You, Too Can Whore Your Native Language in Japan...Maybe

I get a lot of questions from readers interested in working in Japan, usually as a teacher of English as a Second Language (ESL), and I do my best to guide them to useful information, although I haven't been in the field for years. Teaching ESL is a potentially good option for people wanting to work for a few years in Japan, as long as you have realistic goals and know that it's not the healthiest of industries (there were some major bankruptcies of ESL school chains a few years ago). First of all, you need a four-year degree in order to get a working visa, so if you don't have one yet, that'd be the logical place to start. One popular choice for teaching in Japan is the Japan English Teacher (JET) program, operated by the government to get native English speakers into the country to teach and also facilitate "grass roots Internationalization" of Japan. While getting accepted into the JET system can be a challenge since there are so many applicants, Japan's ruling LDP party recently announced an expansion of the program, which might help your chances. There are two types of JET jobs, Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) who do the actual teaching, and Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs), who help guide the program and who need a minimum amount of Japanese, usually 2-3 years. As a rule, I generally recommend people with a deeper interest in Japan to consider trying for the latter job, which will contribute more to your understanding of the country and could help you build コネ kone, or connections which will help you in the future. There are plenty of alternatives to JET, too: for example, most cities have "sister cities" in Japan, like our city's relationship with Springfield, Missouri, and often there are ALT jobs or exchange study opportunities open through these connections. There are also programs like the Lion's Club International Camp and Youth Exchange Program to look into. If you're interested in researching how to live and work in Japan, we've got some books that might help.

Some advice for those considering teaching ESL someday.

Anime is a Big Tent

This may not exactly come as a surprise, but I love anime fandom. It's a warm and comfortable place filled with cool people who are all pretty much on the same wavelength about what's important in life. Thanks to the Internet, anime has experienced a "golden age" of sorts, allowing fans in all corners of the world to become part of the same extended "meme group," sharing ideas and pop culture freely. If I were to visit Russia or Mexico or Spain or South Africa, I might not be able to speak the local language…but if I can locate a group of anime fans, I know we'll be able to communicate in the language of manga, Vocaloid and Touhou. One thing I love about fandom is the way it's really a "big tent," composed of many smaller related groups. Aficionados of Gundam model building are quite different from fans of the latest moe cuteness from Kyoto Animation, and serious cosplayers might have different priorities from fujoshi geeking out over girl-centric games and BL manga. While our individual obsessions might each be different, in the end we're all part of the same family, or -- to borrow the Gaelic term -- clannad.

I love fandom because it's a "big tent" full of smaller groups.

Time Travel, Steins;Gate and Anime

Besides being a dedicated fan of all things Japan-related, I'm also card-carrying lover of time-travel and related science fiction stories. I've read all the classics, including H.G. Wells' The Time Machine (and its "official" sequel, The Time Ships by Stephen Baxter), the Hyperion Saga which all Haruhi fans should read, and of course the alternate history classic Guns of the South. There's a rich tradition of stories about time travel in anime, too, starting with the archetypcal "person from modern Japan is transported back to the country's 'Warring States' historical period" genre (of which The Ambition of Oda Nobuna is the most recent example), along with various Groundhog Day/Endless Eight style repeating time loops, convenient wormholes that cause characters to "timeslip" if they encounter one, plus films like The Girl Who Leapt Through Time. One of the best stories time travel stories in years has been the visual novel and anime Steins;Gate, about Rintarou Okabe, a "mad scientist" who discovers how to send messages, and later himself, into the past, which naturally results in a lot of bad stuff happening that he has to fix. Last night I went to the movie theatre to see the new Steins;Gate movie, which was just about as awesome as it could have been. I want to go see it again tonight...

Steins;Gate is a story about love, time travel and Dr. Pepper.

Big News for English Eroge Fans: PRICE DROP!

We've got some big news today for fans of our English-language eroge and dating-sim games: a huge price drop! We've permanently lowered prices on almost 50 of our great visual novels, from classics like Amorous Professor Cherry or Heart de Roommate to legendary titles like Hitomi Stepsister and Family Project. Prices have been lowered by $5 or $10 on a huge number of games, so it's a great time to browse the reduced-price visual novels and eroge and see which you'd like to pick up!

Cool Products Friday, May 17, 2013

For the new update, we've got some excellent products from Japan for you. You can view all new J-List products by clicking this link.

