Unique businesses that exist in Japan, Rubik's Cube, and more Funny English Words

Japan is a unique place, and the economic forces that cause this kind of business or that to spring up can be quite interesting to observe. During my 14 years in Japan, I've seen quite a few businesses that don't exist in the U.S., or if they do, I've certainly never come across them. One convenient service are the daiko, or replacement driver taxis, basically a taxi with two drivers; if you drink too much while at a bar, one will drive you home while the other follows in your car, so you have it in the morning. Near my house there is a company called Orange Hat, which is basically a building with nothing but vending machines of every kind inside, from video games to UFO Catchers (e.g. crane games) to dispensers that sell you microwaved meals. Since the business can be operated with just one caretaker employee, it's a profitable concept even in very rural areas. Nearly all Japanese homes and apartments have bathtubs and showers, but a couple of decades ago this wasn't the case, and people went to a sento (public bath; the kanji is 銭湯, so named becuase it used to cost one sen, or 1/100 or a yen, to go there) a few times a week to keep clean; nowadays, sento provide a place to relax and bathe socially. What you may think of as an Internet Cafe is usually called a Manga Kissa (Manga Coffee Shop) here in Japan, a place where customers can sit and read manga, surf the net, play online or console games, study and of course have a cup of coffee. And for those times when couples feel the need to be alone, there are always Japan's famous Love Hotels, where you can enjoy a clean, private environment with or without the Arabian Nights theme.

Japan is experiencing a revival of the classic Rubik's Cube, with sales of the addictive and frustrating (to me) puzzle cube soaring through the roof. The 2005 Rubik's Cube Championship was recently held at Disney World in Florida, and among the 145 contestants was Yuki Hayashi, a well known Rubik's Cubist from Japan, who managed solve the standard 3x3x3 cube in 12 seconds. These guys can solve a Rubik's Cube with blindfolds on -- it's really amazing to see!

The Japanese do like English, and use it to add spice to their speech, but some of the words are changed so much you might not recognize them. For example, the word "my" is used to indicate ownership of something, and banks might use the term to advertise special rates on a "My Home Loan" (home mortgage) or "My Car Loan" (a loan for that special automobile you've been pining for). Various other simplified words abound, for example, a child's crib is a "baby bed," screwdrivers come in "plus" and "minus" varieties, and when a man no longer wants children he's likely to get a "pipe cut." Titles of Western movies can also be hard for Japanese to remember, so they're sometimes reduced into simpler English. "The Professional" was retitled "Leon," "I Know What You Did Last Summer" became simply "Last Summer," and "Honey, I Shrank the Kids" became "Micro Kids."

At J-List, we genuinely love Japan and want to help people around the world learn more about this enigmatic place. During my time in Japan, I've made heavy use of a powerful tool for students of Japanese: Canon's Wordtank electronic dictionary. A great dictionary that's packed full of great features for serious students, including 11+ different complete dictionaries, full English menus, and a handy compact size despite the easy to use QWERTY keyboard that makes looking up words very speedy. We're happy two announce two new models of Canon's excellent Wordtank in stock, the brand new C50 and deluxe G55, two excellent brand new dictionaries for you.

Christmas is coming, and J-List has stocked up on thousands of amazing and unique gifts for the Japanophile on your shopping list (even if it's just you). From our original kanji T-shirts to wacky plush toys to calendars you can only find in Japan and much more, J-List has that unique gift you're searching for. Since most of J-List's products ship from Japan, it makes sense to browse our site and make your order right now, since shipping can slow down around Christmas.

