Site News & Updates

eBay Japan Brats update

2006-06-18T23:01:00.000-07:00

In case you hadn't noticed, we've upgraded our eBay Japan Brats page and expanded our listing of base-related memorabilia. Thanks to some help from the folks at eBay, the page now features dynamic live listings of items that are currently available for sale or auction.

In addition to available images of the items, the listings include the beginning bid or asking price, the current number of bids (if any), and the amount of time left before the bidding closes and sales are final.

Base listings now include Misawa, Atsugi, Tachikawa, Camp Zama, Yokota, Yokosuka, Sasebo, Iwakuni, Kadena and Futenma.

We've even made it easier to access the specific bid item on eBay. All you need to do is click the item shown and the eBay page featuring the item will open in a new browser window. It provides all of the details and information necessary to bid or purchase the item. Convenient search boxes are also provided to enable you to search for more items.

In case you haven't registered on eBay as a buyer or seller, there's a banner at the very top of the page that you can click to do so immediately.

Japan Brats makes a small commission on every item sold, which helps defray any expenses in publishing our humble website. So we hope you'll take advantage of the opportunityto buy your Japan collectibles here.

GAMBATE (good luck) on your memorabilia hunt!

Improved Main Menu!

2006-05-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats has made a slight -- but welcome -- improvement to our Main Menu on our 3 main index pages to help you better navigate our huge interactive weblog. Now when you move your cursor over each menu item it will be highlighted in bright blue (as shown at right) so it will be more visible. We hope this will aid you in choosing where you want to surf. If you have any suggestions for additional improvements or enhancements, feel free to message us using our convenient Email Japan Brats or Contact Us links. Arigatou gozaimasu!

Subscribe to I Did Japan!

2006-05-31T10:40:00.000-07:00

You won't miss a single message from our I Did Japan mailbag ever again. Simply subscribe to our free subscription service, which delivers all of the posted messages in your personal email as they are received by us.

The service is provided courtesy of FeedBlitz, and forwards all public messages posted on our Japan Brats Yahoo Group message board, the I Did Japan guestbook and email received in our Mail Bag directly to your personal email in a timely manner. Registration is fast and easy. Simply enter the email address to which all messages should be sent in the yellow box that is displayed on our home page (see accompanying image).

NOTE: This service may not be appropriate or desirable for everyone. We recommend that you don't subscribe if you do not wish to receive potentially a large volume of email. Japan Brats cannot ensure a maximum cap on messages posted.

Japan Brats Messaging Reactivated

2006-05-31T04:45:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats messaging/email forwarding features have been reactivated effective May 31. This includes the Contact Us and Email Japan Brats links on all of our pages. The service was temporarily suspended as a result of a recent change in our message forwarding provider. We regret the interruption in the service and any difficulty you may have recently experienced when attempting to contact us. Sumimasen!

Japan Brats adds more features, upgrades

2006-02-24T21:11:00.000-07:00

In our continuing effort to keep up with the times and respond to visitor requests, Japan Brats has added a few new features and made some technical enhancements to our Main Page. With the addition of new features comes a little rearranging and minor tweaking of our existing features. Briefly, here's what we've done:

First and foremost is our all new Photo of the Day box, which you will find in the righthand column. It features a randomly selected photo from Japan and Okinawa that has been posted to our Japan Brats photo collection on Flickr, the wildly popular photo hosting service. Using the Flickr feed, the Photo of the Day changes each time you visit our main page. Click on the photo and you will be able to view the original image and be able to access our ever-expanding Flickr photo collection. We've initially posted a collection of photos of past and present scenes of Atsugi Naval Air Facility (formerly Naval Air Station), located in Kanagawa Prefecture, but we'll be adding photos of other bases and locations soon. (Japan Brats Yahoo Group members may access a special collection of rare vintage photos that are not publicly accessible. Membership is free, however, so we encourage you to join.)

Located inside the Photo of the Day box and just below the photo is a link to our Japan Brats Photo Albums -- a huge index of links to photos of U.S. bases, past and present, located throughout Japan and Okinawa. Although Photo Albums is also included in our Main Menu, many of you may have seemingly overlooked it so we simply wanted to make it more prominent. Trust me, the list of photo links is comprehensive. We will soon add additionally links our index, so we encourage you to check back from time to time.

We've consolidated our 3 separate message feeds into one in the I Did Japan box. It helps to avoid undue confusion among many of our visitors. The single feed now showcases the most recent messages posted on our I Did Japan guest book (which is publicly accessible), messages posted by Japan Brats Yahoo Group members, and individual email messages received at japanbrat@yahoo.com. So whether you are a Japan Brats Yahoo member or not, all of our most recent messages may now be viewed in one convenient location. To view the I Did Japan guestbook or Yahoo Group messages separately, simply click the links located in the top of the frame.

Just below the I Did Japan box is an exciting new feature -- the Brats Shout B ox, which combines the best features of instant messaging, a chatroom and a message board. You can chat with other Japan Brats in real time. Similar to chatrooms, you can chat with everyone who logs onto the Shout Box. Passwords or memberships are not required. Simply choose a nickname, log-in and start chatting! The Shout Box will open in a new browser window so you can stay "parked" on our Main Page.

Unlike message boards, however, individual messages posted here are limited to a maximum of 160 characters, but they are posted instantly for anyone to read and to reply to. For everyone's sake, it includes a bad words filter. You may even a smilie to your posts. In practice, the Shout Box is similar to our Japan Chat (located in the Fun Stuff box). The key difference is that the Shout Box is intended for Japan Brats visitors while Japan Chat accommodates all international visitors and is the leading English-language chatroom devoted to all things Japanese.

Brats Blogs is an all new feature that highlights blogs written by or about military brats in general and those with ties to Japan or Okinawa. It's a service provided by our newest partner, Technorati, the world's leading real-time search engine for keeping track of what's going on in the blogosphere -- the world of weblogs.

Just a word or two about our RSS feeds. You may have noticed a new icon -- -- located in many of the boxes on the Main Page. For the convenience of those visitors who routinely use a RSS (real simple syndication) newsreader or aggregator, this is the new universal symbol for RSS syndicated feeds. It's a service we've long provided but recently modified with the new icon. Click the icon to add the specified RSS feed to your newsreader.

Finally, we're proud to debut our new video collection as featured in our Brats Videos box, located midway down the lefthand column. I can't tell you how excited we are about this! For more information or to place an order, see the Brats Video box or visit our new Japan Brats PX page.

In addition to all of the above, we've made some technical strides to speed up loading the Main Page. We tried including an auto-updating feature on some of our news items, but it simply bogged down loading speed so we deep-sixed that idea. Besides, it wasn't essential. If you want to see more current information in our news and feature boxes, simply refresh your browser. We also modified some of the coding for the page to help with cross-browser compatibility, such as IE 4.0+ and Netscape 6.0 (not apparent to all but a few computer geeks and hacks out there).

If you have ideas or suggestions of your own on how to improve Japan Brats, please use the convenient Email Japan Brats link located on each page (look at the Main Menu at left). As always, we look forward to feedback from all Japan Brats!

COMING SOON: Japan Brats Podcasts

Locating Japan Brats Yahoo photos

2006-02-08T05:16:00.000-07:00

We've received a few inquiries and complaints (sigh) from our Japan Brats Yahoo Group members who are unable to access all of our photo albums. So here's a little primer:

First, our main photo collection is located at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/japanbrats/ and is accessible (once you've logged in) by clicking the Photo link in the lefthand column. But since our storage capacity is limited at this site, we had to establish a second site for additional photo albums and photos.

The second -- or overflow -- library is at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/japanbrats-photos2/ and contains photos that many of you probably were unaware of. Either click on the link shown here directly or click on "Links" in the lefthand menu and go to Japan Brats Yahoo Photo Collection No. 2.

Once you've found an album you wish to view, click on the album icon and the photos in that album will be displayed. You may then click on the individual photos for enlarged views or to copy them.

Our records show that the overwhelming majority of our Japan Brats Yahoo Group members have yet to visit our Photo Collection No. 2. Simply follow the instructions to join as you did with the main group, then sign in using your Yahoo ID and password.

To any of you who have photos of Japan of your own that you wish to contribute, we encourage you to do so using our second site. Thanks again. Email me at japanbrats@yahoo.com if you have any questions or problems. I'll do my best to help you navigate.

Tom Barry
Japan Brats web guru

Holiday Greetings in Photos from Japan

2005-12-29T08:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since we actually posted photos on Site News, but the holiday season prompted us to include a select few from Misawa to Okinawa.

Pictured at right, Larisa Herrin and her children Leneah, 4, and Shaylee, 3, work on a snowman at Sasebo Naval Base after a rare winter snowfall. (Photo courtesy of Greg Tyler/Stars & Stripes)

As of this writing (8:30 a.m. MST Dec. 29 -- 12:30 a.m. Japan Time), it is a relatively mild 64F at Camp Zama, a balmy 80F at MCAS Futenma in Okinawa, and a brisk 26F at Misawa AB/NAF Misawa in the far northern reaches of Honshu where snow still blankets the ground from this past week's snowfalls.

Indeed, the holiday season is in full swing throughout the Land of the Rising Sun, evoking such greetings as Kurisumasu Omedetou (Merry Christmas) and Akemashite Omedetou (Happy New Year), the latter celebrated more traditionally.

So here are a few more snapshots to remind us all of our loved ones and compatriots in Japan and Okinawa:

Master Sgt. Tom Johnson, left, and Master Sgt. Ruth Hutchinson of the Yokota Air Base First Sergeants Council wrap Christmas gifts. (Photo courtesy of David Westover/U.S. Air Force)

Camp Zama Cub Scout Pack 34 delivered juices, baby items, canned food, 800 pounds of rice and 50 packs of diapers Dec. 10 to Akeikai nyujiin (orphanage) in Machida City. (Photo courtesy of David Rood/Torii Times)

Capt. Wayne Radloff, commander of NAF Misawa, pounds mochi (rice cakes) at the annual Mochitsuki festival Dec. 26 as part of a Japanese New Year's custom. (Photo courtesy of Staff Sgt. Vann Miller/Northern Light)

A combined choir sings "The First Noel" during the 2nd Annual Ecumenical Christmas Cantata at NAF Atsugi's Chapel of the Good Shepherd. The event was held Dec. 18. (Photo courtesy of Brian Naranjo/Atsugi Skywriter)

Seaman Brandon Robbins tees off while Seaman Kevin Lamons and Lance Cpl. Jennifer Kriss wait their turn with a group of Hama Junior High School pupils Dec. 9 on Hamahiga Island, Okinawa. (Photo courtesy of Seaman Travis J. Fowler)

Thanks to the Pacific Stars & Stripes, Atsugi Skywriter (NAF Atsugi), Torii Times (Camp Zama/Sagamihara), Yokota AB Public Affairs, Northern Lights (Misawa AB Public Affairs), and USMC Okinawa Public Affairs for their photo contributions.

Decade of the '60s Rule!

2005-12-29T06:47:00.000-07:00

Ah, the decade of the 1960s. It began with crewcuts and bouffant hairdos and ended with long hair and tie-dye jeans and t-shirts. From Elvis to the Beatles and psychedelic rock, the space race to Vietnam. JFK inspired us to do more and Nixon became president. From rock around the clock to 8-track tapes.

What a rush!

In reviewing our ongoing Japan Brats Poll (on the main page), it seems that those of us who lived in Japan in the '60s dominate by a long shot. Of course, many of us also bridge a couple of decades, like yours truly who was born there in 1956 at Tachi AB Hospital to be exact, spent two memorable stints in the Kanto Plains and ultimately left in 1970 in the Age of Aquarius!

At last check, 1,056 of you registered your decades. I'm assuming that most, if not all, of you are Japan Brats -- loosely military brats or dependents of military or civilian personnel assigned there. I'm certain a few of you are veterans or ex-patriates who once lived there as well.

Here's the breakdown to date:

34% 1960s
26% 1970s
21% 1950s
12% 1980s
3% 1990s
3% 2000s
1% 1940s

Frankly, I'm surprised that those of you from the '70s are a not-too-distant second. Didn't know that you even considered it so much of your youth that you'd even take the time to register. We're glad you did. The '50s isn't too far behind. I have some recall of that era, albeit limited because I was still very young.

But in whatever era you may have lived in Japan or Okinawa, they were awesome years indeed. It took years and years of adulthood before I really learned to appreciate and miss those days and all of the special memories and friends I hold dear.

I think it was fellow Japan Brat Mark Roberts or Don Opedal who pointed out to me some time ago that those parts of our youth become more memorable and meaningful as we get older. We hope that those of you who currently live in Japan or lived there within the past decade will embrace these years as very special ones. Because in time they will be. Trust me. You are very fortunate to experience what you are experiencing. And you will be leaving a lasting legacy.

Plus, we at Japan Brats, are relying on you to carry on our unique heritage and tradition well into the future. Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu! (Happy New Year!)

Those pesky pop-ups on our Guest Book

2005-12-29T06:29:00.000-07:00

Okay, we've received a few complaints (not many thankfully) about the pop-up ads that occasionally surface on our I Did Japan Guest Book. Yes, they can be annoying. No, they are not to harmful. And, no, we can do little about them at the moment.

Bear in mind that Japan Brats strives to give you the maximum web surfing enjoyment with the least amount of aggravation. But we're also a non-profit endeavor. And as such we rely on a host of free services to enable us to bring you all of our special features, including the guest book. But there's a price we pay in exchange for this -- it's called advertising.

The service that hosts our I Did Japan guest book, server.com, places strategic ads on the pages in exchange for hosting us. While we'd love to do away with them, we really can't at this time without dipping into our own pockets. Plus, we're so deeply entrenched with our existing guestbook that it would take a major effort to replace it at this point. So please bear withus. Besides, it's really a small price to pay.

All you need to do is simply click those pop-up ads off. The other solution is to use either the free Google or Yahoo toolbars, both of which have pop-up blockers integrated into them. The Yahoo pop-up blocker is especially effective in blocking most if not all of them, plus it includes special anti-spyware. We recommend both. If you haven't installed them already, they're easy to download and install. They are available at http://toolbar.google.com/ or http://toolbar.yahoo.com/.

Message postings...how it works

2005-11-28T03:03:00.000-07:00

With nearly 50,000 hits since our launch two years ago, Japan Brats has received an overwhelming response from our visitors, both via emails and with our two message boards. Thank you all for your feedback.

The one question that frequently arises, however, is how soon the messages are posted on our two boards -- our I Did Japan Guest Book and the Japan Brats Yahoo Group message board.

Firstly, the two are independent of one another. I Did Japan is a public board for any visitor to post or reply to messages, while the Japan Brats Yahoo Group board is by membership (which is free). You are most welcome to join by using our easy sign-up widget on the Main Page.

In both cases, there may be a slight delay of between 5 minutes to 30 minutes on when the messages are actually posted for others to see. It's done automatically. Don't sweat it. If you followed our "destructions," your message is certain to appear in the order that they were posted and a brief teaser will be displayed on the Main Page. Have a little patience....it will be rewarded.

We encourage you all to post messages or share your thoughts, memories and suggestions on either forum. It adds to the fun and other visitors look forward to reading them. Generally, they also prompt responses. Who knows, you may hear from a long-lost classmate or tomodachi.

If for some reason you tried to post a message but it didn't appear, simply drop us a note using the Email Japan Brats link on any of our pages. We'll then try to post it in a timely manner. Thanks again!

Beloved Zama teacher needs our help

2005-11-22T20:55:00.000-07:00

I want to pass this along to all of those who was ever a student of Doug Schulte's at Zama American High School over the years. I was among his as I'm sure many of your were too. Mr. Schulte is in need of our help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The following email was received from Al Miyatake, president of the Zama Alumni Association. I hope you can pitch in:

Hi Zama Alumnae,
You should be getting a yearly mass mailing from me containing the KAKI-MONO, 2006 membership form, and a 2006 Booster page form. I didn't put in the information that we do have a deadline on the booster page, and would like to request that you send it in to me no later than the end of the month.

As I said on the application form, your Name, and year of graduation will be included on the page in the yearbook, and we are suggesting a donation of $10.00 to do so. All the funds for the booster page this year will be going to one of our Faculty, Mr. Doug Schulte. Mr. Schulte, who has taught at Zama High for 37 years, had his home stateside in New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina devastated the area, and his home is a total loss. He was showing us pictures of his home which were taken by a relative shortly after they were allowed to go back into the area which was flooded. I hope you will consider this and assist with our cause.

The reunion 2006 is being worked on this year, and we will have info on it shortly, but we do need funds to start the action and ball rolling. 2005 was not a good year for membership and our funds are very low at the moment. The mass mailing depleted much of our funds and we need your support to keep the organization and the website going. I hope that you will support us for 2006!

Thank you for your generosity in advance, and we hope to hear from you soon.

Al Miyatake, President mailto: zamaalum@hawaii.rr.com
Zama Alumni Association http://www.zamaalum.net

FYI: Tokyo travel tips to pass along

2005-11-22T20:01:00.000-07:00

Here's an email we recently received about some Tokyo travel bargains for the next cherry blossom season courtesy of fellow Japan Brat Lynn Ellis Miller. We don't customarily endorse a commercial plug on Site News but this is too good to keep to ourselves and some of you may be planning on making a trip in March or April. It includes a side trip to some old bases in the Kanto area. From Lynn:

WE have a very good deal on a week in Tokyo during Cherry Blossom season next spring. The price of $1672 includes roundtrip on United Airlines, transfers to and from the hotel, hotel accommodations at the Shiba Park Hotel (3 Stars) – breakfast included, a one day trip of sightseeing the old bases and areas in the Kanto Plain where we lived with an English speaking guide with lunch included. If you know of anyone who is interested please have them contact me.

Lynn Ellis Miller
Coldwell Banker Primus
451 Coventry Lane
Suite 101
Crystal Lake, IL 60014

www.lynnellismiller.com
lynn.miller@coldwellbanker.com

847-624-5966
815-444-1156
815-459-4735 fax

I Did Japan Guestbook issues

2005-11-22T19:43:00.000-07:00

We continue to receive queries regarding our I Did Japan guestbook and how it is archived and organized. Well, it's fairly straightforward and easy to navigate. But many of you appear to be a bit miffed at how you need to pore through pages and pages of messages to reply to only one or two.

Unfortunately, Japan Brats has little contol over that. We understand that it can be time-consuming...sort of like hunting for a needle in a haystack. All of the replies to any single message are threaded immediately below the message but remain on that page regardless of when you may have replied. So in order to see additional, more recent ones you have to go back to that page. Only new messages (not the replies) are posted on the first page.

We understand that it can be inconvenient and annoying, but we subscribed to the guestbook service more than a year ago and now there is too much data archived for us to easily convert to another service or format. If we attempted to do so, it would be extremely tedious to transfer all of the data and email addresses. Not only that, we risk losing much of it.

But on the bright side look at how many wonderful messages you will be able to scan as you do so. And who knows, you may stumble across a name, a place, a story that you may recall and may want to respond. Thanks for your understanding.

New Sanno site down for maintenace

2005-11-19T08:32:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed a big blank spot near the top of the main page where the New Sanno Hotel logo normally would appear. Also, the direct link to their home page may not open (posted on Saturday, Nov. 19, 2005 at 08:19).

Not to worry, especially for those of you wishing to access the New Sanno Hotel link. Their site is undergoing maintenance and is expected to be up and running soon.

Speaking of the New Sanno, I'll inject a plug for them while I'm at it. This is not spam, just a helpful but shameless plug. Having been a patron of the old Sanno and the New Sanno over the years, it's the best-kept secret for any of you travelling to Tokyo. The New Sanno is a world class American-style hotel right in the heart of Tokyo with bargain-basement room rates, excellent dining and a host of other amenities (for those of you with a military or government I.D. or veterans and their guests).

The hotel is actually a transient billet operated by the Navy's equivalent of MWR and managed by a private hotel management firm. They recently underwent a multi-million dollar remodel of their public facilities, including several restaurants, the main lobby and other features.

So if you're headed to Tokyo on TDY or space available, keep it in mind. But book well in advance...it's an extremely popular hotel. It's conveniently located within a stone's throw of all of midtown Tokyo's attractions, plus there are several shuttle buses daily to and from Narita Airport, Yokota AB, Yokosuka and other U.S. military installations in around Tokyo.

How we select the news stories

2005-11-19T08:09:00.000-07:00

There have been quite a few inquiries recently about how Japan Brats selects various news items for our news pages, such as Stars & Stripes Japan, PACOM News, Base News, On Campus, Japan Headlines and the like. Well, as the webmaster, I'll let you in on a little insider secret:

Actually, we don't select the stories that are published here daily, often by the hour or minute. It's all done automatically. Japan Brats relies on a rather ingenious method developed by Google News (our publishing partner). There are no human editors. It's all done by computer algorithms and are based on a set of relevant keyword searches. Google's computers find these then send them on to us. We call it "contextual" -- meaning the stories that do appear ideally relate to the general theme for that page or topic. Then all we do is aggregate the news feeds here. This same method is used for our Gaijin Blogs and Japan Weather. Believe me, it saves me a lot of sleepless hours!

