Hello Kitty plushes wearing Kimonon, Hello Kitty sushi, and more Sakura Kit Kat

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	P:Chara Monster Hunter Bone Equipment ver. Pinky Street Figure. A bold new Pinky Street line, this feature incredibly cute versions of characters from the popular game Monster Hunter. In addition to an incredibly cute figure, you get all kinds of additional accessories to deck your Monster Hunter out.
	Otoko Kaoru Mens Fragrance Gum. You wouldn't associate smelling like roses to be associated with manliness, but this is a popular line of gum that is made with actual extract of roses, which promises to make you smell better. A very mysterious product from Japan, to say the least.
	Other New Japanese Snacks. I have to admit, I love Meiji's Panky chocolate line because of its wacky name. I mean, any product that makes you think of the word "hanky panky" is okay in my book. Then enjoy new Tsubu Tsubu (chunky) Hi-Chew, in "health drink" flavor. Trust us, health drinks actually taste good here.
	Hello Kitty Plush in Kimono - Large. There's something about the juxtaposition of Hello Kitty with traditional Japanese themes, and we love products like these large Hello Kitty Kimono Plush toys, with real chirimen kimonos that have all features, including a detailed obi.
	Hello Kitty Ribbon Face Wrist Watch -- Pink. Here are two really elegant Hello Kitty watches, which stylishly tell the time, with a high quality band and cute image of "Kitty-chan" (as she's known here) in the center. The outside of the watch even has a Kitty-style ribbon. Citizen movement, made in Japan.
	Hello Kitty Sushi Shop. Then, have some fun with this Hello Kitty Sushi set, which comes with everything you need to display delicious looking sushi. The sushi pieces are held to the rice by "wasabi" velcro, a pretty cool idea.
	Sumo Yukata, Lucky Cat, More. Yukata are cotton kimonos, worn in the summer and after a bath and just about all the time by sumo wrestlers, and we've got one for you today. Also, restocked Lucky Cat Coin Banks for Avoiding Bad Luck and a tenugui (in case you want to try the leek thing).
	Siesta Love Pillow Cover - Zero no Tsukaima. Then take a siesta with our gorgeous dakimakura of Siesta, who is the maid at the Tristain Magical Academy, from Zero no Tsukaima.
	Revoltech Danboo ~ Yostsuba. We've also restocked the very popular Revoltech figure of Danboo from Yotsuba, which sold out in record time before. Damn this thing is cool.
	KAREN ~ Pentel Women's Stylish Jewel Ball Pointed Pen. Pentel has launched a new pen for women line that's quite nice. This three-color pen (with separate 0.5 mm tips that write black, red and blue), the pen is extremely easy to hold. Also, it features a "jewel" at the top of the pen.
	Easy Green Tea Powder Stick --- 5pcs . Enjoy green tea anywhere with these innovative "green tea sticks." Rip one open and find the rich green tea inside, to which you just add hot water.
	Restocked Japanese Snacks. Finally, see fresh stock of the new Sakura Kit Kat and Kit Kat Lucky Little treats for Spring, delicious Fuwarinka soft candy and gum that smell like roses, and Lotte Ume (Plum) Gum.
	How to Eat Yuko Ogura Deliciously. Wow! A brand new hardcover photobook starring Yuko Ogura, one of the most popular faces in Japan. If you've seen the YouTube video with the polar bear that lunges at a Japanese girl dressed up as a seal, that's her.
	Iris -- Ayame Misaki. A gorgeous "gravure idol" (which means bikini model), Misaki-chan hails from Kobe, Japan. She's got a 92 cm F cup, is 163 cm high, and loves singing and playing sports. Oh, and her blood type is "B." Her nice glossy photobook is back in stock.
	Queen's Blade ~ Echidna (Ekidona). We're regularly floored at how beautiful the art in the Queen's Blade artbooks are. This is the Echidna offering, allowing you to play the book-based combat game (based on the classic 80s Lost World game, which is really old school), or just take in the 64 glossy pages.
	Alice Pink File -- Kaede Matsushima. Wow, I love Kaede (kah-eh-deh), and am thrilled to see her best works compiled in this 4 hour Alice Pink release, newly remastered for ultra detail.

