TJ Expert (65)
You never know...
You Never Know....
How often do you let people just pass through your life without much notice? Shared time can be anything from a moment, to a few hours or days; like the lady that smiled at you in the store or the man you met at the seminar. The investments we make in these unexpected meetings are often small. It’s common to assume that unexpected meetings will have little or no impact on the sequence of our lives’ events. So why bother? But what if these meetings could change your life? What if an encounter could change your life? If you embraced this idea, would you choose to live differently or greet the people you bump into in a different way?
Home Makeover Spotlight
Home Makeover Spotlight
Exterior: Subtle Sophistication with Asian Elegance
Mangaris Red Hardwood Decking
The Mangaris Red hardwood decking transformed a once bland exterior to a rich, mahogany-colored one, with a matching, Japanese-style gate. Mangaris decking wood was also used to build up the front exterior wall by 18 inches, giving the front yard, pool, and entrance both a higher level of beauty and of privacy.
Léonce of Dame-Marie, Haiti
Léonce of Dame-Marie,Haiti: A True Free Man
Something from the ocean, something from the hills
By Marcel Duret
Co-author: Kettly Mars
It was four o’clock in the morning, pitch black, cool, and we were about one hour early. When our driver turned off the car’s engine, life seemed suspended to the songs of crickets and the spicy smell of mountain vegetation. It was an eerie moment for a city man like me who is intoxicated with artificial noise day and night. Léonce had promised as a farewell gift to end my three-day stay, that he would take me to “Planò” Hills, a few kilometers south of Dame-Marie, to see where the earth and sky become one. We waited in the darkness, using our cell phones when we needed light, talking and sharing the cassava, avocados and bananas that the generous old man had brought.
Minds and Machines
Minds and Machines
OUR lives depend too much on technology. The theory of Moore’s Law tells us that computing power will continue to double every two years, meaning that technology will become ever more accessible and affordable to people. A result of relying too much on technology is that people tend to live on autopilot with only a dull awareness of even the most special moments in their lives. Tuning out real human connections and experiences brings feelings of isolation, depression and other physical, emotional and psychological dysfunctions, even toxic self-criticism. It’s no wonder that Internet addiction is now considered a legitimate medical disorder.
Parenting with Lorraine
It's Not Fair
Parenting Oldest, Middle and Youngest Children
The challenge of communicating with and disciplining children is something all parents must address. It is important that parents be on the same page as their children, otherwise they could become confused. How we address children heavily depends on their age, their ability to understand language, and their order of birth.
Synopsis of Haitian Art
Synopsis of Art by Artists of Haitian Descent in the Diaspora - Part IV
One of Haiti’s greatest exports to the world is its beautiful art. To illustrate the four major trends of the Haitian diaspora, as outlined in previous issues of the Tokyo Journal, Haitian art experts Marcel Duret and Fred Thomas take a closer look at the works of specific artists.
Photographer Hiroyuki Suzuki
Photographer Hiroyuki Suzuki
Scenes Beyond our Imagination
A photograph enables us to permanently own the scenery or subject we see in the viewfinder by capturing what is right in front of us with a camera. Sometimes, it creates an unusual space beyond our imagination.
Of course, it is nothing more than coincidence when one encounters an exciting subject and a satisfactory shot is only possible when all the conditions are perfect. A photo shoot might be a journey to find a lucky coincidence.
Synopsis of Haitian Art
Synopsis of Art by Artists of Haitian Descent in the Diaspora –– Part III
By Marcel Duret and Fred Thomas
One of Haiti's greatest exports to the world is its beautiful art. To illustrate the four major trends of the Haitian diaspora as outlined in previous issues of the Tokyo Journal, Haitian art experts Marcel Duret and Fred Thomas cast a closer look on the works of selected artists.
Primitivism
Aside the naive genre, there is primitivism. This encompasses works by artists with formal training but who decide to paint naively and consequently produce works similar to the ones by artists such as Jean Michel Basquiat, Emile Nolde and Jean Dubuffet. Such artists are influenced by the primitive art of indigenous cultures as seen in African masks and artifacts of the so called uncivilized people of other continents. These artists strive to emulate the spontaneity, unsophistication and simplicity of primitive art. They focus mainly on the essential by discarding or neglecting all unnecessary details so that the imagination can be left to complete the work. Blondel Joseph’s paintings and some of Fred Thomas’ newest creations are perfect illustrations of such a tendency.
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