It's not entirely perfect, as you may have noticed. On occasion a story may slip by that appears to be unrelated. That's simply because somewhere in the body of that news item there may have been a passing mention or a word that is related.

For example, you may see a story about a naval exercise in Guam under the heading of Yokosuka or Sasebo. That's probably because the name "Yokosuka" or "Kitty Hawk" (which was home-ported there) may have been mentioned somewhere.

Also, you're likely to see some redudancy depending on how many news sources that we use publish the same story. (At present, Japan Brats relies on 64 separate news sources.) Unfortunately, Google News cannot as yet distinguish between the sources. Overall, however, we are pleased it has worked well.

We also want to thank Stars & Stripes (especially our friends at the Tokyo bureau at Hardy Barracks in Akasaka) for their cooperation. At present, Japan Brats is the ONLY independent website that provides news exclusively about or from U.S. military personnel and installations in Japan and Okinawa. In fact, even the Stripes does not offer this exact same service. We do provide the Stripes main link for those of you who may be interested in more worldwide news from their excellent newspaper.

I hope this explains in non-computereeze how all of this gets put together. Just don't ask me any really difficult questions. Happy reading!

Japan Brats target of spammers

2005-11-02T05:24:00.000-07:00

We're sorry to report that twice in one week Japan Brats fell victim to spam attacks, resulting in unwanted advertising from external sources and affecting certain page display features.

Regrettably, one such spam attack has resulted in our having to disable all reader comments posting on both our Site News and Brat Essays pages pending further notice. Although we look forward to seeing your comments regarding specific news and essays, at present the spammers have forced us to take this action.

Should you wish to submit a comment regarding either a news item or brat essay featured on this site, please use our convenient Email Japan Brats links on any page.

A similar attack also occurred on our sister website, Japan Brats Yahoo! Again, while it did not impact overall functionaility and usability of the site, it imposed unwanted advertising into our message feeds.

In both instances, the apparent source of the spam has been in Canada.

If you see or suspect spam advertising or information on any of our pages, we would appreciate your cooperation in reporting this immediately to the webmaster using our Email Japan Brats link. Thanks again.

Japan Brats Videos soon to released

2005-10-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

This bit of news has been a long time in the making...literally. Japan Brats will soon premiere a collection of professionally produced videos that are sure to bring back nostalgic, sometimes haunting memories, for those of you who grew up as military brats in Japan.

The collection will be available as VCDs (video compact discs) that are compatible with most newer DVD players, as well as CD and DVD-equipped PCs. The individual VCDs will also be made available for purchase online from our new Japan Brats Post Exchange with PayPal, which offers safe, secure and convenient ordering, shipping and payment with most major credit cards.

We are "rolling out" this exclusive collection with three titles which we believe will prove popular among many brats:

1) Grant Heights Memories -- This video covers a unique chapter in brat history, from Grant Heights' war-time use as a kamikaze airbase, its post-war service as one of the main housing installations in the Tokyo vicinity, to its closure in 1973 and subsequent conversion into a sprawling municipal park. Among the highlights is a memorable segment devoted to Narimasu Tokyo American High School.

2) Postcards From Japan -- This one is sure to be a timeless keepsake and a classic for all military brats from the Land of the Rising Sun. It spans 60 years of U.S. history in Japan, from the beginning of the Occupation in 1945 to the impact of the deployment of American service personnel from Japan to Iraq in 2005. It also includes highlights from virtually all of the most prominent installations in Japan.

3) Camp Zama Memories -- Vintage photos and images have been woven into a fascinating trip down memory lane to Camp Zama, from its war-time role as the "West Point" of the Japanese Imperial Army to its current role as headquarters of the U.S. Army Japan.

4) White Christmas: The Fall of Saigon -- Inspired by the experiences of many veterans and those of us whose fathers served in Vietnam, this video dramatically recalls in words, images and sounds the climactic end of the Vietnam War and the harrowing escape of the last Americans from Saigon in 1974.

These videos were produced in cooperation with scores of fellow military brats, veterans, alumni and archival sources. Sample streaming video clips are available for viewing online from the main page. They are hosted free of charge by OurMedia.org and InternetArchive.org, two organizations dedicated to providing open source media on the internet.

Pricing has yet to be determined, but Japan Brats will make the videos available on an "at-cost" basis to help cover the cost of production, shipping and handling. As we approach the release dates, Japan Brats will post updates here on Site News to keep you abreast of the latest news. In the meantime, please address any inquiries using our email form.

Important: remove old Japan Brats web address

2005-10-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

About a year or so ago, in an effort to maximize exposure on search engines for Japan Brats I added a new web address http://japanbrats.cjb.net. Initially, it worked great and the service that provided the new URL seemed legitimate enough. But in recent months they began adding spam so that when you attempt to access Japan Brats you are prompted to download an unwanted and potentially virus-infected program. Do not download the program!

If you've been using that URL to access Japan Brats, I strongly recommend that you not bookmark or use it any longer! Instead, use our "real" URL at http://japanbrats.blogspot.com/. It may be a longer address but it's devoid of any spam gargabe and is hosted by Blogger, a credible hosting service.

I've notified the service, CJB, to remove Japan Brats entirely from their list. Hopefully, it will be removed shortly. Pending that, please use our real home address at http://japanbrats.blogspot.com/.

Japan Brats also uses the following URLs that you may find if you use a search engine:

http://m.1asphost.com/japanbrats/ This one is safe. It's the original URL we used when Japan Brats was first launched. Now, it simply redirects you to our new URL.
http://japanbrats.ne1.net Safe redirection URL.
http://japanbrats.r8.org Safe redirection URL.
http://www.geocities.com/japanbrat/ Safe but read the following:

The Geocities address includes a somewhat annoying sidebar on the righthand side of the browser that contains Yahoo advertising links. It's the price I pay for a free hosting service. Therefore, I don't recommend using it. Again, I recommend our main address over the others.

Thank you for your understanding.

Tom Barry
Japan Brats webmaster

Try our new Japan Brats PhotoMaps

2005-10-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

We've introduced yet another new wrinkle to Google Maps... PhotoMaps! Though still in beta (trial) version, this adds a new feature to our Sat-View and mapping program by adding photo tags to maps of select bases and installations in Japan.

Try the menu of links on the main page or visit our Japan Brats Sat-View page and scroll to the bottom of the page. When the map appears, click any of the thumbprint photos to view an enlarged image and read a brief description. You may zoom in or out, move the map around, or even convert to a satellite image.

Our selection is currently limited to Camp Zama, Yokota Air Base and Naval Air Facility Atsugi, but as Google adds more high-resolution satellite maps and images Japan Brats will add more locations and photos.

Yahoo messages & Guest Book combined

2005-10-11T02:09:00.000-07:00

In case you hadn't noticed, Japan Brats has modified it's message feature on the main page by consolidating both our Yahoo Group messages with those from our I Did Japan guest book. This is intended to lessen the confusion among some of our visitors as to which is which and to eliminate some of the clutter.

While both messaging features are still independent of one another, messages displayed on our main page combines the five most recent messages from both our Yahoo Group members and visitors who have signed our I Did Japan guest book. These are merely a few choice samples of all of the messages contained on both message boards. Links to both expanded message boards are provided in the box. Does that clear up the confusion some?

In response to those who were uncertain as to what the purpose of having two message boards is:

1) The I Did Japan guest book is open to the public. This means that any visitor may sign and post an entry, preferrably a "howdy" accompanied by a brief bio or recollection about their time in Japan.

2) The Japan Brats Yahoo Group is a members-only message board provided by Yahoo. It's for those of you who want to continue an ongoing dialogue among other members regarding a wide range of topics related to our Japan military brat experiences. As I've mentioned in previous posts, membership is free and takes only a few minutes to register. There are a host of other features as well, including posting photos and email services.

If you're uncertain which to use, try both. We welcome all Japan Brats who'd like to share their experiences with the rest of us.

Yahoo! Farechase removed

2005-10-11T01:59:00.000-07:00

I hadn't heard any complaints yet about Yahoo! Farechase, a little travel-related widget we recently added to the main page. But I've been anticipating some negative reviews. In theory it's a tool to aid those of you who may want to search airfare to Japan or anywhere else. In theory.

Problem is that it's still in a so-called "beta" -- or trial -- mode and the folks at Yahoo! haven't worked out all of the bugs yet. Would've been a handy addition to our portfolio, but after personally trying to find a flight from Phoenix to Tokyo a half-dozen times without any success I finally gave up.

Therefore, we've removed it altogether from the main page pending Yahoo succeeding in making it work. Besides, there are plenty of other airfare search engines available on the web, in addition to links we've provided in our Japan Trekker's Guide.

Do you Yahoo? Consider Japan Brats Yahoo!

2005-10-05T05:15:00.000-07:00

Do you Yahoo? You might consider Japan Brats Yahoo! Let us explain: If you're relatively new to Japan Brats, you might not have noticed that we have our very own membership club. It's rather exclusive in that it's comprised of military brats from Japan, both past and present. The club's primary purpose is to promote fellowship, camaraderie and just good-natured communications among we brats.

Membership is free and offers some unique advantages: You can swap messages among group members, send and receive email, post and view rare photos of your time in Japan, subscribe to an optional daily digest of group messages in your email, and receive special notices. It's a terrific place for those of us who tend to be somewhat sentimental and like to wax nostalgic about the good ol' days of our youth in Japan.

Unlike typical high school alumni associations, Japan Brats Yahoo welcomes everyone who may share similar experiences regardless of the school you attended or when you lived there. We even invite veterans or ex-expatriates who may have lived in Japan or spent a tour of duty there to join the fun.

Some may wonder why we havd a membership club at all when we already have a guestbook. Firstly, the guestbook primarily serves as a place to introduce yourself and to share a bit about when and where you lived in Japan or Okinawa. While Japan Brats Yahoo also serves this purpose, it's also a place where you can continue an ongoing dialogue with other brats as a whole or individually. Secondly, as a members-only group Japan Brats Yahoo is safe from spammers. Yahoo provides the added bonus of Norton anti-virus and anti-spam protection that you wouldn't have otherwise.

Now with 120 members worldwide (and growing), Japan Brats Yahoo has helped reconnect old friends and classmates, forge new friendships with those who share something in common (like schools you attended, bases you lived on, and places in Japan you've visited). Even if you're not a "joiner" per se or wish to remain anonymous, you can read messages posted by other members who like to share their experiences in Japan with the rest of us. That's why Japan Brats features samples of the most recent messages on our main page.

Joining Japan Brats Yahoo is simple. To make it even more convenient, we've added a new sign-up button on the main page under the heading "Join Japan Brats Yahoo!" (pretty clever title). So why not join? There's absolutely no obligation, no membership dues, no requirement whatsoever. It's strictly for fun and old-times sake.

So next time someone asks, "Do you Yahoo?" you can answer "Hai!" (Yes).

New features added...just too much fun!

2005-10-01T18:13:00.000-07:00

"Amazing!" "Outstanding!" "Excellent!" "Terrific!" The superlatives keep pouring in to the Japan Brats mailbag for our award-winning website/weblog for military brats from Japan and Okinawa.

Yes, "award-winning." In case you missed the recent site news post about it, Japan Brats recently earned a coveted award from Japan Reference, or JREF, Japan's foremost links directory for gaijins.

The latest scoop for those of you who haven't visited the main page in a few days is that it's been updated again with more exciting new features and useful links for the Japanophile in you. Among them:

1) Military Community -- Outstanding links to the most comprehensive reference guides about the global U.S. military community. With these links, you can easily search and find information and resources about virtually any base or duty station in Japan and throughout the world.

2) Gaijin Pot -- An entertaining weblog featuring postings by gaijins in Japan who just can't remember what a real Krispy Kreme tastes like but can tell you the difference between Meguro (a neighborhood in central Tokyo) and maguro (a type of raw fish used in sushi).

3) 43 Things -- A unique and unusual weblog penned by those among us who've yet to fulfill their long-held ambition to visit or live in Japan as we Japan Brats have. An interesting read to see how they plan to accomplish their goals.

4) Kureji Japan -- A directory of the most hilarious, amusing, entertaining and unusual websites about Japan that you probably couldn't find in a month of Sundays searching the worldwide web on your own. They include such arcane and offbeat sites as:

* How To Bow -- A animated lesson on Japanese etiquette. Trust me, it's hilarious!

* Origami Boulder Company -- A mail-order site for origami boulders (a crumpled wad of paper). This guy is dead serious. You'd better place an order...NOW!!! Even if you don't buy, it's a hoot.

* Kushami Room -- This is a twisted photoblog, but the Japanese web author’s fetish for sneezing (kushami) women is for real.

* Oh My O-Benjo! -- Richard Seaman's really crappy but authoritative look at Japanese toilets.

* How to Use Japanese Toilet -- More potty training and toilet humor courtesy of Yuuji Hayashi.

* Engrish.com -- The grandaddy of all amusing Japanese websites, featuring photographic examples of how the Japanese manage to butcher, warp and generally mangle the English language in everyday life.

* What Kind of Gaijin Are You? -- You wear a yukata at home, sleep on a futon and eat rice every day. Rate yourself as a gaijin.

And there's dozens more. So take a break, sip some ocha and have a laugh on me. I launched Kureji Japan about two years ago just to amuse myself, but hadn't really kept it updated. So forgive me if a few of the links you find there are no longer functioning. But, trust me, you will find it immensely entertaining nonetheless.

5) Wowcams -- Similar to Japancams in format and function, but much broader in scope. You can access hundreds of controllable webcams from around the globe.

And finally...

6) Japan Trekkers Guide -- If you're headed to Japan or Okinawa, these links could save you a chunk of change on airfrare and hotel rates. There are a few other useful and informative links here, too.

Japan Brats wannabes chime in

2005-09-28T08:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a new twist to our Japan Brats Yahoo, I Did Japan and Gaijin Blogs message boards. Scroll midway down the main page and you'll see a new addition to our ever-evolving weblog. It's called 43 Things where those who hadn't been there express their long-held ambitions to visit Japan some day.

If you're curious about the title of this bulletin board, it's taken from a rather unique weblog called 43 Things where just about anyone can post their deep-seeded desires, whims and fantasies. It poses the age-old question "What do you want to do with your life?" then recommends that you "discover what's important, make it happen, and share your progress. Find your 43 things!"

Amazingly, there's well over a thousand posters whose ambition is to go to Japan for a visit. A few of them wax eloquently about their dream trip while others are more pragmatic and earnest in achieving their goal. I thought it rather unique in that it may give those of us Japan Brats who have already been there and done that pause for thought and reflection on what a great experience we indeed enjoyed.

Japan Brats recipient of JREF Award

2005-09-26T18:05:00.000-07:00

We were in for a pleasant surprise today when we opened our email. Japan Brats is the recipient of the prestigious Japan Reference Bronze Award and is listed in the directory's Topsites Japan list.

The award is given to websites/weblogs that exhibit excellent Japan-related content, outstanding concept and an appealing web design.

Japan Reference (JREF) is the foremost English-language website and blog directory in Japan. It was founded in 1999 in Tokyo by expatriates as a non-commercial resource for links and information related to almost every aspect of Japan. JREF currently holds 10,295 links in 719 categories and subcategories, and today offers the most recent and relevant online content available anywhere.

Japan Brats is proud to be singled out for excellence. In only two years of existence, we've grown from a modest website into a wide-ranging multi-media weblog dedicated to preserving the history and heritage of military brats from Japan and Okinawa. It's a mission we look forward to serving well into the future.

Needless to say, we immediately added the official award icon on our main page banner. Click the icon to open a direct link to Japan Reference.

New & Improved Japancams plus Wowcams!

2005-09-26T13:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted anything on Site News. Frankly, I had little new to report until now. As the headline clearly indicates, Japan Brats has completely overhauled its Japancams pages. Additionally, we've added a link to Wowcams, a new website that I recently launched based on the same concept as Japancams but with a far greater scope and dozens more webcam locations.

Both Japancams and Wowcams employ the novel and exciting WebView Livescope technology created by Canon (yes, the camera and copier people from Japan). What's truly unique about it is that you can control individual streaming webcams in realtime directly from your desktop or laptop. It includes full Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls and even permits you to capture a static JPEG image for your photo collection if you wish.

We've expanded our offering of webcam locations in Japan from 20 to 30, from northern Hokkaido to the southern tip of Kyushu as well as Okinawa. Better still, Japancams is easier to navigate than before with simple, clear instructions. You can view 6 webcams simultaneously on each page or category, or switch to individual webcams with full Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls. Both Japancams and Wowcams also feature a page entitled "Big View" where you can view larger webcam images from a variety of locations that rotate in approximate 40-second intervals.

Though created by yours truly, Wowcams is actually a separate website altogether. You can find the link in the "Fun Stuff" box on the Japan Brats main page (in case you want to make a note of it or bookmark it, the URL is http://wowcams.blogspot.com). The platform and design, however, is nearly identical to Japancams. The only difference is that it will appeal to those of you who enjoy the vicarious thrill of visiting foreign landscapes from around the world. From the verdant valleys of Sulzberg, Austria and the Mississippi River in Ft. Madison, Iowa to the snow-covered slopes of Park City, Utah or the balmy, sandy beaches of Kaanapali, Maui you will find scores of sights to visit on Wowcams.

The only requirement is that your browser be Java-enabled. Most computers today come with Java pre-installed. However, if you experience problems viewing our webcams, check your browser's (Internet) settings. It may have been disabled.

All of our webcam locations include a small camera icon, which permit access to the Java viewer with Pan/Tilt/Zoom controls. Simply click the icon and you will be switched to the Java viewer. With these controls, you can zoom in for a close-up say of Tokyo Tower, move the camera across the panoramic landscape of the Swiss Alps, or enjoy a wide-angle view of Diamondhead. Easy step-by-step instructions are available from the good folks at Canon via a convenient link in the menu frame located on the right side.

For added convenience and versatility, Canon also offers an optional webcam Viewer for PC, which may be downloaded for free. A link is provided in the menu. It works with Windows 2000 and Windows XP operating systems (or later versions) and with Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 and Netscape 7.1 or 7.2 browsers (or later). Sorry, a Mac version is not yet available.

The advantage with this standalone viewer is that it opens in a separate pop-up frame so you can continue using your browser for other purposes. It also stores up to 100 webcam addresses that you can easily call up with the simple click of your mouse. Viewer for PC is small -- only 2.7MB -- and can be installed in a snap.

As with most webcam platforms, the Java applet is somewhat slow to load particularly with slower, dial-up connections. This is because of the larger bandwidth requirement for streaming video. Nonetheless, with a little patience you can enjoy viewing webcams from around the globe 24/7, day or night, rain or shine. Both loading and control response times will increase dramatically for those of you equipped with DSL, cable or a broadband connection. I highly recommend switching (if you haven't already) especially if you plan to be more than a casual visitor.

JET-setter jets home from Miyako-jima

2005-09-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

For nearly a year now, Japan Brats has been pleased to showcase the photographic handiwork of Monika Thomas, our intrepid "JET-setter." Actually, she was enrolled in the Japan Exchange Teaching (JET) program and had served as our photo correspondent from Okinawa and Japan during her two-year sojourn in the Orient.

Many of you perhaps noticed and in fact linked to her Flickr photostreams featured on both our Gaijin Blogs and Main Page. (Simply click on the thumbprints with your mouse and the Flickr photpage will open.) Well, this is sort of good news-bad news.

Sadly, Monika is longer in Okinawa and returned stateside over the summer. She advised us that she is now in San Francisco and is exploring other career aspirations in the Bay Area. Fortunately, she's archived literally thousands of superb photos from her time in the Orient and will continue to share those with us. They include photos from a recent return visit to Japan.

Monika is originally from (actually a native of) Anchorage, Alaska, where she worked as an announcer at a local FM station prior to heading for Japan. For the past two years, she plied her skills as an Eigo sensei (English teacher) on the JET program on Miyako-jima, a remote, tiny island in the far southern end of the Ryuku archipelago. She was assigned as a 4th-grade teacher at Ueno Shogakou.

Obviously, Monika is multitalented, from radio to teaching to photography. I'd say she is equally photogenic as she is adept behind the lens. From time to time, her winning and effervescent smile shines brightly in her photostream. She's also an expert -- and certified -- scuba diver, having plunged the depth of the Pacific off of Okinawa, the South China Sea in Vietnam and the coastal waters of Phuket, Thailand in the Indian Ocean.

Speaking of Phuket, as many of you will recall, Monika was in Phuket for a scuba-diving expedition at the time of the tragic Tsunami that struck Phuket and the Indian Ocean last Dec. 26. She shared with Japan Brats via her photos and correspondences her firsthand accounts of the devastation there.

The good news: she promises to continue plying her skills as a photographer on our behalf and vows to return from time to time to Japan and Okinawa (where she no doubt has forged many long-lasting friendships) and to update her photos. Therefore, we will continue to keep in touch and maintain her Flickr photostreams on our website. Japan Brats wishes Monika good luck in her future endeavors.

Here's a snapshot of Monika with her charges from the 4th-grade class at Ueno Shogakou on Miyako-jima, Okinawa.

