The [Japanese] word ‘ikigai’ is usually used to indicate the source of value in one’s life or the things that make one’s life worthwhile … . [It’s] used to refer to mental and spiritual circumstances under which individuals feel that their lives are valuable. There is a difference between ikigai and the sense of well-being.…… Continue reading Ikigai: It Gets You out of Bed Every Morning
Author: Tom Wilson
Snapshots: Koke’e State Park
This week we’ve been staying in the Ishihara House, a VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner) above the town of Waimea, Kauai, Hawaii. The house is plantation-style, with a 1930’s old-Hawaii vibe and nods to Japan. And it’s less expensive than most hotel rooms on this island. From our lanai we get a fine view of…… Continue reading Snapshots: Koke’e State Park
There Is No Road
Traveler, your footprints
are the only road, nothing else.
Traveler, there is no road;
you make your own path as you walk.
As you walk, you make your own road,
and when you look back you see the path
you will never travel again.
Traveler, there is no road
only a ship’s wake on the sea.
Getting on Board
March 21, 2019. My day started with a conga line. We were staying in cabins by a Minnesota lake. Family, brothers-in-law, my sister-in-law and their families, my mother-in-law, and goodness knows who else. But there were many more people, enough for the line to snake around the entire lake. I wanted none of this, so…… Continue reading Getting on Board
An Atlas Obscura Walk in Chicago
Guide books often funnel people to over-loved places. Atlas Obscura, “the definitive guide to the world’s hidden wonders,” is a good resource to locate uncrowded, off-beat places to spice up a walk. The information is crowd-sourced, so it needs to be treated with caution. For example, a “machine gun nest” near our home is simply…… Continue reading An Atlas Obscura Walk in Chicago
An All-Expense-Spared Trip to Chicago
On Sunday I submitted my 2018 tax return. I’m eagerly awaiting a $2 refund from the Feds. The tax refund got me into a parsimonious frame of mind. I decided to assemble an inexpensive trip. Incentives for a cheap trip The stars were in alignment: An email from Hyatt Hotels warned me that a bunch…… Continue reading An All-Expense-Spared Trip to Chicago
Living in a Time of Shortages
It was the summer of 1975. I was standing in a GUM department store in Moscow, Russia, wondering why these people were standing patiently in a long line. I walked to the front of the line to see what was going on. A supply of disposable ballpoint pens had recently arrived. The people were lining…… Continue reading Living in a Time of Shortages
A Crosswalk in Nagano
One Monday afternoon in April 2016 I got to see something which, once seen, has been impossible to un-see. I’m standing at a crosswalk in Nagano, Japan, reading a ditty on the back of a man’s shirt: Indian Boys,Indian Boys,Oh how I love those Indian Boys The image of an American Indian dreamcatcher tells me…… Continue reading A Crosswalk in Nagano
Travel Gear: Suitcase
This is our only suitcase. My parents bought it in the 1960’s, probably at the John Lewis “Bainbridge’s” department store in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. They understood durable quality, even though money was tight. It took me through my college days in the 1970’s and on to the United States in 1979. In my undergraduate…… Continue reading Travel Gear: Suitcase
Steamy Minneapolis
This week, the weather in Minneapolis has been dangerously cold. The high on Wednesday was -28°F (-33°C). And that’s not allowing for wind-chill: the wind made it feel even colder. I live to move. Every day I need to walk, jog, or ride my bicycle. But this week is different. The snow is so dry,…… Continue reading Steamy Minneapolis