3 Ways To Make Yourself Feel Good

I have been living abroad for a long time now. In the past ten years, I have spent nine of them in Asia. As a Canadian who loves Canada a lot, that is a long time to be away from home. Why do I do it? Well, I am a teacher and I teach in Japan. I also have a family here.

When I was in my 20's and unmarried, I was quite a social butterfly. I would spend my nights and weekends hanging out with groups of other single expats living in Korea (lived there for a few years).

In 2012, I find myself in Japan with a family. I am also a runner. Running was something I truly started when I first came to Japan in 2008. After some time in Canada, getting my teaching certification, I let my self go physically. In Korea, I was a fun runner (short distances) and a gym rat. Once back in Canada, I became a student and pub aficionado. I gained a lot of weight.

When I came to Japan to teach in 2008, I told my wife I was going to run a marathon. It was on the "bucket list" so to speak. Months later, I achieved my goal. I ran the Osaka Yodogawa Marathon in 4 hours 44 minutes. It was slow, painful and amazing at the same time. I couldn't wait to do it again. I was hooked. I became a runner. Two years later, I ran the same race sub-4 hours. This year I hope to run it much faster than that!

Long story short....I was an expat runner in Japan.

If you have been living the life of an expat in any country that has a very different culture or language, for some time, you can become lonely. That definitely has been something I have had to deal with from time to time. You miss being able to understand all the conversations around you. You miss the culture, good and bad of your own country. You can become homesick.

I got into podcasts in a big way years ago. Canadian and American podcasts helped me feel a little grounded while living so far from home. They gave me the feeling of still being connected with my own culture in a way.

Once I became a runner I started to listen to some running podcasts. About a year ago I came across a running podcast that honestly, made me happy in so many ways.

I was listening to a show I had been subscribed to or a long time. Dirt Dawg's Running Diatribe is a great running podcast (a GREAT show) by a host named Mike living in Detroit, USA. He had mentioned a show called the "3 Non Joggers" a few times. Eventually I became curious and went home one morning after a run and subscribed to their show on iTunes.

I was immediately hooked. The 3 Non Joggers Podcast became not just my favorite running podcast, but my favorite podcast period.





Let me give you a rundown of why I LOVE the 3 Non Joggers podcast:


1. They talk about running and I am a runner.

2. They talk about running, but that is only about 30-50% of the show. The rest of the show is three hosts having INCREDIBLY funny banter!

3.  Russ McGarry...host extraordinaire. A former professional comedian, his delivery is witty, interesting and just damn awesome! He is also an ultra marathoner. He is awesomeness and a half!

4. Gary "the Vale" ... the "Rain Man" of running (referred to that by partners in crime on more than one occasion) is a dead-panned funny co-host sort of guy. He is a sub-3 hour marathoner and 100 mile ultra marathoner. This cat LOVES running and really knows his stuff about the topic.

5. Carl The Mailman ...the other host guy who is not a runner in any way. He is a mailman and funny as HELL! He has a wicked mouth and wicked wit as well! His intelligence shines and is only enhanced by his sharp sarcasm. Oh yeah...he's a creative documentary director as well. 

6. The three hosts have an amazing synergy (to use a cliched term from the tech word of the late 90's). Their off the cuff banter leaves me laughing....often in public where the Japanese people stare at me and judge me...judge me harshly.

7. This is a running podcast, but even people who don't run would probably like it. The back and forth between the hosts is enough to leave a smile on the crotchetiest (maybe not a real word) old fart's face!

8. This show got me through some pretty hard long runs while training for one ultra marathon and 2 regular marathons last year (All in order to raise money for tsunami relief here in Japan).

9. The episodes are so funny and fresh that I have been easily able to re-listen to them time and time again.

10. I have learned a lot about ultra running and have almost soiled myself in public on many occasions because the show is so funny!

ah yeah....

11. They like to drink! I like to drink. I am the kind of runner who loves an ice cold beer or three after a 30 km long run. They do too.....yum yum... (well..Carl don't run...or jog....but that's ok).






