Valentine's Day in Japan

Valentine's Day in Japan

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, when millions of Japanese males will wake up hoping to receive chocolate from their wives, girlfriends, mothers, daughters, female co-workers and any random girl who may be in a chocolate-giving mood. The story of how February 14 became a day for females to give chocolate to the men in their lives (as opposed to the other way around) is an interesting one. The first Valentine's Day advertisement in Japan appeared in Showa 11 (1936), when a chocolate shop in Kobe called Morozoff promoted its wares as being perfect for lovers to enjoy together. World War II got in the way soon after, and it was a long time before anyone could think of anything as frivolous as chocolate. In 1958, the manager of the Isetan department store in Shinjuku got the idea of having a Western-style Valentine' s Day chocolate sale, but it was a total flop (just five boxes of chocolates were sold); however things picked up a few years later when Morinaga  started promoting Valentine's Day as a chance to "give chocolate to the people you love." It was around 1975 when the meme of women giving chocolate to men took off, as girls decided to take the initiative and confess their feelings to boys they liked, and also show thanks to the men in their lives who help and support them. There are two kinds of chocolate, honmyo or "real heart" chocolate, received from someone who really cares for you, and giri or "obligation" chocolate, given by female office workers to their bosses or male co-workers because they feel it's expected of them.

Japanese Immigration Update

Some good news for foreigners living in Japan (or soon hope to be living in Japan, Amen): a new Alien Registration System is coming which will make it easier for gaijin residents here. The new system has several new benefits, the most welcome being the elimination of the "reentry stamp" system, a $60 official stamp foreigners had to get in their passports if they wanted to be able to re-enter the country after going abroad, which was both inconvenient and potentially a big problem since it was easy to find yourself with an expired stamp suddenly. Since the problem of Japan's declining population is only going to get worse -- this year the number of "new adults" turning 20 years old was just 1.2 million, exactly half the peak of 2.4 million back in 1970 -- I believe the country should take real steps to encourage people to immigrate to Japan permanently. Just to be clear, I'm not knocking the treatment foreigners in Japan receive currently, as I know that gaijin have it better in Japan than foreigners in almost every other country. But making changes that make it easier for foreigners to live easily in Japan, like getting rid of that annoying re-entry stamp system, is a positive step forward in my book.


Other changes to this system our still on the table. One that I am familiar with is the problem of gaijin who would like to fully immigrate and because a Japanese Citizen but because of Japanese law you would have to renounce your current citizenship. Which so few Americans are willing to do. The other is their marriage registration system that foreigners do not show up on. If you marry an Japanese citizen you are not recognized as their spouse by the federal government only by your local government. This causes problems for parents that receive frequent visits from social services due to them thinking they are a single parent.

Child Like Heart

Something that seems to be a quite different with home schoolers is the fact we can be much more entertained with the simplest of things. I personally noticed this in my own self, I don't believe it makes us weird and neither can I say why others are not entertained by things like that. I remember when we were young we would play we the door stop on our back door several times over and laugh like mad. Our parents have always been amazed that the things we remember over other amazing trips we have taken in the past.

Door stops!, Entertaining home schoolers and elderly people since 19...? 18...? something...

Well, starting this year I have put the initial work into finally starting my own business. As some of you know I was contracting for someone last year installing March Network DVR in over 300 Dunkin Donuts across Chicago Land, USA. I had made many contacts, so now I have the opportunity to sell my service to a vast group of people. I have several people interested in my service and I hope to launch the second phase of my service starting February first. This is just a blurb but I want to post more about it in my next major update.

Only in America

1. Only in America......can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.
2. Only in America......are there handicap parking places in front of a skating rink.
3. Only in America......do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.
4. Only in America......do people order double cheese burgers, large fries, and a diet coke.
5. Only in America......do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.
6. Only in America......do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.
7. Only in America......do we use answering machines to screen calls and then have call waiting so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place.
8. Only in America......do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight.
9. Only in America.....do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'.
10. Only in America......do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.
11. Only in America......can a homeless combat veteran live in a cardboard box and a draft dodger live in the White House. (This was popular when Clinton was in office)
12. Only in America......can you buy mulch and firewood at your local gas station.

Politics in Japan

Haruhi Suzumiya for President 2012

It's quite nice to not live in the U.S. when a Presidential election rolls around, because you can look forward to a peaceful year without being bombarded by a lot of negative political messages 24 hours a day. That's not to say Japanese elections are a walk in the park -- the primary method of getting people to vote for you involves driving around in a car shouting "I am Yamada! I will work hard for you! Please support me in the upcoming election!" through a loudspeaker from dawn til dusk -- but at least that part is over within a week or so.

