What do you usually do before you go to bed? Googling a video of spinning Pomeranians on the smartphone is my routine. I am utterly aware of the negative impact of staring at an electronic screen on the quality of my sleep, but I cannot help it. A random Pomeranian spinning in circles makes me so happy I feel like I can fall asleep in a better mood. I wish I could live with one, but unfortunately, pets are not allowed in my apartment building.

Pomeranians are so fluffy and adorable I could watch them spinning all day, not that I do. Do they not get dizzy? Do they like the dizziness? When they spin, they look happy and excited, but have you ever wondered why they spin in circles? A friend of mine, who is a veterinarian and a Pomeranian owner, gave me some answers.

Here are some possible reasons why Pomeranians spin in circles: Pomeranians are happy and excited to see you. Spinning in circles is one of the ways for Pomeranians to show their affection. Pomeranians are said to be lapdogs and want to be with their companions, therefore, they also spin in circles to get your attention. In addition, Pomeranians engage in this activity for the joy and pleasure that spinning brings. Human toddlers also enjoy the experience of spinning in circles. It is not unusual to see them keep spinning in circles for a long time. However, Pomeranians can be alert when they spin as well. They are checking their surroundings before they become vulnerable. For example, they spin before going to sleep and potty. They make sure that no predators are around or close. Finally, if you have a Pomeranian, there is one thing that you might want to keep in mind. Pomeranians spinning in circles can be a sign of their discomfort or issues. They might be suffering from a compulsive disorder. In this case, their spinning is like a human child biting their nails or other animals pacing repetitively from stress. Please do not worry too much because they are likely to show more signs such as twitching and a loss of appetite if they are sick.

I guess I was not wrong about Pomeranians looking happy and excited when they spin in circles, but I did not know the same behavior can mean other things. Whatever the reasons why they spin, fluff spinning in circles helps me ease my tension and fatigue before bed.

Photo Credit: Kateryna Babaieva from pexels.com

Blog Quiz

Q1. What is “fluff” in the title?

Q2. Does the author watch videos of Pomeranians spinning in circles all day?

Q3. Why do Pomeranians spin in circles?

Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

Quiz Answers

A1. A Pomeranian.

A2. No.

A3. Because they are happy and excited; they enjoy the feeling of spinning; they also check their surroundings by spinning; they might be sick.

When I tell people that I came from California, various famous locations frequently come to their minds. Of course, you’ve probably heard of Silicon Valley being the innovation heartland of the world and about the beaches around Los Angeles where surfers gather. Maybe you’ve also gotten the chance to visit Yosemite National park and appreciate its beauty. But I can guarantee that you’ve never heard of my small hometown of Auburn, located 20 minutes east by car from the state capital Sacramento.

Truthfully, Auburn is not a town that I recommend going to, and yet it has provided me with the inspiration to be curious about the international world. For Americans who never want to experience culture shock in their lives, Auburn is the perfect little town for them. Its population is just over 14,000 residents, which is shockingly small compared to cities like San Francisco. Its diversity is also minimal with similar like-minded Americans who have almost no contact with the international community. Every time you go to the grocery store, you are guaranteed to run into at least one person you know. Growing up in this environment makes one believe that the world is small.

Fortunately, I received my first cross-cultural experience upon graduating from high school and entering university. My college’s student demographic was significantly diverse, and it felt like I was thrown into a whole new world. It was almost like experiencing culture shock within my own country. Additionally, my professors taught me that the world is quite vast, with many perspectives and interesting people and places. I quickly understood that I wanted to pursue international knowledge as my life passion. Eventually, this led me down the road to studying Japanese and finally moving to Japan six years ago.

Looking back at my experiences, I can honestly say that Auburn helped me understand my path and what I wanted out of life. But instead of providing me with the foundation for cross-cultural knowledge, it deprived me of what I truly wanted. And once that barrier was lifted, there was no chance of me ever going back. Therefore, without this background, I would not have been motivated to seek the unforgettable experiences that have come from me pursuing an international career.

Photo Credit: Kampusproduction@pixels.com

Blog Quiz

Question 1: What is the author’s hometown? 

Question 2: Why did the author move to Japan? 

Question 3: How did the author’s hometown create the opportunity for a global life? 

Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

Quiz Answers

Answer 1: The author’s hometown is Auburn, California. 

Answer 2: The author experienced diversity in university and learned that there are many perspectives and people to meet in the world. 

Answer 3: Growing up in Auburn deprived the author of cross-cultural knowledge and experiences. The author discovered this after entering university. 

Would you like to be able to write faster and more freely in a language you are learning and perhaps in your native language too? Students have often told me that they find writing to be a slow and tedious process, mainly because they worry so much about spelling and grammar rather than just getting their message across on paper. Today, therefore, I would like to introduce the concept of freewriting, an easy writing activity that can be done at home and can make writing practice fun.

So … what exactly is freewriting? Basically, it involves grabbing a piece of paper and a pen, setting a time limit, choosing a topic of interest to you, and then writing as quickly as possible without stopping and without worrying about spelling or grammar. Let’s go through the steps one by one.

First, after securing some paper and a writing tool, you will need to set a time limit. Most people I know who practice freewriting set a limit of 10 minutes, although some people write for 15 or 20 minutes. Next, you will need to choose a topic. Many people just choose to write about whatever is in their head at that moment: recent experiences in their lives or specific interests such as sports, books, movies, or music. However, my favorite way to practice freewriting is to link it with video material. This means watching an enjoyable YouTube, movie, or TV program and then writing about it. Whatever topic you choose, freewriting is a good way to get facts, memories, and personal feelings down on paper. Last, take a minute of silence to think about what points you would like to write about and then start the timer and write, write, write very fast, without stopping. Just enjoy the process of getting words down on paper rather than on style or grammar. If you always write in the same notebook, it will act as a kind of a personal journal, and you will be able to see your progress.