Remember that J-List is still having a great "free shipping" sale on our close-out T-shirts, giving you free shipping (U.S.) or half priced shipping (international) on the shirt designs we're closing out to make room for cool new ones. If you're on the small side or larger than most it's an especially good opportunity to get a cool wacky Japanese T-shirt at a low price, since these sizes are the ones most often still available. We're also posting a new design to the discount list, our stylish "Tired Salaryman" shirt, which shows exhausted office workers riding home on the train after work. But hurry, since once items sell out we can't get them back again.

Japan as a Functional Western Democracy

On the whole, Japan is pretty functional as a Western-style democracy. Politicians make laws which are executed by the nation's army of komuin, public employees who function as a British-style bureaucracy that provides the actual "body" of the government. There is corruption, of course, but it's limited to comparatively rare cases involving high-ranking politicians, never on an individual level, and it's taken for granted that every person you interact with during the course of the day will be honest. This is quite different from countries like India, where (I'm told) the speed that the phone company installs your phone line is proportional to the size of the bribe you paid the clerk. Still, not everything is perfect in Japan. Although the number of (largely wasteful) public works projects was reduced significantly during the era of Prime Minister Koizumi, Japan still spends $71 billion a year on roads, bridges, dams, etc. Another problem are the constant streams of hakomono, essentially "pork barrel project in a box," conceived by politicians so their friends who own construction companies can make money. A textbook example of this was the plan by our city's mayor (who lives next door to us, by a really strange coincidence) to build a second Ferris Wheel in our city, despite the fact that we already have a perfect good one. Happily, that wasteful project got national media attention and the project was withdrawn

How Japan has Changed for Foreigners

Japan has really changed for the better over the past decade and a half in terms of how easy it is for a gaijin to live here. When I arrived in Heisei 3, the third year of the reign of Emperor Akihito (i.e. 1991), it was quite difficult to find a bit of "home" -- when I'd get homesick, I'd go and eat Egg McMuffins at McDonald's, just about the only thing that was exactly the same as it was back in the States. Slowly, Japan opened up and let just about any product in, and now consumers have a lot more choice, from Doritos to Subway sandwich shops to AM/PM Mini Marts. The Internet has obviously helped improve the lives of foreigners living here, allowing expats like me to do things they could never do before, like buy books from Amazon or log into a SlingBox and catch the Superbowl live. There's been one setback for Americans living outside their home country, however: last year the United States Post Office stopped offering surface mail service for packages going out of the U.S., meaning that my mother can't throw some Thanksgiving goodies into a seamail box and send them to me. It's been quite an inconvenience -- now she has to send the items by airmail or else call shipping companies like Yamato for container shipping quotes. (Note that seamail shipping into the U.S. is still going strong, and you can choose it as an option when purchasing from J-List as long as you're not in a hurry for the items.)

Being Sign in Japan, and How to Make Tamago-Zake

It's funny how being sick makes you revert to what you know best. I've got the flu that's been going around the J-List office, so yesterday I headed home early, took some of the various U.S. cold medicines I stock, and laid down to rest. For dinner I wanted noting other than good old Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup, which we'd brought back with us from our last trip. (The Japanese don't know what Chicken Noodle Soup is, the only soups they eat here being miso and corn potage.) When Japanese get sick, they naturally turn to their own cultural remedies. Supposedly, it's common to broil a leek (which they insist on calling a "long onion") until its soft, folding it inside a tenugui (a traditional hand towel), then they wrap that around their neck and go to bed. Then there's shoga-yu, which is hot water with grated fresh ginger in it and a little honey to improve the taste. The most famous folk remedy is probably tamago-zake, or egg and sake. To prepare it, put one cup of sake in a pan with a beaten egg, and heat it until just before boiling. Stir in some sugar if you like, the drink it back, and you'll be feeling better in no time. Or so they tell me anyway.