Here are today's "really cool products" that I thought were especially noteworthy. Note: the J-List links below may be for adult products and should probably be considered "not safe for work." To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Takoko -- Tinykid's Creation Vol.4. Here's a really amazing prepainted anime figure of a delightfully sexy female carrying stuff to the kitchen (to cook you a nice meal, is the implication, I gather).
	DVD Delux 02 -- Nana Natsume Complete with DVD 140 min. Nana Natsume has another dynamite photomagazine + DVD, in which she really cuts lose and shows you how sweet she can look.
	Navy 25.5cm Genuine Tabi (Ninja Shoes) . More cool ninja shoes, aka tabi, toe-separated boots that were really worn by ninja (and which are more associated with carpenters these days, truth be told).
	Youhei Kozou CG Collection vol. 5. J-List is honored to have a great relationship with Youhei Kozou, and he allows us to sell his CG collections in *uncensored* form to customers outside of Japan. His stuff is some of the best you will ever see, erotic on many levels.
	Sushi Nyanko Mini Mascot. For those without enough cute cat-faced sushi in their lives, J-List brings you a new strap mascot for your phone, bag, what have you.
	Declation of Apron - Apron Sengen -- Akari Aoki. I chose this product for the blog posting partially becuase the girl is beautiful, partially due to the fact that she's wearing a sexy apron in every picture, and partially because the title was so bizarre.
	Tokusen Gift -- Full Set *Set of 10* ~ Rement Puchi Sample Series. Yet another really cool miniature set from Re-Ment, this captures the spirit of Japan's famous gift sets, given in August and December to people who are, er, sewa ni natteru (those who have helped you out in some way over the past half year).
	Megami Magazine Oct. 2005 vol. 65. Single issue of the popular Megami Magazine, which is always filled with cool stuff.
	Kitty Chirimen Cushion -- Red. I thought that it would be cool to have these on your sofa, use them as throw pillows in a living room themed with Japanese stuff.
	Genpi Cha (Diet Tea). Popular tea from Japan, this is genpi cha, helpful in losing weight and ridding the body of poisons.
	24 Hours Anytime and Anywhere Sex -- Miina Sakura. Poor Miina Sakura is called upon to have sex anywhere, anytime in a 24 hour period, in the latest release by SOD.
	Japanese Children's Favorite Stories CD Book2 ~ Book 2 With CD. Another cool book of children's stories from Japan. I read the first version of this book to my kids for years, and it was a great way to bridge Japan and America.
	Kana A-day Practice Pad. Learn your kana (hiragana and katakana, that is) with this good book that teaches you one a day.
	C50 Canon Wordtank Electronic Dictionary. Thinking about my Wordtanks of the past makes me really natsukashii, and I'm really happy that we can make them available to others. Really great for all students of Japanese, of any level.

Wedding bells in the Imperial Palace, beautiful autumn in Kyoto, and George Bush in Japan

Every autumn in Japan the leaves change to beautiful shades of red and yellow and vermillion, a spectacle called koyo (紅葉, lit. "crimson leaves"). And just as the leaves are starting to turn, we know we'll be tempted with a barrage of TV commercials by Japan's JR train line promoting Kyoto in the fall, showing incredible images of the city with autumn-colored leaves all around, along with the very effective slogan, So da! Kyoto e iko! ("Hey, I've got an idea! Let's go to Kyoto!"). Well, there's a very famous guest in Kyoto right now: none other than George W. Bush, who is in Japan for a two-day meeting with Prime Minister Koizumi. Last night the two leaders took in Kinkakuji, the famous Golden Pavilion, and today they're going to be discussing issues ranging from Iraq to U.S. bases to bird flu. The U.S. is also expected to press Japan to resume beef imports, which have been on hold since 2003 over Mad Cow. Mr. Bush will be the first guest in the newly completed Kyoto State Guest House, a sprawling facility constructed to house international events and foreign dignitaries. I wonder if he got to take a Japanese bath and sleep in a real futon? That would be so cool. As far as world leaders go, I can't think of anyone who needs to be exposed to some outside ideas more than Bush, and maybe he can realize there's an actual world outside of Texas and Washington in Japan. Fingers crossed that there will be no projectile vomiting on any Japanese Prime Ministers this time around...

Japan has been seized with a bout of "wedding mania" after the happy marriage of Princess Nori, daughter of the current Japanese Emperor Akihito, to an employee of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The ceremony, while beautiful, was remarkable because it was just another Japanese wedding, despite the royal status of the bride. After a very traditional Shinto ceremony at the Meiji Jingu Shrine in which Norinomiya-sama wore a juni-hitoe, a traditional 12-layer kimono dating back to the 10th century, the happy couple had a fairly unremarkable reception at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo. The news was all over the story, from interviewing some of the the 6000 people who lined up on the street just so they could wave to the princess as she drove by to giving full report on what was served during the reception. The reception itself followed the well-defined mold of Japanese weddings, starting off with a speech by the groom's boss (in this case, Tokyo mayor Shintaro Ishihara, who you may remember is the guy who wrote "The Japan That Can Say No" a decade ago) and ending with an emotional speech by the bride, thanking her parents for raising her and promising to find happiness in her new life. Princess Nori's husband is a sports car collector and loves driving his Lotus Elise, and the newscasters were laughing at the image of a the demure former Japanese princess zooming around at high speeds with her husband.

Over the years, J-List has been honored to bring anime fans from all over the world a direct link to Japan. Because we're fans of Hayao Miyazaki's films, we've always gone out of our way to bring great Studio Ghibli products to everyone. Today we're happy to announce the release of Howl's Moving Castle
on DVD, complete with full optional subtitles in English, French and Japanese, and full dubbed tracks in English and French as well. We've got both versions, too, the normal 2-disc set and the super deluxe 4-disc collector's edition, with making of, interviews with the director and more. Howl's Moving Castle is the story of a plain girl whose life is touched by the mysterious wizard Howl, and it's a great story for all fans of Mr. Miyazaki! (The DVDs are zoned for region 2, however, and we recommend the excellent region free DVD players we stock, starting at just $68).