If you like running and have a sense of humor you should definitely subscribe to the 3 Non Joggers podcast on iTunes. At this point, they have 65 great episodes.


EVEN if you DON'T run...subscribe anyway. They have such a great rapport that you won't even care!

The 3 hosts of the show!

MOI, on my way to complete the first Osaka Marathon. I'm wearing a 3 Non Joggers technical shirt!

Find these cats on TWITTER here:
3 Non Joggers (Russ)
CarlTheMailman
GaryTheVale










Shameless plug for myself....REMEMBER...you can buy my new eBook "Teaching in Asia: Tales and the Real Deal" from Amazon...NOW....SO DO IT!!!!

Angry Foreigners in Korea and Japan

This afternoon I read an article on CNNgo called “12 Rules for Expat Life in Korea.” The link was sent to me by my friend in Tokyo, Hikosaemon, a long time resident of Japan and blogger, who was curious about my thoughts on the topic.

For those of you familiar with my blog, previous to coming to Japan, I lived in South Korea for more than five years.

I have to admit that the article did have a lot of truth to it, and was a bit of a laugh since I had experienced some of the things mentioned. I also have to admit that I found a slight feeling of tongue and cheek “bitterness” to it. That was also something I can relate to in a way.

I want to delve a little bit into the world of the “bitter foreigner.” An entire book probably wouldn’t be able to properly discuss this topic, but I’m going to scratch the surface a little in this post.

After my 5 plus years as a teacher in Korea, I left with a chip on my shoulder (I’m not proud to say that.). There were many reasons I left Korea with a less than positive feeling about the country in my mind. In the same way Korean people (or Japanese for that matter) feel negative feelings when they see a group of drunken English teachers acting like jackasses on a train late at night, I had too many run ins with ill-mannered, drunken old Korean guys. I had more than one employer short change me on pay and basically, should have just moved on a little sooner than I did.

There are many people who move to Asia with great expectations only to become jaded and angry. The reasons are varied and often there are many. Some people are screwed over by shady employers. Some are screwed over in the romance department (something that happens in every country and culture). Some don’t like the food. Some don’t like the cultural belief systems. Some are close-minded. Some have serious inferiority complexes and need someone to blame for their own issues or simply to look down upon. Some angry foreigners are people who simply should have never left their small little hometown in their native country.

During my first year in Korea, a period of time when I was simply in love with the culture and everything it had to offer, I had two young Canadian women in my Tae Kwon Do class. After only being in Korea for a month or two, they hated everything. They complained about the language, the smell of kimchi, the fact that they could not buy Kraft Peanut Butter (which I love btw) and anything else you can imagine. They were angry from day one! Those two ladies were a prime example of people who just aren’t cut out for life abroad. I’m sure that they would be angry in any other country that wasn’t Canada. To be honest, they probably wouldn’t be happy with life in Canada either!

Some foreigners get bitter about life in a place like Korea or Japan over time. They start off happy. They love everything about the place for a few years, but begin to grow cynical over time. They begin to spend more time bitching about the place they are in than simply living life. Often, groups of like-minded foreigners get together and spew negative energy (birds of a feather tend to flock together). Sadly, those sitting around them in various bars, coffee shops and restaurants (Korean and Japanese people) can often understand some of what they are saying. It simply paints a very negative image in the locals’ minds about foreigners and their opinions.

Often, once people form negative opinions about the place they now work and live, they share it. People tend to blog about it. The most negative people tend to scurry around in the comments sections of online newspapers and forums of major English teaching job sites. From time to time those angry people will draw the attention of local netizens, which leads to online flame wars.



Please don’t think that all expats living in Korea of Japan are negative. That is by no means the case. I suppose the reality is that the negative people tend to be the loudest. I was that way too, once upon a time. When you have a chip on your shoulder or are angry, you really want people to know about it. When you are content, you tend to just live life in a happy way. You may not feel the need to climb to the highest mountain and shout about it.

After a few years in Korea I became a pretty negative guy. Now I live in Japan. After a few years here, I am not a negative guy (unless I am sick for too long….that would happen anywhere). There are many reasons why I think things are different. I’m not going to compare and contrast the two countries and use that as a reason. I think there are some other very basic personal reasons why I am not a bitter foreigner.

