Awesome Japanese Packaging
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.30 – 16:40 -
I love Japan (not that you doubted that). Like any love, sometimes they do things that you wouldn’t normally like (packaging, bad for the environment) but they do it so cutely that you can’t help but love them.
Japanese packaging is awesome sometimes. PingMag did a review of their favorites. There are special packages for easy refills, squeezable condiments (they show maple syrup, but my favorite was the combo ketchup/mustard ones), and single coffee serving, complete with filter! I remember a lot of these from living in Japan and I never realized how much I loved them until they were gone.
My favorite? The yakisoba and spaghetti that have a draining mechanism built in (pictured). It’s simple and brilliant.
Read the full article over here: Cleverly Convenient Packaging Design
Tags: clever, coffee, condiments, cool, design, food, japan, packaging, spaghetti, yakisoba
Posted in food | No Comments »
Shokotan and Norton Fighter!
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.29 – 21:50 -
The Norton Fighter!
Oh man… Japanese marketing at its best.
しょこたん (Shokotan, Realname 中川翔子, Nakagawa Shoko) is known throughout the JP world as the most prolific blogger ever. Apparently, that’s how she rose to fame in the Akiba crowd, posting numerous times throughout the day.
Anyway, Norton Antivirus now has her and Norton Fighter (some sort of ultraman/power ranger-like hero) as their image characters. It’s so obviously targeted at the otaku crowd, it’s not even funny. On the website, there is even a “live” video from her room. It’s actually really, really weird videos of her and the Norton Fighter interacting… very strange.
And some obligatory videos:
In this one, she is listening to some disembodied voice talk about the benefits of new norton:
And then this one is like an interview about here computer experiences:
I admit it. She’s cute and her casual speaking is all too appealing, but I’m still not installing Norton! ><;
Tags: Akiba, Akihabara, anti-virus, アキバ, blogs, 秋葉原, girls, hero, Japanese girls, models, norton, otaku, technology, video
Posted in Internet, technology | No Comments »
Yuko Obuchi, living oxymoron?!
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.28 – 23:00 -
So we didn’t get Japan’s first female Prime Minister. We got Rozen-kun. But, he did appoint 中之条町‘s very own 小渕優子 (Obuchi Yuko) to his cabinet!
The only problem? She is the Minister of Birth Rate Decline. The official “Special Missions” (特命) that she is in charge of are counter plans for birth rate decline and gender equality.
Lisa over at TokyoMango pointed out:
The job title “minister of declining birth” is kind of horrendous—it takes a lot of power out of her hands already by defining what her role as the person in charge of gender is. Women don’t get to choose their path in life, they just need to have more babies. That’s kinda how that title resonates with me.
Now, Yuko Obuchi is married and has a 1 year old boy. My guess is that appointing her is a 作戦 (sakusen) to show women can have children and hold careers as well.
I don’t think that directly translates to struggling middle class folk, not to mention, there really seems to be more issues with the declining birth rate than just the traditional “career” vs. “family” argument.
In any case, I wish her all the luck in her position and with her tasks. Oh, and by the way, maybe one way to combat the declining birth rate is to make immigration easier. I’m just saying.
Tags: children, girls, government, gunma, society, Yuko Obuchi, 小渕優子
Posted in government | No Comments »
Today is the JLPT Deadline
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.26 – 07:00 -
You have until 5pm today (PDT) to register for the JLPT if you live in the United States! If you live elsewhere, please check the international site for your deadline (may have passed already ><;).
I’m taking 1級 (ikkyu) in LA. The test is on Sunday, Dec. 7th! If you are interested in studying, leave a comment! XD
Tags: jlpt, language, test, urgent
Posted in language | No Comments »
Sushi Sabre you seek, yes…
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.25 – 04:30 -
OMG, everything has come full circle. George Lucas was inspired by the 侍 (samurai) and 刀 (katana) for jedi and light sabres, and now there is a light saber looking thing that shoots not but a glowing blade of Justice or Rancor, but a glowing column of 巻き寿司 (makizushi)!
I wonder what the light and dark sides of sushi are… 巻き vs. にぎり?
(via Random Good Stuff)
Tags: food, gadgets, lol, sci-fi, sushi
Posted in food | 1 Comment »
Shin Yamato Damacy Ep. 2.5 – Blind Date Part 2!
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.24 – 13:30 -
It is out! Episode 2.5 of Shin Yamato Damacy! Brian and Mariko go out for 刺身 (sashimi) and then カラオケ (karaoke). (Also available on YouTube.)
Go see the first part of this Blind Date episode if you haven’t already.
This episode it a little long, but totally worth it. I remember using pen and paper a lot to when my wife and I first started going out. なつかしい！
Luka’s style really comes out in this video. Luka is way better at letting things happen and filming it. I was more of a gonzo journalist. So I could have never made an episode like this.
