Don't Write a Person's Name in Red in Japan

The other day my wife was writing my name and address on a box she was going to send to our house in Japan. As she did so, she said, "P-chan," -- my nickname at home, which I inherited from an old cat we used to have, not the famous anime pig -- "I only have a red pen, so I'm going to write your name in red. Sorry about that." I didn't understand why she was apologizing, then I remembered the odd (from my viewpoint) superstition about writing people's names in red ink in Japan (and Korea). This may date from a practice in ancient Japan in which a samurai would send an official declaration to an enemy that he planned to kill, writing his opponent's name in his own blood. There are many other death-related superstitions in Japan. The number 4 is read shi, which is the same pronunciation as the kanji character death, and it's supposedly bad luck to give a person four of something -- hence, most gifts come in sets of five. It's sometimes considered bad luck to take a photograph with three people in the frame, as the one in the middle will be likely to die young, and some people will always make sure to avoid taking pictures with three subjects to avoid this taboo. Finally, it's considered bad luck to cut your fingernails at night, because you won't be able to be with your parents when they die. Superstitions can be fun!

If you write a person's name in red, something bad might happen.

Would You Like to Climb Mt. Fuji?

There comes a time in every Japan-loving gaijin's life when he or she must take the plunge and climb Mt. Fuji. An active volcano 12,388 ft (3,776 meters) high that rises gracefully from the prefectures of Shizuoka and Yamanashi, Mt. Fuji is an incredibly beautiful image of the country. In Japanese its name is Fuji-san, with san being the correct pronunciation for the character for mountain, although this character is read yama in other situations, and foreigners are famous for using the wrong name (Fuji-yama). Climbing season is from July 1 to August 31, during high summer, since it's really hot down at sea level yet freezing cold at the apex. Climbers usually start from the 5th level, the highest point that vehicles can reach, and take one of three walking routes up to the top (the 10th level). As you climb up, you pass the various milestones and get a special stamp on your walking stick to commemorate each achievement; eventually you'll reach the top, out of breath from the thin air but happy to be having such a great experience. Traditionally mountains are associated with Shinto, the indigenous religion of Japan, and Mt. Fuji has been considered a holy place for thousands of years.

Mt. Fuji, or Fujisan, is the most famous single symbol of Japan.

Noriko Sakai is THE FUGUTIVE

Japan's entertainment world has been turned upside-down by a perfect storm of scandals this week. First, actor Manabu Oshio was arrested for testing positive for the drug Ecstasy after a Roppongi hostess was found dead in an apartment he'd been using, apparently having died of a drug overdose. He's the estranged husband of super-cute actress Akiko Yada, who became a household name after appearing in a popular AFLAC commercial, and the news has idol and J-drama fans all over the net buzzing. Then in an unrelated case, Takaso Yuichi, a former pro surfer and husband to the hugely popular J-POP star Noriko Sakai, was arrested for possessing stimulant drugs. Soon after this event the singer disappeared, apparently out of embarrassment over her husband's arrest, but as she was known to be near the Aokigahara "Sea of Trees" suicide forest area there was some fear that she might be contemplating something terrible. Instead, it turns out that drugs may have belonged to her and not her husband, and an arrest warrant has been issued for the fleeing star, which means that the poor woman now has the dreaded suffix of yogisha or "suspect" added to her name during news broadcasts. The singer, who performed the opening themes to Gunbuster and Video Girl Ai if you're an old-school anime fan like me, has a huge following in China, Taiwan and South Korea, and this scandal has fans all across Asia wondering what will happen to our cute Noripi.

Ccute idol and actress Noriko Sakai is currently a fugitive from justice.

Cool Products Friday, August 7, 2009

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.

