Todd is a novelist, essayist, academician, songwriter, web designer, teacher, lecturer, former DJ, past basketball coach, son, brother, husband, father, and friend. Sired in Pasadena, California, with time spent in Paris, France; educated in Syracuse, New York, now educating in Sendai, Japan, Todd is a person of multiple identities: an intellectual gypsy with cross-national links and a transnational perspective. Todd holds a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Social Science and is currently Professor of Mediated Sociology in the Graduate School of International Cultural Studies (GSICS) at Tohoku University, in Sendai, Japan.
For analyses of Japanese popular culture by tjm Holden, see archived issues of his column, ReDotPop: Mediations of Japan; and for adventures in the journey of life, see his PopMatters’ travel blog: Peripatetic Postcards.
Columns
Sunday, March 29 2009
When Can We Be Friends?
When it comes to sports, while we may be swimming in the cool pool of popular culture, if those sports happen to pit South Korea against Japan, then we have strayed into the searing hot tub of politics.
Tuesday, February 17 2009
Jero: Oh Yes, He Can
How a young 'half-breed' is reviving a very old, traditional, insular, often ridiculed form of Japanese music.
Thursday, November 6 2008
In a Groove, in a Grove
Even in the dead of summer when a cacophony of cicadas clinging to the limbs assail the ears, the visitor caught in the grove cannot help but be sucked into the mystical vortex.
Friday, June 6 2008
When Bathing Suits None and All
In the ReDot realm, while no bathing suits are allowed for any at bath-time, bathing suits one and all.
Friday, February 1 2008
Creating Japan: The Truth About the Myth
Separated lovers, a hero, a villain, creepy surrogates, immortal power, the wrath of the gods, a perilous journey to hell and back, a breakneck chase, daring escapes, fortune, and an ending that will make you cry yourself to sleep.
High Moon: The Japanese Western [4.Oct.07]
You Are Where You Eat [7.Jun.07]
Fishing for Deep Dot Pearls [1.Feb.07]
The Saga of Sagi Society [29.Sep.06]
ReDotFlow: J-Pop That Would Hit Anywhere [13.Apr.05]
ReDotFlow: J-Pop That Would Hit Anywhere [13.Apr.05]
ReDotFlow: J-Pop That Would Hit Anywhere [13.Apr.05]
ReDotBlueDotPop: At Home, Away [29.Sep.04]
Can Pop Last Forever? [31.Mar.04]
WhiteDotPop [28.Jan.04]
DeaDotPop? [19.Nov.03]
DeaDotPop? [24.Sep.03]
SMAP: The Story of Everything [20.Aug.03]
Spy-day Night at the Fights [28.May.03]
The Great Wave [5.Feb.03]
The Noble Sarariman [6.Nov.02]
The Schizophrenic Collide-a-Scope [4.Sep.02]
In the Main It's More Than the Mane [10.Jul.02]
Aware of What They Wear? [23.Apr.02]
Consolidating Culture [13.Feb.02]
Mediations of Japan: Ashita ga aru sa [25.Sep.01]
Mediations of Japan: Japan's Beat Generation [19.Apr.01]
Mediations of Japan: The O-N Series [8.Jan.01]
Mediations of Japan: Ranma [5.Jul.00]
Mediations of Japan: Food [13.May.00]
Sumo [5.Apr.00]
Blogs
Friday, March 18 2011
I Survived a Japanese Earthquake (Tribute to Tohoku)
Life after the quake and tsunami in Tohoku is not easy at all. Cut off from them, as I am now, with no working phone service and much of the Internet down, I can only pray for the people I left behind on that day.
Tuesday, June 29 2010
FOC: Singapore
I found myself beginning to wonder where else in my Asian neighborhood I might better have visited, because suddenly Singapore obviously belonged amidst that Business Week top hundred.
