Back to Hokkaido...

"So you must have a lot of snow," asked my Dad on the phone last night.

"Nah, not so much this year," I replied. "Only about a meter."

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It's good to be home, but Cambodia is still on my mind and in my body. Shaving off 4 weeks of beard, pounding red road dust from my clothes, paying $5 for beer, waiting for traffic lights and shoveling out my driveway couldn't dislodge the sense of moral urgency that I picked up in Southeast Asia. That, and whatever stomach bug(s) Tyler and I acquired does not respect national boundaries or climate zones.

Apologies to those who faithfully checked this space and were disappointed at the lack of updates over the last two weeks. I'm working on several stories about the trip right now, one of which should be ready for posting later today or tomorrow. From now until August, new pieces will be up twice a week, with links and other tid-bits on a semi-regular basis as well.

For now, here are a couple goodies from the 8th grader's winter holiday homework, that old classic:


How I spent my winter vacation

By Kotarou Nagata

" Today is Christmas Eve. Its present is my father's lecture. About my studying style. My father is unusual, I think."



How I spent my winter vacation

By Rikito Yamagishi

" Today is Christmas. Santa come to my house. Shuld kill Santa! But, Santa kill me. I am die....."