Lucky House

On December 18th, 2002 I moved into a small cottage in the garden of a kind landlady in Kichijoji. The cottage, introduced to me by a returning American scholar turns out to have had a long history of housing researchers and students from the United States going back as long as 1965. Until it moved to Yokohama, the cottage has housed students of the Inter-University Center and later various students doing research in Japan and needing affordable housing. My landlady, Mrs. Asanami, speaks some English and together with her daughter takes wonderful care of the students and scholars who live for a time in her garden.

The old cottage, or hanare (building separate from the main residence), which seems like it was either once a garden shed or a tea house, has a nice little tatami room, bathroom, and a thin attached hall for a kitchen and study. The thin glass doors on one side of the cottage basks the interior with light during the day or with a cold breeze in winter nights. While aging and without some conveniences, the place has a lot of charm. In addition, the place came pretty much fully equipped with years of accumulated household items left behind or sold by each student to the next. My landlady, "Nami-san," loves to refer to it as the "Lucky House" and is full of stories about the many students and scholars who have lived there over the decades, their names preserved on a colorful printout in her kitchen.

Asanami-san
Pictures of the House
List of Residents
Stories and Anecdotes

Asanami-san

Asanami-san turned 90 years old in 2005, and still full of life. She has an endless number of stories to tell about her past residents and her own adventures. In her younger days, she was a great fan of mountain climbing and skiing and has traveled extensively (though never, she always notes, to the United States). She is still very active, hosting English study parties in her apartment, welcome many guests, including her former residents whenever they are in Tokyo, and is practically an "oyabun" at her local activity center for seniors, where she enjoys various creative arts and other activities.

Asanami-san in August, 2005

Asanami-san in her home, where there are always tea and cookies to be offered, and an almost endless stream of visitors.

Some pictures are shown below taken 2003:

The "Lucky House" entrance. Notice the cute little Christmas wreath my landlady kindly left on the door for me just before the festive holiday.

View of the cottage and its garden, slightly to the right of the above picture.

The "Study" complete with 12Mbps ADSL connection for internet hungry scholars.

View of the garden from the "Study" I may have to volunteer to revive it.

The "Living room" view into the brightly lit "Kitchen" and "Study" through the doorway to the left and right, respectively.

Please send me an email if you are a former resident and have some Lucky House pictures you think should be included here.

List of Residents

If you are a former resident and for any reason do not wish to be listed here, send me an email and I'll remove your name. Also, email me if you have corrections, this list is based on a copy provided by Asanami-san. If any of you are in Tokyo, pay her a visit, she loves to catch up with old residents. She also treasures christmas cards, letters, and pictures from former residents. The address if you have forgotten is: 180 - 0003 東京都 武蔵野市 吉祥寺 南町2ー14ー13 浅波方.

Anecdotes About Life Staying in Lucky House

In this section I will post anecdotes from former residents about their experiences staying in Lucky House, interacting with Nami-san, and studying or researching in Japan. If you want to add your own stories, please email them to me for inclusion here.

Konrad Mitchell Lawson (2002-2004)
My Favorite Image of Nami-san

When the weather was nice, the sun streamed into lucky house through the glass panes in the kitchen area. You could awake to singing birds and the fresh air that leaks through the badly insulated cottage. My favorite image of Nami-san is seeing her sitting on the floor by her open back door, usually at around 10 in the morning. She has just woken up and has opened the door to get some fresh air and sunshine. She would often not notice me as I came out of Lucky House because she has her eyes closed and is lifting her head up to the morning sun.