(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Jacob Koller is an American pianist who lives in Japan. He is also a composer, arranger, and YouTuber. He started playing the piano when he was four years old and has won many competitions. He has lived in Japan since 2009 … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) “Knowledgeable idiot” is a term coined by a Japanese Buddhist monk, Yusai Sakai. Sakai was a famous monk in Japan who underwent extremely rigorous religious training. I like his books and have read almost all of them. In one of his … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Today, in May 2026, I went to Kenrokuen Garden in Ishikawa, Japan. I have been there several times before. Kenrokuen Garden is considered one of the three greatest gardens in Japan. It is a large Japanese-style strolling garden. The predecessor of … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) People pay attention to their age. Besides physical age, there is also something called mental age. People often say that someone has a high or low mental age. I feel that my mental age is low. Sometimes I feel like I am … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) In Fukui, Japan, I watched five magic shows today. It was Children’s Day in Japan, so today was a holiday. At the venue, there were about 40 people, most of them children. An adult man served as the MC and hosted the … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) This quote is by Nobuhiko Obayashi, a famous Japanese movie director. I first heard this quote on TV several years ago. I was deeply impressed by it and wrote it down. On the program, a well-known Japanese actress shared this quote with … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) People don’t think about you as much as you think. I like this quote. I care a lot about what other people think of me. Do they dislike me? Do they speak ill of me? Do they laugh at me? However, in … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) “Your eyes are cowards. Your hands are demons.” This is my favorite quote, and it comes from Japan. Your eyes are cowards, so when you see something challenging, you feel worried. On the other hand, your hands are strong like demons. They … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Adults seek power, while children seek enjoyment. I came up with this idea myself. Children look happy. They live in the moment and simply enjoy their lives. They don’t compare themselves much with others and focus on what they are doing. … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Which do you think is more important, knowledge or experience? In my opinion, both are important. However, people today, including myself, tend to have a lot of knowledge but not enough real-life experience. Many people spend a great deal of time … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I took part in a Rakugo name succession ceremony for the first time. In Fukui, Japan, I watched Rakugo live with about 60 audience members. Most of them were elderly people, and I only saw two children. Rakugo is a form … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) “Be content with what you have;rejoice in the way things are.When you realize there is nothing lacking,the whole world belongs to you.” — Lao Tzu In developed countries like Japan, obesity is now a more serious issue than hunger. We live … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Do you know the word ESP? ESP stands for Extra-Sensory Perception, also known as a sixth sense. It refers to the claimed ability to acquire information without using the known senses or conventional physical channels (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell). … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) “You should not praise another woman in front of a woman.” These are words from Kōshū Itabashi, a Japanese Zen monk. I have read some of his books and even attended one of his talks in person. I first came across … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) If you know someone with autism, want to learn more about autism, or are simply looking for a unique book, this book is for you. I have read this book five times. It was first published in Japan in 2007, and … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I watched an opera in person for the first time. I had always wondered what opera was like and how it differed from musicals, so I decided to find out. In opera, performers basically do not use microphones, whereas in musicals, … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I experienced Rokyoku, a traditional Japanese narrative singing performance, for the first time. I attended a Rokyoku performance in Ishikawa, Japan. Rokyoku is a genre of traditional Japanese storytelling that began over 100 years ago. In a Rokyoku performance, the rokyokushi … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Almost everyone dislikes cockroaches. When people see a cockroach, they often scream and run away. When I see one, I feel uncomfortable, upset, and nervous. I try to kill it as soon as possible. If I don’t, I can’t sleep well. … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I have been writing a diary for 10 years. There are some days when I don’t write, but most of the time I write every day. I write about what I did, what I thought, what happened, my weight, and my … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I could do a backflip when I was in junior high school. A backflip is a backward somersault done in the air with the arms and legs stretched out straight. Gymnasts often do backflips. When I was in junior high school, I … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Do you know the ideas of a goal-oriented lifestyle and a calling-oriented lifestyle? A Japanese historian proposed these ideas. You are probably familiar with a goal-oriented lifestyle. This is a masculine style of living. You set a goal and try to … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I saw a musical for the first time in my life. I had seen movies at theaters before, but I had never seen a musical. Movies are recorded, but musicals are live, and no one knows exactly what will happen. I … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I have taken more than 3,000 English conversation lessons over the past ten years. I started taking English conversation lessons in 2016. I went to an English conversation school for the first two years. After that, I began taking online English … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I started reading many books when I was 24. Before that, I didn’t read much. I preferred outdoor activities. Because I started reading late, I tried to read a lot to make up for lost time. After I began reading seriously, … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I really like walking. In my life, I have walked a lot. On average, I have walked 10,000 steps a day for about 15 years. Ten thousand steps is about seven kilometers. I did this for 15 years, so I have … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) One day in 2018, while I was lying in bed, I got an idea. I decided to make a blog about my town. A few days later, I bought a book about how to make a blog. Then I created my … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) In this book, you can learn how to recover your creativity. Readers follow a 12-week program. This book was published in 1992 and has sold several million copies. Many famous people have read this book, such as Olivia Rodrigo, Bella Hadid, … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I started reading books seriously twenty years ago, and I have now read about 3,000 books. Before that, I didn’t read much. I had an inferiority complex about reading.Because of this, I tried to read as many books as possible. I … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) Almost everyone wants to be lucky. However, I didn’t know how to become lucky, so I read nine books about luck. I read books about luck written by famous Japanese entrepreneurs, a Japanese scientist, a scholar, a legendary mahjong player, and a … Read more
(Note: I use AI to help me translate my stories from Japanese to English.) I wasn’t interested in cleaning and tidying up before. I believed that if I gained knowledge and skills, I could change myself. For a long time, I didn’t clean the windows in my room, and my room was not clean. However, these … Read more