New! Post-war Japan videos and slideshow

2005-09-15T05:47:00.000-07:00

Kudos to fellow Japan Brat Bob Ryan from Guam for giving us a heads-up on two new links to rare photos and film footage of Occupation-era Japan courtesy of the U.S. Army's Center of Military History. We're featuring the links on our Main Page in the box titled Occupation-era Images.

We thought these would be especially significant for those of you whose fathers served in Japan during the Occupation or if you, yourself, was a military brat in Japan during this historic post-war period from 1945-1952. The websites were commissioned by the U.S. Army as part of its commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II.

The first link is a slideshow featuring 25 rare photos of the U.S. occupation of Japan, and the second is a video link that features six installments highlighting the end of World War II to Japan's eventual independence in 1952 and the end of the Occupation. It includes rare film footage of Yokohama and Tokyo during the Occupation. Video commentary is provided by Dr. Edward Drea, U.S Army Center of Military History (Retired).

The slideshow opens with a photo of General Douglas MacArthur as he leaves his plane to step onto Japanese soil at the Imperial Navy's Atsugi Airfield on Aug. 30, 1945.

Japan Brats is grateful to Bob Ryan for bringing these websites to our attention. As many of our longtime visitors (especially members of our Yahoo Group) are aware, in addition to working parttime as an emergency room physician at Guam Memorial Hospital (yes, he's a surgeon), Bob's primary responsibility is that of a commercial airline pilot for Continental Micronesia, a subsidiary of Continental Airlines. In addition to both of those tasks, he's a colonel in the Army Reserve. Talk about triple duty!

He flies a Boeing 737-800 from Guam on the Asian and Pacific routes, including the "Island Hopper" route for Air Mike, as it is known, through the South Pacific chain of islands and onto Honolulu. If you're ever traveling that way, look for Flight 956 (Guam to Honolulu) or 957 (Honolulu to Guam). Chances are it'll be Bob at the controls. Say hi for us.

Bob keeps in touch with Japan Brats from time to time. His interest stems from his experience as an Air Force brat growing up at Johnson Air Base. He also attended school at Tachi, where his father the late USAF Col. William Ryan served in the 36th Air Rescue Squadron.

About a year ago, we profiled Bob in one of our Brat Essays titled "Preserving the Fabled Albatross," which chronicles his passion and hobby of restoring a vintage Grumman SA-16B Albatross seaplane. If you're an aviation buff, I highly recommend reading the essay.

Japan-bound? Check our Space-A Tag Board

2005-09-14T04:05:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats recognizes that a good percentage of our regular visitors are veterans or retired military. We also are aware that many of you travel to Japan, Okinawa and other destinations in the Orient from time to time on vacation and to revisit some of the old stomping grounds. We also know that many of you enjoy space-available, or Space-A, privileges on military flights and commercial charters.

Japan Brats now provides a handy resource for Space-A travellers. Located on the Main Page, it's called the Space-A Tag Board, where you can easily find the latest flight information for your destination.

The board may also come in handy for active duty or D.O.D. personnel and dependents who may be headed CONUS and vice versa and are looking for the most convenient Space-A flight home or back to Japan or Okinawa.

The service is provided by Dirk Pepperd's Space-A Message Board, the web's most reliable source for military Space-A flight information. Because the military is currently prohibited from publishing flight schedules, the board is your best resource for the latest information short of contacting the air terminals directly. Here, you can connect with others who may be going your way or have invaluable information to share.

With the military phasing out its Patriot Express commercial charters to Japan and Okinawa over the next two years, getting the latest Space-A information will become increasingly important.

And if you're Tokyo-bound, once you've found your Space-A flight you'll want to find the finest midtown lodging at the most reasonable rate in town. Whether visiting on business or pleasure, veterans, retirees and dependents who enjoy MWR lodging privileges will enjoy four-star accommodations and amenities at a bargain rate at The New Sanno Hotel.

Available to qualified I.D. card holders and their guests, The New Sanno is an American-style oasis in the heart of Tokyo. It offers a variety of accommodations and restaurants in a helpful, English-speaking environment.

Now shop eBay Japan Brats-style

2005-09-14T03:39:00.000-07:00

What would you bid for an authentic Camp Zama Officer's Wives Club Cookbook circa 1989? Or a USAF 4-star general's Pacific Air Forces Challenge Coin? As of this writing, the reserve price for the coin was only $8.99 on eBay.

These and many other U.S. military-related collectibles from Japan are currently available on eBay, the Internet's leading auction site. And now Japan Brats has simplified the task of finding these items with a page devoted exclusively to memorabilia and collectibles related to U.S. bases in Japan and Okinawa that are currently available on eBay. It's called (what else?) eBay Japan Brats. There's a small teaser box on the Main Page featuring a sample item.

For the time being, our list is limited to items related to Camp Zama, Tachikawa, Yokota or Kadena. But we will soon expand this to more bases, past and present. Through the magic of RSS, the list is always current and will show the asking price or current bid of each item. If you find something that interests you, simply click the base header above a particular section to go to the eBay page featuring the item(s).

That's all there is to it... So if you're feeling nostalgic and have been looking for memorabilia from your past in Japan or Okinawa, check out eBay Japan Brats from time to time. You just never know what small treasure you may find.

Newly updated Chat Room!

2005-09-12T01:23:00.000-07:00

After a long period of relative inactivity, we've decided to deep six our Brat Chat chatroom and replace it with Japan Chat, a service hosted by JET Chat. The link to the chatroom remains the same. It's still located on the Main Page in the Fun Stuff box.

While the old chatroom was intended primarily for military brats from Japan, the new chatroom is an English-language board hosted by Japan-based JET Chat, an organization primarily devoted to serving foreigners living in Japan who are enrolled in the Japan Exchange Teaching (JET) program.

But you'll find that actual chatroom visitors are comprised of just about any English-proficient individuals, whether they are gaijins, teachers or Japanese, and the topics are not strictly limited to teaching or to the JET program. However, most discussions do revolved around Japan in general.

I guess an explanation is in order for those of you wondering why we abandoned the original Brat Chat. Well, it simply wasn't being used and those of you who participated in the weekly chat sessions on Sundays (Monday in Japan) had dwindled. Rather than leave our chatroom page an orhpaned stepchild, we thought it more practical to broaden its scope in the hopes of reaching a wider audience.

Fortunately, our new chatroom is among the most active of its kind in Japan, so you're likely to find at least a few individuals using it any given time. It's open 24/7, meaning you can log in at any time. No registration is required to log in.

The simplicity of the chatroom permits you to see in real time the messages as they are posted by others without having to log in yourself (if you simply want to monitor the ongoing discussions). We ask only that you use it responsibly as Japan Brats is not the owner of the chatroom itself and has no control over its content. If we find significant abuse, however, we will suspend the service.

Check out a few new Gaijin Blogs

2005-09-10T16:14:00.000-07:00

After surfing and scavenging through dozens of blogs and photoblogs, we've chosen a few new additions to the Gaijin Blogs page to freshen up the page a bit. We hope they'll pique and hold your interest. They include:

* Fare Forward: One Life in Japan by Brandon, a young JET program eigo sensei (English teacher) who embarked this spring on a year or longer adventure to the Land of the Rising Sun. He's teaching at a junior high in Tokyo. We thought it a suitable substitute for Ben Gleitzman's blog, which was retired after Ben returned to the States over the summer after completing a year-long stay in Okayama on a Rotary International scholarship. We're pleased to note that Ben is now happily ensconced in Boston and is enrolled as a freshman at prestigious M.I.T. We wish him all the best and express our gratitude for providing Japan Brats with an outstanding day-to-day account of his experiences in Japan. Likewise, we wish Brandon much success and look forward to his frequent postings.

* The Funky Drummer by Sam Boyd, whose mission is to "eat sushi, watch sumo and learn Nihongo." We actually debuted his blog/photoblog a week or so ago on a trial basis and have thus far received good response to his travel and adventure-based posts.

* Tokyo Times by Lee, a Brit who's been chronicling the alternate universe known as Tokyo in photo and written word. In fact, Lee is somewhat of a veteran now that he's managed to survive the guantlet for more than two years. Since it was launched in the fall of 2003, Tokyo Times has won rave reviews for its often humorous and offbeat observations and photos of current events and the culture of Japan. We're certain you'll enjoy it.

* An Englishman in Osaka. The author/publisher of this creative photoblog and journal prefers to remain anonymous, but provides us with an entertaining glimpse at everyday life in Japan through his eyes and the camera lens.

Of course, Japan Brats has kept the faith with our longtime featured blog, Sushicam by Jeff Laitila. Only wish he had a photo RSS feed to go with. But Jeff, an engineer at Yokosuka Naval Base, is shrewd in knowing that you'll actually have to visit his blog to see his superb professional photographic handiwork. Sushicam is among the most popular and most visited gaijin-published weblogs in Japan. It's spawned a cottage industry of sorts for Jeff, who travels widely with his camera.

Unfortunately, we're still searching for a blog/photoblog from the gaijin female perspective that will appeal to a wide audience (read: less personal journaling and more journalistic). We'll continue looking, but if you know of one by all means let us know using the handy Email Japan Brats form.

East meets West in the GaijinPot

2005-09-10T03:51:00.000-07:00

We've added a new feature to our Main Page for those of you who simply can't get enough of Japan, or more specifically discourse about Japan. It's called GaijinPot Forum. It's an English-language BB -- bulletin board -- intended for expats in Japan as well as English-proficient Japanese nationals who want to discuss a wide range of topics concerning Japan.

You'll find a teaser box on the Main Page located just below our Yahoo Group message box that showcases the most recent posts, plus an XML feed for those of you who want to keep current with your RSS aggregator. There's also a direct link if you want to peruse the main bulletin board for a forum topic you may be interested in.

The BB, itself, is divided into several forums based on topics, most of which are moderated. Similar to many bulletin boards, anyone can read the posts. But you must register and log in to post your own replies, messages, or start a new topic string.

GaijinPot.com bills itself as "No.1 For Foreigners in Japan." I'm assuming that means the No.1 website where foreigners can commiserate. But in actual practice I see that a large percentage of posters are Japanese. Fortunately, all of the posts are in English...or an approximation thereof. At any rate, I guess that it's intended to encourage dialogue among gaijins and Japanese alike. This is a great way to share your thoughts and views with Japanese posters and vice versa.

Fair warning, though. The topics are wide ranging, free-wheeling and often provocative. They include everything from transportation and travel to relationships and sex in Japan. Interestingly, you'll find much of the criticism of gaijins to be sharp, biting and offensive in some cases. The language can be colorful (off color). It seems the moderators aren't as restrictive on the use of colorful language as say a network censor might be. So if you're easily offended, switch to another topic or simply log off. Bear in mind, Japan Brats does not host the site, we only provide a link to it.

But GaijinPot offers among the most stimulating forums of any we've found targeted to gaijins. And besides the forums it provides many useful features that you can navigate to from their home page, including a section for foreigners seeking jobs in Japan, Tokyo apartment rentals (if you're headed in that direction), travel-related information, and classified ads.

Japan Brats poll updated

2005-09-09T22:44:00.000-07:00

For reasons still undetermined, we recently got unplugged from the server that hosted our ongoing Japan Brats Poll, which asks in what decade(s) you lived in Japan. The poll is located in the righthand column of the Main Page.

So we've switched servers and the poll has been reactivated. Fortunately, we managed to preserve the current results and didn't have to start all over again. The new server is actually faster than before and the results page will open in a new window.

The poll is available to all visitors who may have lived in Japan at one time or another and we encourage all of you to submit your input. It provides somewhat of a demographic view of what generations we Japan Brats belong to. Unlike the previous format, you now can choose more than one decade (if you lived in Japan over a span of several years or decades or on different occasions). Just check the boxes next to the decade. To discourage stacking votes, the poll is set up so you may vote only once a day.

The current results show that the largest block of votes from the 1960s (33%), followed by the 1970s (26%). Suprisingly, there are a few of you from the 1940s (1%). Presumably, you were among the first wave of military brats to live in Japan during the Occupation era (1945-1952).

As Zama brat Don Opedal once observed, the latter generations (1980s-2000s) are less inclined to participate in such polls because they haven't begun to rediscover their past as we more mature (older) brats. This is a natural phenomenon. But I anticipate that as the years go by we'll see more and more of you counted in the results.

While on the subject of polls and surveys, Japan Brats will soon add periodic mini-surveys on the Main Page for fun and amusement. If you have any suggestions for a survey question we can pose, submit it using our handy Email Japan Brats form.

Zama-ites in Tokyo, Kubasaki does Hawaii

2005-09-08T02:41:00.000-07:00

Look out, Camp Zama, some old(er) and perhaps familiar faces will soon be returning to your installation, while the Hawaiian isles welcomes an invasion from Kubasaki alumni. Yes, this is a busy month among Japan Brats with two exciting events either under way or about to kick off shortly.

The long-awaited 2005 Zama Career Day reunion trip is scheduled to take place in Japan Oct. 1-12. It promises to be a remarkable mix of nostalgia and mentoring by members of the Zama Alumni Association.

Zama alumni are among the most active of Japan-Okinawa alumni associations and hosts an annual reunion in addition to frequent mini-reunions around the U.S. each year. But this will be the first to take place in Japan since October 2003.

If the name "Career Day" throws you, that's because alumni will in fact participate in a career day program on the campus of Zama American High School while visiting the Land of the Rising Sun. They'll share with students their individual experiences along their career paths and how their experiences as Japan Brats, and specifically as ZAHS students, helped to prepare them for life after graduation.

According to ZAA President Al Miyatake, nearly two dozen alumni, spouses and family members are expected to participate in this special reunion visit. In his latest report to members, Al states, "We are finalizing at this moment; 22 are going on this trip at this time. Hope to have a couple join us over there... We are flying in from Chicago, Honolulu, Kona, San Francisco and Dulles, meet at the Narita Terminal 1 counter for the bus to Zama. As we check in, we will take buses to the BOQs."

If all of the stars align properly, Al says that side trips to Yokota and Atsugi may be added to the itinerary.

Fortunately, Al, longtime president of the ZAA and member of the Class of '66, is a Hawaii-based travel agent and helped to coordinate the travel arrangements, including special base visitor privileges and a five-day stay in the Camp Zama BOQ for reunion participants. Does he have some pull or what?

The itinerary then takes the group to the Shiba Park Hotel in Tokyo for the second half of the trip Oct 6-12. Some of the alumni will remain in the Orient for several more days.

One of the ZAHS alumni, John Bishop (Class of '82), will be in Tokyo on a business-related trip during the first week of the reunion, and plans to connect with his fellow alumni for dinner one evening. Sounds like a blast! Fellow Japan Brats Yahoo Group member Rick Pemble ('72) and his wife, Susan, will also participate in the reunion trip. Rick is the website owner/manager of the unofficial but highly informative Zama Alumni Association website. He and other trip-goers promise to post many reunion photos upon their return, so check it out after Oct. 12.

The Zama Career Day reunion comes right on the heels of the 2005 Kubasaki Paradise Reunion, which kicked off on Wednesday and continues through next Tuesday, Sept. 13, in Hawaii. The first half of this gala event for Kubasaki Dragons alumni is being held in Waikiki, followed by several days in Maui.

Our Kubasaki High brothers and sisters have a significant membership base in Hawaii, so with the addition to those "haoles" traveling from the mainland the all-class reunion is expected to draw hundreds of participants.

The next scheduled brats reunion is the Overseas Brats Mesa Gathering, which will be held Oct. 13-16 at Phoenix Marriott Mesa in Mesa, Ariz. (That'll be in my backyard, so it behooves me to drop by.) All overseas brats, their families and educators are welcome. The event is co-sponsored by the Phoenix Marriott Mesa and Overseas Brats.

For details, contact Joe Condrill, president of Overseas Brats at joeosbpres@sbcglobal.net or visit the reunion website.

For a complete list of upcoming Japan Brats-related reunions and special events, visit the Brats Calendar page. If you or your group would like to add your event to the calendar, whether it’s a major reunion blowout or a mini, simply email us using our handy Email Japan Brats form.

Nabi heads for Sasebo, New Satellite Views

2005-09-06T05:00:00.000-07:00

It appears Okinawa dodged a bullet Monday as Super Typhoon Nabi skirted the northern portion of the island and headed for Kyushu. The typhoon was approximately 150 miles southeast of Sasebo and about 197 miles south of Iwakuni by Monday afternoon tracking northeastward at 8 mph.

Japan Brats has swapped out webcams on our Main Page again so we can continue to visually track the storm. In addition to our primary camera on Tokyo Bay, we've added Nagasaki Harbor, the nearest real-time webcam accessible to Sasebo. Unfortunately, the webcam in Fukuoka is situated downtown and doesn't really show the intensity of the storm.

For you storm-watchers out there, we've changed our IR (infrared) satellite links in the weather box to the Navy's Joint Typhoon Warning Center in Hawaii. There are two links: one that provides an infrared satellite image of the western pacific and the other that features a tropical storm tracking map. Both are updated every half hour.

According to the Pacific Stars and Stripes, Commander Fleet Activities Sasebo has declared a Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness 1 (emergency) and DoDDS ordered all schools closed through Tuesday.

Nabi's original predicted path was toward Okinawa, but it veered away Sunday and passed about 195 miles to the northeast of the island. Japan's weather service said that it is expected to break up as it passes over Kyushu and the southern mainland.

Far-flung visitors enjoy Japan Brats

2005-09-06T04:16:00.000-07:00

From Copenhagen, Denmark to Yigo, Guam, visitors to Japan Brats are increasingly more multi-national than before. Based on our tracking statistics, while the vast majority of visitors to this website remain from the U.S. a growing number of you are dropping by from some far-flung locations across the globe.

We attribute the increase to our higher page rankings on such major search engines as Yahoo! and Google. But we're also finding that our international visitors are using other search engines that are less known in the U.S. and more popular overseas, some of them foreign language engines. They include Alta Vista, Yahoo! Japan, Matilda (Australia) and EuroSeek, which evidently have "discovered" Japan Brats while crawling the worldwide web.

As of this writing, our visitor map (located on the Main Page) showed the four most recent visitors to be from (in reverse chronological order) Bremerton, Wash.; Yigo, Guam; Nagoya, Japan; and Tulsa, Okla. If you're curious to see this for yourself, simply click on the map icon and a new window will open with a Google Map showing pin locations for the 20 most recent visitors to have logged onto Japan Brats. You can zoom in and click on any of the pins to display the exact IP address location and the date and exact time of the visits. You can also switch to a satellite image of some of the locations.

So whether you're from Davenport, Iowa or Auckland, New Zealand, Japan Brats welcomes you all. We also encourage any of our international visitors to say hello in person on our "I Did Japan" guest book, particularly if you yourself did Japan along your journeys. We'd especially like to hear from those of you who are in fact military brats and expats presently living overseas. And if you're interested, we invite you to join our free Japan Brats Yahoo! Group for fun, fellowship and some interesting dialogue.

Tracking Super Typhoon Nabi

2005-09-03T18:19:00.000-07:00

We've swapped out one of our webcams on the Main Page with one from Okinawa so you can monitor and visually track in real time Super Typhoon Nabi as it approaches the island. Nabi is currently the equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane but could be upgraded to a Category 5 by midday Monday, when it is expected to make landfall about 70 miles north of Kadena Air Base.

According to the Pacific Stars & Stripes today, Kadena's commander is prepared to declare Tropical Cyclone Condition of Readiness 1E (emergency) and order a lock-down of up to two days starting as early as Sunday night.

Japan's Meteorological Agency said Nabi is 805 miles wide and sports an eye 58 miles across, with sustained winds in excess of 160 mph.

Reuter's reports that it could threaten Japan's main islands, possibly making landfall on Kyushu on Tuesday, but that the worst of its fury is likely to have been spent by then.

Japan Brats visitors can monitor Nabi's progress with our Asia Weather Satellite link, located in the weather box on the Main Page. You can view the latest infrared weather satellite image of Japan and the western Pacific. A larger webcam view of Okuma Beach, Okinawa can be seen on our Live Japancams page.

Other weather and storm-related news can be accessed online on our Fuji News Network, NHK Radio Japan and Eagle 810 Radio (AFN) links located on the Main Page and on the following pages:

1) Japan Weather summaries

2) Pacific Stars & Stripes

3) Japan Headlines

While on the subject of catastrophic storms, we remind everyone that Japan Brats has included a direct link to the American Red Cross on our Main Page where you can make donations toward Hurricane Katrina relief efforts for residents of New Orleans and other areas on the Gulf Coast.

New Radio & TV links featured

2005-09-02T23:42:00.000-07:00

Scroll down the Main Page and you'll find new links to service- and Japan-related radio and TV online media have been added to our Fun Stuff box. They include Eagle 810 Radio (American Forces Network-Yokota), NHK Radio Japan and Fuji Network News.

We've also resurrected a Media Guide that was abandoned some months ago when we switched servers. It features links to a half-dozen service-related Radio and TV online news sources, including the Pentagon Channel, Air Force TV News, Navy/Marine Corps TV, Soldiers Radio & TV (Army), and USMC Okinawa Videos.