1. When I lived in Korea I was a single guy. Now I am happily married to a wonderful woman and have a family. I have more important things to think about than bitching about insignificant aspects of life.

2. I am a “family man” in the true sense of the term. I rush home every night after work to have dinner with my wife, play with my son, give him a bath and help put him to bed. I no longer spend my free time in pubs and bars complaining about stuff with fellow foreigners.

3. I run marathons (literally). My hobby of long distance running means that I spend a lot of my free time running and focusing on running goals. Those are all positive things. Running brings joy to my life. I didn’t really run in Korea. I wish I did. I probably would have been a happier expat!

4. My job. Although not perfect (is there such a thing?), my job challenges my skill set as an educator. My jobs in Korea didn’t. Simply put, I am busier and more challenged.

5. My wife is Japanese (and I live in Japan) and she helps me a lot with the day-to-day life things that I wasn’t able to do by myself when I lived in Korea. (i.e. filling out tax forms, ordering things online).

6. I spend more time with local people (Japanese) than foreigners. I’m not one of these “I’m better than other foreigners cause I hang out with Japanese people all the time idiots! Not at all). I sort of wish I had more foreign amigos. I just tend to spend more time with my wife, her family and friends. I also have a neighbor who is a runner.

7. Charity work. For the first time in my life, I started doing some serious charity work. I have combined my hobbies of running and blogging to create the Running to Help Japan project. I am training hard to raise money for Save the Children Japan and their earthquake/tsunami relief efforts.

8. I have no time to be bitter. After reading 1 though 7, you can see that I’m pretty busy! I don’t have time to be negative.


Not all people who come to Korea or Japan become negative. Some do however. Those negative people can be pretty nasty to be around. They are the ultimate buzz killers. My suggestion, if you are around them, change company. Hang out with people who are more positive. Hang out with more local people (indigenous persons). Maybe you can find some positive hobbies. Start video blogging, playing some sort of sport. Cooking and art classes are always a great thing to do and they are easy to arrange. I’ve met people who have learned to play instruments or even get their masters degree in their free time while living in Korea and Japan.

Sometimes it can be hard to live and work so far away from your home. At times it can feel like and adventure and at times it can be a true test of one’s patience. You can make it a positive expeience though. Sometimes the positives come easy, but other times, you just have to work a little harder!


You can follow this "Non-Angry" foreigner on Twitter: @jlandkev

Is the Expat Life a Lonely One?

Today was a great day. Although I have a cold, as do my wife and son, I felt great in other ways. I heard some great news with regards to work this week and am looking forward to a much happier year than last!

I was also happy because of a very touching blog post written by a dear friend who lives in Canada. My friend Lonnie wrote about a group of friends who were thicker than thieves back in the mid 1990’s.

There were a group of us who in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada who were as tight as any group of amigos could ever be. We based ourselves out of a local 24-hour coffee shop and shared more wonderful moments than one could count. Lonnie wrote about our group of wonderful friends and also of our team member who was so suddenly and tragically taken away from us at the young age of twenty-four years. I actually cried when I read his post.

Lonnie’s post got me thinking about friendship. Friendship is something we value so much and I think has been harder for me to find over my many years of life abroad. Correction! No, it hasn’t been hard to find. Good friends have been easy to find in my almost nine years of living outside of Canada. The difficult part is holding on to those friends in an expat world that sees people come and people go.

I lived in South Korea for more than five years and a now approaching three years here in Japan. I can’t speak for other countries, but I’ll at least share my experiences and feelings about living in these two places.

During my years in Korea, the expat community seemed to be fairly close. I first lived in a small suburb of Seoul and there weren’t many foreigners there at all. The few of us that spent time together really enjoyed our experiences in a new country. I think I was drawn closer to these people than friends I had back in Canada because of the fact that we were something familiar and comfortable in a foreign land. For two years that I lived in Ilsan (the city outside of Seoul), I had some amazing friends, but then I moved into Seoul.