My Melody Lego Figures, Death Note, and More

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	My Melody, Kuromi Block Puzzle Chara Builder. And for fans of the Hello Kitty Lego-style set we posted last time, we've got two new fun Sanrio block puzzles that let you build My Melody and his evil twin, the "gothic" Sanrio character Kuromi. Compatible with Lego blocks.
	Death Note Real Action Collection - Full Set. Big great for Death Note fans, a new set of gorgeous PVC figures from the series, with miniature versions of L, Ryuk, Remu, Misa and Light Yagami. These figures are ready to display in your home or office, and there are several cool color variations.
	Lucky Daruma Bell Key Chain. The Daruma is one of the most famous symbols of Japan, a round, red figure that brings good luck to you. This is a cool "suzu" bell shaped like a Daruma figure with a keychain. Because it makes a pleasant sound when you move it, it's helpful for keeping you from losing your keys, since you can remember where the last time you heard the sound was.
	Yamaguchi Akira Works. Here's a fantastic item: a collection of beautiful paintings by Akira Yamaguchi that attempt to show a bizarre futuristic Japan using the Edo Period art style known as ukiyoe. From airports to horses with cybernetic attachments and motorcycle wheels and modern military weapons alongside samurai armor, this book is fantastic.
	Relaxed Totoro ~ Small. The new Totoro plush toys for 2008 by famous Japanese toy maker Sun Arrow are great. This is the smaller "Relaxed Totoro," which is very huggable and has individually articulated claws on his hands and feet.
	Let's Examine Social Studies! Who among us hasn't wondered what the massive turbines that power Tokyo look like, or how deep the subway tunnels run, or what the factories used to build jet planes look like. A fascinating book that shows you the underbelly of our society. Also good for fans of "modern ruins."
	Egg Feb 2008 vol. 136. Another lovely issue of Egg, the J-Fashion magazine that tracks the current state of street fashions in Shibuya, that oh-so-hip part of Tokyo, with a special focus on "kogals," the fashionable, slightly spoiled female generation.
	Tattoo Girls Design Book vol. 3. The Tattoo Girls series continues, with this great book that shows the cutting edge of female tattoo work in Japan today. Great color pictures of amazing tattoos, we like this book a lot.
	Kanu Uncho Hug Pillow ~ Dragon Destiny Body Pillow. Our life-size dakimakura have been extremely popular, and we've finally gotten the sold-out Kanu Uncho hug pillow cover back in stock, a great item for fans of Ikki Tousen / Dragon Destiny. In stock now!
	Check Tape Set. The Japanese are very good at coming up with innovative ways to help them memorize information for tests. Here's one way, the Zebra Check Tape, a roll of specially colored tape and a plastic sheet you can use to "blank out" words on a page for quizzing yourself. A great idea!
	Nestle "Melty Kit Kat" --Green Tea. We've gotten in fresh stock of the popular "Melty" Green Tea Kit Kat, which will sadly be disappearing soon as the warmer months approach. Remember that you can buy this great Japanese treat by the sealed case and save 15%.
	Eternal Beauty -- Ryoko Mitake. Next, we've gotten in a brand new hardcover glossy photobook featuring Ryoko Mitake, and boy does she look beautiful in these photographs. Elegant unclothed photography for a more civilized age.
	Bazooka Cafe. Call us romantics, but we've decided to have a special Valentine's Day sale on the great PC dating-sim Bazooka Cafe, which includes a separate game called Valentine Special, great for celebrating this special day for lovers. Available on CD-ROM or as a download.
	TMA Cosplay Drama Collection 8 Hours. Wow, this is a fantastic DVD offering for all fans of anime cosplay parody "H" performances, which have become so popular. This 2-disc 8-hour collection from TMA includes outstanding live-action scenes with famous actresses dressed as Haruhi Suzumiya, the girls from Lucky Star, Fate/Stay Night, Rozen Maiden, Rumble Roses, Final Fantasy and more. Highly recommended!

Valentine's Day in Japan 2008

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and all throughout Japan men are looking forward to receiving the gift of chocolate from females around them, in keeping with the local custom of women giving chocolate to men. There are two kinds of chocolate a man can receive, the most common being giri choco or "obligation chocolate," which females might give to males they work with or to teachers or male relatives because they feel it's expected of them. A lot of this is the result of good marketing, since virtually every convenience store in the country is decked out with decorations reminding shoppers that February 14th is around the corner. The best kind of chocolate is honmei choco, "true heart chocolate" that's given to a loved one, and all across Japan men will be looking forward to eating hand-made chocolates, cakes or other treats from our wives, daughters or girlfriends who want to show their love and appreciation.