Not to mention that sound effect. Whenever I hear that sound effect, I think of Luka. If you don’t know what I’m taking about, go see The Legend of Ultraman or Vanity Project 2.
Excellent episode. I can’t wait to see what’s next for SYD!
Tags: friends, gaijin, girls, gunma, Japanese girls, shin yamato damacy, video
Posted in blogs | No Comments »
NicoVideo for Busy People: Part 1
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.22 – 16:00 -There is an interesting kind of ニコニコ動画 (NicoNicoDouga) called 忙しい人のための… (“… for Busy People”). I find that hilarious since my old Japanese textbook was called Japanese for Busy People. These videos are often songs where they remove lyrics such that the resulting sentences are humorous, or at very least nonsensical, like the text book.
My favorites after the jump:
Tags: ポケモン, レミオロメン, BoyGirl, busy, 男女, 粉雪, fairy tales, Konayuki, lol, lyrics, music, NicoNicoDouga, nicovideo, pokemon, Remioromen, video, 忙しい人のため, 昔話
Posted in Internet | 1 Comment »
Crying Out Love, In the Center of the Cabbage Field
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.20 – 12:00 -First, some back story. There was a movie a few years back called 世界の中心で、愛をさけぶ (sekai no chuushin de, ai o sakebu; “Crying Out Love, In the Center of the World”). It was a real tear jerker about a guy having a kind of mid-life crisis about his dead high school sweetheart… Oh man…
Anyway (*sniff*), the following clip is about this place in my old digs, 群馬県 (Gunma-ken) in 嬬恋村 (Tsumagoi-mura, literally “Wife (Mistress?) Love Village”) where you can stand on a platform in a cabbage field (Gunma is known for growning cabbage) and yell out your love for your wife. In the video, they call it キャベツ畑の中心で、愛をさけぶ, or Crying Out Love, In the Center of the Cabbage Field.
I thought this was cute. The couple featured is a little odd… but I totally dig it. The 80-something year old was the cutest by far.
This seems to be a popular thing for Japanese guys… they won’t say 愛している (aishiteiru) or 好き (suki) on a daily basis, but will yell it out at certain special moments… or at least, the dramas have me believe such.
Tags: cabbage, gunma, inaka, love, marriage, society, video
Posted in society | No Comments »
The SmileVideo Meteor Shower
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.18 – 12:00 -Say you want to go to DENPA 電刃, that crazy ヲタク (otaku) dance party in Tokyo (as seen on TOKYOMANGO), but you are way behind on your NicoNico culture? Well, this is your chance to study up!
Basically, there is a compilation of popular NicoNico Music called ニコニコ動画流星群 (niko niko douga ryuuseigun, NicoNicoDouga Meteor Shower), as it is a blast of popular songs on ニコ動 in quick succession:
There are a few versions:
1. The original:
3. Orchestrated:
4. With the original songs remixed:
5. Like above but more chaotic:
And below (after the jump) I have compiled a list of (almost) every one of these songs in order! Title linked to ニコニコ動画 and YouTube embeds. Enjoy!
Read more »
Tags: anime, ニコニコ動画, ニコニコ動画流星群, Bamboo Blade, Cheetah Man, Chrono Trigger, Clannad, 男女, Dance Party, Danjo, DENPA, Haruhi, Haruhi Suzumiya, Hatsune Miku, Idol Master, Ievan Polkka, Internet, iosys, Kenshin, Kirby, Kodomo no Jikan, Lucky Star, Madlax, Mega Man, Meteor Shower, music, MuvLuv, NicoNicoDouga, nicovideo, otaku, perfume, Prince of Tennis, Prokofiev, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Uma Dance, video, vocaloid, 初音ミク, 東方, 東方系
Posted in Internet, music | 3 Comments »
Thank You Nagi Noda
Written by Jeshii on 2008.09.17 – 12:00 -
TOKYOMANGO had a post about 野田凪 (Noda Nagi)’s last music video before her tragic death. I had been putting off watching it, but I finally got around to it today and I’m floored. It’s so well done.
The song is precious, sung by MEG, music by 中田ヤスタカ (Nakata Yasutaka), the DJ behind capsule and perfume. The video is directed by the late 野田さん.
Her works feel like Michel Gondry, utilizing amazing tricks that are totally mundane in nature. Another video to check out is Yuki’s Sentimental Journey for more of 野田さん’s work.
In the MEG video, we have the people in black doing the magic. It blows my mind, because the first time I saw this effect was in 文楽 (bunraku), which is a Japanese puppet theatre where one pupper is operated by 3 people. When I first saw it, I thought it was a real person… and then the camera zoomed in on the puppet.
So this video has it all. Music by 中田ヤスタカ, PV directed by 野田凪, and MEG, of course. Bravo, simple amazing.
Tags: bunraku, meg, music, nagi noda, pop culture, traditional culture, video, ystk
Posted in music | No Comments »
