Studying; Masu Mashita

Well another Japanese class is over for the night. I'm not feeling so bad about my ability after tonights lesson. There's another girl who speaks Japanese quite a bit better than me, but she can't write anything. For me Hiragana and Katakana are OK but Kanji is still beyond me.

At first we all practiced some Kanji, reading & putting two together to give new meanings. That mostly left me gaping my mouth a bit like a goldfish. However when the beginners were separated out, I was able to do much better.

Here's a scan of the main worksheet for tonight.


(click for larger image)

Yeah, pretty bad, I know. But I still got everything correct and finished writing quickly.

Well, I'll keep doing my best! Yosh!

Drinking, Late Night & Cycles

Tonight I was living the Expat Japan dream. After work I went drinking with one of my co-workers, had a great time just chatting and then I caught the last train home and avoided the desperate search to find somewhere to rest until the trains resume operation in the morning. What a rush....

But while walking around town tonight I saw this bicycle, which started me thinking.



It's about 10pm, it's cold and the night creatures have come out to play. Here we have a bicycle with baby seat in front and a child seat in back. Which got me thinking.

Is there someone out, getting their groove on with their baby in the night club Crèche? Is there a parent out there waiting to hear a report from the police that their stolen family bicycle has been found? Has the father taken the bike to go and have a drink while his family sleeps at home? Did the teenager with a large gap between them and their middle and youngest siblings decide to hit the town tonight?

I can't imagine which is the correct one, but it certainly got me thinking.

Any further possibilities for the story of this bike with a baby seat being out so late at night? Leave a comment!

Tokyo Tom Interview

Today I would like to introduce you to a fellow Japan blogger, Thomas of tokyo-tom.blogspot.com

1 Tell jDonuts readers a little bit about yourself.

I came to Japan 5 years ago. After being graduating and working in an ad agency for 2 years, my best friend from high school told me that I should get over here. I had studied in Osaka for a time during college and had always wanted to come back. When I first came to Japan I worked in a "big three" eikaiwa, moved on to computer programming, and now I'm working in an international school and studying for my masters in elementary education.


2 Why did you start blogging about Japan?

Blogging is a way for me to keep a journal. When I first came here I had the idea of keeping my friends informed of what I was doing through a blog since form emails clog up inboxes and require people to read them right away. Whereas a blog is something people can read when they have time. My current blog, Hello Mother, Hello Father was made for my parents.

3 Why have you continued blogging about Japan?

Blogging has gotten me interested in graphic arts and photography. Besides, my parents like reading about what I am doing.

4 What Anime character are you most like and why?

I'm not into anime so it took me a while to think of an answer to this one, but I'll choose Nana. It's always been a fantasy of mine to be a rock star. I'm not a Japanese girl, but I've always wanted to be a rock star.

5 If you only had one day in Japan and ￥10,000 what would you do and why?

I'd go and hang out in Ueno. There is so much to do in that area and it's cheap. I would go to a museum after looking around Ueno Park, go to Ueno Ichiba--my favorite izakaya there, hang out in Ameyoko, and walk around Yakata. I'd probably keep the izakaya for last since 10,000 yen goes fast there.

6 What are two of your favorite posts (on your own blog) and why?

How to Eat Sushi
I posted one of the funniest videos I have ever seen here. (this is also my favorite. C.)

and

Around Sendai
This post has some interesting pictures of the new city I live in, and has a great comment from my mom.

7 What are two of your favorite posts (on other Japan blogs) and why?

Only 2? (Yes, only two. C.)

Disgusting Attitudes Towards Japanese People
This post and especially comments were interesting to me because it shows some truth, many stereotypes, and a whole lot of misconceptions all in one.

and

Harrased by Old Man on Train
This kind of thing has happened to me as well. For a long time I had thought it was just me.


8 Go crazy after this, say anything you like! (but please keep child safe)
I recently started a widget called "Blogs on Japan" to give more exposure to these kinds of blogs. It displays a random 125x125 banner. There is no point system like some other banner exchanges--it's completely random.

If you have a blog about Japan and would like to be added, please contact me at tokyotom [at] tokyo.com with a like to your site so I can review and add it.


9 Who would you like to see interviewed next? (Max 3)
Mike @ www.japanisdoomed.com
Tobias @ www.observingjapan.com
Lulu @ www.cherryblossomadventures.com

And there you have it, my 2nd Japan Blogger interview with Thomas of tokyo-tom.blogspot.com

New Anpanman Toys

Anpanman is quite a popular character amongst Japanese children. My son had lots of fun watching the Anpanman New Years show. Also not too long ago we won an Anpanman Play Mat (pictured below) so it almost goes without saying that he squealed with delight when I brought home some toys for him.

They were given to me by one of my students after she completed some Golden Week cleaning. Thank you M.Y!