Here are some viewing or listening tips:

1) Eagle 810 Radio from AFN Yokota does not presently have a fast-downloading streaming radio server. Therefore, the 5-minute newscasts delivered via Real Media Player are slow to download, especially if you're on a dial-up connection. Unfortunately, AFN does not provide online access to its Okinawa radio or TV service.

2) NHK Radio Japan (in both English and Japanese) and FNN TV News (our newest link) are both relatively fast to download. FNN, howwever, is in Japanese but features video. They both provide hourly news summaries of the latest news from Japan and around the globe.

3) The Pentagon Channel, which offers defense-related streaming video newscasts from the Departmnent of Defense, Air Force TV News and Soldiers Radio & TV (Army) do not require a media player. They are incorporated into the websites themselves.

Real Media Player or Windows Media Player are required for many of the links. We've provided direct free download links to Microsoft and Real Media in our Media Guide box.

You can also find a comprehensive listing of all available online Japan and Okinawa base newspapers on our Base News page.

Back to School...sort of

2005-09-01T19:58:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats has debuted a new page titled On Campus. Take a look at the right column of the Main Page, just below the Base News teaser box and you'll see some of the latest news and prep sports highlights from DoDDS schools in Japan and Okinawa.

On Campus is aimed at some of you alumni visitors who may miss campus life and want to catch up on current events and news at your old alma mater. Or perhaps you lettered at Yokota or were a Zama Trojan and want to find out who's vying for the Far East football crown.

On Campus is provided courtesy of the Pacific Stars & Stripes and Google News, and provides highlights from all existing DoDDS (Department of Defense School System) schools from Edgren High at Misawa Air Base to Kadena High in Okinawa. It even features thumbprint photos (if available) on some of the stories.

In addition, we've provided a comprehensive index of links to all of the DoDDS schools in Japan and Okinawa, including high schools, middle schools and elementary schools.

In addition to ex-brats, On Campus is a useful news resource for current students, teachers, administrators and parents in Japan and Okinawa. We hope you'll find it informative.

Katrina Relief, Our Prayers

2005-08-31T22:15:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats and all military brats here and abroad extend our deepest sympathies to our fellow Americans in the Gulf Coast region in their time of need and distress. Our prayers and thoughts are with them.

As we did following the Southeast Asia tsunami disaster, we've posted a direct link to the American Red Cross on our main page for those wishing to donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort now under way. We've also posted a direct link to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) website for those requiring assistance.

This is the worst natural disaster and largest humanitarian crisis in modern U.S. history, requiring months if not years of recovery. To those of us fortunate to have escaped Katrina's wrath, please show your generosity and concern. Domo arigato gozaimasu.

A brand new look for Japan Brats!

2005-08-28T03:14:00.000-07:00

If you came by way of the main page, you may have done a double take. Perhaps even thought you may have stumbled onto the wrong site. Rest assured, you didn't take a wrong turn.

Welcome to the all-new Japan Brats main page! In our neverending quest to improve our visitors' experience, we've undergone a complete makeover on our main (home) page. Frankly, I've lost count how many times we've done this since Japan Brats was first launched two years ago, but this time we're sporting a cleaner, more up-to-date and refreshing look thanks to some professional guidance on the redesign.

The reasons for the redesign were twofold:

1) More than a month in the making (wrestling with dozens of different design options), the new main page is not only easier to navigate but it's faster to download than ever before. On your first visit, this may not be so evident with dial-up users. But, trust me, on consecutive visits it'll download in seconds once it is cached on your browser's memory. This wholesale makeover was instigated by visitor feedback, especially those of you who were frustrated by the sometimes lengthy downloads.

2) Secondly, with all of the whistles and bells and new pages that have been added to the site in recent months, many of you have gotten lost and confused by what Japan Brats really has to offer our fellow military brats from Japan and Okinawa. And I hate for anyone to miss out on some of the unique features scattered throughout our many pages -- some that are exclusive to Japan Brats.

As you will see, the main page format is compartmentalized as such for user convenience and ease of navigatability. In other words, it's a whole heckuva lot more user-friendly. It provides "teaser" boxes on just about everything located inside. In fact, many of you may not want to wade through all of our pages due to time constraints. So, the main page also serves as a one-stop location to enable you to briefly scan through the latest headlines, bulletins and messages. It includes everything from our "old" main page, as well as all of the items from the At-A-Glance page (which has been retired). Nothing has been left out.

We hope you will enjoy the new Japan Brats as we celebrate our second anniversary and a new milestone -- we topped 40,000 visits last week. And our visitors from around the globe continue to grow. Yokoso to all!

As always, Japan Brats welcomes your feedback on this and anything else related to the site. Simply use our convenient Email Japan Brats form. Arigato gozaimashita!

Where in the world...?

2005-08-19T05:12:00.000-07:00

Ever wonder where visitors to Japan Brats are from? What city, state or even country? Now you can with our new Geo-Tracker. Based on the Google Maps API, this amazingly simple yet novel widget shows exactly where our visitors are located and when they visited this site.

It's one of several new mapping features Japan Brats recently added, and it comes courtesy of the friendly folks at Gvisit.com, who have taken the increasingly popular Google Maps concept to new extremes. Geo-Tracker is located in the righthand column of our Main Page (just look for a small map of the globe).

Don't ask us exactly how it works, but somehow it uses the Google Maps API and the visitor's IP address to generate a timely map that displays the visitor's location with a pin. You may then click any pin and a balloon will indicate the city or location and the exact date and time of the visit.

This is but one of many examples of emerging Internet technology that Japan Brats is employing to keep us military brats connected. If you have any suggestions or ideas for more, let us know on our Email Japan Brats link.

PhotoMaps (beta) added!

2005-08-18T02:53:00.000-07:00

Fresh on the heels of rolling out our new Sat-View toy, Japan Brats has added another wrinkle to Google Maps... PhotoMaps! We've added photo "tags" to maps of select bases and installations in Japan for a customized map that features an added bonus of photos of various landmark locations and facilities on each base.

PhotoMaps has been added to the bottom of the Sat-View page.

If you're acquainted with Google Maps at all, you must first enter the geographic coordinates or the exact and proper name of the location you're trying to find into the search field in order to call up the correct map.

Japan Brats has eliminated all of the fuss and bother with easy-to-navigate menus for both Sat-View and PhotoMaps. However, PhotoMaps is unique in that the maps show "tags" (thumbprint photo icons) of a specific landmark pointing to the exact location. You may then click the tag and a box will appear with an enlarged photo accompanied by a brief description. As with Sat-View, you can zoom in or out on the map, move the map around with your pointer, or switch to a satellite image.

As an example, try this link for NAF Atsugi (it will open in a separate window), or go to our Sat-View page.

Incidentally, the maps are written in Japanese (what else?), but the footprint of the bases are clearly identified by a grey background. If you zoom in all the way, the maps are amazingly detailed and show all of the streets, as well as buildings and other facilities.

Just a tip: When the maps first open, you may find several photo tags on top of one another. Simply use the zoom tool to enlarge the map and separate the tags for better viewing.

Currently, our selection is limited to Camp Zama, Yokota Air Base and NAF Atsugi, but as Google adds more high-resolution satellite maps and images Japan Brats will add more PhotoMaps.

PhotoMaps was launched in a beta (trial) version only a few days ago and is licensed by Google Maps. Japan Brats is among the first to seize on the new technological breakthrough. It is the brainchild of Pixagogo, a young Palo Alto, Calif., firm that specializes in photo hosting for the Internet.

New! Sat-View is finally here!

2005-08-14T12:06:00.000-07:00

It's been months in the making...literally. But it's finally here! (cheers, applause) Our all-new Japan Brats Sat-View, where you can zero in on your old base or installation, say Camp Zama or Atsugi, visit the old high school football field, stroll down to the PX or commissary, or check out the rest of the neighborhood.

Sound somewhat similar to our existing 3-D Satellite Tours featured on our At-a-Glance page? Is this another one of Tom's toys? Yes on both counts, but Sat-View (which has been added to the Main Menu) is really cool and will provide many minutes, if not hours, of entertainment. And it's based on an entirely new platform. Sat-View offers unparalleled opportunities for you to zoom in or out, change geographic locations, or switch to a conventional map of the location. Using your pointer, you can even move the image around so you can view different parts of the base or even stray off post.

A while back, Japan Brats partnered up with the folks at Google to bring you a number of special features. Late last fall, they introduced a new wrinkle to their Google Map feature -- satellite images. Until now, however, it didn't include Japan and Okinawa in its database, only the U.S. Well, their database has finally been updated.

Earlier this spring, Google bought out Keyhole.com, which offers superb 3-D satellite imaging technology that actually gives you the sensation of flying over geographic locations in real time. It's now called Google Earth. That's what we used to develop our 3-D Satellite Tours of Japan feature. But it is not freely available online. You must subscribe to it for a fee and download special software (which I did) to use it.

So, I obtained the coordinates of dozens of U.S. bases and installations (past and present) in Japan and Okinawa and added the images into our own database. That's how we're able to provide it to our visitors free of charge on our 3-D tour.

But when Google acquired Keyhole this spring, it added Keyhole's satellite image database to its Google Maps, which unlike Google Earth is available online. With the addition of Japan, we were able to launch the new Japan Brats Sat-View using the same geographic coordinates.

Most of the satellite images in the Greater Tokyo Metropolitan area and the Kanto Plains region are viewable in high resolution. Just take a look at the sample images below of Camp Zama. The clarity and definition is simply amazing. The first example is that of the entire base. You can see the golf course in the upper portion of the base and the "Little Pentagon" HQ in the lower portion. Then, with using the zoom tool, I was able to zero in to the Zama American High School campus. You can clearly see the football field and track, as well as General's Hill (the high-rise tower standing atop it), you can almost make out the big "Z" on the hillside, and the high school itself is clearly visible. Using the toolbar, you can canvas the entire base or even go off post to the nearby Sobudai-mae Train Station.

Our Sat-View page is simple, straightforward and easy to navigate. I've provided a simple map with links to all of the bases currently in our database. The satellite images will open in a separate pop-up window, which will include additional navigation tools. The bases will appear in the center of the image screen. They are usually identifiable by lots of green landscape (as most U.S. bases in Japan are/were) or by an airfield.

If you like, you can enter the name of the city or town of your choice, or for that matter another part of the globe in the Search field.

For the time being, however, other areas of Japan and Okinawa are low resolution. Hopefully, Google will soon upgrade all of the images to high resolution (word is that they are working on doing just that). So stayed tuned. I'll keep you posted as soon as that comes to fruition. Meanwhile, enjoy the visit.

Wide view of Camp Zama. The golf course is visible in the upper portion, the HQ is visible in lower portion of the base.
Close-up of Zama American High School campus. High School and Middle School is at left, football field/track in center, and General's Hill on the right.

Online base news links added

2005-08-12T06:48:00.000-07:00

Good news for "military-philes" on Japan Brats: We've added direct links to online base news websites and base newspapers for installations in Japan and Okinawa on our Base News page. This is in addition to our regular headline newsfeeds, which feature a few of the latest news stories from overseas bases in Japan and Okinawa.

Some of you have emailed requests for more in-depth base-specific news, say from Yokosuka Naval Base or MCAS Iwakuni. So we hope this will serve as your direct connection to current news about those bases that you are most interested in. The links are located in the righthand sidebar and will open in a new window. These are the "official" military links.

Additionally, we've added a direct RSS newsfeed from U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) to our PACOM News page for a broader look at what's going on region-wide as it relates to the U.S. Army.

One advisory word, however: Several of the online base newspapers, such as Misawa's Northern Light and Sasebo's Soundings, are in PDF format and require Adobe Reader to be installed on your computer to view. Most computers come equipped with Adobe Reader. But if yours does not, just click on ADOBE READER for more information on how to download the latest version directly from Adobe. It's completely free, safe and secure.

Brat Calendar of Events updated

2005-08-10T03:09:00.000-07:00

An important reminder to all: we've updated the Brats Calendar with more upcoming reunions, minis and special events for alumni (both DoDDS schools and private schools in Japan and Okinawa). They include late-breaking information on events that are scheduled this month that you may not have been aware of. So I strongly recommend that you take a look in case you're interested in attending, especially those events that may be held near your home.

Among recently added events and reunions are:

Yo-Hi (Nile C. Kinnick H.S.-Yokohama H.S.) Alumni Reunion in Las Vegas, Aug. 11-14, at Imperial Palace Hotel-Casino, Las Vegas. Attendees generally Classes of 1975-1988. Contact Sam Gentle '83 at stgentile@comcast.net. For more info., visit http://www.intensifi.biz/yohihome2.htm.

Chofu Alumni Las Vegas Mini-Reunion, 6 p.m. Aug. 13, 2005, Sushi-Saki Restaurant in the Green Valley Ranch Casino Hotel, Henderson, Nev. Contact Lorraine Sharp at lsharp@earthlink.net or visit http://www.chofu.org/UpcomingEvents.htm.

Kubasaki Dragons 2005 "Paradise Reunion" Sept. 7-14, 2005 in Waikiki and Maui hosted by Irene Creeden-Ross and Robert Higa. All the Kubasaki High School alumni, faculty, and administrative staff are welcome. For more information, contact ircrhh69@yahoo.com or visit the reunion website.

Overseas Brats Mesa Gathering Oct. 13-16, 2005 at Phoenix Marriott Mesa, Mesa, Ariz. All overseas brats, their families and educators are welcome. Co-sponsored by the Phoenix Marriott Mesa. For details, contact Joe Condrill, Pres., Overseas Brats at joeosbpres@sbcglobal.net or visit http://www.overseasbrats.com/NextGathering.asp.

Several alumni associations, such as the Zama Alumni Association, are already under way with planning future reunions well into 2006 and 2007. So we recommend you check with your individual associations or class reps. Our Alumni Forums page includes links to most of the alumni associations.

I believe that our Brats Calendar is among the most comprehensive on the web, so I recommend you check it out from time to time to keep current. After all, you don't want to miss out on one of the best experiences of being a Japan Brat -- seeing old friends and classmates you may not have seen in decades!

If your school, alumni association or organization want to be included or need a little assist in spreading the word, simply email Japan Brats with all of the pertinent details (dates, locations, contacts, etc.) by using our handy EMAIL page.

Return of the Essays (sort of)

2005-08-10T02:31:00.000-07:00

Lest you think Japan Brats has abandoned posting fresh new Brat Essays, think again. Yes, we've experienced somewhat of a drought in recent months. I've been preoccupied with other matters and apologize for not having diligently posted newer essays -- both submitted to us and those that I've penned. But I'm getting back up to speed again, as you may have noticed with some of the changes this site has undergone in recent days.

Further, in response to numerous complaints from visitors that they've found it difficult to navigate the archived (older) essays, I've overhauled the main essays page in hopes that you'll be able to readily search for and enjoy our essays. The new Brat Essays page is very straightforward: It lists ALL of the essays in a concise format on one page rather than the more obscure archival index formerly used.

One cautionary word. Those of you who have bookmarked the original Brat Essays URL should change it to our new URL: http://bratessays2.blogspot.com. The former URL will continue to work. However, it's strictly a utility to enable me to post essays and is not intended for public viewing. And it will take forever to download. So I strongly suggest using the new URL instead.

Over the past few months, I've stockpiled several essays submitted by fellow Japan Brats in addition to ones that I've written. They will be posted in coming days and weeks. So stay tuned.

Additionally, as this site has grown with more features and whistles and bells some of you have complained that the Brat Essays (which was the original impetus for Japan Brats) has taken a back seat. I agree. Therefore, you'll note that we've given it more visibility with a new "teaser" on the Main Page that features a different essay selected at random on each visit. It's a great way to highlight some of the older essays that many of you may have overlooked or have been unable to find.

As always, Japan Brats welcomes any and all submissions by fellow brats and even expats for consideration. The main criteria is that it should be devoted to brat/expat history and personal experiences in Japan or Okinawa. You can email your submission using our handy EMAIL page or, if you have photo attachments, email them directly to japanbrat@yahoo.com.

Blog got bogged...New page added

2005-08-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed a trimmer, slimmer, leaner, considerably down-sized Main Page. In fact, it's half the size of the previous version. Not to worry...No, we didn't dump all of the popular features that you all yearn for. We simply moved them to another page, a new one titled At-a-Glance (See the Main Menu).

The objective was to speed up the download time for the Main Page, which many of you had complained (via e-mail to yours truly) was very slow to load and was causing a great degree of anxiety and frustration, even some defections. Some of you -- particularly those of you on dial-up connections -- simply couldn't wait that long and had abandoned the effort and chose instead to seek out other web sites. Shame on you!

I sought out some advice from the folks at Blogger, our congenial (and free) host server, and their response was simply to "Cut, Cut, Cut!" In other words, I had to dispose of many of the elements that was bogging down our humble blog. It was simply a case of T.M.I. (Too Much Information). The Main Page was on the verge of information overload, the Blogger folks said.

I guess the widescreen webcam (that we like to refer to as Japancam) was a major culprit. But I wasn't willing to excise it from the Main Page. It's just way too cool. Viewing the Tokyo skyline and other locales in Japan in real time has proven a big hit among many of our visitors, based on our tracking data.

Other alternatives included switching to a faster server or converting wholesale to PHP scripting (computer jargon for too much heavy lifting and learning a whole new bag of tricks). But that would inevitably run into considerable expense and many sleepless nights. As I'd stated previously, Japan Brats is strictly a not-for-profit venture and I, for one, wasn't willing or able to fork out monthly maintenance expenses. So out came the paring knife and I began cutting. Fortunately, nothing has been sacrificed. We left the essential features intact on the Main Page and moved all else to the At-a-Glance page.

All of the new technology employed in powering this site (e.g., webcams, RSS feeds, Javascript displays, scrollers, etc.) come at some cost in terms of speed. It seems we'd crossed this bridge once before a few months back as I have a penchant for adding more whistles and bells to quench the appetite among our visitors for more data and visual stimulation to maintain your interest.

The new At-a-Glance page, if I may say so myself, is an appealing mix of "sampler" elements from many of our other pages, in addition to a few new features. The purpose was to permit visitors to view some of the highlights of the website without having to visit each and every page. It's a convenient time-saver for those of you with only a few minutes to spare. For example, our comprehensive Base News has been scaled down to a half-dozen or so headlines. The same with our Alumni Forums, which is featured in abbreviated form on At-a-Glance.

Other works-in-progress on Japan Brats include expanded RSS feed capability. Most, if not all, data will soon be available for those RSS junkies out there equipped with an aggregator or newsreader. According to industry sources, RSS will soon overtake e-mail as the primary means of electronic communications. And Japan Brats is keeping on top of this new wave. We're also adding RSS/WAP capability soon for those of you packing one of those new fangled mobile devices. I guess that's the next wave. So stayed tuned.

We're still tweaking a few of the other pages as we go along. But, the main objective of speeding up the Main Page has been achieved (I hope). Enjoy.

A little housecleaning was in order

2005-08-06T13:35:00.000-07:00

My goodness, for a while there Japan Brats appeared to have fallen into disrepair and a state of neglect. Judging by the persistent flow of email, however, few even noticed. Shrewdly, the site was designed to update and maintain itself for the most part. But there were a few tell-tale indications that I'd fallen asleep at the switch (such as my absence from our Yahoo Group forum). Never fear, you faithful visitors (all two of you), we are as feisty and have as much to say as ever. Just bear with us if you would.

A prolonged and much-needed siesta from the grind has kept me from attending my duties in the usual fashion but I swear by Hotei's rotund tummy that Japan Brats shall return to normalcy.

Toward that end we've updated the main page , consigning to the scrap heap some items that outlived their usefulness and bringing online a few new features, such as Gaijinpot Forum from the folks at GaijinPot.com; our homegrown Military Brat Journal thanks to a newfangled "scraper" tool at our disposal; and Base News, a sampler from our Base News page.

Also, in the righthand sidebar you'll find other new features, such as Japan Brats Snapshots, a portal to brat-related photos of Japan from the folks at Flick.com; Stripes Sports Japan, Japan and Okinawa-related sports news from the Pacific Stars and Stripes; Japan Today Forum, a lively and topical gaijin-oriented message board from the folks at JapanToday.com; and Military Brat News. Plus, we moved the Site News and Japan Brats Yahoo! briefs to the sidebar.

Additionally, we've done some retooling of the news formatting on the inside pages.

Our friend and fellow brat Bill Burton will be pleased to note that the links to his two Ashiya-related photo pages have finally been restored on our Photo Albums 1. Bill recently switched servers, but the pages were inaccessible during the transition. He'd emailed me about a month ago to let us know that the switchover had been completed, but it's only been recently that I'd retrieved his email and updated the links. Gomenasai, Bill.

We've also had an opportunity to review a few submissions for our Brat Essays page, which we'll soon be adding.

Finally, in the previous Site News posting a day or so ago I'd mentioned a few changes to our Gaijin Blogs page, with the return of photoblogger Ben Gleitzman to the States (he's attending MIT in the fall). Wow, has it been a year already? It seems like only yesterday when Ben stepped off the plane at Kansai Airport and Japan Brats debuted a blog column of his day-to-day experiences as a Rotary exchange student in Okayama. Time flies when you're having fun.

