Another year has come and gone! Wow. So year. Nice. So posts.
To commemorate all the posting we’ve done, I thought it would be appropriate for us to go in and curate our own list of our favorite posts. We all like different posts here, so you’ll get a motley assortment of articles that are worth reading. In this year’s edition, we’ll take a look at favorites from myself (Koichi), Aya, Mami, Viet, and JohnD. Let’s hop right to it!
Koichi’s Favorite Posts Of 2013
It was so hard to choose my favorite posts. I have about twenty more that I wanted to include, but since I limited everyone to five I thought it would be bad if I was the only one cheating. I would have put up posts like “Facing Facts: The Secret Behind Hello Kitty’s Blank Face“, “The Kikokushijo Dilemma: Growing Up Abroad As A Japanese Kid“, “Oh, So You Mean You’re Not Japanese?“, or any one of the “dating series” posts / anime roundups. There was a ton to choose from, but here are the ones that stood out to me or were special to me this year.
- Tofugu’s New Body Pillow Dating Site: DatingMakura
For April Fools this year we released a dating site that allowed people to chat with body pillows (you know, to find your One True Threadcount™. We had a ton of fun building this, writing the chat conversations, and taking the pictures. It’s still up and running, so if you’d like try out DatingMakura.com you can! - Not Just For Vegetarians- Japanese Soybean Foods
Many people don’t realize how many ways a soybean can be used. I thought this was a nice and educational post for those who thought soybeans only could be turned into tofu. I even learned a thing or two about this fantastic bean. - The Difficulty Of Names
Mami joined us in 2013. She started as a researcher and then started writing. Her perspective is a great one because she’s born and raised in Japan. This post was the start of many great posts by Mami, which is why this one in particular is my favorite! - The Wildly Complicated Life Of The Japanese Particle ね
I was so impressed by how this post took something that seems not that complicated (the particle ね), teaches people how complicated it really is (it’s very, very complicated) and then breaks that down into something that’s not all that complicated anymore. Basically, it’s a tough topic that’s been explained really well, and all Japanese learners ought to read this, whether you’re beginner or advanced. - What I Learned About Learning Japanese From Spending 3 Weeks In Taiwan
It’s been a while since I’ve started learning a new language. This article goes over my attempt to learn some Mandarin (before a trip to Taiwan). It was so educational to re-experience the things people experience when learning a new language, and I talk about how I’ll be applying that over to our Japanese resources as well.
Aya’s Favorite Posts Of 2013
Aya is the Tofugu Artist. She illustrates all the illustrations you see at the top of pretty much every post. It was fun to go through this year’s posts to see how not only our writing progressed, but how her art progressed too! Here are Aya’s favorite posts of the year – maybe you too will agree.
- Using Japanese Sign Language to Improve Your Spoken Japanese
It was my first time encountering JSL and I thought that it was such a well-written and researched topic. I also had a great time drawing the Hiragana JSL chart. So many hands to draw yo. - What It’s Like Dating A Japanese Guy
I loved reading and working on the dating article series posted in Tofugu (if you haven’t read them, you definitely should), but this one was my favorite. I had heaps of fun working on the spot illustrations for this post! - The Traditional Colors of Japan: Making Modern History
It was interesting to read about the Japanese color system and how much meaning a color held when it was used on a piece of clothing, like a kimono. It’s pretty cool that Japanese fashion companies are trying to revive traditional colors through modern fashion design. The Japanese color chart was so fun to look at and read too! - “Oh So You Mean You’re Not Japanese?”
When I first read the article, I was like, ‘The feels! For some reason, I KNOW IT.’. Although I’ve never lived in Japan, this question always seemed to pop up whenever I meet a Japanese person. The confusion and surprise that followed amused me at first, but after getting asked 32948324* times by a lot of people (*not exact number), it gets a bit tiring. Reading about living in Japan from a non-Japanese Asian’s perspective was something I’ve been waiting to read more about and I thought that Austin did a great job writing about the experiences and problems he faced. - Dating A Foreigner (From A Japanese Perspective)
Two things: Samurai + Matt Cain = YES.