Here are today's "really cool products" that I thought were especially noteworthy. Note: the J-List links below may be for adult products and should probably be considered "not safe for work." To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Howl's Moving Castle (region 2). Ah, Howl's Moving Castle, that was really a great film, and I'm really happy to be able to bring it to everyone now. The story of a girl who finds a way out of her boring, average life, it's a great world of flashy and innovative characters, and Calcifur is cool too. Amazingly, this just-released DVD featurs English and Freench subtitles AND English and French dubbed tracks. And the dub is good -- at least the English one, couldn't judge the French dub.
	World of Yuboku Mukoyoshi -- Full Set *Set of 9*. How cool is this? Incredibly detailed Buddhist figures made by a famous sculptor (didn't know there were famous Buddhist sculptors alive today). Very cool full set of toys.
	Dears *Ren* PVC Painted Figure -- Renrenrennagranrenseer Rurunnren Nakora. Another neat anime figure, this is Ren from DearS. Very nice detailing, you could spend hours looking at this thing.
	Tamagotchi Playing Cards. A deck of very nicely printed playing cards. They're printed with art from Tamagotchi packages, which makes them pretty esoteric, and probably valuable in 50 years.
	Kit Kat "Tsubu" Strawberry. So, I thought Wine Kit Kat was pretty cool. And Kit Kat Noir. And Canadian Maple Syrup Kit Kat. But this, THIS, is the stuff: Strawberry Kit Kat with bits of fresh, real strawberry inside.
	H.M.P Premium Girls. All owners of Sony's PSP, enjoy this great new region free release from HMP, which focuses exclusively on shinjin or "new faces," i.e. girls who are debuting for the first time.
	Front Innocent vol. 1. If you've been into hentai for any length of time, you'll probably know Satoshi Urushihara, one of the greats in the industry. Enjoy his new hardcover illustration collection in which he takes his characters where they've never gone before.
	Mini Skirt Illustrated vol. 78 DVD 120 min. This is one of my all time favorite magazines, because the women are so sexy, and the photography is so nicely done, and the heels are so long, and...
	Kitty Japanese Doll -- Ao Momiji *Blue Maple* ~ Kimono Style w/ Fan. We have more Hello Kitty Kimono Dolls, real ceramic traditional dolls featuring Hello Kitty. The printing on the kimono's is amazing and looks great.
	The Mach 5 Full Ver Plastic Model -- Mach Go Go Go. Here's somethiing cool: a beautiful Mach 5 model for Speed Racer fans, that does it all -- opening engine compartment, cutters, opening trunk, underwater cover, and jumping legs.
	Exodus Guilty *PREORDER*. A new DVD-based game from Hirameki that's coming soon, this looks like a good one, with really good art and a story that you determine.

All about Japanese TV, the fun of variety shows, and respect I've gained for American medicine

One of the fun things about living in Japan is getting to watch Japanese television. There are 5 national television networks in Japan, NTV, Fuji TV, TBS, TV Asahi, and TV Tokyo, and most viewers enjoy a variety of entertainment from these five channels. Our family watches news (Newsstation 23, World Business Satellite), dramas (my wife is watching the current Fuji drama with heart throb Mokomichi Hayami), sports (my wife's father watches baseball every day, and sumo when it's on), and anime (we never miss Sazae-san on Sunday nights). In addition to the traditional TV stations, there are upstart satellite broadcasting networks like SkyPerfectTV, which carries American programming like CNNj and Fox Japan (for fans who can't wait for the latest episodes of 24 to show up at the DVD rental shop).

A big staple of Japanese television is the variety show, which by definition features a wide variety of subjects, from asking non-bilingual Japanese to answer questions in broken English while a translation of what they're really saying appears on the screen, to shows that challenge people to live for a month on just $100, to "truth or dare" contests where they make popular actresses get into a bathtub of very-hot water for 30 seconds. Often these variety shows go for shock value, like the show I caught that made swimsuit idol Otoha climb to the highest point of the the 509-meter tall Tapiei 101 Tower in Taiwan -- on the outside of the building. Another show offered to grant wishes sent in by viewers, as long as they were interesting. One boy said he'd always wanted to take a bath in a giant vat of caramel custard pudding (aka flan), so the producers got a hundred volunteers from his town to prepare it for him; but in the end, the boy decided he didn't want to jump into the custard since everyone had worked so hard to make it, so they all ate it instead. Another man had always wanted to fly while holding helium balloons, but it takes hundreds of balloons to lift a man off the ground. The show constructed a giant net for him to wear on his back then filled it with balloons until he was able to "fly" 10 cm off the ground, finally fulfilling his dream. Variety shows like to capture bizarre moments of kawaii too, like when one show dressed cute-as-a-button Yuko Ogura as a baby seal took her to the polar bear tank at the zoo. The results were pretty hilarious -- see the video here (Windows Media required)