Now, some of you might question the wisdom of taking five weeks off from this or any other undertaking. Students and teachers have the entire summer off, President Bush is spending five weeks at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, the Congressional recess is a month long, and most TV shows film only 21 episodes a season, leaving their stars 31 weeks to contemplate their toes and count their money. Do I not deserve as good if not better?

You may email me your responses only if they are favorable.

Saying our goodbyes and hellos

2005-08-04T05:34:00.000-07:00

All good things must pass. And with that I am referring to the passing of two blogs that were featured on our Gaijin Blogs page for nearly a year, the first titled "Thousands of Miles From Home" by Ben Gleitzman of Morgantown, West Virginia and the second titled "Onegaishimasu" by Canadian boyfriend-girlfriend Jon and Nancy. Sadly, all three are moving on from their stays in Japan and, therefore, no longer meet the criteria for Gaijin Blogs.

I will especially miss Ben's outstanding handiwork with the camera, in addition to his always refreshing insights into living in Japan. He recently completed a year-long stint on a Rotary International-sponsored cultural exchange program. He'd stayed with several host families in the port city of Tamano, Okayama Prefecture in southern Honshu, and student taught at Tamano High School.

We'll miss Ben's daily entries, but wish him well as he enters M.I.T. and begins his engineering studies as a freshman. Good luck, Ben, and thanks for letting us in on your doings in Japan for the past year! In the event you want to drop Ben a personal note of thanks or well wishes, you can email him at benginjapan@hotmail.com.

We also wish Jon and Nancy the best as they move to India from Shikoku, the smallest of Japan's four main islands where they'd lived for two years. Jon is a Canadian foreign exchange teacher.

There is always some sadness in saying goodbye, but it also affords us an opportunity to say hello. Gaijin Blogs welcomes James Hart, a British expat who will provide his photographic skills from the Land of the Rising Sun. For the past two years James, an IT consultant, has lived in Tokyo, where he met and married his wife, Miyako. They now have a one-year-old son, Kai.

We look forward to viewing his photo posts. We've also freshened the page up a bit with a little reformatting and tweaking. I hope you'll enjoy the new features and continue to share the journeys and adventures of gaijins in Japan!

Japan Brats Main Page optimized

2005-04-21T23:20:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I'm reminded that less is more. And that was especially true with our Main Page. You can only add so many whistles and bells, gizmos and doo-dads before it (like humans) begins to suffer from indigestion.

The primary goal of all of the extras is (in web design-speak) is to make a page "stickier" -- increase the chances that visitors will actually stick around longer on a given web page and return to it in the future.

The downside, however, was that the Main Page became weighed down by too much specialized coding -- a direct result of all those doo-dads and gizmos we kept adding. One thing most browsers have a hard time downloading are photos and other graphic images. Text is fairly straightforward and don't tend to be a burden. After all, that's what computers were originally designed to handle. But start throwing in a lot of pictures and your browser wants to belch. Get the picture?

That was the case with the Main Page, especially since the addition of our Snapshots photo feature that displayed a rotating set of photos -- both old and new -- from our Japan Brats archives. While they were certainly interesting and often memorable to look at, the five or six large frames of photos really bogged down not only the Blogger server but most of our visitors' browsers as well. The result was that the page would open woefully slow, especially for those of you with a dial-up connection. On occasion, it didn't open completely, leaving some elements missing and forcing you to refresh the page and try again.

That's when you have to take stock of everything and perhaps rein things in a bit. That's what we did with our Main Page. It's what web designers call "optimization." The intent again is to make a web page or site more user friendly and friendly to your browser at the same time. We recognize that not all of our visitors are connected by cable or other high-speed connections. Therefore, you'll note that we've eliminated the Snapshots photo box and, in its place, added a live Japancam (webcam) display featuring the Tokyo skyline and Tokyo Bay.

The key difference is that the webcam feed does not create the burden that the photos did and requires no maintenance whatsoever. Also, the images are in real time, meaning whatever time of day it is that's exactly what you'll see. Rain or shine, winter or summer, night or day. We selected the Tokyo feed because it's visible in both daylight and at night with the brilliant city lights and the beautifully illuminated Rainbow Bridge on Tokyo Bay.

As a website, Japan Brats has come a long ways since it was launched a year ago come this May. And that's reflected most of all on the Main Page and how it has evolved. It's more "dynamic" than ever. Again, in computer-speak, the term "dynamic" is used as opposed to "static." It simply means that the page includes an array of features that are continually updated -- sometimes without human intervention -- or are in fact fed in real time (e.g., message board, guest book, Site News, Stars & Stripes headlines, webcam, Eagle 810 radio news, etc.).

I want to thank all of you who've emailed me with your suggestions and valued criticism, all of which helps me to tailor this website/weblog to your wants and needs.

After a little beta testing and tweaking, we're satisfied that our all-important Main Page -- the one that everyone generally links to first to surf Japan Brats -- has been restored back to good health and that we've minimized the dowload time... Until I get some other hair-brained idea. In the meantime, happy surfing!

RSS Server Maintenance Advisory

2005-04-20T01:37:00.000-07:00

RSS Digest, the primary RSS reformatting provider for Japan Brats, is temporarily offline for server maintenance. Service is expected to resume by no later than 6 a.m. (EST) Wednesday, April 20.

Features affected by this outage include, but are not limited to, RSS feeds on the Main Page for "Brat Chat" (Yahoo Group message board), "Site News" and the "I Did Japan" visitor guest book. Similarly, certain feeds for the Alumni Forums and Japan Headline News pages are disabled.

We regret any inconvenience. Thank you for your understanding.

END OF POST... NO NEED TO "READ MORE"

ケイかか.るかかり Any guesses what it says?

2005-04-18T16:54:00.000-07:00

In the just-for-kicks category: A few of you may have noticed our new Today's Kanji doo-dad on several pages, including the Main Page. Thanks to Aussie Todd Rudick for concocting this helpful tool.

Did you notice the Kanji in our subject line? (In some browsers this will appear as Greek unless it's loaded with some sort of translation utility.)

Todd is a software engineer in Tokyo and, with the help of Professor Jim Breen of Monash University in Australia, he set up a website called www.rikai.com and devised this new Kanji translation tool, which also provides a compound guide. (Just click on the link shown in the lower lefthand corner of the small box.)

Don't know how handy this gizmo will be unless you're presently in Japan and need a quick translation guide. But, we couldn't resist Todd's offer to add it to Japan Brats. Personally, I've never been able to master Kanji and likely will never try.

Kanji is a Japanese system of writing based on borrowed or modified Chinese characters. Unlike English where there's only 26 alphabets, many of you know that Kanji consists of as many as 10,000 Chinese characters in the Japanese written language.

Then there's Hiragana and Katakana, but that's another kettle of soup.

So what do the Kanji characters in the above headline say?

"Person in charge"... I guess that means me.

Advisory: Site server maintenance

2005-04-18T16:01:00.000-07:00

The service providers that host Japan Brats and/or provide some of its specialized features periodically undergo server maintenance, at which times this site may or may not be fully functional. Fortunately, the interruption of service are brief. However, they are necessary to ensure proper functioning of all of the services provided by the servers.

Services that do schedule monthly maintenance include our image-hosting services, Flickr and Photobucket.com. Typically, the server downtimes generally occur once a month for a period of one to three hours, usually starting at midnight on the third or fourth Sunday of the month.

On those occassions, Japan Brats will try to post an advance advisory on Site News of any scheduled downtime.

INDICATIONS:

Photobucket is our primary image-hosting provider, and includes most of our graphics and photos (logos, buttons, link icons, chicklets, Snapshots and Brat Essays photos, banners, etc.). Whenever maintenance occurs you will note on our Main Page that our Japan Brats logo located at the very top of the page will not appear. In its place there will be a message that reads as follows:

"Our photo & image-hosting server is temporarily offline. Please visit again."

Whenever Flickr is offline visitors will not be able to view certain images, including some photos on our Brat Essays page or the photoblogs on our Gaijin Blogs page. However, this should not greatly affect your ability to enjoy all of the other features of Japan Brats.

On very rare occassions our primary server-host, Blogger, may require maintenance, in which case this website/weblog may or may not be accessible at all. But, again, that is infrequent.

We have been most pleased with the quality and stability of the Blogger platform. Since its acquisition last fall by Google, improvements and upgrades have made it even better, enabling websites such as Japan Brats to continue to add more and more features that make it all the more user friendly.

One outstanding benefit of Blogger is virtually unlimited bandwidth. This means you, as a visitor, can access this site at any time. This is a far cry from the "dark ages" with our previous hosting provider when visitors frequently were unable to access Japan Brats for hours or even a full day at a time because we had exceeded our monthly bandwidth limits. This was very distressful for us as it discouraged many visitors from attempting to visit again.

For those of you with a website or blog of your own or contemplating starting one, we highly recommend using Blogger as a free hosting provider. They also provide paid upgrades with added features, but the free service is more than adequate for most users' needs.

Today, Blogger is among the largest and best providers in the web-hosting industry and has promised more innovations to come. Its parent, Google, will soon introduce Google Video, which we also look forward to deploying here with streaming broadband video clips specially produced by Japan Brats. The service is currently in the "Beta" stage (under development). We will keep you advised as it develops.

Thank you for your continued patronage and happy surfing!

All new feature: Images From Japan

2005-04-16T17:05:00.000-07:00

So what's new on Japan Brats? Besides the recent addition of streaming radio news from Eagle 810 Radio at Yokota (American Forces Network) and NHK World News, we're pleased to announce our latest nifty gizmo, Images From Japan on the Main Page. Just scroll down toward the bottom of the page and you'll see a miniature map of Japan. Click it and it will open in a new window.

Briefly, it's a new feature from the folks at flickr, the image-hosting service that's become all the rage among bloggers the world over. They've created a simple yet terrific way for you to see recent photos that have been posted by thousands of Flickr bloggers from across the globe using a world map as a guide. Similar to the maps provided by Yahoo, Amazon.com and Google, you can zoom in on any part of the globe and find locations about, or from, which photos have been posted.

Caveat: You'll need to have a Flash player on your browser for this to work. Most Windows-based computers manufactured within the last 10 years already come equipped with some sort of Flash player, such as Macromedia Flash. If you don't have one already, click this link to Macromedia Flash for a free download.

In reality, this should be called "Images From the World" because when you open it you will first see a world map. However, you can zoom in on Japan specifically and locate hundreds of locations, from Hokkaido to Okinawa, with related photos submitted by both visitors and Japanese. Move your mouse over the location and you'll see a small box with a thumbprint-sized photo and a brief description. If you'd like to see the full-size image, simply click the thumbnail photo and it will open in another window. The photos may be copied and downloaded.

Japan Brats is currently working on a similar gizmo that will instead feature our Live Japancams (webcams) from all across Japan. You'll use a map to navigate then click on a specific location to view a live webcam from that location. Sound like fun? Stay tuned.

Sixth Japancams page added!

2005-04-15T04:56:00.000-07:00

Visiting Japan is as easy as the click of your mouse. From the majestic slopes of Mount Fuji to the sands of Okuma Beach Resort in Okinawa, our Live Japancams offer spectacular real-time webcam views of dozens of scenic locations throughout Japan. You've probably seen our mini-webcam view of Mount Fuji on the main page, but have you visited our Live Japancams pages yet?

We've just added a sixth Japancams page featuring four more outstanding live images of Japan: 1) Cape Sata on the southernmost tip of Kyushu, 2) Shimoda Aquarium on Izu Peninsula, where you can watch dolphins and Orca whales swim about, 3) Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park, and 4) the placid waters of Seto Inland Sea near Nagoya.

And if you haven't visited the main Live Japancams page lately, we've updated it as well with new webcam locations, including the historic Tsushima Shrine on the Seto Inland Sea, live traffic cam views of the Loop 3 Expressway in Shibuya, Tokyo, and the scenic mountains of Myako Akakura in Niigata Prefecture. Of course, the main Japancams page continues to feature spectacular views of Mount Fuji as seen from Fujiyoshida City.

So if you're overdue for a visit to the Land of the Rising Sun, here's an easy way to do so without incurring expensive airfare. Take a self-guided tour from Hokkaido to Okinawa with our Live Japancams. They're only a click away!

Remember FEN or Eagle 810 Radio? Listen in!

2005-04-14T18:14:00.000-07:00

For you hardcore Japan Brats we just added a new feature on our Main Page: Streaming Radio News from Eagle 810 Radio at Yokota Air Base, NHK World News, and a link to FEN Radio! Yes, you read correctly, the Far East Network which was for most of us an invaluable link to home, featuring news, music and radio shows during those years when there was no American TV in Japan (except for those dubbed in Japanese).

Eagle 810 and NHK World News are offered in streaming audio. Links to both are located in the righthand column of the main page. You must have Windows Media Player in order to listen (a free download is available by clicking the link provided). Eagle 810 News is a daily 5-minute newscast related to U.S. forces in Japan. NHK World News provides up-to-the-minute information in various languages. Click here for a comprehensive NHK program guide to determine when the English-language broadcasts are scheduled.

Please note: Eagle 810 News takes a while to download if you have a dial-up connection. It's configured for 56K bandwidth. Be patient and allow it to fully load, then you'll be able to listen to the entire newscast.

For those of you who haven't been back to Japan in a while, Eagle 810 Radio is now based out of Yokota AB near Tokyo, but that wasn't always the case. It's the successor to what many of us recall as the Far East Network, or FEN, that originally operated out of downtown Tokyo and then from Camp Drake for several decades. Over the years, the name has changed from Armed Forces Radio & Television Service (AFRTS) to American Forces Network.

Do you remember "Teens on Parade" or "Tokyo Calling" on FEN? Just click the link to the Sounds of the Far East Network and you'll be transported back in time to the '50s and '60s. It's an outstanding website put together by a group of old hands who once worked at FEN Radio and managed to unearth some audio tapes of many of those old shows. By the magic of streaming audio the website offers snippets of many of those memorable shows that you can listen to (Real Audio is required).

All of these links were included on our old website, but were abandoned when we switched last December to Blogger. It was originally suggested that we include them on Japan Brats by one of visitors a long, long time ago. We hope you enjoy listening in. We hope you enjoy them.

As I've stated many times before, Japan Brats is a work in progress; it's continually evolving and always improving on the old. So it's wise to bookmark Site News to keep up to date on what's new on Japan Brats!

The 'Big Black Hole(s)' explained

2005-04-14T16:17:00.000-07:00

In checking this website/weblog on another computer terminal (other than mine) with a different internet connection, I've discovered that there were a few gaping holes on some of the pages, including the Main Page, where some of our features should appear. One of these is our Brats Essays scroller that highlights the most recent essays that have been posted.

In designing the pages, unfortunately, I failed to take into consideration critical differences between individual browsers. Consequently, the Brat Essays scroller might not have been visibly apparent to those of you with Netscape 6 or Internet Explorer 5 for instance. Most of you may overlook those flaws or omissions, but we at Japan Brats prefer that all of our visitors be able to see everything on each page.

So, we've done some retooling primarily on the main page to enable "cross-browser" support. In time, I'll check other pages and do the same. Unfortunately, the languages (codes) used in designing websites are not always compatible with the many browsers that are currently in use.

I replaced the old Brat Essays scroller with a ticker-type box that displays the most recent essays that have been posted. By clicking on a headline that appears in the box, you'll be directed to that particular essay. For a more thorough index of all of our essays, I recommend using the Archives Menu on each of the essays pages. That way you won't miss anything in our library.

On occasion, not all of the individual elements on a given page will appear. That largely depends on whether the page has been previously "cached" (downloaded and stored) in your computer. In such instances, simply refresh the page and all elements should then appear and/or be enabled.

Our aim is to fill those "big black holes" and your assistance will be greatly appreciated. If you find any inexplicable voids on any of our pages, please alert me by using our convenient Email Us form. Also, if you do so, please note what type of browser you are using (if you know it). Thanks.

Washington Heights featured in 'Snapshots'

2005-04-12T13:02:00.000-07:00

What can be said about Washington Heights that has't already been said or written on a half-dozen other worthy websites and message boards? I'll get around to making a vain attempt at writing a full-blown essay myself for our Brat Essays page... eventually.

But, in the meantime, why wait to take a brief look back at that legendary housing annex. Located in the very heart of Tokyo, most all military brats who'd even lived there called it a veritable brat heavan. So, I just now posted a handful of photos, accompanied by a brief history, for our Snapshots box on the Main Page.

Among the most celebrated installations in all of Japan was Washington Heights, located in what is now Yoyogi Park smack dab in downtown Tokyo. Opened in 1947, this Air Force-run (initially Army) housing annex served families of both civilian and military personnel assigned to various U.S. posts scattered about Tokyo. Students attended Yoyogi Elementary and, initially, Meguro High and, starting in 1952, Narimasu Tokyo American High at Grant Heights, about 20 miles and a full hour's school bus ride away.

It was surrounded by the vast panoply of Tokyo urban life... and temptations. In his terrific e-zine journal, Tim "Jazzbo" Stinson described Wash Heights, as many called it, as a "City Within a City" and "a brat's heavan." With land at a premium, the large housing area closed in 1963 to make room for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and the Olympic Village that housed the athletes. The area is now Yoyogi Park, one of the most popular of all Tokyo parks.

For an excellent retrospective and plenty of photos, visit Jazzbo's The Dragon's Roar or Walt Young's Narimasu Memory Lane. Additional photos, including detailed aerial photos with actual house numbers, can be viewed in our Yahoo Group photo collection.

Maybe you'll spot yours.

Japan Weather page back online!

2005-04-12T08:54:00.000-07:00

Gomenasai to all of you weather fanatics out there. In checking our Japan Weather page in the past week or so, you may have been unable to open the page. Unfortunately, the previous service provider is no longer available.

The good news is that we finally updated the page with data from a different provider, RSSWeather.com. In fact, our list of locations in Japan is now far more comprehensive than before, and includes everything from Wakkanai Airport on the northern tip of Hokkaido to Futenma Marine Corps Air Facility on Okinawa in the south.

We did some beta testing on RSSweather.com and found it to be a far more stable and reliable service, in addition to the fact that they provide more thorough coverage of weather conditions and forecasts throughout Japan. Wonder what the weather is like in Tachikawa? Just check our Japan Weather page (click on the link in our Main Menu).

END OF POST...NO NEED TO "READ MORE"

New Snapshots highlights The Sanno

2005-04-11T05:56:00.000-07:00

If you've ever been to Japan for a service-connected tour or visit, chances are you've spent at least one night in the Sanno Hotel. The Sanno is the subject of our latest photo feature in our Snapshots box on the Main Page. Additional photos may also be found in our Yahoo Group Photo Collection No. 2.

Here's a brief history of the venerable hotel:

The original Sanno was located on Sotobori-Dori (Avenue) in Akasaka. Built in 1932, it became a favorite among Japanese officials and visiting dignitaries. Gutted by fire during World War II, it was repaired during the Occupation and made a U.S. military transient billet.

Over the years, the Sanno served as a literal crossroads of the Far East and a popular social meeting ground in downtown Tokyo for countless American personnel and dependents. But old age eventually took its toll and in 1982 it was closed. Its successor, The New Sanno was opened in 1983 just two miles away in Hiroo, near the popular Roppongi entertainment district. In 2000, the 44-story Sanno Park Tower was built on the land where the old Sanno Hotel once stood.

Do you know your ABCs ?

2005-04-11T01:44:00.000-07:00

What "famous" brat once lived at Ashiya Air Base near Fukuoka, Kyushu? Here's a hint: You've probably seen him on TV, but he's not a so-called gaijin tarento. No, he doesn't pitch Suntory, Calpis or any other consumer product on Japanese television. He's not a celebrity in that sense.

If you're still stumped, read the latest essay I've just posted on our Brat Essays page. Okay, I won't keep you in suspense anymore. He's name is Mark Litke, and like many former military brats from Japan and Okinawa he went on to fame, appearing on average once a week on national TV here in the States.

Mark is the chief Asia correspondent for ABC News, and his wide-ranging reports from Asia are featured regularly on the network's World News Tonight and on Nightline. He's been in the Far East a long, long time and is the network's resident expert on that neck of the woods.

A few of you will recall the essay I'd written about Mark from nearly a year ago, when it was posted on the "old" Japan Brats website (before we switched to Blogger). Unfortunately, many of the essays on the former site have yet to be re-posted to the current site. In the interim, I've received a number of inquiries about the "lost" Litke story and a few of the others. Also, in checking one of our tracking services, there have been numerous searches for his name on our website. I don't want to disappoint you any longer.

Fortunately, all of the essays from the old site have remained in limbo in my personal files. I'm just now getting around to re-posting a few here for the benefit of the many new visitors we now have. Eventually, I'll restore the rest. In good time, though. I managed to retrieve Mark Litke's essay, update it a bit and post photos to go with. Enjoy!

How do I know when a new item has been posted?

2005-04-10T15:26:00.000-07:00

That's one of the most frequently asked questions in our Japan Brats mail bag. Well, there's the standard method: via snailmail (postal mail), email or, if you're a member of our esteemed Yahoo Group, by email notification.

