Sticker shock

During my teaching days in Japan, students of all ages and from all walks of life took my classes. But the majority were high school and university-aged girls. Teaching them was so much fun because they were so enthusiastic about everything. A few would always stay after class to tell me about their plans for the weekend, share their accomplishments of the week - and show off their latest set of print club stickers.

I couldn't believe the thick notebooks some of the girls toted with them everywhere, filled with page after page of custom-designed stickers featuring images of themselves, their friends - and sometimes even their pets! Print club stickers were a great way for the girls to commemorate the fun times they shared with one another - and print club machines allowed their imaginations to run free. Depending on the machine, one could have a picture taken with celebrities (Brad Pitt and Nakata were especially popular)or in exotic locations (everywhere from Paris to the African savannah) - or even create a unique dream world of fluffy clouds, vibrant rainbows, or anything else that came to mind. It was always fun to see the creative new stickers the girls would bring in each week - and even more fun when we had the chance to go to print club together! Yes, I started my own little collection too - but it was miniscule compared to the print club collection of some of my most genki students.

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