Mami’s Favorite Posts of 2013
Mami of course joined us partway through the year. She’s been helping with some secret projects, doing audio, research, and even writing on Tofugu. Here are her favorite posts of the year:
- I Went To The Real-Life Spirited Away
Great article from real experience. I’ve never been to Taiwan, though it’s very close to Japan, and have always wanted to visit. This article made me feel as though I was already there and really made me want to actually go there more than ever, at the same time. I was also impressed that Koichi found Uncle Haku. That was my favorite picture among all the other incredible ones taken. - Sorry for Saying Thank You: The Many Uses Of Sumimasen
Sumimasen, but I wasn’t very good at explaining the various usages of sumimasen until I read this article. This article explains “sumimasen” really well and I’d like to be sumimasen for saying thank you. - Visiting Japanese Schools, Or How To Be A Rock Star in Japan
I enjoyed reading how John became a rock star in Japan :P - 10 Horrifying Insects That Will Make You Reconsider Ever Visiting Japan
This article creeped me out to the point that I almost don’t want to go back to Japan to see my family (:o;) Just in the time that it took to read it, I set a new personal record for how many Ewww’s could be said in one year. - The Kikokushijo Dilemma: Growing Up Abroad As A Japanese Kid
A very interesting article from the perspective of a real kikokushijo with the accompanying wall paper that Aya made (The Fugu Robot) – This is also one of my favorites.
Viet’s Favorite Posts Of 2013
Viet doesn’t write a ton these days, but when he did he would get really into it and come up with something extremely educational. So, it’s only natural that the posts he chose tended to have some kind of deeper meaning or history.
- The Ainu: Reviving the Indigenous Spirit of Japan
I’ve actually written a piece about the Ainu a long time ago. I enjoyed Sarah’s piece since it had a broader scope. People who are interested in Japan should be informed that it isn’t a ~100% homogeneous nation. - A Short History Of Japanese Sign Language
I’ve always had a faint interested in ASL. Coupled that with me being somewhat of a history buff, this was a great read. - The Japanese Art Of Making The Strangest Faces [Hengao]
Just look at the faces. QED. - The CIA’s 1971 Secret Report On The Senkaku Islands Dispute
I love learning the little island disputes that is happening out there. Couldn’t they just do a Lost and move the island? - How To Avoid (Or Even Find) A Stigmatized Property In Japan
I like the post header art. So mystery. So intrigue.
John’s Favorite Posts Of 2013
John has been writing with us for a long time. You may remember him from “Mondays,” where he would post every Monday. He also is the one who writes the anime roundups, as well as the infamous “John’s __________” posts. Here are “John’s ______ posts of the year”:
- “Gaijin”
Gaijin is a complicated word that can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. Hashi did a really great job of exploring the word and its uses and just about everything you ever wanted to know or wondered about is somewhere in this post. The discussions it inspired in the comments are great too. Plus I just really miss our pal Hashi. - These Words Are English, But You Won’t Understand Them
All these loan words Koichi selected for this post are really useful and interesting. Some of them are funnier than others, but this post is a great example of edutainment. - Keanu Reeves and the 47 Ronin
While the movie didn’t quite live up to the hype, the story of the real 47 Ronin is awesome. This tale truly exemplifies the spirit of Japan. If you don’t know the story behind the 47 Ronin, do yourself a favor and read about it! - The 7 Odd Things I’ve Missed About Japan / The Things I Do Not Miss About Japan
These two posts kind of go hand in hand, but they’re a great introduction to some of the great (and not so great things) about being in Japan. Whether you’re traveling there for the first time or just looking for some nostalgia, these posts are great. - My Japanese Education
Having Mami on the team has been awesome. This post of hers was really interesting and informative. It was great to have a detailed and personal explanation of how all that learning nonsense works over there in Japan. Mami’s had a lot of great posts since this one, but this remains one of my favorites.
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Those were our favorites! What were yours?
Thank you all for such a wonderful year. We have a lot planned for 2014, so slap those suspenders a few times and look out the window, because neat things are afoot.