But did you know that we also employ a more sophisticated method for those of you who subscribe to a blog alert service? These services are commonly referred to as a blog "watchlist."

More and more people who routinely follow specific weblogs today subscribe to one of about a dozen free watchlist services that notify them automatically whenever their favorite blog has been updated. To help the watchlist services along, Japan Brats (which is now Blogger-based) subscribes to Ping-o-Matic, a service that notifies these services each time one of our blogs, such as Site News or Brat Essays, has been updated.

Also, there are non-public watchlist services, such as Weblogs.com, that provide this information to client search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and the like. This enables those search engines to include the latest posting, say our most recent essay about Arthur MacArthur IV, to be included in the search engine inventory. But, for the average individual this is a "hunt-and-peck" method and your ability to readily locate such an item largely depends on high it is ranked.

The advantage to subscribing to a watchlist is that you don't have to check a blog to simply find out whether or not there is something new to see. The service alerts you instantly, leaving it up to you to decide whether to visit the weblog or not. This is especially useful for our "frequent flyers." Blog alert services that currently maintain a watchlist for Japan Brats include the following:

Technorati (free; no subscription required)
FeedBurner (free)
MyYahoo! (free)
Syndic8 (free)
PubSub.com (free)
Blogdigger (free; no subscription required)
Moreover (paid service)
BlogRolling (free)
Blo.gs (free)
Newsgator (free)
Feedster (free; no subscription required)

If you wish to subscribe to one or more of these services, simply click on the above links. A couple of them, such as Feedster, Technorati and Blogdigger, are not only free but require no sign-up. But I've found them not as accurate and timely as they claim. They tend to search for too much irrelevant garbage. So I recommend a free subscription to My Yahoo! or Blogrolling. Simply enter the topic or name of the blog (if you know it) into the search field and it will show you the results by relevance or date.

Ah, the internet just gets more user-friendly by the day.

RSS feeds on Japan Brats

2005-04-10T14:04:00.000-07:00

This falls into the "Did You Know" column: It's been some time since I've mentioned the RSS feeds provided on Japan Brats. And we've got plenty. Just about every feature, message board, news feed, calendar, even photos on this site offers a supplemental RSS feed for those of you suitably equipped with a RSS newsreader (also referred to as a RSS aggregator).

See those ubiquitous buttons on just about all of our pages? We introduced those a few months back due to high visitor demand. They appear below or adjacent a particular feature for which they link to.

Briefly, RSS is an acronym for Rich Site Summary (some call it Really Simple Syndication). The purpose is to provide a convenient method for those with a RSS newsreader to "syndicate" -- or link to -- a particular feed for a news feature, blog, message board or what have you. Once you syndicate a feed it is automatically fed and updated to your newsreader directly.

Our RSS feeds currently include the following:

Message Board

Stars & Stripes Japan

Events Calendar

Brat Essays

Site News

And there are dozens of others, including news from specific U.S. bases in Japan, Japan-related news, alumni message boards, gaijin blogs and more. If you want to see exactly what an RSS feed looks like, simply click any of the ones listed above (it will open in a new window). Though most can be viewed in a normal browser window, they are specially coded in what is XML language so they can be read by RSS newsreaders and aggregators.

It took quite a bit of time to design and develop all of the RSS feeds. Most were unavailable to begin with, so we had to create them ourselves using sophisticated software and resources. Most are unique to Japan Brats, like Stars & Stripes Japan. The Stars & Stripes, itself, offers no syndication resource. So we created a RSS feed with news headlines relevant only to Japan and Okinawa. We stripped away all other headlines that you'd typically see in the Pacific edition of the Stripes.

RSS newsreaders (most are free and readily available for downloading) provide a way to collect all of your favorite news and information into one central location. Some RSS newsreaders are stand-alone software such as AmphetaDesk or FeedDemon that you can download to your computer. But most are server-based newsreaders (which I recommend becuase you don't need any more software clutter) and are freely available. There are several and they include Newsgator, MyYahoo!, MyMSN (if you're a .NET Passport member) and Syndic8.

The beauty of most newsreaders and aggregators is that they are customizable. You can organize them in a way where you can prioritize each feed and add others as you wish, including email correspondence, stock quotes, travel information, local or national weather, sports, or news feeds from your favorite newspapers or TV networks, etc. RSS syndication has become a hugely popular tool for business and corporate types on the go who want to keep abreast of news relevant to their specific industry or field and to maintain one single location for accessing all of that information. They can even include up-to-date internal corporate news and email correspondence.

Most individuals syndicate their favorite feeds so they can immediately see the latest items that were posted. This is a fast, efficient and convenient way to access only those items you want to see, and avoids having to visit and open each website or weblog. Now, RSS feeds of all sorts can be viewed on your favorite hand-held Palm Pilot or similar devices.

The downside, of course, is that you won't need to visit Japan Brats directly and see all of the other features that we have to offer. But that's your call. We're not here to make a buck, only to provide our military brat visitors from Japan with the best and most helpful resources for news, information and features on the World Wide Web.

Our photo library is growing!

2005-04-10T10:56:00.000-07:00

I was just going over the huge library of photos that everyone's contributed thus far to our Yahoo Group's two collections. It's amazing what they contain, from vintage photos of Misawa AB in the north to Itazuke AB in the south and Zama, Sagamihara, Fuch, Yamato and a bunch of others in between. Some of you may not have checked them out as yet or were even aware that all of these photos are available for viewing or even copying in our collection. Yes, I said "copying" -- while some groups discourage or prohibit sharing their photos, Japan Brats Yahoo has no such restrictions. We encourage you not only to contribute but to download as many as you'd like. That's the entire point of our friendly brat group -- to share our many memories and experiences with one another.

Here's a list of what albums are in our two collections so far:

MAIN COLLECTION (in the main Yahoo Group site):

'50s Sagamihara & Zama
1962 Zama Area
FUCHU 2005
HOTELS IN JAPAN
Hyde Park
Itazuke AB
Johnson AB
Johnson H.S.
KANTO MURA 2005
Misawa Air Base
Momote Villagers
More Ships
Rick Pemble's Bad Slides
SAKURA ON U.S. BASES
SAMPLE PHOTOS OF JAPAN
Tachi 2005
U.S. Hospitals in Japan
USS MITCHELL
Washington Heights-Yoyogi E.S.
Washington Heights
YAMATO 2005

COLLECTION NO.2 (in our 2nd Yahoo Group site):

ASHIYA AB
HARDY BARRACKS
SANNO HOTEL

In addition to those above, some of our members have added individual photos that aren't in any specific album. The other members and I will be adding more as time goes on and as new members join our group and perhaps contribute their own photos. Any of the new members are welcome to share them with the rest of us. Our second group site was recently started because we're running out of photo storage room on our main group site.

Uploading is easy. If you've scanned your photos into any digital format, it only takes a few minutes to upload them. Just go to "Photos" then click "Create Album." Name your album, then click "Add Photos." After they've been uploaded, you can even name each photos and add brief descriptions beneath each. So give it a whirl. We'd all like to see what you may have of your old stomping grounds in Japan or Okinawa. If you do add any photos to our collections, you might want to give everybody a heads up on our message board to let all of us know. Thanks!

Ashiya AB photo links disabled

2005-04-09T09:25:00.000-07:00

We regret to inform those of you who have attempted but were unable to view Ashiya Air Base photos on the two links provided in our Photo Albums pages that they have been disabled because the originating websites themselves are no longer functioning.

Japan Brats has made several inquiries with the site(s) owner over the past month or so, but regrettably, the status of both Ashiya websites have not changed.

In the alternative, we've uploaded 22 Ashiya-related photos to our newly established Yahoo Group Photo Collection No. 2 site and we suggest a visit there. Though it requires a membership, joining is fast and easy and no moderator approval is necessary. Photo Collection No. 2 is solely a photo storage site; there are no other features provided. For access to all of our member features, including messaging and email, please visit our main Japan Brats Yahoo Group.

At present, the Ashiya photos that have been uploaded are not identified individually. However, we will annotate them in the near future. The photos are provided courtesy of Wes Injerd and Ted Quakenbush.

END OF POST...NO NEED TO "READ MORE"

Japan Brats joins DoDDS World Webring

2005-04-08T20:32:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats has officially become a member of the DoDDS World Webring, a consortium of sorts of websites devoted to DoDDS (Department of Defense Dependent Schools) alumni association or sites related to military brats in general.

Some of you may already be acquainted with the ring and have seen links to it elsewhere. It actually serves as a network of links to other member websites (and there are plenty from around the world) so you don't have to go web surfing all day or night looking for related sites. You'll find the links at the bottom of the Japan Brats main page.

END OF POST...NO NEED TO "READ MORE"

Hardy Barracks featured, photos uploaded

2005-04-08T19:59:00.000-07:00

Do you ever wonder whatever became of old Hardy Barracks in downtown Tokyo? Check out the latest set of photos in our Spotlight photo feature on the Main Page to find out and see a few of the photos we've just uploaded to our Yahoo Group library.

The labyrinthine pre-war structure, a true Occupation-era original, has largely been torn down to make way for a new National Art Center, which is currently under construction and due to be completed in 2007. Over the years, countless soldiers were quartered in the old barracks in the Akasaka-Roppongi district that also served as the U.S. Army Garrison Japan's Tokyo Administration Annex. About five acres of the former garrison was closed in 1971 and annexed by adjacent University of Tokyo. Only a small portion now remains, perhaps because of its historic significance. Army MWR dubbed nearby Bldg. No.1 as "Hardy Barracks Lodging" as a tribute. Built in 1963, it stands next to the Stars & Stripes Building and serves as a transient billet.

We've uploaded 16 photos -- some of them never before seen -- related to Hardy Barracks to our Photo Collection No. 2. As a few of you are aware, this is our "expansion franchise" for overflow photos that we could no longer accommodate on the main Yahoo Group site. For more photos of other locations or topics, go to our main Yahoo Group site (membership required).

I'll be posting a more detailed story about Hardy Barracks and its history, including additional photos, for our Brats Essays page in the near future. So stay tuned!

END OF THIS POST - NO NEED TO "READ MORE"

What's the S&S and Playboy have in common?

2005-04-06T05:53:00.001-07:00

This one's for all those who've ever read the Pacific Stars and Stripes during your stay in Japan...at least the Sunday comics or Sports Section. I just posted to our Brat Essays page a new entry (and one that's long overdue) about the people behind the Stripes, specifically those who worked in the Tokyo Bureau.

As many of you are aware, the Stars and Stripes Building is located in what is now called the Akasaka Press Center in the heart of the very trendy Roppongi district of downtown Tokyo. Most of us know it as Hardy Barracks. Well, the original Hardy Barracks is still there but it's no longer an Army garrison as it was during the '40s, '50s and '60s. It's been reduced to merely a joint-use transient billet.

The essay provides a fascinating insight into the history of the Stripes Pacific Edition and features personal recollections of reporters and editors who turned out the official daily newspaper for overseas military personnel and dependents. It also offers some of their impressions of Tokyo over the years. For most of us, the Stripes was the only English-language daily newspaper we could -- or cared to -- read. The New York Times was hard to come by and USA Today didn't exist in my days. I don't remember seeing anything but the Stripes on the coffee table.

The essay includes 17 rare or vintage photos and an illustration by the late great syndicated cartoonist Shel Silverstein (ever pick up a copy of Playboy?). Shel launched his career in 1953 at the Tokyo Bureau while still a young 18-year-old PFC with a knack for drawing. So the Stripes put him to work. The multi-talented Silverstein, who died in 1999, also became a famous children's book author, screenwriter and country music songwriter (he wrote "A Boy Named Sue" in 1969 for Johnny Cash). There's even a rare photo of Shel and Nile C. Kinnick alumni Mark "Luke Skywalker" Hamill together.

Some of the other photos include the Stripes offices and personalities from over the decades, obtained from the archives of the Stars and Stripes or contributed by members of the Stars and Stripes Association and the Tokyo Stars and Stripes Group. A special thanks goes out to Tokyo S&S ringleader and veteran reporter and war correspondent Steve Stibbens for his assistance and hospitality. (Though I've been both a reporter and editor, I'd never worked for the Stripes, so it was a rare privilege for the group to allow me to scan through their archived messages and glean what I needed from their photo library.)

I'd be very interested in receiving your feedback on this or any other essays posted on Japan Brats. You may email me by using our convenient Email Us form.

Japan Weather Page enhanced!

2005-04-05T07:25:00.000-07:00

We're pleased to announce that our Japan Weather page has been enhanced with a new graphical display format. In response to some of our visitors, who had complained about the previous change to a text-only display, the new page features graphics and a daily weather forecast of each location or region. Additionally, temperature readouts are in both Farenheit and Celsius so you don't have to grab a conversion chart.

The weather feeds are provided courtesy of WeatherClicks.com, RSSWeather.com and All Headline News. There are 15 weather reports in all, including those for U.S. military installations in Japan and Okinawa. A few are for locations that at one time had served as U.S. bases but are now either Japan Self Defense Force installations or civilian airports. Japan Brats looks forward to any feedback regarding these enhancements. Simply email us using our convenient Email Us form.

END OF POST

'Onegaishimasu' photoblog added to Gaijin Blogs

2005-04-05T01:11:00.000-07:00

We've just added Onegaishimasu, a new photoblog and journal, to our line-up of fascinating Gaijin Blogs. It's published by Jon and Nancy. All that we've been able to glean from their blog thus far is that they're a boyfriend-girlfriend couple who live in a small town on the southern island of Shikoku, the smallest of Japan's four main islands. In time, we hope to get more detailed background info about the two. From reading some of their posts I've been able to deduce that they've been there for some time.

As with our other featured photoblogger Ben Gleitzman ("Thousands of Miles From Home"), Jon and Nancy devote a lot of their blog to photos. What interested Japan Brats most of all is that their photos chronicle both their daily lives and the culture of Japan. Our Gaijin Blogs highlights two of their most recent photos each time you visit, but also provides both a RSS link and standard link to their most excellent blog. It is located in the third tier, just beneath Emily's How I Learned to Stop Worrying...

Unfortunately, we've dropped Reality Written, a blog that had been published by a bonafide service member, Hal W. Hal is a Navy flight officer attached to the Kitty Hawk out of Atsugi Naval Air Facility. For inexplicable reasons, he ceased posting anything on the blog for the past month (he may simply be deployed aboard the Kitty Hawk somewhere in the Pacific and can't access the internet). But, with the little space we can devote to blogs, we decided to subsitute it with something more current and timely. Hopefully, we'll find another blog by a service member in Japan that is RSS compatible. In case you would still like to visit, Reality Written will remain listed in our Blogroll, located in the lower righthand sidebar of Gaijin Blogs.

New Brat Chat session schedule

2005-04-04T23:48:00.000-07:00

Here, in the continental U.S. we've switched to Daylight Savings Time for most of the country. This may have confused a few of you wanting to participate in Japan Brats' weekly Brat Chat Session.

In addition to non-member visitors ("frequent flyers" as we call them), our Yahoo Group includes several members currently residing in London, Hawaii and Guam, and at least one that we know of in Tokyo. In all, they cover 9 time zones. Simply amazing! To help coordinate the chat sessions the revised schedule is as follows:

London - 1 a.m. Monday, April 12
EDT (New York) - 8 p.m. Sunday, April 11
CDT (Chicago) - 7 p.m. Sunday, April 11
MDT (Denver) - 6 p.m. Sunday, April 11
AZ (Phoenix) - 5 p.m. Sunday, April 11
PDT (Los Angeles) - 5 p.m. Sunday, April 11
Hawaii (Honolulu) - 2 p.m. Sunday, April 11
Guam - 10 a.m. Monday, April 12
Japan (Tokyo) - 9 a.m. Monday, April 12

This will remain effective until Oct. 30, when we switch back to standard time 8 p.m. Eastern Time will remain our base time. Everyone regardless of whether you're a Yahoo Group member is welcome to participate. The more, the merrier. The chat room is always open. However, the weekly session is helpful in coordinating a large group that may want to meet up on a regular basis. The chat room is unmoderated, so please be respectful to one another. All of our policies and guidelines are posted in the chat room.

Here's the chat room URL in case you may want to make a note or bookmark it: http://bratchat.blogspot.com

Just a little FYI for those of you interested: Daylight Saving Time, for the U.S. and its territories, is NOT observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, most of the Eastern Time Zone portion of Indiana, and Arizona (not the Navajo Indian Reservation, which does observe).

New group established for additional photos

2005-04-04T21:27:00.000-07:00

We've established a second Japan Brats Yahoo Group solely for the purposes of accommodating additional photos from our Yahoo members. With the recent addition of Tokyo reunion trip photos, it's become apparent that we will soon meet the limit on photo storage capacity. We're now at 68% (20.6 MB) and counting.

The new group address is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/japanbrats-photos2 or simply click here. There are no messaging, email or other features; it's strictly intended for photos. All of the rest will remain with the main group site. As with the main group, you'll first have to join. But joining is simple and straightforward, and membership is instant; no moderator approval is required. Any notices about new photos that may be added there will appear on the existing group message board.

It may be a month or two before we'll need to rely on it for uploading and posting more photos. In the meantime, all existing Yahoo Group members are welcome to join so you'll be prepared for that eventuality. While we're on the subject, we encourage any and all to share their precious photo memories of Japan with fellow brats. Uploading is realtively easy. Domo arigato gozaimasu to all of you who've already done so!

Campus News added, Stars & Stripes updated

2005-04-04T00:25:00.000-07:00

There's no joy in Iwakuni-ville, and the Far East Conference is one team fewer. After only eight seasons, The Samurais of M.C. Perry High School are hanging up their cleats, according to the Stars & Stripes. With an enrollment of only 130 -- 60 of them boys -- it seems the school's football program was really lacking depths.

Well, you can read all about it first right here on Japan Brats. We're proud to debut our newest column, Back On Campus on the Main Page featuring the latest headlines from DoDDS Japan and Okinawa. And while we were at it, we've also updated our Stars & Stripes Japan news page

While Back On Campus highlights only four of the most recent headlines, you'll find links to more campus and interscholastic sports news just beneath it, one for DoDDS schools in Japan and the other for DoDDS Okinawa. You now can keep current on the latest doings at your alma mater, courtesy of Google News and the Stars & Stripes.

Speaking of the Stripes, we had mentioned previously that our Stars & Stripes Japan page was woefully behind with the news -- as much as three days. That simply didn't sit well with us considering the Stripes churns out news daily. And we're dead certain that there's something to report from Japan and Oki on a daily basis.

For some arcane reason our news server, Yahoo! News, wasn't able to keep as current as they claim to be. Sorry, Yahoo, we had to pull the plug on you guys. After a little investigating, we decided to go with the competition, Google News, which does a heckuva job delivering timely headlines from the Stripes on demand, quite often by the minute.

Unfortunately, Google News doesn't provide an RSS newsfeed like Yahoo. So we had to be somewhat inventive, meaning we created our own RSS version of Google News so we could use their more timely news delivery vehicle. And, by all indications, it's working great. Ahhh, the wonders of computers and the internet. So we hope you'll take a gander at both our all new Back On Campus feature and the all new Stripes page.

New & improved Brats Calendar installed!

2005-04-03T09:57:00.000-07:00

Great news! Look at the bottom of our Main Page and you'll see our "new and improved" Brats Calendar, courtesy of RSSCalendar.com. We succeeded in locating another calendar service that's actually leagues ahead of what we previously had. And it's super fast!

In addition to showing all upcoming events at a glance, the beauty of this new calendar is that it also offers a special RSS (XML) feed for those of your equipped with one of the new fangled RSS news readers or aggregators. Now you can subscribe to instant notices of all upcoming reunions and events at your convenience without ever having to surf the web or even visiting Japan Brats (not that we want you to do that).

At present, we are updating the calendar with the latest information about alumni and brat-related reunions and events. Unfortunately, all of our data was lost from the previous service that we had subscribed to (those buggers). So please be patient. We'll eventually have most, if not all, events restored here. If your group's event is missing or you wish to add something, please email us using our convenient direct Email Japan Brats form located in the menu box of each page.

Next project (though not as critical) is restoring our ongoing Japan Brats Poll of what decades our visitors lived in Japan. Again, thanks for hanging in there!

More changes to Japan Brats!

2005-04-03T06:10:00.000-07:00

We've temporarily removed our Japan Brats Poll and Events Calendar from our Main Page and switched our Guest Book to another service and server entirely. All three services had been provided through Tripod's HTML Gear. However, an anomoly in the software codes for the above products conflicted with our Blogger-based codes and server, resulting in either incomplete downloading of our Main Page or inability to access the above-mentioned features.

There was no way of getting around the conflict, so we had to deep-six Tripod's services altogether. We are currently assessing alternative providers for the poll and calendar. The guest book has been switched to that which we were already using for our I Did Japan pages. Actually, it's much more user friendly and faster downloading.

This may explain why you may have experienced difficulties in recent days opening our Main Page or why our visitors were unable to access the guest book or poll. We apologize for any inconvenience. We expect to have a new calendar and poll posted soon. Thanks for your understanding.

