TUJ Times Online

Meet the newest addition to our lineup of TUJ-branded goods: a 5-centimeter-tall manekineko (beckoning cat). Sitting with one paw upraised-the customary Japanese gesture used to call someone over-these felines are thought to attract fortune and business success. There's a bonus, too, in the form of an omikuji (paper fortune) inside the cat.

TUJ's manekineko are now on sale for 850 yen. You can find them at the Information Center (first floor of Azabu Hall), which is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays.

Several TUJ art students and faculty members are holding exhibitions during the winter season.

TUJ faculty members Kaoru Sakurai & M. J. Song - "Cranbrook in Japan 2008" group exhibition

Dates & Time

Through Tuesday, December 23, 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Place

Living Design Center Ozone in Shinjuku (Access)

TUJ student Christine Suzuki - solo exhibition

Dates

Saturday, December 20 through Thursday, December 25

Opening
Reception

Sunday, December 21, 6 to 8 p.m.

Opening

Box Island Gallery in Ebisu (Access)

TUJ faculty member Shinya Watanabe (aka shin-ya b.) is performing at an event called U.V. in Kyoto. Please click here for more information.

Date & Time

Sunday, December 28, 5 to 11 p.m.

Opening

Kyoto Seika Art University Gallery (Access)

TUJ student Mariko Kawashima - solo exhibition

Dates

Tuesday, February 3 through Sunday,
February 8

Place

Le Decco in Shibuya (Access)

Alumni and faculty mingle to the sounds of jazz vet Mike Price and his quartet


Sampling the cuisine of chef Paul Bocuse

If you weren't at the National Art Center's Brasserie Paul Bocuse Le Musée restaurant on November 15 for the 2008 reunion, you missed one fantastic night. People came from all over Japan, and we doubled last year's attendance. The night's highlights included gourmet food and an open bar, invigorating jazz from the Mike Price Quartet, and the unveiling of Red Owl Ale, created especially for TUJ by the Baird Brewing Company. We gave away great prizes, too, including dinner and a night at the Miyako Hotel. HOOT!

We hope to see you at our next monthly mixer or history-making affair. Check the website (http://www.tuj-aa.org/) for details on upcoming events as well as discount coupons for food and entertainment.

TUJ Chorus members (from left to right, standing) James Gaspard, Remi Bauer, Kiei Ogata, Tomoko Hasegawa, Emi Nishimura, Haruka Nomura, with Prof. Horton; (kneeling left to right) Tina Brunner, Suna Kim, Danielle Joh. Not pictured: Maiko Luckow

The TUJ Chorus produced some powerful harmonies on October 25 at Azabu Kumin Center during a performance that was part of the two-day Azabu Juban Festival. Under the direction of Professor Leonard Horton, the 12-member group (including a pianist) sang nine songs, including Peter, Paul and Mary's "Gone the Rainbow," the spiritual "Little Innocent Lamb," Benjamin Britten's "Country Girls," and "Sora wa maru de," which featured a solo by James Gaspard. The group's performance helped reinforce TUJ's ties to the Minato community, and Minato City's citizens clearly enjoyed the music.

The Fall 2008 Career Fair on October 29 attracted nearly a dozen companies from various industries, including finance, consulting, hospitality, trading, fashion, retail, IT, accounting and recruiting. Reps from firms such as AXA Life Insurance and KPMG expressed strong interest in the diverse specialties, bilingual skills and positive attitude TUJ students possess. The students made the most of this chance to meet high-profile companies and explore possibilities in other industries.

TUJ'S Career Development Office, which puts on this event, will be conducting individual seminars during the spring 2009 semester, giving companies about an hour each to meet students. We welcome inquiries from TUJ alumni looking to hire new graduates about participating in this new event as well.