watashi to tokyo

living in a net cafe

Do you know the Three degrees? Do you know they sang "When will I see you again" in Japanese and it became a big hit in the 70s? Wow, their Japanese was pretty good.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare released "a field survey of people who have no house and a precarious job condition." In this case, it means people who stay in an Internet cafe or manga cafe and have unstable part-time jobs. I wrote about a guy who lived at a manga cafe. I thought it might be a rare case, however it seems a kind of social problem now. The reason why people stay in such cafes is "to use the Internet"(52.8%), "miss the last train to home"(27.8%), and then 7.8% replied "I have no home." The survey supposed 5400 people (the 20s and the 50s are majorities) will stay at cafes continuously and have no home. Here is a Japanese article. Well, I don't think there are only 5400, maybe more, because there is no way to figure out the number of those people. Do they give up family and friends? Do they choose it or do they have no choice? This is getting to be a bigger issue.

I was looking forward to using a new cockroach weapon "Hyosatsu". Of course, there are many crazy uses like this (iced pudding is delicious, they say) and this (wow, is it okay?), however it works fine. BUT! The company took action by launching a self-imposed product recall of Hyosatsu, because some used it to damp a fire, however the spray has flammable gas and some had fire trouble. Here is a good sample video. those guy had a fight: "Hyosatsu" vs "Fire Gas." Hmm, I hope I can try Hyosatsu next summer.

busy day

Wow! I could find very few topics and I have no time to write much...

Chinmi(odd food) eating club post from Nifty Portal Z. Sorry I have no time to explain what they are, but at least they are food. (this one is HOYA! Wiki says only Japanese and Korean eat it raw, I hate it though.) Check my Chinmi post too.

Japanese Hiragana or alphabet blackmail letter generator with Boss's voice (default) or MARO voice. Maro means "I." The Kuge were a Japanese aristocratic class in the 12th century. They used the word Maro as I. In those days, the aristocratic class shaved or cut eye brows and drew round eye brows like this on white face. I don't know why but these characters appeared as just rich, stupid aristocrats in Japanese costume dramas. And they always use a high-tone voice. So when we say Maro, we imagine an ignorant person with a funny face and high-tone voice.

I hardly buy anything from TV shopping, but this looks nice: diamond sharpner. What do you think?

Tokyo time-lapse: Shinjuku construction .

Anyway, did you know this? Creepy!! Alien Encounter Filmed In Mexico?

Another creepy topic. But I couldn't stop laughing to see this BoingBoing post: Creepy but awesome Finnish cover of "YMCA." Can't find the words that I can say. The back dancer's rough, odd and half-motivated job made the video great. I love it.

Drink Milk!

We call a not-so-funny joke a "chilly joke" (samui joke), it's sort of slang. When somebody tells a trashy joke, you can reply "Oh Chilly! (samui!)". In the same way, we use the word "sore" (itai) for something or someone that is self-satisfied, a misconception, or is an annoyance. Last week, some sites picked cars with animation print like this, this and this. "Ita-sha(car)" stands for Italian cars that we admire usually, but we call those animation cars "Ita-sha" (sore car) in a voice loaded with sarcasm. Ahhh itai ne!.

Talking about Itai topic! Finally, the maid cafe craze is slowing down, so some shops try to provide weird unique service. On the other hand, we have some another "theme cafe" topics. I wrote about a butler cafe cafe before, and last week I read about eyeglass cafe, hero cafe and this funny one this scientist lab coat cafe. Hmm in this way, we have various cafes for every fetish.

These 1,2,3,4 are foreign "drink milk" TV ads. Interesting, because we have exactly the same concept TV ads, and they are funny too. This is a great one; acrobat shopping. This is Matrix classroom. These TV ads are a series and this is an old one.

By the way, I didn't like milk when I was a kid, so my mom let me drink coffee milk or strawberry milk. I don't drink such flavored milk recently. Green tea milk, banana milk, melon milk, orange milk, fruit milk, they look nice.

Your brain inside

Today I was 50 minutes late for work, because the train stopped, because someone jumpped into the train. I wrote Chuo Line of JR it well known as the suicide line. This is the site records the accidents on the Chuo line. Wow a lot...Golden Gate Bridge has certain spots where people jump. When I wrote this post, Adam explain about the spot. I wonder if some make the Chuo Line a suicide station and a spot map. I suppose there is some reason people chose that spot.

Ken of "What Japan Thinks picked this intereting topic "Brain Insides Maker". I love it! It seems to be just a joke, but I must consent to the results always. Here is my result. My brain seems to be filled with 10% desire and 10% love, 40% rest and 40% problems. Yes, it's me. ha ha ha. I am not sure you can use this site though, because of the font setting. Try it!

Here are the meanings of each Character:
悩-Worry, trouble
罪-Sin
嘘-Lie
金-Money
欲-Desire
幸-Happiness
逃-Escape
疑-Suspect
休-Rest
愛-Love
寂-Lonely
眠-Sleeping
友-Friend
秘-Secret
食-Food
遊-Play
無-Nothing
国-Country
悲-Sad
悪-Bad
変-Weird
謎-Mistery
私-Me
妄-delusion
H-Sex

Actually, this type of site is very popular in Japan, this site checks your ingredients. They say 62% of me is electric wave, 26% is stock, 7% is mental block and 6% is key of success. Hmmm it's very persuasive for me.

The best Pizza in Japan?

Last Supper of Star Wars.. As a Last Supper collection, one of my favorite sites, wtbw, has good one.

