It's WEEKENDS on ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News. I'm Guy Raz.
It's already Sunday in Japan. And people across that country will begin to commemorate the victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck one year ago. In a moment, we're going to hear about a group of volunteers who have been working with survivors, helping them get back on their feet.
But first to our correspondent Anthony Kuhn who's in Japan. And, Anthony, tell us, first of all, where you are and how it compares to what you saw a year ago.
As Japan continues to rebuild after last year's devastating earthquake and tsunami, many Japanese are devoting themselves to dealing with the human costs of the tragedy. Almost 20,000 people died in the disaster, but many thousands more were left injured, homeless and destitute. Doualy Xaykaothao met a group of Japanese people trying to make a difference.
Now to a story that's gripped a small town in Upstate, New York for the past five months. It's about 18 high school girls in the working-class town of Le Roy. It's just outside of Rochester. Reporter Susan Dominus wrote about it in this week's issue of the New York Times magazine, and she says it all started back in October when a high school cheerleader named Katie Krautwurst woke up from a nap.
A close-up of a dragon robe, or long pao, dated late 18th- or early 19th-century China. It's one of many on display in the exhibit "Dragons, Nagas, and Creatures of the Deep" at the Textile Museum in Washington, D.C.
Credit Alex Wong / Getty Images
Participants perform a dragon dance during the annual Chinese New Year parade in 2007 in the Chinatown section of Washington, D.C.
Credit Bethesda Softworks
In the popular video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the player fights ancient dragons and can learn their secrets in order to harness their powers.
Credit SyFy
A thousand years old, the dragon Kilgharrah (voiced by veteran actor John Hurt) is both a boon and a bane to Camelot in the BBC series Merlin, which airs in the U.S. on SyFy.
As the supernatural enjoys a pop culture resurgence — from vampires to fairy tales — there's also been a firestorm of fascination with dragons. Fire-breathing dragons are central to the much-anticipated second season of the HBO series Game of Thrones, which opens April 1. And this year alone the mystical creatures are being featured in two movies, a new book, video games and a museum exhibit.
Ready for some creative competition? Weekends on All Things Considered is launching Round 8 of its Three-Minute Fiction contest. Here's what we look for: original, short fiction that can be read in less than three minutes — that's no more than 600 words.
Robert Siegel talks with 80-year-old director Mike Nichols, whose Broadway revival of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman premieres March 15. Over his more than 60-year career, Nichols has directed, written and produced for Broadway, TV and film.
U.S. and Afghan negotiators appear to have cleared one major obstacle to a Status of Forces agreement that would govern the U.S. military presence in the country after NATO's drawdown in 2014. Friday's agreement resolves a dispute over control of Parwan prison where many Taliban suspects are detained.
Flip through the channels this weekend and you are bound to see some college students dribbling basketballs. It is March after all. And the final lay-ups, jump shots and dunks are taking place before the madness officially begins next week. NCAA conference championships wrap up on Sunday and then comes the selection of teams for their respective NCAA tournaments. Sportswriter Stefan Fatsis joins us now as he does most Fridays. Hi, Stefan.
Meet Willow Tufano, age 14: Lady Gaga fan, animal lover, landlord.
In 2005, when Willow was 7, the housing market was booming. Home prices in some Florida neighborhoods nearly doubled from one month to the next. Her family moved into a big house; her mom became a real estate agent.
But as Willow moved from childhood to adolescence, the market turned, and the neighborhood emptied out. "Everyone is getting foreclosed on here," she says.