Incidentally, since there's giri choco I thought I'd be cute and ask if they made ninjo choco as well. You've never seen such anime-like expressions of confusion on the J-List staff...

Tricks You Can Do with a Lemon and Chopsticks

The Japanese, of course, use chopsticks at almost every meal, whether they're eating rice, noodles, fish or meat. (Certain foods like curry rice or steak, of course, call for Western cutlery). Chopsticks are very easy to use: you just hold one stick between your middle finger and thumb, then hold the second with your forefinger and thumb so that you can create a "scissor" action that allows you to pick up food. With practice, it's very easy to pluck the last grain of rice from the bottom of your bowl when eating. The use of chopsticks is taught to children at around the age of three, and it's common for parents to want to make sure their kids learn to use them properly before they start preschool, making chopstick use one of the first forms of pressure children are subjected to in Japanese society. In Japan there's exactly "one" correct way to do things, a concept that extends to the holding of chopsticks as well, and it's common for conversations over beers at an izakaya restaurant to turn to how strangely one of the people at the table is holding their chopsticks. To me, the ultimate test of how good you are at using chopsticks is being able to wring the juice from a slice of lemon without getting any on your hands. Just slide the chopsticks into either end of the lemon slice and twist in opposite directions, extracting the lemon juice. Incidentally, J-List stocks many kinds of chopsticks from Japan, including ones with rough patches at the ends (to make them easier to eat with), and we even have a great line of "training chopsticks" for beginners.

All About Factories and Other Cool Things

You never know what will become the next interesting mini-boom in a place like Japan. Over the past few years, many Japanese have decided that the coolest thing is...factories? Amazingly, the strange industrial beauty of factories and other dark places like electric power plants does have a certain charm, and there have been a string of popular photobooks dedicated to capturing these eerie places. There's a variety show on TV that features objects being made in factories while famous TV personalities try to guess what's being manufactured, writing their answers on digital screens that are later revealed so the audience can laugh at all the wrong answers. It's quite fascinating to watch nylon fibers being spun and coated in plastic that turns out to be a fire house, or watch as long rods of steel are fed into a machine which clips pieces off and stamps them into pachinko balls. I was also fascinated to see how Mitsubishi makes pencils -- I couldn't take my eyes off the bizarre stream of wood as it was shaped and wrapped around the graphite leads.

Today's New Products: Cute Poop for Godo Luck, All Nude Waterskiing, and more!