Facebook Peripatacity (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Apr.10]
Strange Meetings (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.Apr.10]
Miniature Disasters (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Mar.10]
Dontosai (Peripatetic Postcards) [27.Mar.10]
Singapore's Up, in the Air (Peripatetic Postcards) [5.Mar.10]
Any Super Commercials? (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Feb.10]
Super Bowl Predictions (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Feb.10]
Which Who What? (Peripatetic Postcards) [24.Jan.10]
Seoul-less? (Peripatetic Postcards) [11.Dec.09]
Traveling with Turkey (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Nov.09]
Cool in Korea, Part II (Peripatetic Postcards) [19.Nov.09]
Cool in Korea, Part I (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.Nov.09]
Walking on Water (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Nov.09]
Original Sin (Peripatetic Postcards) [12.Nov.09]
What's Hot in Korea (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Nov.09]
From South Korea, sans Seoul (Peripatetic Postcards) [2.Nov.09]
U2 on YouTube (Peripatetic Postcards) [25.Oct.09]
Take Pelham 1, less 2, thee (Peripatetic Postcards) [21.Jul.09]
Euclid's Chi-Town (Peripatetic Postcards) [15.Jul.09]
Seeing is Believing (they say) (Peripatetic Postcards) [12.Jul.09]
If I Could Get Away, I'd Go to . . . (Peripatetic Postcards) [2.Jul.09]
Going Inswine (Peripatetic Postcards) [7.Jun.09]
Catch-22, Blog Style (Peripatetic Postcards) [4.Apr.09]
Figuring Out the Figures (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Mar.09]
The WBC as Young Frankenstein (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Mar.09]
Pre-Pop Presidents (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Feb.09]
Super Bowl Wrap: The PETA Ad (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.Feb.09]
Super Bowl Wrap: The Ads, Part I (Peripatetic Postcards) [2.Feb.09]
PopBlogging the Super Bowl, II (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Feb.09]
Pre-PopBlogging the Super Bowl: The Boss's Play-list (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Feb.09]
PopBlogging the Super Bowl, I (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Jan.09]
Fear: Beyond Routine (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Jan.09]
Driven Senseless (Peripatetic Postcards) [24.Jan.09]
Will that be an Aisle or Window Seat, Sir? (Peripatetic Postcards) [22.Jan.09]
The Peripatetic Vote (Peripatetic Postcards) [4.Nov.08]
Wittgenstein, Semiotics, Proposition 8 (Peripatetic Postcards) [25.Oct.08]
Mainstreamed Vulgarisms (Peripatetic Postcards) [17.Oct.08]
PopBlogging the Debate (Peripatetic Postcards) [15.Oct.08]
Cool Hand Paul (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Sep.08]
Life Stranger than Fiction: The Palin phenomenon (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Sep.08]
North by Southwest (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Aug.08]
The End of the Road (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Aug.08]
Beijing (Capital Airport) 2008 (Peripatetic Postcards) [9.Aug.08]
Serendipity (all over again) (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.Aug.08]
Round, Round, Get-Around (I . . . ) (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Jul.08]
Ostermalmstorg: Peace (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Jul.08]
Yeah, Team (Peripatetic Postcards) [22.Jul.08]
Scenes on the way to Stockholm (or . . . all light, all night) (Peripatetic Postcards) [20.Jul.08]
Travel Light (Peripatetic Postcards) [17.Jul.08]
From Here to K-9 Come (Peripatetic Postcards) [7.Jul.08]
In that sushi-ya, on that Saturday night, in Meguro (Tokyo) (Peripatetic Postcards) [23.Jun.08]
Events: Structured and Spontaneous (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Jun.08]
Time, Place, Opportunity, Lifestyle (Peripatetic Postcards) [11.Jun.08]
Whatever Gets You Through... (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.May.08]
Coolest Song Standing (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.May.08]
Weathering Media Events (Peripatetic Postcards) [12.May.08]
You're In! (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Apr.08]
Reality. Now What? (Peripatetic Postcards) [15.Apr.08]
Back from the Dead (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Apr.08]
Black Magic? Once! (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Mar.08]
Pine Coast (Peripatetic Postcards) [27.Feb.08]
Blog, After All: PCH pics and bits (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.Feb.08]
Buellton Bulletin (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Feb.08]
