something for drinking, a handkerchief/old T-shirt rag, Tupperware, utensils, and reusable produce bags. - CHECK-
-I have put together a simple "reusable, sustainable kit."  It consists of my personal grocery store eco-bag, reusable chopsticks, a small spoon, a small fork, a square of an old t-shirt rag for general use, a handkerchief, my thermos, a small Tupperware, and old produce bags that I can use again.

Day 2, Step 3

Stop making trash.  Reduce it, reuse it, recycle it.  Just don't throw it away.  Keep a special bag at home or in the office to keep track of the trash I make during the week. -CHECK-
-I will try to write what kind of trash I create here.  Read below for today's.  How are you doing?

Day 2, Step 4

Blog about these questions:

What did I throw away today?  Why was it hard or easy not to make trash?

-Despite staying at home most of the day, I was able to make a lot more trash than I expected.  Here is my trash list for the day:

-toilet paper (for using the toilet, as well as for using as tissues)

-toilet paper roll/tube (recycled into mixed paper bin)

-coffee grounds (no filter, I use a filter-less strainer)

-1 wrapper for vitamin tablet (recycled into mixed plastics)

-wrapper for shiso packaging (recycled into mixed plastics)

-small label from plastic bag (recycled into mixed paper)

-eggshells x2

-moisture reducing packet from a bag of flower

-I don't feel too bad about this list actually.  Much of it was able to be recycled.  I have eliminated paper towels and tissues (Kleenex) from my apartment, and am able to get by using rags and recycled paper toilet paper instead.  The garbage that was produced from the food was all stuff that I had laying around the house and wanted to use up instead of waste.  I had to go to the grocery store today, and the hardest thing I found so far about trash is food packaging.  Especially in Japan, it is nearly impossible to get food of any kind that does not come already individually wrapped and thoroughly packaged in either paper or plastic.  There is a store in my town that offers bulk options for things like pastas, sauces, vegetables and other goods, but other than this one store there is nowhere I can go that does not produce some kind of trash after purchase.  For foods that I had no choice, I decided to go with the "bulk" option to at least cut back on the waste.  At the vegetable stand, I decided to only buy what I could find not already packaged in plastic, however this limited my options significantly.  I brought everything home in the basket on my bike in my own reusable bags.
-I also found it a little difficult to pass by the things at the grocery store that I wanted, but didn't need.  For example, chocolate.  After his No Impact Project ended, I wonder what kind of items Colin Beavan remained to do without, and what he decided he would make exceptions for?

Day 2, Step 5

Be proud of my efforts and a great start to the week.  Write down five things for which I am grateful.

1) I am grateful for my amazingly supportive boyfriend who puts up with all of my new fads, and is being very helpful and understanding about my "rules" regarding the No Impact week.

2) I am grateful to be blessed with the basic human needs - physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, and self-actualization.

3) I am grateful to get the chance to do something I love every single day.

4) I am grateful for my loving family and friends.

5) I am grateful for all of the wonderful chances I've been given, and all of the opportunities and experiences I've had.

What kinds of things did you throw away today?  What could you have recycled or saved?  What could you have replaced with something reusable?  Share your comments and ideas below!

YES! Magazine - 10 Ways to Change Your Life poster

(All of the steps are found on the No Impact Experiment Guide PDF.  Copyright 2011 No Impact Project)

Read about other people's experiences here.


"42 Ways to Not Make Trash," an article in YES! Magazine written by Colin Beavan, the No Impact Man.

Make sure to download (but don't print) the No Impact Week “How to Guide”

More info at http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/climate-action/annie-leonard-on-life-after-stuff, http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/no-impact-week-with-yes, and http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/get-ready-for-no-impact-monday-trash


Live Twitter chat today with Annie Leonard, 5 PM EST

2011, Shrines, Mochi, Style, e-reader

Welcome 2011!

Well, on the first of January, year 2011, I am taking the day to chill out and catch up.  It looks like a bomb exploded in my closet and sent my clothes flying around my room.  Various adventures this week have left me wanting some quiet time at home just to sit and reflect.  Instead of "spring cleaning" like we have in America, in Japan they do New Year's cleaning.  If it weren't so cold, I'd agree that it makes sense to reorganize and clean up your life to start the new year out on the right foot!

So far, I have come up with a few new year's resolutions.  Here they are!

1) Answer all e-mails and letters within one week of receiving them.

2) Be more productive in my free-time by utilizing time management skills, and focusing on one task at a time.

3) Take more/full advantage of language tools while living in Japan, for example television, Japanese films, magazines, and daily life conversations outside.

I don't have many photos, but yesterday (December 31st) we went on a mini Kofu pilgrimage.  There is a road that runs through the back streets of Kofu on the north side, and it takes you to 52 different temples, shrines, and other important sites.  We only hit a handful of them, but it was still fun to do this.  At first, we were paranoid that we were doing something wrong.  A Japanese teenager who looked like he was helping set up at one shrine, followed us to another one nearby.  Then a police car seemed to be following us.  It turned out we were doing nothing wrong, and these two events were just coincidences. Most Japanese people go to the shrines on January first, so we were just getting a head start.  My camera battery died, so I only got a few but I'll try to post some more later.

Also, on the 30th we got to make "mochi" at one of my coworker's home.  She and her family are among the few that still make their own mochi for New Years, so it was fun to go and experience this!  I don't have pictures of this either, but hopefully I can get them soon.

New Years Traditions in Japan (Wiki) - Click this site to learn more about "mochi" and Japanese traditions on new years.

(Above) Making it looked something like this.  Take special steamed sticky rice and dump it into this large  mortar.  Then the men pound the sticky rice while the women flip it, and then roll it into a desired shape.  The rice was still steaming the whole time, so dipping the pounder and your hands into cold water helped the process.

We went to the internet cafe across the street, simply to say that we had experienced it, and I searched through some magazines while we were there.  Here are a few pictures of fashion and home design that I thought were neat.

 And from this point down, are the photos I was able to get from the shrine adventure.

"Yamasuso, Inishie no Michi" = foothills, the road of antiquity, aka the ancient road?

This was a garden in someone's backyard that I someday hope to be able to replicate.  It was so green despite the cold!  Such a garden in December?  Up in the mountains?  What is their secret?

On an unrelated note, I'm currently reading the book Eat, Pray, Love.  I think it's good, and hope to watch the film once I finish the book.

On another unrelated note, I'm thinking about purchasing a Kindle or a Nook with my Christmas gift money!  Why not put it to use other than paying bills...  Do you, or any of your friends have either of these devices and do they advise or suggest one over the other?  I'm interested in hearing your advice or comments on either of them.  Thank you!

Love and Peace.

-Lana