. Pizza Hut Japan Japan (wow! I didn't know that Pizza is so jumbled like a cheap cake) had a Pizza Hat Topping contest and asked your favorite topping. Guess what? What topping did Japanese choose as our favorite? No.1 is Mentaiko and Potato. No,2 is Ebi Chilli (Shrimp and Chili). Now Pizza Hut will release a "Super Grand Prix 2007" pizza which is a half and half of Mentaiko and Ebi Chilli. Hmmmmmmmm, I hope the Italian government won't send the Pizza Plice to Japan. :-) At least, it's not my taste. I wonder if the original Pizza Hut has such a menu. Of course not. Actually, it's interesting Japan Pizza hut has more Pizza menu, especially a lot of seafood toppings. I hardly eat delivery Pizza, I but like to eat Naples Pizza though, and my favorite shop is i-rottah in Meguro.

The theme of the new Katamari Damacy is "Beautiful". Here is the movie, and they have an online mode. This time, they have a Japanese traditional candy store (Dagashiya) stage. It's a very unique place. Tell me, when you find something you can tell what it is. Wow, it will be released on my birthday. But for XBox KAYO! I will update when they release wallpaper and screensaver pages.

Fake suicides

Still too hot. An old Lesser Panda in the Zoo had to die because of the heat. My work is 28 degrees for Cool Biz campaign. I am tired of the summer heat. My physical tiredness makes me mentally down. I am blue, when I am thinking of rush train to my home. The trains use the energy-saving way, so people have to sweat in the train, I must be patient even if a guy's sweaty arm or back is touching me on the rush train...orz.

On such a day, fake suicide collection! Do you know the book "The Book of Bunny Suicides". I have never seen it, but I can see cute bunny on Google images. Monkey Suicide seems to be a photo sharing site. Ah cute...I like this, this and this. I want to upload it though, I need to buy the monkey first?? Is it a popular monkey? This is Barbie Suicide. Wow why naked? This is funny too, fake suicide photos.

avocado

I found this mug, lovely! I want it. I found this seat for men, ha ha ha, it looks comfortable for you?

Yesterday, Sayoko Yamaguchi passed away. She was one of the first supermodels who were chosen to be the 20 best models in the world. They said her thin almond shaped eyes and black straight hair were so exotic. She also gave Japanese women new confidence in their beauty as Asians. Anna Sui wrote about a Sayoko mannequin that was designed in 1977. I read there were many Sayoko mannequins in NY in those days. May her soul rest in peace.

Avocado. I like it. I like to eat it with soy sauce and wasabi. Thinking of California rolls, my way to eat is a sort of avocado sashimi. By the way, do you know many Japanese think the black fruit name is avoGado. Nifty Portal Z counted "voCado" and "avoGado" in supermarkets in Tokyo. (an avocado cost 198yen (around $2 USD) in this country? Yes it is). Wow! Still many shops wrote it in an incorrect way. This is not the case we know the correct pronounciation but can't do it like "we can't say Avril Lavigne". We mistunderstand the name is avoGado. Okay, I will check google images in avoGado in Japanese. Here are results. Wow a lot!! Actually avocado is hard to pronouce for Japanese, avogado may become a household word in this country.

God of proverty

Gyaaaaaa!!! so creepy...orz.

Thanks! The 2channel article of Wikipedia has a link to my blog. I wrote about 2channel, though I have never read about a "Matsuri"(festival) like this one in Live. This machine will help me. When the board has more than the usual replies within a specified time, the alarm lets you know a "Matsuri has just started" with light and sound. But how can I know which category, etc. I am curious about its mechanism.

This is a nice lunch blog which I checked often because her area is exactly my area! I love Choco cro of the St. Marc cafe too! A hard and a little bit bitter chocolate bar is inside of the croissant.

I wrote before about a poor local railway that was struggling for survival. To support Chosi railway, a game production company, Hudson Soft, had agreed on "Wrap advertising" of their game character "Momotaro Densetsu". And this month, Hudson sent three stone figures to Choshi Dentetsu. Those figures were designed by the same designer as Momoden. And the motif was BINBOGAMI (god of poverty ). One god has a monkey on the head, one has a bird and one has a dog. Monkey is Saru in Japanese and the similar-sounding verb Saru means leaving. Bird is Tori in Japanese and the similar-sounding verb Tori(toru) means taking off. Dog is Inu and in the same way, inu means "nothing." So those statues are a word game: "provery must be gone." Choshi railway set those three in three different stations and the had three dedication celemonies in Shinto Style for each. Three Gods of poverty looking like a game character and with a joke idea will help the poor railway? On the Internet, people said it looks like Hudson's prank. I agree.

Vexill

A full CG animation movie Vexill will released this weekend. The Director is Fumihiko Sori. If you are an animation fan, you may know he directed Apple Seed. Here is the official site. You can check English subbed traler and a longer trailer on YouTube. Apparently some part was inspired by DUNE. The sound of Boom Boom Satellites matches this type of movie always. I like them.

Nothing.

Cute keyboard generator. .

Too hot again. In the Kanto area, temperatures rose till 40.9 degrees Celsius. Some people died from heat and a train had to stop because the railway was spread by the heat. (5cm per 50m!!) On the other hand the Japanese market is getting colder and colder every day and I can't find any good topic to write today and I can't do this simple game and I want this running alarm but it will be sold in the U.S only. Blah-blah-blah.....Sorry I will go drinking tonight for USABARASHI (as a diversion).