Today's New & Restocked Items

KERA July 2013 Enjoy a new issue of the wonderful magazine showcasing the latest in gothic and punk lolita fashions. Kera is especially cool because it doesn't stick to only one genre, but shows you everything that's cool in Harajuku fashion today. The new issue is loaded with extra-cool photos that will give you lots of fashion ideas. view this product »

	Drift Tengoku June 2013 Enjoy this new issue of Drift Tengoku which gives you insights on what the pros use to keep their rides in top shape.		Gakken Otona no Kagaku Restocked We stock lots of fun items for people who like building things, and today we've got several restocked Otona no Kagaku science projects!
	Steins;Gate Figures and More In Stock Wee some great figures for Steins;Gate fans, including the last stock of Mayushi and those cool Okarin and Kurisu-chan figures.		STEINS;GATE Art Works, Manga Restocked We've also got that gorgeous Steins;Gate artbook restocked along with popular S;G manga stories and more to fawn over.
	Anime Pencil Boards In Stock These handy pencil boards make it easy to sketch or take notes anywhere, plus these ones have some of our favorite characters on them.		Gorgeous Anime & Game Figures In Stock A big volley of anime figures and plush toys in stock, incl. the super deluxe Nanoha, Nozomi from Se-kirara, a plush Red Panda and more.
	'Kantoku' Card Game Here's the latest expansion to the Chaos TCG! Collect all your favorite characters from Hentai Prince and the Stony Cat. You need this.		Sumikko Gurashi Coin Cases, Kawaii! These cute animals from the new San-X series of characters are super adorable, and are a nice way to hold your money or keys!
	'Candy Maid' Maid Costume w/Shimapan We also have other cosplay products for you, perfect for use at the summer anime cons as well as more private affairs.		Pastel Knee-High Socks fun accessory to have around, these cool over the knee socks (stockings),are the perfect way to enjoy summer Harajuku fashion.
	YAKI GETA Sandal ~ 3L A traditional type of wooden sandal worn by men and samurai are just the thing enjoy the summer at home. Great for big gaijin feet!		Gloomy Bear Plush Threat Style ~ Size L The wacky and surprising cute character Gloomy Bear is here -- the plush toy with claws and teeth soaked in the blood of his owner. Fun times.
	Steins;Gate For PC, PSP, PSVita In celebration of the Steins;Gate movie release here in Japan, we've restocked the PC, PS Vita and PS3 versions of the game, plus other goodies.		ZUN's Music Collection ~ Touhou Music Touhou fans rejoice! New ZUN's Music Collection featuring awesome music from the Touhou series all composed and arranged by the master himself, ZUN.
	Hello Kitty Guide Book, Japanese Cookbooks See restocked 'bilingual' books including the Hello Kitty guide to Japan, with lots of information inside. Bilingual cookbooks too!		Big Restocking of Studio Ghibli Blu-ray Discs Great news: we've lowered our prices on all Studio Ghibli Blu-ray discs, which feature full English tracks and subtitles!
	Taiyaki Maker for Making Anime Treats More fun items restocked: the electric Taiyaki maker, for making delicious fish-shaped pancake-like snacks, so popular in anime.		Make Healthy Japanese Tea with Hello Kitty Make this summer a healthy one with Japanese mugi tea served in these cute water/tea pitchers from Japan. Your kids (or you) will love them.
	Cute Pokemon Products Restocked We've got more Pokemon products restocked today, incl. the Pikachu pencil cases, cute 3D puzzles and file to protect your documents.		Unique Notebooks, Pens and...Ninja Scrolls? Today we restocked our fun Japanese pens, interesting Glue Tape Gun plus authentic Ninja Scrolls for writing calligraphy messages.
	Kyoto Matcha Ice Cream for 4 ~ Just Add Milk Create the quality flavor of Kyoto's matcha (green tea), ice cream that you can make just by adding milk!		Lotte Boss Coffee Gum If you like coffee, you'll enjoy this coffee-flavored stick gum from Lotte, the #1 gum and candy company in Japan.
	Pocky, Ramune + More Stocked in San Diego A delicious box of Pocky, the original chocolate covered pretzel stick from Japan's famous snack company Glico.		Amazing Japanese Snacks Restocked Do you enjoy Japanese gummies? Today we've restocked some of our favorites, from all the great brands. Exclusive tastes you can only find in Japan.
	Big Restocking of Innovative Bento Boxes Donburi bowl bentos are a fun way to carry around not your lunch, but can also do double-duty as a side salad holder. Many great bento boxes restocked.		Deco Ben Kit Big Shape ~ Doki Doki Set Add a touch of cuteness to your bento with our two new Deco Ben Kit! Comes in a variety of shapes including heart, star, butterfly, and more!
	Pocky Decoration Molds, More Make your lunch extra special my shaping it into some cute new shapes. If you enjoy making deco-ben, then these items are a must.		Silicon Cooking Mini Spoon & Fork Chopsticks Sometimes you need a fork, a spoon, or chopsticks. We like these new products that combine all three, plus we have "normal" utensils too.
	Lucky Cat Message Display, More Bring in some extra luck into your life, with some traditional Japanese luck charms, such as these cute maneki neko and more.		Ikaruga 1/8 Figure Damage ver. ~ Senran Kagura For an anime and video game that is known for girls getting their clothes ripped off, this is what fans of Senran Kagura have been waiting for.
	Kaito Figma Action Figure We've got the action figure of dashing and cute Kaito, which comes with a variety of optional parts and is very posable. Grab this rare male Vocaloid!		Attack on Titan Products We like these new blankets featuring the epic anime Shingeki no Kyojin. Super soft and snugly -- perfect for fans of Attack on Titan.