	Kera Aug 2009 Another wonderful issue of Kera, the fashion magazine dedicated to Tokyo's street scene, covering both the latest in goth-loli and gothic punk, along with the newest trends that are just around the corner.
	B's Log Aug 2009 If you love the genre of gaming in Japan known as otome games, with stories centered on girls finding love among beautiful boys, we present a great new issue of B's Log, the best resource to gaming for girls there is.
	Ultra Jump July 2009 Then: a new issue of Ultra Jump, the extremely professional and elegant monthly magazine that gives you 540 pages of high quality Japanese comics, including Tenjou Tenge by OH! Great. Great free manga box in this issue!
	Sabotender, Tonberry Plush In Stock Final Fantasy fans, we've posted two cute plush toys that you'll want to pick up: Sobender and Tonberry, aka Cactuar and Pug. Both plush toys are in stock now!
	Shakugan no Shana Cosplay, Restocked Items J-List's complete cosplay uniforms are popular with our customers, and today we've posted a gorgeous Shana costume, one of my favorites. Also see fresh stock of Haruhi, Higurashi and other cosplay outfits.
	Yoko Skull Hair Accessory Here's the ultimate accessory for all the otaku girls out there: Yoko's skull hair clip from Gurren Lagann, the famous Gainax anime. In stock and ready for your ordering enjoyment.
	Japanese Hat - "Echo Base" Star Wars Parody J-List stocks some mighty cool professionally embroidered hats, which we make right in our San Diego office (not mass-produced in Asia). Our newest hat is our original Echo Base Star Wars/Ecko Unlimited parody -- enjoy!
	SUGURI Perfect Edition J-List now carries doujin (indie) games from Japan, with the awesome release of Suguri by Rockin' Android. Amazing shooting action, great characters and a superb music soundtrack make this title one we recommend for everyone.
	Domo-Kun Complete Bag Box (Region 2) Domo-kun collectors can now enjoy the "complete" collection of animated shorts with this totally cool DVD set, which gives you the entire history of Japan's cutest monster. Comes with an awesome Domo canvas bag.
	Mobile Suit Gundam III (Region 2) The third volume of the 30th anniversary Gundam movie DVD is posted to the site now. It comes with English subtitles and a gorgeous remastered print.
	Sanrio Vibrating Shoulder Massagers Nothing says "Japan" like officially licensed vibrating shoulder massagers featuring Hello Kitty and My Melody. A huge cult item among collectors, we've gotten fresh stock of these popular items in for you today.
	Hatsune Miku Mixing Box A super box of cool stuff for the Miku Hatsune lover, including fan book, pencil board, DVD-ROM, and a PVC figure. This awesome box set has been incredibly popular, but we were able to get more stock for you.
	New Snacks From Japan Today's fun new snack offerings incude Pucca fish-shaped crackers in Milk Coffee flavor, Hi-Chew in Mt. Fuji White Peach, and real Kinako Mochi treats from Hokkaido.
	Goya Champloo (Okinawa Limited) Food Drops Our hugely popular traditional Japanese Food Drops -- which recreate the classic Sakuma Drops candies but with realistic foods from all over Japan -- continues, with a new flavor from Okinawa. Plus, fresh stock of Sasebo Burger, Chanko Nabe and So-Ki Soba noodles.
	Wacky Things from Japan J-List to be your Wacky Things from Japan Headquarters. Click to see some of our wackiest items, from sushi and beer straps you attach to your phone to those weird but cool clear plastic umbrellas that are so popular in Asia.
	Bamboo Traditional Japanese Ear Cleaners The traditional way to clean your ears is with a mimikaki, a Japanese "ear pick" that looks like a tiny spoon. If you've been wanting to try these cool items out but needed an excuse, we have some on the site that are just 99 cents.
	NATURAL LUNCH TIME Tight Bento Box Save money by embracing Japan's culture of bento, the beautiful and healthy boxed lunches. Today we're posting some extremely low-priced bento boxes w/ matching chopstick cases.
	HANA-ZEN 2-Tier Bento Set Restocked Then see both colors of the popular 2-tier bento box that comes with everything you need -- main lunchbox, chopsticks, band to keep it securely closed and a cloth bento bag. One of our most popular bento sets.
	Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea Bento Box For fans of the new Hayao Miyazaki film Ponyo, we've restocked the super-cute bento box, a deluxe 2-tier lunchbox that will provide many hours of good eating for you.
