Finding Koji

Author: Koji

  • Itwusnme.

    I had a blog, a long time ago. It was called itwusnme and it had over ten years of my thoughts shared on the internet. I think there were more posts there than I had made on any social media platform of its time.

    Today, that blog is gone.

    Although many of my years since have been shared on social media, I found the noise there so overwhelming that I longed for a quiet place to be with my thoughts and feelings. And so here we are.

    “Finding Koji” is where I write about what it means to notice, to create, and to belong — wherever life happens to take me. Some parts are reflections, others are fragments. All are small attempts at meaning.

    You are welcome to stick around and join me on this journey, to start a conversation, to watch from afar.

    This is the home of my new blog. Built slowly, with care.

  • Remembering Arlene Shimokawa.

    Arlene and me at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawaii’s New Year’s Ohana Festival (date, unknown)

    It was a late afternoon and instead of heading home after work, I joined my colleagues in the lounge for what turned out to be a small Tupperware party. This little lady dazzled all of us with colorful plastic bowls and containers, and probably had a snack to share, which she brought in another piece of Tupperware.

    This was the first time that I met Arlene and our paths would cross many more times over the years.

    Sometimes she was volunteering with the Lions. Sometimes she was doing something else in the community. Many times it was because of Tupperware. The last time we ran into each other was at the Hawaii Convention Center. She was volunteering that day. It might have been for the Honolulu Festival or the Made in Hawaii Festival. I regret not capturing a photo with her that day.

    It wasn’t until recently that I discovered she had passed away earlier this year. The news had hit me hard and that feeling has stuck with me for a while, even until today. She had more of an impact on me than I realized.

    And I will miss her.

  • Finding Koji.

    Finding Koji.

    I started this blog without a clear plan. Just a feeling — that I needed a place to slow down and put words to what’s quietly unfolding. Maybe it’s about rediscovery, or maybe it’s about noticing the small things that make a life feel whole. Either way, this is where I begin.