New and Restocked NSFW / 18+ products

	PUSH!! Jan 2013 Push!! is the ultimate magazine for fans of adult games, also known as eroge or bishoujo games.		Hosomi Nanoni BOIN na Kanojo vol. 2 A truly amazing new digest magazine for AV fans out there, oversized with mind-blowing live action pictures featuring the hottest girls of the industry.
	House of Erotica ~ Hihokan Japan never ceases to amaze us with their wacky and weird stuff. This photobook features nude dolls getting pleasured by other dolls.		New 'Ecchi' Manga in Stock Sexy samurai girls are back in the new Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Bride, then enjoy Darashinakute Gomenne by Kurusumin.
	New Doujinshi in stock! We have an amazing doujinshi featuring the big-breasted Sena Kashiwazaki from Haganai and the #72 of Angel's Stroke series, featuring a parody of SAO!		To Love-Ru Darkness, Other Ero Manga Restocked Get volume 7 of the To Love-ru Darkness manga with cute girls in these beautifully illustrated manga. You'll never be able to stop reading.
	Chiharu Nishikawa Cast off Figure From OrchidSeed comes this cast-off figure of Chiharu Nishikawa, based on Comic Kairakuten's cover illustration by veteran ero artist Naruco Hanaharu.		Candy Maid Black with Shimapan ~ Otokonoko 5L For men by Tamatoys, get yourself this great and sexy maid outfit in 5L size, coming with an original shimapan stripe panty.
	Vacuum Ibu Project! (Love Live Parody) If you love the cute idols of Love Live, here are new stress toys that simulate them in interesting new ways. Two great designs!		Sword Art Online Parody Onahole w/ Suguha! We love finding awesome parody toys for you, and have restocked all our SAO and other popular toys. It's Suguha's first time, be gentle!
	A Certain Ona Hole Cleaner Live a happy and clean onanie life with this amazing detergent especially engineered for onaholes. Comes with cleaning sponges too.		More Stress Toys Based on JAV Actresses The super cute AV idol Yurika Miyaji now has her very own love hole for you to take home. Plumb her depths at your leisure with this great item.
	Lower Prices on Nearly 50 Awesome Games We've dropped our prices on a ton of our popular English visual novels, making it a great time for you to browse for something to play.		Hitotsutobashi Renai ~ First Limited Edition ASa Project presents a fun and romantic eroge full of cute girls and beautiful art.
	Professional Nude Series Here comes an excellent new series featuring real professional ballerinas and rhythmic gymnasts performing in the nude for your enjoyment.		Female Dominance! ~ Kana Yume (Blu-ray Disc) From Maxing comes the latest release featuring Kana Yume, in full HD Blu-Ray. A wild domination production in which Kana has full control!
	Prestige Premium Best ~ Yui Akane Vol. 2 The amazing Yui Akane best-of, packed on 2 DVDs and 8 hours with one of the cutest and hottest Prestige actress!		Whaleshower Cosplay Bishojo The third release starring the super cute newcomer from SOD, Mihono Sakaguchi, is a juicy cosplay action themed production for all ero-cosplay lovers.
	Triple Lesbian 8 A hard-boiled 3P lesbian release by Crystal Eizou featuring Mio Kosaka, Chacha Anku and Miyuki Matsushita.		Yulia Nova DVDs Restocked Do you love Yulia Nova, the most beautiful woman in Russia (at least to hear her Japanese fans tell it)? If so then we have restocked DVDs + more!

Popular DVD & Blu-ray Discs Restocked Then enjoy some epic restocked DVD & Blu-ray titles, including the elegant Yuma Asami in High-Leg Leotard Instructor and Complete Works 20 Hours (wow...), Pretty Shimapan, Mini Skirt Knee Socks and Flat Tits Twin Tail Collections, the Otonyan "trap" series, some great ecchi anime like Kangoku Senkan and Princess Knight Lilia, the best works of Julia, and more! view this product »