	Microwave Rice Cookers, Other Items Restocked Make delicious Japanese rice using only a standard microwave oven, thanks to the Microwave Rice Cookers that we've restocked. Also, Hello Kitty Pudding Cups, baran fake decorative grass and more.
	BLEACH ~ Flame Bringer DS A great new game for the Nintendo DS for Bleach fans, this is the 4th Bleach game released, Flame Bringer. A super game that combines all the Bleach characters with a unique card battle system. Play it now!
	Hello Kitty Fluffy DS Case Then, Kittify your Nintendo DS Lite with this really amazing soft case that's perfect (note that I resisted the urge to write "purr-fect") companion for your DS.
	Love Plus DS, Idolmaster DS Games Preorder Got some preorder DS games to tell you about next. First there's Love Plus, an outstanding love simulation game that lets you interact with cute girls with full-motion animation. Also, the new Idolmaster game is posted for your preorderage.
	PSP Games Restocked Don't look now, but the Sony PSP has turned into just about the coolest platform for anime gaming there is, with many great titles to choose from which are fully compatible with PSPs from any country. See fresh stock of great games like Macross Ace Frontier and Clannad PSP.
	Awesome Kanji & Anime T-shirts J-List prints a line of popular anime and kanji-themed T-shirts in our San Diego office, and we love how popular they've become. Note that we originally posted the Toradora! parody shirt showing that only size S was in stock, but we have all sizes available. The goof has been fixed.
	Restocked Artbooks & More Whether you want to take in the best art the Street Fighter universe has to offer or learn to draw bishoujo characters, J-List has a few hundred artbooks for you to browse. Click to view updated and other items.
	Hiragana Times No. 273 Some of the things we sell at J-List make me feel warm inside, like Hiragana Times, a super magazine with articles in both English and Japanese that's great for all students of the language. Snap up the new issue, or consider a revolving subscription!
	Japanese Study Aids Look for some popular restocked Japanese study products for beginners, including 15 Minutes a Day Kanji Practice, Understanding Basic Japanese Grammar, the Zebra Check Set and more. Protip: see the 50 most popular study items at J-List.
	Books on Bento, Life in Japan Then see other popular books on Japan restocked, including the bilingual Living Japanese Style vol. 2, Waku Waku Oekaki Bento for making beautiful Japanese boxed lunches, and the wildly popular Manga Cook Book.
	Restocked Traditional Items Other fun restocked products today, including our most popular wooden Kokeshi doll, a great calligraphy brush w/ ink and inkwell set, a fantastic Kimono Kinchaku bag, delightful wind chimes for summer, and more.
	Natural Bamboo Cool Pillow This is cool, but it's hard for me to describe how and why it's cool. Basically, it's a woven bamboo pillow that's wonderful for taking leisurely naps in the summer. Restocked, most likely for the last time this season.
	Awesome Preorder Anime Toys Cool anime products you can preorder through our site today include the new P-Chan Plush for Ranma 1/2 fans, the cool Roy Mustang Glove for Fullmetal Alchemist fans, and a very kawaii Nendoroid that says Nyoro~n...
	Sabra DVD Mook ~ in Spirit -- Mihiro w/ Akiho Fabulous photobook starring Mihiro. This pure copper-haired Japanese angel will certainly delight you with every page. The dynamics of Mihiro and Akiho posing together makes it even better.
	Restocked Photobooks Then see fresh stock of some darned-cool photobook offerings, including voice actress Rie Tanaka performing sexy cosplay of the roles she's done, and more with the angelic Natsuki Ikeda.
	Family Project ~ Kazoku Keikaku If you're looking for the one of the best PC dating-sim game experiences ever, we hope you'll consider Family Project, the newest game released in English, and hailed by Japanese fans as one of the best games ever created. The game is available on DVD-ROM or as a convenient Internet Download Edition.
	Yawa Chichi -- Ryota Magaki Artworks A fantastic full color artbook by famous artist Ryota Magaki. Featuring awesome female characters with gorgeous bodies, by which we mean oppai, this is one of those special books that fans shouldn't miss out on. High artistic value.