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	FREEDOM vol 1 & 2 (Region 2). What started out as an innovative way to promote Nissin's Cup Noodle ramen has grown into a huge project, a sprawling story of a future when all surviving humans live on the moon. Featuring character and mecha designs by Akira creator Katsuhiro Otomo, it's a fantastic treat you won't want to miss. Vol. 1 & 2 of the Japanese release DVDs are in stock.
	Dr. Slump Handy Soft Poop for Good Luck. Poop is considered quite lucky in Japan, because the word for it, unchi, sound similar to the word for good luck, unki. Here's a pair of really cute pink colored "poop" toys from that classic bellwether of good taste, the Dr. Slump anime.
	Polyphonica Fan Book. Gorgeous fan book dedicated to the popular dating sim game anime series Polyphonica, which has won many fans in Japan. Gorgeous art on every page, this book is very thick, too, with approximately 80 pages of material for you to enjoy.
	Corticarte Apa Lagranges 1/8 Figure ~ Polyphonica. And here's a fantastic figure from the same series, the main character, rendered for you in beautiful PVC. This is the beautiful spirit Corticarte, who makes a contract with the main character Tatara be remain by his side. Fabulous detail in this very nice figure, by Good Smile Company.`
	Tabekko Animal Biscuit. Wow, seeing this really makes me natsukashii (nostalgic). This is a line of delicious butter cookies in the shapes of animals. Because the Japanese like to start their kids off early learning English, the cookies have the animal names baked into them. Generations of Japanese children have grown up with these cookies, and now you can try them, too.
	Bust Up! Drink -- Peach Flavor For ladies who feel they need a few more centimeters in the right places, the Japanese have come up with Bust Up! Drink. Gosh, these people never cease to amaze me...
	R2-D2 Wastebasket. I've had one of these cool R2-D2 trash cans made from Japan ever since they came out, and it's been the pride of my office ever since. While our first shipment sold out in a day, we were able to get more in stock for you. This item will be sent to you by EMS. It goes rather well with our R2-D2 Soy Sauce and Pepper Mill items.
	Rilakkuma Desktop Cleaner -- Normal ver. A cute way to keep your desk clean, this is a little desktop vacuum cleaner made in the image of Rilakkuma, aka Relax Bear, who wants us all to relax a little more.
	Hello Kitty Block Puzzle Chara Builder. Here's a fantastic item: a Lego-style Hello Kitty Block Puzzle that you can put together and display in your home or office. Kitty-chan looks great rendered in these toy blocks. A totally cool idea from Diablock and Sanrio.
	Lucky Charm for Safety Driving -- "HANNYA" Car Window Mascot. We've posted two beautiful "HANNYA" omamori luck charms specifically ,made to promote "safety driving" [sic]. They are window mascots that attach to the inside of your car with a suction cup, and feature a chromed gold Noh mask.
	Traditional Parasol. Nothing says 'Japan' like a parasol, even though that word comes from French. This has been such a popular item we keep running out of stock. It's back on the site again though, so check it out now!
	DX Long Study Flashcards for Sentence ~ Set of 2 pcs. The Japanese are good at studying, a part of this is because of the tools they've evolved to help memorize better. Here's a set of two deluxe long-type study flashcards that you can put to great use, whether you're studying Japanese, history or just about any subject. They feature keyrings so you can keep them with you all the time.
	Mikuru Asahina 1/8 Figure Maid ver. ~ Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi *Preorder*. Super upcoming Mikuru figure dressed as a maid. Mikuru is the time-travelling girl who has knowledge of the future and works with Yuki and Koizumi to plan what to do about the "godmind," Haruhi. This is a gorgeous 1/8 scale figure that you can preorder now.
	Sushi Magnets. Studies have shown that 42% of refrigerators and other metal surfaces can be improved by attaching sushi magnets to them. Also, 27% of bloggers make up statistics.
	Japanese Brush Pens, Other Items. Fude pens are the cool Japanese brush writing pens that let you write in calligraphy style, and we've restocked the DX 12 color set from Sun-Star that's just fantastic. Also, the thickest magic marker you've ever seen, for when you absolute positively have to write a fat line.
	Bejean Sep. 2007 vol. 167. Gorgeous new issue of Bejean, the flagship magazine of the Eichi Publishing Company, and filled with some of Japan's most beautiful models, from I cup covergirl Mari to Yoko Matsugane to out fave, Yuko Ogura. Don't miss the giant poster of female ninja Kotono!
	Gekkan Double. Outstanding "mook" (photomagazine) dedicated to the model known as Double, a fabulous woman who really shines on each page of this cool item. The "Gekkan" series is a monthly photomag that's dedicated to one model in each issue
	Paradise -- Rina Akiyama. We're big fans of Rina Akiyama around here, and love all her great photobook releases. Enjoy fresh stock of Paradise, her best-selling classic that is loved by many J-List customers.
	Comic AG Super Manga Anthology vol. 74. It's time for another awesome issue of Comic AG, the super manga magazine that brings you 80 pages of translated "H" comic art from Japan, shown with full detail and no nasty mosaic to mess up your fun. This new issue is a great one with futanari and much more in its pages!
	Juicy Honey 6 Authentic Visual Collection Trading Cards. Here's a treat for JAV fans: a collection of beautiful laminated trading cards featuring Japan's most popular actresses, from Hotaru Akane to Sasa Handa to Yuma Asami and more. These things are fantastic!
	Zenra Surfing, Sketching, More. The Japanese never fail to entertain, and the "Zenra" line of sports videos from Soft on Demand is one of our all-time favorites. We've restocked several titles, including the great Zenra Surfing & Water Skiing, and Zenra Rough Sketch, featuring an artist drawing and painting while being serviced from behind.