Steve Sundberg
Updated 12/2006
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Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu! Repeat after me: Change is inevitable. Change is good. ... and I am not talking about that loose coinage in your pocket or purse, either. For me, 2006 marked a year of major changes in my life. It was the Year of the Divorce, the Year of Living Single, the Year of Job Change (or, rather, Job Addition), and the Year of Creative Regeneration. Gerrie and I separated in January after 13 years of marriage (her mid-life crisis; not mine), and our divorce was finalized in November. I thus have reentered the ranks of bachelorhood in the age of Internet dating -- which can either be a good or bad thing depending upon who you meet ... or who wants to meet you LOL. In 2006, I also added "Commercial Traffic Assistant," a desk job, to my resume after joining WUCW-TV in that capacity in May ... while still working as a Staff Announcer at WLTE-FM and continuing my free-lance work as a web site producer. Among the web work I completed this year was Mirja Hanson's ('74) new site launched upon publication of her book "Clues to Achieving Consensus: A Leader's Guide to Navigating Collaborative Problem Solving" (www.mirjaphanson.com). To top it all off, I'm once again making an attempt to complete my long-dormant novel set in Occupation-era Japan. I also continue to grow my collection of vintage Japanese postcards. This latter "distraction" has proven fruitful and fulfilling in 2006. Material from my OldTokyo web site (www.oldtokyo.com) was published in an issue of the Journal of the Royal Academy of Engineers; OldTokyo has been cited, too, in several Japan-related articles hosted by the Internet encyclopedia Wikipedia; postcards from my collection will also be reproduced in books published in the US, Germany and the Netherlands during the coming year by authors writing on such diverse subjects as kimono, architecture and Japanese cooking. What else is in store for 2007? A full plate. I will soon begin administrating a web site tied to University of Minnesota doctoral research into the role of GBLT administrators in public education. On my 2007 agenda, too, is a trip to Japan in mid-April, to do research for my book including a side-trip to explore the Nagano/Matsushiro area and wander the Nakasendo, postcard research in Tokyo, and, of course, to visit my brother Carl ('77) and his family including current ASIJ students Naomi and Sho. I am also among the organizers of the ASIJ BBQ Doro Kami to be hosted in Minneapolis-St. Paul this coming summer (www.asijbbq.com). I will also continue my web work with the Tokyo Alumni Council (www.bochibullets.com) and, of course, the Class of '74 (www.asij74.com). Mata aimashou, Steve Sundberg
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