Notes: Stars & Stripes page & Satellite View

2005-04-02T20:29:00.000-07:00

A couple of notes: In revamping our Stars & Stripes Japan page, somehow it got stuck on March 30 and fails to update itself with fresh news copy. I'm presently (ima desu) working on remedying that so it doesn't make a liar our of me since it clearly states "up-to-the-minute" headlines. Back to the drawing board. It looks good though, don't you think? I'll keep you posted.

On the other item: Many of you have noticed that the image of Japan in our banner on the Main Page is ever-changing. Over the past several months, I've fielded numerous inquiries about it. A few of you assumed that it might even be a faulty image or a glitch in our program. Rest assured, there is no problem with the image. For much of the day (here in the continental U.S.) it will appear dark, then the shadow progressively moves westward later in the day, and by evening it reveals the islands of Japan in all of their glory.

Don't ask me for any particulars on exactly how this is achieved (too complicated), but it's actually a composite satellite image from a geo-stationary satellite that's approximately 6,000 miles in orbit. The image that you see is zoomed in to show Japan from an altitude of approximately 1,500 miles. It is not a static image; it changes as the sun rotates around Earth. The image is obtained in real time from a Swiss-based server that Japan Brats is connected to. It's sort of a space clock and provides a unique perspective of where we brats all once lived.

Brats Calendar temporarily offline

2005-04-02T18:44:00.000-07:00

Sorry! Our Brats Calendar on the Main Page is temporarily offline. We had to disable it because the HTML Gear proxy server from which we access it is apparently not working. I've sent their support techs an email inquiry, so I hope they'll have it back up and running soon. One of the pitfalls of relying too heavily on outside servers and services. I know it's become an indispensable one-stop resource for those of you wanting information about upcoming events and reunions. We'll hopefully have it restored shortly. If not, we'll find another host for our calendar. I'll keep you posted.

Stars & Stripes Japan newsfeed restored

2005-03-31T16:06:00.000-07:00

Good news for avid readers of the Stars & Stripes newspaper. Our Stars & Stripes Japan news page has been fully restored. Fortunately, the gremlins that knocked it out of commission for the last couple of days weren't all that serious.

Not only did we restore the page, but it's been updated to comply with the terms of the Stars and Stripes copyright protection and reproduction agreement. Insofar as we know, Japan Brats is the only independent source for an online edition exclusively dedicated to Stars & Stripes news from Japan and Okinawa. It was one of the first features that we included on our website when it was launched in 2004, and continues to prove to be among our most popular and most visited pages.

Ironically, the Stars & Stripes itself does not provide a RSS news or aggregator feed for those of you suitably equipped. So we created one ourselves with a combination of high-tech services. The result is a one-of-a-kind webpage that features only the most current headlines from Japan and Okinawa as filed by the Stars & Stripes' Tokyo Bureau.

A few of you may be familiar with the bureau. Since the early 1950s, it's been located in what is called the Akasuka Press Center on Hardy Barracks in downtown Tokyo. The U.S. facility is among the oldest and longest established installations in Japan and has a colorful history not only as a transient billet for U.S. military personnel but as the location of the Stars and Stripes news bureau and Pacific Edition printing plant.

A salute to the Yamato Warriors!

2005-03-30T21:49:00.000-07:00

It's been nearly a week since we began showcasing cherry blossom photos in our Snapshots! box on the Main Page. So, we figured it was time to swap them out for something that's also somewhat timely -- a few photos of our Japan Brats alumni from Yamato High School, the "Home of the Samurai Warriors!"

By "timely" we're referring to the joint Yamato-Chofu alumni reunion tour to Tokyo that's taking place as we speak. Numbering roughly 80-100 or so (including spouses), this large contingent representing sister schools and one-time rivals were determined to explore their past with visits to the locations of their respective alma maters, which no longer exist. Incidentally, the trip was largely organized by Yamato alumni Mike Skidmore, a good internet buddy and a member of our Yahoo Group. He's also the webmaster of three Tachikawa Air Base sites. You can find the links on our Alumni Forums page.

Both Yamato, which was located on Yamato Air Station, and Chofu High, situated a few miles away on the Kanto Mura Dependent Housing Area, closed in 1973 as part of a sweeping round of base closures in Japan in 1973. I'm certain it's both a memorable and bittersweet journey for all.

They were then scheduled to pay a visit to Yokota Air Base, where they were to tour the Yokota High School campus. Yokota opened in the fall of 1973, taking the place of three Kanto Plains area high schools -- Yamato, Chofu and Johnson -- that closed that year. All in all, 1973 was a rough year for Air Force brats.

We'll leave our photo tribute up and running pending the Warrior alumnis' return, then swap it out with a similar photo tribute to the Vikings of Chofu High. Hope you enjoy the show. One of the photos is of a 1971 varsity game between the Warriors and Vikings. Japan Brats would like to thank Warrior alumni Neil Alterman and the Yamato H.S. Alumni Association for permission to publish the photos here. Neil is also the webmaster for the alumni site, which offers a superb forum for all Warriors.

Anyone miss the Ashiya Brats website photos?

2005-03-30T18:11:00.000-07:00

Have any of you missed seeing Ashiya Air Base photos on the Ashiya Brats website? If so, then I'm not alone. In a periodic check of some of the links Japan Brats features on its pages, I found that while the Ashiya Brats link works and the website pages open, the photos on those pages fail to appear. Anyone else experience the same?

Not that it's our problem or direct responsibility, but it is nonetheless disappointing for those of you (particularly any Ashiya AB brats out there) wishing to view the huge archive of photos of the now closed Ashiya AB, Hakata Administration Annex and Camp Brady that are preserved on that website. Japan Brats features the link to this vast collection prominently at the very top of our opening Photo Albums page.

The site's publisher and owner, Bill Burton, is also a Japan Brats Yahoo Group member. In a recent exchange of emails, he assured me that he was troubleshooting the apparent glitch. He also indicated that the site will soon switch to a new, more powerful server.

Let's all hope the site will be restored to all of its glory soon because most of the photos are one-of-a-kind and irreplaceable. Any copyrights notwithstanding, I for one downloaded many of the photos for my personal Japan photo library some time ago... just in case I was ever to lose access to seeing them ever again. That goes for other photos from Japan that I've found on the web over the years. I consider them treasures of our military brat heritage and history that should be preserved for posterity and safekeeping.

If Bill finds little luck in restoring the photos to Ashiya Brats, perhaps I can lend a hand somehow. Any thoughts, Bill?

Stars & Stripes Japan News gremlin

2005-03-30T17:16:00.000-07:00

Gomenasai (sorry) to those of you who have turned to our Stars & Stripes Japan news page only to discover that it's missing. Yup, it certainly is missing! But we assure you that we are attempting to restore this popular news feature, which brings you minute-by-minute headlines directly from the Stripes' Akasuka Press Center in Tokyo.

When the feature suddenly disappeared from the page yesterday, at first we thought it was only a transitory outage caused by the RSS newsfeed server that we subscribe to and that it would soon be restored on its own. However, after two full days the problem appears to be more severe. Japan Brats is investigating the problem and is seeking to correct it.

In the meantime, we suggest that you visit the Japan Base News and Pacific Command (PACOM) News pages as alternatives. Both provide the latest and most comprehensive news about our U.S. forces in Japan and Okinawa from a variety of news sources, including select items from the Stars & Stripes. You may also visit the Pacific Stars & Stripes website directly by using the link located under "Special Japan Links" on our Main Page.

While the Stripes website offers news from both its Pacific and European editions, our Stars & Stripes Japan News headlines are only about news related to U.S. forces in Japan and Okinawa. Hopefully, that will be the case once it is restored. We'll keep you posted on our progress. Thanks for your understanding.

New search tools added to Japan Brats

2005-03-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

Want to find Grant Heights or Misawa on Japan Brats? Or on the World Wide Web? Look no further. We've added a couple of powerful search engines to the Main Page. The first is Google, the undisputed leader of search engines. If there's anything on the web, you can find it here. Then we offer a second search tool if you want to search Japan Brats for something you'd like to find. If it's mentioned on our website/weblog, this is where you should look.

Both of these search tools are now conveniently located in the lefthand column of the Main Page (just below the main menu and guestbook links). You're welcome to begin searching to your heart's content. Good luck!

Google, Kanoodle, Amazon partner with Japan Brats

2005-03-28T18:55:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed a few recent changes to Japan Brats. Yes, we finally gave in and accepted advertising on this website/weblog. And for good reason. With ambitious plans to continue "growing" -- expand and improve -- Japan Brats it became more and more evident that we needed some support to help defray the mounting cost of sustaining this humble undertaking. Donations through our PayPal donation link were a mere trickle.

So, we've partnered with a few of the biggies in the Internet and blogging biz, namely Google, Kanoodle and Amazon.com. The fact that we're already hosted by the premiere blogging server on the web, Blogger, made it even more appealing for the others to come aboard and agree to lend their support. However, it's not as simple as it may seem. You must first apply to be accepted for their advertising programs.

But Google's recent acquisition of Blogger does make it a natural partnership for us. And Blogger was already partnered with Flickr, a photo and image-hosting service that Japan Brats had already subscribed to. Google, Kanoodle and Amazon.com are leaders in the industry and enjoy a very sound and credible reputation. So we're fortunate to have been accepted by them.

The text-only ads you see on our pages are (in industry terms) "contextual ads" that are related to the topics on each of our pages and are dynamically integrated into our website. Don't ask me exactly how that's accomplished; it's a bit complicated. But, basically, Google, Amazon.com and Kanoodle each use dynamic computer algorithms to select the ads for us. They may change on each visit or if a page is refreshed.

However, Japan Brats reserves the right to refuse certain types of advertising, such as adult- or gaming-oriented ads. And absolutely no annoying pop-ups, spyware, adware or spam! We've also attempted to seamlessly integrate the ads so they are unobtrusive and don't in any way diminish the quality of our website/weblog.

The benefit to Japan Brats is this: we receive a small commission from any ad links that our visitors may visit. It's called "Pay Per Click" and each time you click on an advertised link from Google or Kanoodle we get credited for the referral. It's that simple. There's absolutely no obligation on your part to even use or purchase the advertised services or products. Just visit their sites. The wizards at Google and Kanoodle somehow automatically know that you had linked to the site from Japan Brats. Isn't the Internet amazing... it still boggles the mind.

Both Google and Kanoodle discourage -- and employ sophisticated methods to prevent -- so-called "click-throughs." I can't click the links myself and get credited because they'll know automatically that it came from the webmaster. Also, clicking a link multiple times to generate more credits for Japan Brats is strictly prohibited. However, honest clicks are most welcome and we sincerely hope you will help support us by visiting our sponsors.

With Amazon.com, however, Japan Brats is considered an "Associate". By that we mean that Japan Brats earns a small commission from any books, DVDs or CDs purchased from our site. That means that if you want to purchase a book you see here, simply click the cover and it will link you directly to Amazon.com, from which you may then place a secure order online. Like Google, the folks at Amazon.com will know that the purchase was directly referred to them by Japan Brats and not by someone else. Again, it's all done with computers!

As an example, you'll see two Amazon-featured books on our Main Page, "The Yokota Officers Club" written by fellow Japan Brat Yahoo! Group member Sarah Bird, and "Gaijin Shogun" by David J. Valley, a former honor guard for Gen. Douglas MacArthur at GHQ in Tokyo during the Occupation years. Incidentally, Sarah was an Air Force brat who had lived in Japan and is now a best-selling author with several books to her credit. Both Sarah and David's books are well worth reading and are certain to bring back many fond memories of our youth and experiences in Japan.

These and other Japan-related books, as well as DVDs and music, are also featured in our Reading Room. So if you're a voracious reader and enjoy books, please use our links. It will be greatly appreciated. Domo arigato gozaimasu for patronizing our book offers.

All of this signifies our continuing evolution to serve the vast community of Japan Brats with one of the most comprehensive, resourceful and informative websites dedicated to preserving our important history and heritage. We recently achieved a significant milestone by exceeding 20,000 visitors since December. This is a far cry from the 2,000-3,000 for all of last year. But then it's taken all this time for people to gradually discover us and for Japan Brats to be found by all of the popular search engines. A special thanks goes out to Yahoo! for continuing to rank us at or near the top of the heap on its search engine.

If you believe and support our mission or wish to comment, please let us know with an email (using our convenient Email Us link) or use the "Comments" link below. As always, thanks for visiting Japan Brats. Yoroshiku to all.

Military Brats Google Group added

2005-03-25T14:00:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats has its own Yahoo Group, a close-knit fraternity of ex-military brats from Japan and Okinawa. Members enjoye the benefit of their own message board, excerpts from which are featured on both the Main Page and on a page of its own. That's in addition to several other Japan-related discussion forums and message boards featured elsewhere on Japan Brats.

Well, we've just introduced a new message board to the mix: Military Brats Google Group, which currently boasts about 200 members. The concept is similar to our Japan Brats Yahoo Group except the Google Group represents "all military brats" from across the globe regardless of country of origin or where they had lived. Therefore, the topics discussed are bound to be more wide-ranging than in our group. The most recent messages from their message board are now highlighted on the Main Page. There's even a link to the expanded board. It's worth checking out to see what military brats from elsewhere (other than Japan or Okinawa) have on their minds.

Scenes of Sakura featured

2005-03-25T10:48:00.000-07:00

It's a spectacle that most of us have witnessed firsthand during our stay in Japan, the annual cherry blossom season. Now, with the end of March and the month of April upon us, the cherry trees will be in full bossom, symbolizing spring and rebirth in Japan. We invite you to see a few memorable vignettes of the sakura season at U.S. installations and bases. It's our latest Snapshots! feature on the Main Page.

From the very beginning, Americans admired the cherry tree for its grace and beauty and planted them in abundance on U.S. bases and installations throughout Japan. Ironically, the bases have become colorful sanctuaries for these symbolic and uniquely oriental trees and many, like Camp Zama and Yokota Air Base, host annual Sakura Matsuris (cherry blossom festivals) that are open to the general public. The events draw huge throngs of visitors who come to view the spectacle.

These and other photos of Japan and Okinawa are located in our Yahoo Group album and in our Photo Albums section. The Snapshots! photo feature changes every few days, so check back often. Japan Brats also welcomes your vintage of Japan and Okinawa. If you are a member of our Yahoo Group, you can easily upload them yourself. If you're not a member, you may email them to japanbrat@yahoo.com.

A little about our Gaijin Blogger friends

2005-03-24T02:55:00.000-07:00

It's been quite some time since I last mentioned anything about the Gaijin Blogs page, what it has to offer, and a little something about a few of our online penpals who keep us in constant touch with Japan. I need to single out three in particular: Ben Gleitzman, Monika Thomas and Jeff Laitila. Not only are they adept at writing blogs but are quite skilled photographers and photobloggers (mobloggers) in their own right.

BEN GLEITZMAN
The newest addition (well, almost -- he's been aboard about two months now) is Ben Gleitzman, an 18-year-old academic standout from Morgantown, W. Virginia, whose blog is aptly titled "Thousands of Miles From Home." Ben recently moved to Japan last fall to spend a year on a Rotary International-sponsored student exchange program in the southern Honshu town of Tamano in Okayama Prefecture, near Hiroshima. By the time it's completed, he will have lived with three different host families. Upon his return, Ben plans to attend MIT and study engineering.

BEN GLEITZMAN

He has proven a very proficient photographer with a keen eye, capturing daily slices of life in Japan with his digital camera and cellphone. The results are remarkably good. His photoblog is featured at the very top of the page, in part because of its consistent quality and also because it is compatible with our RSS feed capture capabilities. (I wish more of our bloggers would do likewise so we can feature their photos as well.)

This has always been a matter of curiosity for me: Besides suffering Big Mac Attacks and Krispy Kreme withdrawal, no sooner do most expats arrive in Japan that they long for some connection to home. It's a phenomenon called homesickness and is most often abated by hooking up with fellow gaijins. Ben is no exception. In his initial posts, he was eager to showcase his newfound Japanese friends and exhibit his prowess at consuming natto and other delicacies. However, of late he's found the fellowship of other expats and gaijins as well.

But he assures me that he's resisted indulging his appetite for American fast foods. In a recent email, Ben writes: "Although you may find it surprising, I have not yet frequented a Maku-donarudo (MacDonald's). In fact, I've gone about two years without a Big Mac, Wendy's, Burger King or KFC. To make up for the lack of fast-food exposure, the newest pasttime of mine is touring the numerous ramen/udon/soba shops of Okayama, although I have found little time to post about the endeavor so far. Expect a post of that kind to appear soon. I do enjoy "Mos Burger" although I have only been there once or twice."

Though his blog is mostly given over to photos, Ben's occasional journal entries are cleverly written and insightful observations about life, work and friends in Japan. (Take it from this grizzled newspaper editor, Ben, you should write more often. You're very good at it.)

JEFF LAITILA
Perhaps the most accomplished photoblogger among gaijins in Japan is Jeff Laitila, a native Michigander who works as a civilian contract engineer for D.O.D. based out of Yokosuka. Jeff and his wife have lived in Japan for nearly four years. Anyone who has surfed the web for Japan-related sites or blogs at any length is certain to have come across Jeff's award-winning weblog/photoblog Sushicam. Why the name? According to Jeff, 1) it was a domain name that was not already taken and 2) it was a domain name that was not already taken.

JEFF LAITILA

No sooner did he step ashore in Japan that he started snapping away with a digital camera, visually documenting Japanese culture and its people as much as he can. He then began posting the photos on Sushicam. The site has since become a staple of Japanophiles everywhere -- generating well over 1,000 hits a day! -- and garnering accolades and awards from all quarters. Needles to say, Jeff turned pro and his moonlighting as a photog is now generating some serious okane.

On weekends, Jeff can be found hawking his photos at various swap meets and shows, from Atsugi to Yokota, that are likely to draw interest among Americans. He most recently enjoyed a successful exhibit and sale at the Sanno Hotel in downtown Tokyo. It's unfortunate that his photoblog offers no direct feed that would enable us to feature at least one or two of his outstanding photos. You'll just have to visit his blog.

MONIKA THOMAS
Not that Jeff or Ben aren't top-drawer bloggers, but my favorite gaijin photoblogger is Monika Thomas...if for no other reason than the fact that she's the most attractive! I stumbled across Monika's photoblog on Flickr, a superb image hosting service. I entered the tag word "Japan" and it identified scores of photoblogs, including hers. We reciprocated in becoming photo-sharing buddies on Flickr. After swapping emails, I learned that this intrepid gaijin was a single, 20-something eigo sensei on the JET program teaching elementary school students on Miyako-jima, a small island in the Ryukyu chain about 100 miles southwest of Okinawa. Talk about a far-flung assignment! But it's well suited to Monika, who loves the ocean and is a certified scuba diving enthusiast.

MONIKA THOMAS

It's also a far cry from her home in Anchorage, where this lovely Gemini first developed eclectic tastes and a keen appreciation for sushi at her favorite restaurant, Yamato Ya. Yearning for adventure, Monika was working as an announcer at Mix 103.1 FM a year or so ago when she abruptly decided to enroll in the JET (Japan Exchange and Teaching) program and live in Japan for awhile. We're certainly happy she did! How else would we have met her? Plus, she now can enjoy authentic sushi!

Incidentally, young JET teachers (simply referred to as "JETS") are a ubiquitous bunch in Japan and comprise sort of a fraternity there. There are few towns and villages without at least one or two in the vicinity. Miyako-jima is no exception.

In a really bizarre twist to her Far East saga, over this past Christmas holidays Monika decided to spend some time scuba diving in, of all places, Phuket, Thailand. She was there for no more than a week or so when the epic tsunami struck and devastated the island. Fortunately, Monika was ensconced in a hotel on a portion of the island that was unscathed. She immediately shared her indelible experiences with us here on Japan Brats. She's since returned to a life of relative normalcy on Miyako-jima. She recently advised me that she is planning her next visit to the Phillipines. Monika is truly an adventurer! She'd be a terrific host on the Globe Trekker TV series.

Monika has turned into quite an adept photographer since hitting the shores of Japan. Though she has no journal-type blog, her photoblog -- primarily landscapes in and around the Ryukyu Islands -- is well worth a visit. A colleague of hers, Kim Soderstrom, does have a journal-styled blog titled Miyako Journal that complements what Monika provides visually.

EMILY WATKINS
And, finally, there is "Modern Emily," "Emily M." or simply "EM" as she describes herself on her blog. Emily is a Syracuse native and likewise a JET-sponsored English teacher. Her blog profile offers little of note except to say that she lives and works in Nita, a town situated on the Sea of Japan in Shimane Prefecture, a popular tourist destination in the far southwestern part of Honshu.

Her blog is amusingly titled "How I Learned To Stop Worrying & Love The Blog" and it offers more tantalizing insights than her profile does. For example, a recent post suggests Emily has begun her transformation and is turning Japanese: "I just bowed to my supervisor over the phone." While it offers few photos, I enjoy reading her journal entries. She has a certain literary flair that keeps me interested.

Well, lo and behold, I did a little more digging and learned that Emily's full name is Emily Watkins. An entry she'd written on an obscure website states: "I graduated from Syrcause University in May 2003 with a bachelor's degree in physics. In July 2004, I moved to Japan where I currently work as an Assistant English Teacher at two junior high schools and a handful of elementary schools, while learning Japanese from kindergarteners."