(click for larger image)

From Center Top we have
1 Anpanman play bus with six magic bean characters. You twist the handle and a character falls through a slot and out a door on the side. This was my son's No1 favorite.
2 Anpanman bounce toy. With a soft head and rubber cord you can bounce this toy much like a Yo-Yo.
3 Swimming Anpanman ball. Inside we have Anpanman inside a plastic ball, he is wearing a life preserver and is surrounded by floating balls. Tonight in our bath together he really enjoyed playing with it and cried quite fiercely when it was taken away from him, until he was reunited with the bus in 1.
4 Anpanman sand play set. We were surprised that this set was in such good condition, it was almost like it was brand new!
5 Anpanman aquarium picture book. Very Nice.

I couldn't bring everything home today, so that's all for now. Yes, there was more!

It was very generous of my student and keeps within my ideology of reducing waste & recycling where possible. Thank You!

Poo and Engrish

Honestly I couldn't think of a better title. It's really about Poo & Engrish.

First the Poo.



Yep, its a Poo, a turd, a shit, a brown log, a Number 2 or a doo doo.

Why would ANYONE want to own one of these?

The conversation must have gone something like this.

Person A "I feel depressed, I wish I had a giant poo in my life that I could hug when I feel down."
Person B "That's a really good idea, I'm sure that other people have the same empty void in their lives too."
Person A "Certainly there is nothing that makes me feel happy than the idea of having a soft poo to hold."
Person B "I think you should market this idea, you will make a fortune."
Person A "I think I will."

(If you post about this and come up with something funnier on your own blog, I'll send you 50-200 EntreCard credits. Let me know what the URL is)

Then the Engrish, At the same store I found:


Freshful Straw from Heartful Goods. Good to see they can continue to make up words!

Started Japanese Class

Tonight I started studying Japanese again.

My town offers free Japanese lessons for foreigners so the wife signed me up and tonight was the first meeting. It wasn't really a lesson as such, more of an introduction and level check.

It was really cool to see so many foreign people living in my town, I don't feel quite so alone anymore. America, Australia, China, Peru, Iran & Sri Lanka was represented. While I am a rather independent guy and I am happy with my own company, it was good to get out and meet people outside work or family.

It really broadened my horizons in this country as well as got me out of the house.

The main thing I came away with was "しゅみ" Shumi which means hobby. "しゅみ　は　どういう　いみ　です　か?" What are your hobbies?

However in the level check it became painfully clear that I was the worst Japanese speaker of the lot. Still I'll do my best and persevere, I can only improve my ability and that will help my life in this great country.

Spicy Teriyaki at MOS Burger

Tonight I thought I'd give the new Spicy Teriyaki burger at MOS Burger a try.



Here we have the burger, ready to be eaten. I love how MOS Burger provides you with real glass for your drink. It gives it a better taste.



Up close and personal with the burger. Although the advertising was stating about how spicy the burger was, for me it was a joke. I could barely register any appreciable level of spiciness at all.

Though the chicken was fresh, not frozen so I could taste the difference there. But the sauce was a big let down for this Curry Addict.



Here we have the traditional MOS Chicken. A piece of rather juicy fried chicken for only ￥220.

So the set was ￥610 for burger, regular chips and drink but I used a coupon to bring it down to ￥500. Everything was cooked slowly and served to me fresh in typical MOS Burger style, but I was disappointed that the level of spiciness failed to register.

Cost of MP3 players to rise

The Japanese government will propose this week a plan to charge copyright royalties on sales of iPods and other portable digital music players, as well as on digital hard disk recorders, a major daily newspaper reported Tuesday.

Read: Japan to propose copyright fees on iPods, digital recorders

Great! I am 100% in favor of this. 100￥ per player? No problem. That's about 100￥ every 2-3 years to remove the last spot of guilt I felt about downloading & sharing music. I certainly wasn't feeling guilty about ripping off mega corporations who sue individual users.

I think this proposal is an admission of failure to stop computer piracy and they are simply adopting the approach of Tax Everyone, even those who do the right thing. So I suggest we support this law, help it go through and then give up buying media once and forever! (though I will always buy originals of Hayao Miyazaki DVD's)

Though if you truly want to support your favorite artist, go to a concert instead. They make more from each performance than they do from the CD.

Warning Engrish

I'll be sure to keep on eyes on the children not to swallows.

Shopping Report; Engrish & Tea

Today I was shopping at Besia (where you can also find DrPepper & Engrish Bins) and I found some Engrish for you to enjoy.



Dear Apple, Dear Orange. How sweet you two are, I cannot choose.



"Shined on the pink carpet!" Seriously, WTF??



"Luminous Youngstar" Eh? I have to wonder what the hell the original meaning was, as I have NO idea with this translation.



Lastly, some Twinings tea for Penguin. Remember how I found some tea at CostCo for you? Well here's something a little easier to obtain and more sensibly packed. ￥258 for Twinings Ceylon Orange Pekoe, Darjeeling or Lady Grey tea at Besia.