Freewriting on a regular basis can help to promote writing speed, fluency, creativity, organizational skills, confidence, and overall enjoyment of writing. Although freewriters are not meant to worry about grammar, most of my students find that it naturally improves after several weeks. You can hasten this improvement by, for example, consciously practicing verb tense by writing about a past event one day and a future event another day. You can also focus on new vocabulary by making a short list of perhaps five words that you would like to use that day while writing.    

If you can spare 10 or 15 minutes each day, I highly recommend picking up a pen and trying some freewriting fun!

Photo Credit: Lisa Fotios @pexels.com

Blog Quiz

Q1. According to the article, which of the following should students do when they practice freewriting?

a.    Stop writing and check how to spell a word

b.    Write quickly about a topic

c.    Spend at least one hour per day writing

Q2. What are the author’s preferred topics for freewriting?

a.    Television programs and films

b.    Books and comics

c.    News articles and podcasts

Q3. According to the article, what is one benefit of freewriting?

a.    Planning future tasks

b.    Improving test scores

c.    Gaining confidence

Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

Quiz Answers

Q1. B

Q2. A

Q3. C

Due to the stay-at-home period, I experienced a radical change in my lifestyle. I worked at home, ate at home, engaged in some physical exercise at home, and only ventured out to buy some essential things at the nearest supermarket. It was stressful, but it did encourage me to think about my lifestyle, particularly my diet. Thankfully, the supermarkets and grocery stores did not close, and supplied food as usual. Although some items were out of stock, they were not crucial for survival.

I gained weight because I stopped walking to the university. I did not change the portion sizes of my meals, so weight gain was a reasonable consequence. I did do a little exercise, but the amount was obviously insufficient to allow me to consume extra calories! I sought ways to make my lifestyle healthier, and dieting was an appropriate choice at the time.

I learned to eat ‘brown foods.’ In Japan, brown foods refer to fried or baked foods, which are not usually considered to be healthy. However, the brown foods I am referring to are foods that are brown in colour, such as nuts and whole-wheat bread, and those containing fibre and minerals. 

First, I tried to eat okara, which is a by-product of tofu production. It is cheap, and does not affect the flavour of foods; I put raw okara into soups and cooked it with rice. The texture of the dish was a little gluey, but it is easy to add okara when cooking at home. You can add it to the meat used to make hamburgers, curries or white stew. 

Although brown rice is chewy and does not taste as good as white rice, it does contain a lot of fibre and vitamins. White rice is produced by removing the outer husk of brown rice; white rice is tasty and has a pleasant texture, but it is less nutritious than brown rice. I had trials and errors when attempting to cook brown rice and found that the best way to cook it was with some white rice. Now I am a fan of brown rice. You should soak the brown rice at least 6 hours before you cook it with an auto-rice cooker. 

I cannot neglect to mention a particularly nutritious Japanese food, which is natto. As is well known, natto is dark brown in colour and has a strong, fermented flavour, which sometimes causes people to avoid it. It was not previously popular in the Kansai region but, as people have come to understand its nutritional value, can now be purchased at local supermarkets and convenience stores. It contains fibre and vitamins and a significant amount of protein. 

There are other types of healthy diets across the world, including the renowned Mediterranean diet, which is eaten in countries around the Mediterranean Sea, and Chinese medical cooking. Eating is an enjoyable experience that is linked directly to health. Thus, I hope you will consider eating a healthy diet!

Photo Credit: Polina Tankilevitch @pexels.com

Blog Quiz

Q1. What is a problem of the author during the stay-at-home period?

Q2. What are brown foods introduced in the article?

Q3. What is a common ingredient of okara and natto?

Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

Quiz Answers

Q1. Gaining weight

Q2. Okara, brown rice and natto

Q3. Soy beans

As we all know, moving our lives online can be burdensome on our mental and physical health. Many of us have gained weight or heard our friends complain about gaining weight. With the ease of food at home and the lack of gyms to attend, our bodies are taking the full force of this new lifestyle.

While there are different ways to keep the weight off, most share two common themes, move! Whether you move your body through exercise or move your body in the kitchen, two key ways to succeed in living a healthy physical life at home are through movement.

Try to exercise! Exercising at home can be seen as troublesome. There is not a lot of space and no equipment. There are plenty of workout videos online that can help you exercise at home using different types of exercises. Many of these videos do not require any equipment, and they make you feel like you worked hard at the end. Taking advantage of the weather with a long walk or a good distance bicycle ride is also a good option. Furthermore, stand up from your computer and do some stretching. This will help loosen up your body and get your blood flowing.

Have you ever heard the saying “Abs are made in the kitchen”? To get a healthy body, the foods you eat are essential. Eating a balanced diet is vital to keeping the weight off. Get into the kitchen in the morning, get a light breakfast, plan for lunch, and eat a hearty dinner. 

At the beginning of all of this, I was worried about food and my health. However, through online classes, keeping a healthy schedule, eating well, and exercising, I have been able to get into the best shape I have been in a long time by working on these two areas of my physical lifestyle. You will not only look better, but you will also feel better too! These effects may even carry over into your academic life. 

Have the energy to get through the day at your computer in a healthy way!

Photo Credit: Roman Pohorecki@pexels.com

Blog Quiz

Q1. What are some problems with exercising at home?

Q2. When the weather is nice, what are two types of exercise mentioned?

Q3. What kind of diet should you eat?

Scroll down ↓ for the answers to the quiz.

Quiz Answers

Q1. There is not a lot of space and no equipment.

Q2. Walking and riding a bicycle are mentioned.

Q3. You should eat a balanced diet.