About

I am a U.S. raised sansei, first son of Kibei-nisei parents (Tsugu and Kazuko [maiden name Tanji]) whose ancestry is from Fukushima-ken. I have an older sister and younger brother. Both parents grew up in the old historic Shinobu-gun area, now part of the city of Fukushima. Dad was born in California early in the Taisho era; mom was born in California early in the Showa era. It still is an unfulfilled dream of mine to visit Japan, especially the region where my relatives came from.

My fluency is not very high; I can read and write through the end of third grade level Japanese, though that level of fluency doesn't suffice for a newspaper. As such, fluency in standard Japanese seems to lag behind what I have heard in dialect at home.