I soon discovered that Emily also has a Flickr photoblog of her own with hundreds of photos she has taken in Japan and elsewhere.

I've yet to communicate with Emily directly (she has no email address posted, but I suppose you can comment on her blog if you wish). I do know that she is well aware of Japan Brats, however. Her Japan IP address routinely appears on our tracking service, which suggests she checks her blog's appearance on our Gaijin Blogs page regularly. Emily: You know how you can get in touch with me, so I expect to hear from you sometime soon.

The bottom line: You don't have to be an extreme Japanophile like me to enjoy these gaijin blogs. They are often witty and always engaging. And, being blogs, they usually invite and accommodate your comments and feedback. I'm sure, Emily, Ben, Monika and Jeff would each really appeciate hearing from those of you in the States. I'm sure it would help chase some of the homesick blues away.

Green Park photo essay featured

2005-03-24T02:21:00.000-07:00

For the next day or so, Japan Brats is highlighting photos of Green Park Dependent Housing Annex in our "Snapshots!" section on the Main Page.

As housing areas or annexes go, few could be more unique than Green Park. It was located in the suburban Tokyo town of Musashino ("Green Park" in Japanese), about a mile from Tachikawa Air Base. The housing complex was opened for 20 years. 1953-73) after which it was completely razed and replaced by a park. What set this one apart from most was the fact that it was a virtual city under one roof -- family quarters, BX concessions, a grade school, Teen Club, etc. It had seven three-story wings that extended from the main building in which the apartment-style dwelling units were located.

When first proposed, Green Park provoked an immediate outcry among the residents of Musashino. So the Air Force designed the complex so as to minimize the footprint and any possible impact another military installation in the vicinity would have on the town. We're currently putting together a more extensive essay with additional photos for our Brats Essays section that will include the recollections of those brats who lived at Green Park.

Check back from time to time because our Snapshots! feature is constantly changing.

Itazuke AB photos featured

2005-03-23T06:07:00.000-07:00

For those of you eagerly awaiting new photos, Japan Brats has just updated the photos in our Snapshots! photo feature box on the Main Page. For the next several days, we're featuring non-flightline photos of Itazuke Air Base.

A former Japanese Imperial Navy air base located in Fukuoka on the northwest corner of the island of Kyushu, Itazuke actually comprised three installations: Itazuke AB, Itazuke (Hakata) Administration Annex and Brady Air Base (Camp Brady). Itazuke was on the mainland while Brady and Hakata were both located on the pennisula that formed Shizuoka Harbor.

Part of the confusion with the names stem from the days when the annex and Brady AB were Army installations before the USAF took command in 1956. Itazuke AB closed in 1972. The flightline was kept as a Japanese Air Self Defense Force base. Much of Hakata/Brady was turned into an amusement park. There are other sections of the sprawling base that were left abandoned, including some portions of the old housing area where a few of the old family quarters are still standing.

A handful of the photos have been added to our Yahoo Group photo album. However, there are dozens of terrific photos available on John O'Brien's outstanding Itazuke Alumni Association website and the 610th ACW Squadron's MSN Group website.

Base map & listings brouhaha ensues!

2005-03-21T16:07:00.000-07:00

The newly updated I Did Japan map and message tag boards have prompted more email responses than I'd ever expected... and have even provoked some debate and controversy. First, I acknowledge that they are incomplete. I never said that they represent a full and complete list of all U.S. military installations in Japan and Okinawa. Only that they are perhaps the most comprehensive to date that we know of.

Not that I'm picking on fellow Yahoo Group member Mark Roberts (I'm not really), but he started all of this debate going with a recent message posted on the group board regarding Itazuke AB. It seems that I somehow overlooked the all important base on the island of Kyushu. It was unintentional I assure you.

Well that prompted several more emails about "missing" or erroneously located bases from some of our other visitors who felt slighted. Well, don't! I'm still on a learning curve trying to get a bead on the names and locations of all of the bases, past and present. I am definitely not the resident authority on the subject and am relying on your assistance to fill in some of the gaps. So don't hesitate to keep those cards and letters coming!

As for erroneous locations or missing bases, here they are. Granted, some of these are really, really obscure and forgotten by even the most ardent Japan brats:

* Camp Crawford was not located near Sendai on northern Honshu but was located near Sapporo on the island of Hokkaido.

* While on the subject of Hokkaido, Camp Fowler and Camp Strong were also located near Chitose AB.

* Camp Chitose was an Army installation located adjacent Chitose Air Base.

* Sakata NSGA, a small Navy radar installation located near the coastal town of Sakata about 100 miles north of Niigata AB in western Honshu.

* Shiroi Air Station was located 20 miles northwest of Tokyo in Chiba Prefecture. A former Imperial Navy Airfield, it served as an auxiliary airfield and a communications site until 1968 and is now a Japanese Marine Self Defense Force (JMSDF) air base.

Shiroi's claim to fame was in 1951 as part of a Project Blue Bookinvestigation into an alleged UFO sighting near Haneda AB, Tokyo.Shiroi also picked up the pings on its radar and orderedinterceptors from Tachi AB to scramble.

* Osaka Army Arsenal and Osaka Army Hospital (382nd General Hospital). Wow, two biggies. Literally. The arsenal was the largest for the Japanese military and was occupied by the 8th Army forces for several years after the war. The hospital treated many Korea wounded.

* Omura Marine Corps Base on Kyushu was a former kamikaze air base.

* Oppama Naval AS near Yokosuka -- This actually didn't escape me. It's simply that I didn't have much room on the Kanto map and figured many of the smaller facilities in the vicinity fell under the general heading of Yokohama or Yokosuka, such as the Army's North and Central Piers.

* Kanoya Naval Air Station near Hiroshima. It was the Imperial Navy's biggest air base during World War II.

* Camp Kure, also near Hiroshima, was once the Imperial Navy's largest naval base though the Navy's HQ was Yokosuka.

* Kumagaya Air Station in Saitama Prefecture, north of Johnson Air Base.

* And finally Komatsu Air Station located on the Sea of Japan in western Honshu.

Regarding a few of these bases amd installations, I have little or no verifiable information about their histories and use by the U.S. Many, such as Komatsu and Kumagaya, were seized then soon after closed or returned in 1952 (upon Japan regaining sovereignty) and were subsequently recommissioned as Japanese installations. Also, we are not including all of the small radar and comm. sites of which there were dozens scattered throughout Japan.

Then there are those of you who complained that we've all but forgotten your alma maters! First of all, don't expect us to include all schools below the 9th grade since there are few, if any, alumni associations for elementary or middle schools. The focus has, and remains, high school alumni. But, admittedly, two high schools in northern Japan didn't get the mentions they richly deserve on Japan Brats (we'll add them shortly). They are:

* Wakkanai Dependent School at Wakkanai AS in far northern Hokkaido.

* Chitose Dependent School, Chitose AB, Hokkaido.

* Camp Crawford Dependent School, Camp Crawford, Hokkaido.

* Sendai Dependent School on Camp Sendai, northern Honshu.

* Osaka American School, Osaka.

* Itami Dependent School, Itami AB, near Osaka (I'm not sure whether Osaka and Itami were one and the same.)

* Naha Dependent School, located on the now closed Naha Naval Base, Okinawa. (I'm not certain if this include high school grades or not.)

The fact that there are no active alumni associations for these schools (with the possible exception of Camp Crawford) may explain our oversight. In anticipation of the closure of Camp Crawford in 1957, a private American school in nearby Sapporo was established (1954), Hokkaido International School (mascot: "Huskies"), where dependent children were then schooled. A HIS alumni association remains quite active.

Interestingly, with no school at the isolated and remote Sakata NSGA the half-dozen or so dependent children were home schooled under a special Navy-administered program and also attended on a part-time basis a local Japanese school in the town of Sakata.

Okay, I'm leaving it up to the rest of you to start filling in the blanks or correct any of the foregoing.

New on Japan Brats: Streaming Videos!

2005-03-21T03:53:00.000-07:00

Japan Brats is proud to introduce to our vast array of fun features streaming videos. Video Japan! offers professionally produced streaming videos of contemporary Japan, from a climb to the top of Mount Fuji to a walking tour of historic Kyoto. Enjoy the pageantry, scenery and sounds of this exotic landscape.

The streaming videos are offered in two formats, Windows Media and Real Player, and are optimized for 56K BPS and Broadband and are ideally suited for modem to high-speed connections. The beauty of our streaming videos is the ease and simplicity of delivery. You don't have to wait for your default media player to download or open a new browser. You can easily select a video to view from an easy-to-use menu; videos will open in a separate pop-up frame with full play/pause and volume controls.

Now a bit about the videos themselves: They are professionally produced by Brovision, a Tokyo-based Digital Media/Video Production and website design service which has garnered an award from Internet Magazine for its unique concept. Currently, Japan Brats offers nine outstanding videos from Brovision. However, we soon plan to add more as they become available.

Check out our sample video, "Tokyo By Night," on our Main Page.

Check out the new Snapshot!

2005-03-21T02:23:00.000-07:00

We've made a slight change on the Main Page with the addition of "Snapshot!" Gone are the introductory message and the "Do You Remember?" photo in the upper righthand corner. In their place is a new photo feature that highlights a memorable photo from Japan or Okinawa, along with a short bit of history or trivia. The photo will change every few days, so it's well worth checking in periodically to see what's new.

Truthfully, I've been looking for another way (other than with our Brat Essays and Photo Albums pages) to showcase a few of the photos from our huge Japan Brats photo library. I believe the larger format will help to keep the main page fresh, vibrant and appealing. Also, there are those photos that don't necessarily warrant a long-form essay but are worth elaborating on. With apologies to Zama brat Rick "Spydercat" Pemble, it was his consistently outstanding Zama website that inspired me. He likewise features a changing panoply of photos on his main page.

Our Snapshots series debuts this week with an extremely rare vintage photo of the lobby of the Gohra Hotel in the hot springs resort of Hakone. I believe the photo is circa 1963, according to the source. It appears to be from that era, if memory serves me. I say extremely rare because you can search and search, but will find virtually no information or photos on the web about the Gohra (which more commonly is spelled Gora) Hotel although it was long a popular retreat for we brat families in the Kanto region. Unfortunately, I could not find any photos of the Gora in our old family albums. Just by sheer luck someone is auctioning a set of three postcards on the web, which I'm sure holds little value to him/her. The auction site simply states that the owner acquired the postcards as part of a larger collection of postcards he'd purchase at an estate sale.

It was at the Gohra (I believe I was five or six years old) that I experienced my first dip in an onsen (public bath), this one being fed by the nearby hot springs. I recall the onsen was immense... at least from the perspective of a small kid, and was located on a level below the main floor. It had huge plate glass windows that overlooked the local Gora Hot Springs village (Sjuzenj) and a running creek just below. It was at first blush intimidating to join others in this coed communal environment. My mother accompanied me; my dad was the only smart one, choosing to use instead the in-room bathtub. I'm not a naturist, mind you, but I have to admit that after a few days I became more and more comfortable bathing in the au naturale with others.

Incidentally, Grace Kelly (a stunner even by today's standards) appeared in her first nearly nude scene in similar circumstances in the 1957 epic Bridges at Toko-Ri (check out our essay about the movie). It was filmed at another Hakone-area R&R resort, the Fujiya. Fortunately, the historic hotel is still standing -- including its massive indoor/outdoor onsen -- though it is no longer a military lodging facility. The scene was considered pretty edgy for the times, but fairly tame today. It was one of the highlights of the movie. Shame that Grace Kelly wasn't luxuriating at the Gohra onsen a couple of years later. Maybe, just maybe....

Hmmmm.... I wonder what that says about me today.

TOM

Reunions, Reunions, Reunions!

2005-03-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

It's countdown to Japan! Over a hundred or so Chofu Vikings and Yamato Warriors (alumni, faculty and spouses) will be headed to Tokyo on March 24 for what promises to be one heck of a tour of the old stomping grounds. The week-long trip, which will include an optional excursion to Nikko, is jointly sponsored by the Chofu Alumni Assoc. and Yamato Alumni Assoc., and was largely organized by Yamato alums Mike Skidmore ('69) and Vonnie Hoops-Beattie ('60) and Chofu alums Gerri Sorrells ('69) and Jim Weatherford ('69).

Sadly, both schools are long gone, but remnants of Kanto Mura and Tachikawa still exist. They'll be making a pilgrimage to each location. The Tachi flightline is now a Japanese Air Self Defense Force base; a few of the old hangars and buildings are still standing. The remaining portion is now Showa-koen (park). A couple of abandoned housing quarters at Kanto Mura are still standing, though overgrown by thickets. Still, it's worth a visit for old time's sake.

Important updates, itinerary, contact information and more are included on the respective alumni websites. If you're a member of Mike's Tachi Group, you can also check the message board for the latest skinny and any changes there might be.

I'm sure we all wish this lucky bunch a safe and terrific journey

Not to be outdone, both Zama Trojans and Yokota Panthers are signing up for reunion trips of their own to Japan this fall. Unlike the others, both ZAHS and YHS are still in existance. More to come as we get closer. In the meantime, it's best you check their respective websites for details if you're planning to join them. Yokota Prez Bill Lee ('79) and his trusty sidekick Serena Samsel ('91) have pretty much nailed down the October itinerary for the Panthers, while ZAA Prez Al Miyatake ('66) is finalizing details for a "Zama Career Day" trip, also planned for October. It will include an optional side trip to Bangkok. Maybe the two groups could rendezvous somewhere.

While on the subject of reunions and events:

A recent message from fellow brat Mark Roberts (ZAHS '72) prompted me to do a little fact-finding on upcoming alumni reunions and events (see our Events Calendar on the Main Page). It seems I overlooked a couple of very important ones that are scheduled in coming months. Here's a listing of some of the ones I missed:

* April 2, 2005 - International Alumni Council-Japan Block Party 2005 at the baseball field at St. Mary's International School, Tokyo. Faculty, staff, students and friends of the following member schools are welcome: ASIJ, St. Maur's, Chofu High School, Aoba-Japan Intl. School, St. Mary's, Seisen Intl. School, Yokohama Intl. School, St. Joseph, and Nishimachi Intl. School. Click here for details.

* July 21-24,2005 - DoDDS Reunion XVII at the Doubletree Paradise Valley Resort, Scottsdale, Arizona. This is a DoDDS overseas educators reunion. Nearly 535 persons were registered as of March 14, so this one should be huge. Click here for more information, or email doddsreunion@cox-internet.com. In conjunction with this event, there will be a general membership meeting of the American Overseas Schools Historical Society on July 22.

* July 22-25, 2005 - Yokohama Internation School Class of 1975 30th Anniversary Reunion will be held in Seattle. Alumni, faculty and friends are invited. Click here for more details, or email info@yisalumni.org.

* Oct. 13-15, 2004 - Overseas Brats Gala Reunion at the Mesa Marriott Hotel & Convention Center, Mesa, Arizona. This one usually draws a huge attendance from across the country. Click here for details, or contact Joe Condrill at joeosbpres@sbcglobal.net.

As always, your alumni association, group or organization may add events to our Events Calendar simply by clicking the "Add Event" link on the Main Page. Though our emphasis is on Japan alumni-related events, other events that are related to military brats in general are welcome.

New essay on Arthur Macarthur IV added

2005-03-18T04:41:00.000-07:00

Does the name Arthur MacArthur ring a bell with any of you Japan Brats, especially those of you who lived in Japan during the 1940s and '50s? If you're father was posted anywhere near GHQ in Tokyo you may be familiar with the name. Yes, he's a MacArthur. In fact, Arthur was the son and only child of the legendary general, Douglas MacArthur, who presided over the surrender and occupation of Japan.

I just now posted a new essay on our Brat Essays page about young MacArthur, who led a highly visible childhood but, as an adult, all but retreated to a life of obscurity. He never followed in his father's footsteps and there are few clues as to what became of Arthur MacArthur, who is now 66 and presumably living in New York.

The essay I've written is excerpted from a book I'm currently writing about the general's son. It includes rare photos of the MacArthur family. The information is based on extensive research from numerous websites, journals, news articles and historical archives of those who were closely acquainted with the MacArthurs during World War II and the subsequent occupation years. This is one of many essays I'll be adding to Japan Brats that highlight the lives of "famous military brats" from Japan. Understandibly, I couldn't overlook perhaps the most famous brat of all.

Unfortunately, there's precious little information about Arthur, especially as an adult. He remains an enigma. So I'm anxious to hear some feedback and added info you, too, may have about Arthur.

Watashi wa Bond....James Bond

2005-03-15T22:23:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist adding the latest essays entry: a piece that chronicles some of the behind-the-scenes trivia from Sir Sean Connery's Japan exploits, specifically the making of the 1967 James Bond classic "You Only Live Twice" which was shot on location in Japan and a bit about his advertising pitchman stint for Suntory whiskey. There are some additional trivia related to 007 successor Pierce Brosnan, who also lined his wallet doing TV commercials in Japan, and Japanese Bond girls Mie Hama and Akiko Wakabayashi. The piece is something I dredged up from my Japan journals to take up some space in my web log. I added related links for those of you who may be avid fans of the Bond genre. The entry goes back about a dozen years and you can find it on our Brat Essays page.

Johnson AB-Hyde Park photo albums!

2005-03-10T20:57:00.000-07:00

Here's a photo bonanza for any Johnson Air Base-Hyde Park-Johnson High School brats out there. We've just uploaded three new albums of photos that date from 1948-2003 to our Yahoo! Group photo library, many we're certain you haven't seen before. They include rare photos of what's left of the Hyde Park Housing Annex today.

The annex was closed in 1977, a few years after the adjacent air base itself was closed. The annex was turned into a park (similar to what occurred at Tachi East). But the Japanese left some remnants of the annex behind, including a few original housing quarters and a fire station. According to one Japanese paranormal research group, the buildings are reputedly haunted. Perhaps by spirits of deceased fellow brats. Spooooky!

Johnson AB is now called Iruma Air Base (as it was formerly called before the end of World War II), a Japanese Air Self Defense Force installation. Though most of it has been rebuilt, a few familiar landmarks remain. They include the commissary, Tyre Park Elementary School, and even a few of the old buildings on the Johnson High School campus. Plus we've thrown in several photos of Iruma AB as it appears today.

But to see the rare photo collection you must be a member of our Yahoo! Group. It's free and simple to join. Just go to the Main Page and find the sign-up link in the righthand sidebar. It only takes a minute or so to join.

Thanks to many Johnson brats, including Bob Ryan in Guam, and JHS alumni for contributing these photos. If you have any to add to the albums, you can easily upload them yourself (if you're a Yahoo! Group member) or email them to japanbrat@yahoo.com. We'll be adding more photo albums of other Japan and Okinawa bases soon, so check back from time to time. Enjoy!

Okinawa & Kyushu added to I Did Japan!

2005-03-10T03:26:00.000-07:00

Do any of you recall Hamby Army Air Field on Okinawa or the Naha Naval Facility before the CFAO was moved to Kadena Air Base? Most of you may be familiar with Ashiya Air Base and Hakata Air Station on the island of Kyushu, but do you remember Camp Wood or Kokura Air Base?

You can find these and dozens more former U.S. bases and installations -- many of them long forgotten -- on our newly updated I Did Japan map tag boards. After more digging and research, we've managed to locate most, if not all, past and present installations in Japan.

And they are all identified on our one-of-a-kind maps. Perhaps the only comprehensive series of maps of their kind on the Web. At least we're not yet aware of any other single source for such information other than in the D.O.D.'s own historical archives.

Many of the bases long ago were closed or returned to Japan and Okinawa and have been committed to the history books. But there are certain to be a few of you who will remember individual bases.

The interactive map tag boards are just that -- not only can you locate sometimes obscure bases, such as Camp Gotemba or Kanoya Air Base, but you also can "tag" the base on which you may have lived or served. Japan Brats maintains a running total of each base so you can see exactly where your fellow brats once lived.

To tag a base, visit I Did Japan (you can find the link in the righthand sidebar of the Main Page) and select the map for the region in which the base was/is located. You may also leave a brief message about the base on our new I Did Japan Discussion Forum.

Japan Brats Reading Room restored

2005-03-10T03:09:00.000-07:00

Good news for the literary-minded among us. Our Reading Room has been restored thanks to the folks at Amazon.com A few of you may have noticed that it had been down for a week or so, due in part to a change in server protocol and our need to update the coding for the page. But it's back bigger than ever.

As a registered Amazon.com Associate, Japan Brats is proud to feature a wide selection of books, music and DVDs related to Japan and military brat life. They include such best-selling novels as Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden and The Yokota Officers Club by fellow Japan brat Sarah Bird and such in-depth historical essays as Gaijin Shogun by David J. Valley and travel guides as Little Adventures in Tokyo by Rick Kennedy. (Featured selections change on each visit, so refresh the page to view more titles.)

Japan Brats receives a small commission from Amazon.com for any sale through our direct referral, which helps to support our ever-expanding website/weblog and web community. So we encourage you to place your book, CD or DVD orders through our Reading Room. And domo arigato gozaimasu for your continued support and patronage.