This picture was made by a former student of mine. It brings back good memories of living and working in Japan.

My name is James. I was born and raised in Southern California but moved with my parents many, many times. When someone asks me where I'm from, I can't answer simply. "Hometown" is a very distant term for me.

I grew up in Los Angeles, Monterey Park, Bakersfield, Costa Mesa, Cerritos and other cities as well as a year in Bangkok during my freshman year of high school. I spent my college years in Irvine, California.

Fast forward to 2001: I graduated from the University with a degree in Film Studies. The following year, I went to Japan. My placement was here:

My friend said that I was responsible for "corrupting impressionable young minds".
I preferred to call my job "teaching".

I lived in Kitakyushu City, in the southern island of Kyushu. There I worked as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) by way of the Japan Exchange & Teaching (JET) Program. It was one of the best experiences of my life. I returned to Southern California in 2003.

My hobbies have always revolved around the creative: graphic design, photography and (on rare occasions) video.

I can be reached at wongJP@hotmail.com

The title of this journal refers to my favorite word. I often think about my past despite my thoughts about the present and curiosities about the future. This site has taken on many forms and functions, but its primary focus remains the same: a journal where I can jot down my thoughts and experiences.

Once in awhile I will post photos. My current digital camera is a Canon PowerShot A40. It's an old but trusty 2 megapixel camera that gets the job done.

This site was made and is maintained with the following tools: Notepad, Movable Type version 3.2 and Adobe Photoshop CS. It also employs several MT Plugins: ArchiveDateHeader by Adam Kalsey and IfEmpty by Brad Choate. Pages were checked to the best of my ability in Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. Special thanks to Jen for initial testing and design support.

Thanks for reading. Now, shall we return to the page at hand?