A few years ago we decided we would eliminate as much paper as possible. Eliminating paper has been a satisfying but imperfect journey. Our records are available to us when we travel, we no longer have a filing cabinet. 100% of our tax records, including receipts, are electronic and meet Internal Revenue Service standards. However, along the…… Continue reading The Consequences of Being Too Paperless
Category: Japanese Concepts
Destination Medicine
The Plummer Library at the Mayo Clinic. This is not a museum: staff and students study here. A couple days ago I took the light rail to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport. I walked past destination boards, trying to avert my eyes from the Tokyo/Haneda departure. My destination, Rochester Minnesota, was not on those airport boards.…… Continue reading Destination Medicine
The Time I Was Denied Entry to China and How I Got In
I’m in Shanghai’s Pudong Airport about to board a Korean Airlines flight to Seoul. It’s not my choice to go to South Korea today. I would rather go to Japan. I actually have a ticket to Japan (Fukuoka), leaving at about the same time as my Seoul flight. But if I try to board the…… Continue reading The Time I Was Denied Entry to China and How I Got In
An Indoor 9-Mile Urban Hike
A fierce rainstorm had hit California. People had died, a reservoir was bursting at the seams, evacuations had been ordered in several counties. The storm weakened as it crossed the Rockies on its way to Minneapolis and points east. On Monday, Presidents’ Day, the storm finally hit Minneapolis, dropping 0.6 inches of rain. This…… Continue reading An Indoor 9-Mile Urban Hike
A Place Where Two Seas Collide
Getting to Rishiri Island via Wakkanai (northern Hokkaido) from Minneapolis is straightforward, with a few perturbations. A place where the Sea of Japan and the Sea of Okhotsk collide is bound to have perturbations. An agent at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport warned me the flight to Wakkanai might have to turn back. I was sure…… Continue reading A Place Where Two Seas Collide
Small Experiences on a Big Journey
We stood behind a crowd at Edinburgh Castle waiting for the one-o’clock cannon to fire. Many eyes were fixed on cell phones to catch the moment to share on Facebook. Bodies in Edinburgh, minds in other places. Meanwhile, my nephews were determined to climb up rocks where climbing was not allowed. Last month’s trip…… Continue reading Small Experiences on a Big Journey
A Tale of Two Falls
At the start of today’s hike in Northumberland, England, we came upon a hiker who had slipped and made a faceplant on the street. He was elderly, and his vision was sub-par. He was bleeding from cuts beside one eye and on his wrist.My brother-in-law had a surprising variety of wound dressings in his pack,…… Continue reading A Tale of Two Falls
Lost Stories
My mother-in-law has acquired a photo mat with 17 cutouts. 17 just happens to be the right number for her to be surrounded by baby photos of her children, her children’s partners, her grandchildren, and her great-grandchild. 16 babies, one matriarch. My partner’s photo is a vertical-format portrait, which means he’s deprived of his cranium…… Continue reading Lost Stories
Travel Gear: Wot, No Passport?
On a recent flight from Tokyo to San Francisco, I found a Canadian passport. The owner of the passport would have been in for a surprise when he reached for his passport at US Border Control. Maybe he had a NEXUS card, or maybe United Airlines would have to fly him back to Tokyo where he…… Continue reading Travel Gear: Wot, No Passport?
Travel Gear: Hiking Pants
As I was stretching, clambering, grappling over rocks in Kirishima National Park, I replayed in my head the most recent encounter with a fellow hiker. The woman had made the usual greeting, then a look of dissonance flashed across her face. I’d seen that look before when I’ve thoughtlessly put a shoe on tatami, or…… Continue reading Travel Gear: Hiking Pants