Back in Japan, and Sleepy...

Well, I'm back on the other side of the world, having made the hop from California to Japan, a journey of 24 hours from door to door. As usual, being back "home" is always a bit of a shock, from the terrible humidity to how clean everything looks from the window of the bus I took from the airport. I apologize in advance if this post stops making sense partway through -- jet lag is starting to take its toll on me.

It's back to school season in the U.S. right now, as millions of students prepare for studies to begin again in September. J-List has stocked hundreds of great items from Japan for those who want to have a little bit of Japan in their school life. Whether you're looking or awesome Japanese pens, mechanical pencils or erasers, stylish and kawaii notebooks or useful study aids to help you memorize any information, we've got great items for back-to-school season on the site. View them all now!

Lowering the Age of Adulthood in Japan

The Japanese government is moving ahead with a plan to lower the official age at which a person is considered an adult from 20 to 18. Since its emergence as a modern nation, Japan has defined an adult to be age 20, and that's when a person can legally buy tobacco or alcohol and vote in elections. There's even a major day to celebrate young people's emergence as adults, Coming of Age Day in January, when all new 20-year-olds in each town will put on brand new kimono and suits and celebrate their new status as full-fledged members of society. By lowering the age a person can vote in elections to 18, the government is hoping to increase interest in politics and social issues, although it's likely that some political groups will benefit from the change more than others. The majority of supporters of the conservative Liberal Democratic Party, which has ruled the country for most of the past half-century, are older and located in rural parts of Japan, whereas younger, idealistic Japanese in cities usually support other parties.

Will we need to make a new version of our famous T-shirt?

The Nebuta Festival in Aomori

In the summer the Japanese love matsuri, or festivals, which are a fun time to wear traditional clothes and carry around an omikoshi, a kind of heavy portable shrine that's hoisted around the neighborhood by a dozen or so people. There are various major festivals held around the country, from the Gion Festival in Kyoto to the Heso Matsuri (lit. "belly-button festival") held in the exact center of Hokkaido to the Awa Odori festival of Shikoku in which participants perform the most amazing choreographed traditional dances. One of the most colorful festivals is the Nebuta Matsuri, held in Aomori Prefecture at the top of the main Japanese island of Honshu from August 2~7, which may date back more than 1000 years. It's known for the gorgeous lit-up floats that are paraded through the city, portraying mythical gods from ancient Japan and China. It's the kind of beautiful traditional event that's tailor-made to appeal to foreigners, and many make the journey to see the Nebuta Festival every year.

The Nebuta Festival in Aomori is one of the most unique in Japan.

Gaijin in Japan, Continued

Last time I talked about the way Japanese perceive Westerners, who kind of hold a special place in society here because we're so obviously different from the Japanese faces all around us -- we basically have a big sign that says gaijin! hanging around our necks. One question I'm sometimes asked is, do foreigners in Japan face discrimination. Now, the Japanese are human beings just like people in every other country, and not everyone is always happy to have to deal with a bumbling foreigner who doesn't necessarily know the local language and customs yet often assumes that others are familiar with his country. I have naturally experienced some issues during my time here, from an inebriated yakuza who was clearly not happy to have an American breaking the wa in the public bath he was using to the occasional crazy individual who walks up and down the train cars in Tokyo shouting while everyone pretends he's not there. These instances have been extremely rare, and it's interesting to observe that even when a Japanese person is put off by you for some reason their usual response is to be more polite. I've observed before that most of the "discrimination" many gaijin face is positive, not negative, taking the form of people giving us gifts or letting us out of certain obligations that Japanese would have to fulfill, like the time I broke my vacuum cleaner through misuse and the electronics shop fixed it for free, just because. I think that if people coming to Japan keep an open mind about the country and try their best to respect the local customs and avoid being overly sensitive, there'll never be a problem.