Ventura Highway (Peripatetic Postcards) [13.Feb.08]
Super (Competitive) Society (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Feb.08]
Travel, the Write Way (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Feb.08]
I am Legend (Part 2) (Peripatetic Postcards) [29.Dec.07]
I am Legend (Part 1) (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Dec.07]
Squeegee Man with Stump (Somebody's Baby) (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Dec.07]
Picture (this), without Words (Peripatetic Postcards) [4.Dec.07]
Drive, Talk: Listen (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Nov.07]
Being Thankful (or . . . Have Yourself a Merry Little Turkey Day!) (Peripatetic Postcards) [22.Nov.07]
Protest-a-float (Peripatetic Postcards) [20.Nov.07]
Comp 24-7 (Peripatetic Postcards) [11.Nov.07]
War is Peace (and other nefarious syllogisms) (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Nov.07]
Fill in the Blank (Peripatetic Postcards) [5.Nov.07]
The Devil Made Me Do It (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Nov.07]
Here-a-Haunting (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Oct.07]
The Terrorist's Tune (Peripatetic Postcards) [23.Oct.07]
All Things Must Pass (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.Oct.07]
Every Picture Tells A Story (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Oct.07]
So . . . what do you do? (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Sep.07]
On the Bus (Peripatetic Postcards) [27.Sep.07]
I Wonder as I Wander (Peripatetic Postcards) [23.Sep.07]
15 Seconds (or notes on the Post-Warholian World) (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.Sep.07]
My Old School (Peripatetic Postcards) [13.Sep.07]
Suffern Succotash (Peripatetic Postcards) [9.Sep.07]
Yellow Hack Lost (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Sep.07]
Coup-ons (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Aug.07]
Nyu- Yawkahs (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Aug.07]
Life, Like That (Peripatetic Postcards) [24.Aug.07]
Go Ask the Globe (Peripatetic Postcards) [17.Aug.07]
P-o-V (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Aug.07]
I Know It When I See It (Peripatetic Postcards) [10.Aug.07]
Parisian De-sign (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Aug.07]
Long Live Light (Peripatetic Postcards) [2.Aug.07]
Eco-Cyclic (Peripatetic Postcards) [31.Jul.07]
Iconic Eye-full (Peripatetic Postcards) [29.Jul.07]
Huis Clos (Peripatetic Postcards) [28.Jul.07]
Re/Connaissance (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Jul.07]
Paris! Is . . . (Peripatetic Postcards) [23.Jul.07]
Privileging Life (Peripatetic Postcards) [20.Jul.07]
Virtual Pre-visitation (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Jul.07]
Tunnel Vision (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Jul.07]
Bunny Country (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.Jul.07]
Guitar Rex (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Jun.07]
Simulacra: The New Old in place of the Same Old (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Jun.07]
Buddy, Can You Spare a . . . Metaphor? (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.Jun.07]
Baby Dropping (or: the land of any child left behind) (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.Jun.07]
Song Swapping (Peripatetic Postcards) [27.May.07]
The Tipping Point (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.May.07]
Babel Babble (Peripatetic Postcards) [21.May.07]
Socially Correct Clues (Peripatetic Postcards) [3.May.07]
Land of Sakura, sans Shinkansen (Peripatetic Postcards) [2.May.07]
Golden Time (Peripatetic Postcards) [1.May.07]
When Does Art Mean? (Peripatetic Postcards) [6.Apr.07]
On Breasts and Public Behavior (Peripatetic Postcards) [30.Mar.07]
Vigeland's Vision (Peripatetic Postcards) [29.Mar.07]
Things Least Expected (Peripatetic Postcards) [21.Mar.07]
Making More of Munch (Peripatetic Postcards) [19.Mar.07]
Making the Rounds at the Munch (Peripatetic Postcards) [18.Mar.07]
Inside the In-Between (Peripatetic Postcards) [17.Mar.07]
Going Against Expectations (Peripatetic Postcards) [16.Mar.07]
Long Day's Journey into Oslo (Peripatetic Postcards) [15.Mar.07]
The Man in the Station (Peripatetic Postcards) [14.Mar.07]
Train Tidbits, Tokyo (Peripatetic Postcards) [12.Mar.07]
On Starbucks and Recurrence (Peripatetic Postcards) [11.Mar.07]
Just Another Band . . . (Peripatetic Postcards) [9.Mar.07]
Radical Departures (Peripatetic Postcards) [8.Mar.07]
Does Anyone Read KVJ Anymore? (Peripatetic Postcards) [26.Feb.07]
Living in Metaphors (Peripatetic Postcards) [23.Feb.07]
