政策的。 接続しなさい。 同様に (Politic. Connect. Ditto)
Facebook has been embraced by the Japanese slower than a jar of molasses in the dead of winter (and here's why), but the company has a secret weapon under its sleeve that it doesn't even know about: English teachers. Mark Zuckerberg and company may not realize it, but English teachers throughout the country are spreading the Facebook gospel to anyone and everyone within earshot. We convince our Japanese friends and students who aren't registered with the service to get with the program and sign up, and once we do we teach them the fine art of tagging photos, updating status messages in English, and e-pimpin'. It's just one of the many ways we break down cultural boundaries and promote cross cultural communication within our communities.
It's been a long time coming, but two of my former students (and Mixi lovers), Daisukue and Ikue, finally got with the program and signed up for Facebook. One of Daisuke's first wall photos was the above pic he painted of me based off a photo MaryAnn took while we were shopping at Kadena's commissary. Sure, I look a lot shinier than usual, but all things considered the resemblance is quite striking and it captures my sunny disposition pretty well. Hopefully this means I'll get to catch up with the two of them soon over drinks, and they can remind me of how much my head looks like a takoyaki ball.
And if you ever had the urge to friend me on Facebook...