It's not hard to spot the gaijin in this picture, which is something you just get used to here.

Cool Products Wednesday, August 5, 2009

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.

	Shonen Ace Sep 2009 Shonen Ace is one of the top manga magazines available through our revolving magazine subscription service, because of its high quality content and huge page count. The new issue is in, and it comes with a free T-shirt (!!).
	Figure King No. 136 We love the anime figures and other toys from Japan, but keeping informed of all the cool stuff that's released can be a challenge. If you're in the same boat, we recommend quality toy magazines like Figure King, which are filled with news and photos of all the newest toys.
	Five-For J-ROCK Magazines Issue 11 For J-ROCK fans, we've got the new issue of the information-packed FiveFor, the English-language magazine about Japan's J-ROCK scene. Glossy printing and high quality articles for fans of Japan's music scene -- highly recommended!
	GELATIN Summer 2009 Color Original Comics A fabulous color manga for collectors, this excellent artbook-format book pulls together some of Japan's most talented artists to create something really special. Perfect bound and really awesome to read.
	KURU-TOGA ~ Automatic Spinning Mechanical Pencil We're in "Back to School Mode" around here, offering great products from Japan for students of all ages. This is a mechanical pencil that automatically spins its lead, so you're always writing on a sharp edge.
	Guru Guru Omikuji Ball Point Pen Then: a pen that features a traditional omikuji, or paper fortune, as seen at Japan's famous Shinto shrines. Just pull the paper out of the pen to see your fortune. English translations included with each pen.
	Mamegoma 3-Tier Aluminum Pen Case We love finding kawaii things to post to the site, and this is a great item: a 3-tier pen case for storing all your writing instruments. Features Mamegoma, the cute San-X character.
	MAMESHIBA ~ Edamame Animal B5 Note Book Also: see fresh stock of the Mameshiba notebooks, featuring the little Shiba dog inside a bean (mame) that happens to know really strange trivia.
	New Snacks from Japan Today's newly added snack items include Rock, Paper, Scissors gummy snacks in cola and ramune flavor, amazing Wasabi potato shacks, and Glico Cheese Pretz.
	Books on Bento, Sake and More Also: excellent books in English to help you improve your bento-making skills, and the ultimate book about Japanese sake. Two of our favorite subjects.
	NATURAL LUNCH TIME Sandwich Case This is cool: a protective sandwich case that collapses when you're done with your lunch, so that it takes up almost no space. Three colors in stock today.
	Animal Crossing Bento, More Then, there are a few items J-List was born to sell, and the Animal Crossing Bento Box sets are certainly among them. See fresh stock of this popular series today, along with some fun bento accessory items.
	Hello Kitty Canvas Tote Bento Bag A really nicely designed canvas bag that can hold all your important stuff. It also makes an outstanding bento bag!
	Tokyo Float Here's a really nice photobook from Japan that lets you see Tokyo from a new location: the water. All pictures feature Tokyo as seen from its many rivers, its harbor and other waterways, and show you a view of the city never glimpsed before.
	Totoro Key Chain Music Boxes Next: J-List stocks many products for fans of Totoro and Studio Ghibli, and today we're posting fresh stock of our cute keychains that contain music boxes. So small and fun to listen to!
	Mobile Suit Gundam II 30th Anniversary The 2nd Gundam 30th Anniversary DVD is posted to the site, containing the middle of the classic robot series. Contains full English subtitles!
	Revoltech Evangelion Figures In Stock Also: to celebrate the coolness that are the new Eva movies, Revoltech has released some totally new action figures of all the Eva units. Totally detailed, they can be put in any pose.