With some amazing friends hanging out in Ilsan, Korea (2002)


While in Seoul, I met another amazing group of guys who were my coworkers at a large school called Pagoda. They were guys from Canada, New Zealand, Australia and the United States. We worked together, drank together, played together and sometimes got into fights together! These guys would have done anything for me and vice versa. I loaned them large amounts of money and they did for me as well. We had each other’s backs in bars fights when rowdy American soldiers wanted to tussle with English teachers and we simply enjoyed quiet nights of watching DVDs together. They were amazing friends. Then I left Seoul. Eventually they all moved away as well.


My amazing group of coworkers and friends I had while living in downtown Seoul in 2004.


I then made my way to Busan, the southern port city in South Korea. I loved Busan. It was far more laid back than Seoul and the people seemed a little more foreigner friendly.

While in Busan I met another great group of people. I lived in a neighborhood in Haeundae called Jangsan that was riddled with foreigners. I loved it there. I even met my wife there. I became involved in music again for the first time since I was spending time with Lonnie and my friends back in that Cape Breton coffee shop. I was playing in bands, open mikes and generally enjoying life. I had a few amazing friends who, again, I will never forget. Then, as normally happens, we all left Korea. We left at different times, but we all left and went our ways. Friends I will never forget but had to say good-bye to.


My great friend Tom just after we ran the Terry Fox Run in Busan, Korea in 2007.


Life abroad, or at least the life I have led abroad is very different than if I had stayed in Canada. If I had stayed in Canada and settled, I would see the same people and have the same neighbors for years and years. I would work with the same people, see the same folks at the same hangouts. I would probably have friends that I would always see on a regular basis.

That simply hasn’t been the case for me as an expat. Most people don’t move to Asia for the rest of their lives. Most people come here for one year. Some even stay for two or three, but long-term folks aren’t so common. I have met many more here in Japan than in Korea, but nonetheless, Asia is a very fluid place where people come and go. Friendships are like that as well in my experience. Friends come and friends go. Eventually you sort of get used to it and harden yourself to the reality, but every once in awhile, it can weigh upon you and make you feel a little sad.

I’ve made so many wonderful and life long friends during my time in Asia. Luckily, with social media, I can keep in contact with these folks, but chatting on Twitter of Facebook isn’t as satisfying as stopping by their house for a Saturday afternoon BBQ. It’s not as fun as meeting at the pub for a beer or coffee shop for a latte.

Now of course, this may not be the experience for everyone who decides to make their way to Asia, but it has been for me, and many others I know.

Don’t get me wrong; life in Japan is wonderful. I really do like it here. The culture, history, food and people are great. Sometimes though, I feel a little lonely. I have an amazing and compassionate wife, a beautiful and silly son and a loving family back in Canada. I have friends here in Japan as well, but I often feel like something is missing.

I suppose this all comes back to my friend Lonnie’s post. His post got me thinking about those wonderful friends I had back in Cape Breton (who have all moved on to other parts of Canada). It then got me thinking about all the wonderful friends I have met and then had to say goodbye to during my many years in Korea and Japan.

The expat life is one filled with adventure and often the mundane. It is colorful and interesting. It is always blog and vlog-worthy as well as challenging. It can also at times be a little lonely (At least in my opinion).


You can follow me on Twitter: @jlandkev

Also, check out my friend Lonnie’s blog.

Day 1...in Kobe...the blog begins!

What's it like to be a Canadian living in Japan? What's it like to live in the cool city of Kobe? What's it like to balance my family life, career and passion for marathon running? These are some questions I may answer throughout the weeks and months I add to this blog space.

I'm a professional teacher (both in Canada and Japan), an avid runner, and someone who is loving life here in Japan. I've been here for almost 7 months have have now decided to write about my experiences.

For the last 2 years I have been an avid YouTuber and under the handle "BusanKevin" have created more than 130 videos about my life in South Korea, Canada and now Japan. I'll show some of those videos from time to time as well as talk about life here in what I think is one of Japan's coolest little cities...Kobe.

I also plan to write about my love of running. Little blurbs about my daily training and races I'm getting ready for.