No matter how much I like living in Japan, there's just no replacement for good old American medicine when I'm sick, and whenever I go back the the States I always pick up Nyquil, Advil, Alka-Seltzer and other medicines I think I might need back in Japan. While my wife usually prefers Japanese medicine -- which is usually too weak for my big gaijin body -- she's starting to see the benefits of the stronger American remedies. Last month when she caught a head cold, she didn't waste any time asking me for "the strong stuff," and she was on her feet in no time. In addition to U.S. medicines being stronger than their Japanese counterparts, there's another difference: Japanese medicine bottles aren't required to have child-proof caps on them. As a result, Japanese almost never know how to open a child-proof cap, and I usually have to step in and help my wife when she's trying to get the bottle open.

When my children were small my mother bought us a book we've come to value a lot: Japanese Children's Favorite Stories, which contains English versions of all the famous children's stories that Japanese know, like Momotaro (Peach Boy) and the Old Man who made the Flowers Bloom. Happily, we've got this excellent book in stock in San Diego, and I heartily recommend it to all parents who want to treat their kids to some great stories from Japan. The book even comes with an audio CD, too!

Here are today's "really cool products" that I thought were especially noteworthy. Note: the J-List links below may be for adult products and should probably be considered "not safe for work." To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Tattoo Girls Design Book vol. 2. Tatttoos are cool, and very popular in Japan. Here's a book that shows you great pictures of what kinds of tattoos are being done in Japan, with large color photos in case you want to copy some of the work. Best of all, you get tattoos designed by the likes of Junko Mizuno, dude!
	His-and-Hers Sake Set. Here's a nice item, a sake bottle w/ two cups for couples. A unique wedding gift from Japan, or just somethiing cool to drink with your SO with.
	Jumping Totoro. A cool item, this is a wind-up jumping Totoro kind of like those cool wind-up toys from the 70s.
	Hitomi 1/5 Scale Painted Figure. This is just about the coolest figure we've seen all year, It's a replica of a popular H manga by Hitoshi Kino, from a few years back.
	Deep Diva EX Nude Mix from Diva -- Mihiro, Nana Natsume, Naho Ozawa, Akiho Yoshizawa. A superb item from the Diva people, this is a collection of nude photos of four JAV stars, including Mhiro and Nana Natsume, which put this photobook over the top right there.
	Max Cafe All Stars!!. Just when you thought you'd seen enough of the Max-A waitress fetish girls, here's another DVD featuring the best moments of the series, with one scene from each girl. Zowie.
	"No Shoes" Sign -- Vertical. I don't know about you, but the idea of wearing shoes inside a house, especially on carpeting, was a little odd to me even before I spent 14 years in Japan. Here's a sign that reminds (Japanese bilingual) visitors to remove their shoes.
	Kitty Japanese Doll -- Sakura Bana *Japanese Cherry Blossom* ~ Kimono Style. We finally got the Hello Kitty Kimono Dolls in stock again -- yay! These are so nice we can't do them justice -- very beautifully made, with real ceramic and wood frames, and they come in protective/decorative boxes as well.
	R2-D2 Microroid -- Remote Control ~ Star Wars. Wouldn't it be cool if you could pull out a remote control and make your R2-D2 Star Wars figure move? Well, now you can with this excellent toy from Tomy. It's even compatible with the standard size figures!
	Face Shootings -- Yuria Hidaka (region 2). "In the end, it's all about the face with women," says the cover of this DVD, and it sounds like they're talking about what her face looks like. Turns out, it's something totally different.
	Beautiful Leg OL's Fetish Life. A nice leg fetish DVD from Shinkosha, the people who pretty much own the "mind share" of Japanese leg fetishists and all that. This is not bad at all.
	Japanese Children's Favorite Stories CD Book1 ~ Book 1 With CD. This, this is a great book, which has been one of our favorites for a long time. It's a collection of really excellent Japanese children's stories, but translated into English.
	Yumisuke Kotoyoshi Presents MIDARA. In addition to the excellent Comic AG hentai manga magazine, they're bringing out the best English translated mangas every seen, in large trade paperback format too. Very nice!