	Kawaii Kira-Deco Pop Stamp Sets Cute rubber stamps are everywhere in Japan, and we're posting some of these fun items to the site. Each comes in a carrying cast and includes multiple stamps with anime girls and skulls.
	Mousse-chan Paper Soft Clay Mold Toys Restocked J-List's customers love our selection of Mousse-chan "paper clay" molds that let you mold amazing objects for crafts or other uses. We've posted some fun clay molds to the site now.
	Magical Diet Body Shape Roller AS SEEN ON YOUTUBE, this is the unusually wacky body shape roller, which is designed to push fat cells away form the parts of your body you want to slim down. Also good for back massaging.
	My Japanese Coach for the Nintendo DS Great news for Nintendo DS owners: we now stock My Japanese Coach, a fun program for teaching you the basics of Japanese, from reading hiragana and katakana to helping you learn vocabulary. In stock in San Diego!
	Kanji in Mangaland, More See fresh stock of the hit Japanese in Mangaland series, which helps you learn Japanese kanji and vocabulary using our favorite visual medium.
	Live from Tokyo ~ Listen to Real Japanese! Next, we've gotten in additional stock of the popular textbook + CD that helps you study Japanese using real sounds and recorded messages you can hear everywhere in Tokyo.
	Awesome Traditional Items from Japan See some great restocked traditional items on the site, including our Sakura-themed sake drinking set, our Baked Japanese Cedar traditional sandals, Red and Purple Dragon omamori (Shinto good luck charms) and a Lucky Cat statue that you can save money with.
	Wacky Japanese T-Shirts in Stock One of our most popular wacky Japanese T-shirts, this sternly warns you that you that, "You must be 20 years old to purchase alcohol or tobacco." This sign can be seen in any Japanese 7-11 convenience store.
	Risty 1/8 Cast-Off Figure *Preorder* Queen's Blade fans can preorder this upcoming "cast off" figure that looks positively beautiful, complete with mace and shield.
	Gurren Lagunn EX Figure Yoko & Nia *Preorder* Or if you're a fan of Gurren Lagann, the complex Gainax anime that's structured like a great big drill, we've got some cute figures of Yoko and Nio dropping soon -- preorder them now.
	Family Computer Card Case -- NES *Preorder* Up your nerd cred with these Nintendo Family Computer (aka NES)-themed business card holders, which turn boring business into the coolest situation ever. Preorder both types now.
	The Color of Summer ~ Natsuki Ikeda Then, a real treat from the pages of Bomb magazine, meet Natsuki Ikeda in her new photobook offering. With its glossy pages and fabulous poses this delightful and energetic girl will steal your heart.
	Moe Moe Lingerie Encyclopedia Also see fresh stock of the great book that's filled with educational information about women's lingerie, from esoteric types of bras and underwear to all the things that guys don't know about girl's because we're, well, guys. Restocked today.
	More Queen's Blade Artbooks Look for even more awesome Queen's Blade artbooks restocked, for fans of this innovative twist on an American book-based combat RPG. Today we've got fighting Japanese shrine maiden Tomoe's gorgeous artbooks back in stock.
	Princess Waltz on DVD-ROM or Download A game we can't recommend highly enough, Princess Waltz is a gorgeous high-budget H-game about beautiful princesses who clash swords to determine who the queen of the land will be. Sounds like Queen's Blade, but it's really Princess Waltz. Available on DVD-ROM or download.
	Annerotte 1/8 Cast-Off Figure ~ Queens Blade This is a great figure from the Queen’s Blade Rebellion series, the super-cute Annerotte. The figure is a full 1/8 scale recreation and comes complete with s “cast off” features (hee hee). In stock now, but already devastated by preorder customers, so hurry to get yours!