Politics in Japan are fundamentally different from in the U.S., as they are probably are in every country. While the U.S. has a two-party political system with Republicans and Democrats, even tough it was not that way in the beginning, Japan has a number of active parties, including the current ruling Democratic Party of Japan, which is a lot more like the democratic party of President Kennedy then the version we have today (eh! hem!), which rode to power on a "manifesto" of promises like making expressways toll-free and paying every family $130 per child per month, most of which have been repealed quietly; the pro-business Liberal Democratic Party, which held power for nearly 50 years in postwar Japan; the New Komeito Party, once the official political arm of the Sokka Gakkai evangelical Buddhist religion; the Japan Communist Party, and so on. To be right-wing in Japanese politics means to be pro-Emperor as well as pro-Yasukuni (the controversial shrine where Japan's wartime leaders are interred, as well as the souls of all the normal souldiers who faught and died). Right-wingers famously drive around in loudspeaker trucks blasting songs from World War II, and sometimes (awesomely) the theme to Space Battleship Yamato (Sort of the Star Trek of Japan); they also lament Japan's weakened position in international politics and get very upset over territorial disputes with China, South Korea and Russia. Left-leaning Japanese dislike the Emperor and the Japanese national anthem Kimigayo, seen as a symbol of Japan's wartime aggression, and some educators have been fired for refusing to sing the song at official events. Left-wing Japanese are apt to be pro-China and critical of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty that has bound Japan and the U.S. militarily for the past half-century. So next time you get all upset over how messed up our country is think about Japan. For they have quite a more interesting struggle on their hands.

Happy New Year 2012

Happy New Years

As my family watched the remaining moments of 2011, My Mom and I thought of some interesting points about this world. Such as why people find that drinking them self's sick is seen as a celebration and why kissing someone (anyone, even strangers. Disclaimer: I am not promoting it.) on new years is not as much a big deal as it used to be. I opinion is this, first: people see drinking till the point that they have no sense of oneself is exactly the reason. There life is so messed up that being sick on alcohol is the only alternative to them. They need to know that Jesus is the one and only answer. Second: I think that when Satan pollutes something as beautiful as kissing or sex, we become desensitized to the uniqueness of it. Think of it, We humans are uniquely made by our creator. Did you know that there are several things that make us humans different of the rest of the animal world that not even monkeys or apes can do brains and biologically, But for the sake of length I will with hold this one. We just need to remember GOD is GOD and drinking sick or corruption by Satan is just an illusion of the big picture.

The End is Nigh!!

As many of my reads my not know, one of Japan's most popular singers is not even human but in fact a computer generated female persona. Her name is Miku Hatsune (Click for More Information) and shes the creation of Yamaha. She can sing at higher pitches than a typical know signing voice. Over the years with her increased popularity they decided to take her on tour around the world [Watch Her Concert on YouTube] as a hologram. But before all this some guy made a windows program called "Miku Miku Dance" which generates a homemade 3D video from 3D custom models which includes Miku Hatsune. Watch some of the videos on YouTube there quite interesting. Now the latest feature to come to MMD is an option to connect the Kinnect from the XBOX 360 to your computer and virtually control one of these characters with your movements. I've tried it and it is quite fun but now I can surely say "The End is Nigh" by artificial intelligence (programmed by people don't you forget!!!).

2012?

Well, It looks like we are staring down the barrel of the 2012 gun. It's so amazing to think about all the disasters this world has encountered within just one year, from disaster to prosperity, we seem to make it though this thing we call life as well as we do. I really can not believe that it has not been almost 9 months already since the Twin Disasters in Japan that devastated their country and interestingly tourism from the west (Asia) for them has returned to pre-tsunami levels but the tourism from the east (America) is still not even 1/10th of what it was before. It makes me sad that we, Christian America (or what remains to be christian), seem to show very little compassion to their situation. I've heard though the grape vine that it's so bad that the Japanese Government is considering to offer a Airplane ticket to westerners on their dime to help bring the tourism back, in exchange they want the people chosen to write blogs and stories about their trips to encourage others to go (So, Yes. Existing bloggers have a better chance of being chosen.), But interesting if the proposal gets passed by their government, entries will not be accepted until at least March.

Wishing you a Merry CHRISTmas!

In light of it being Christmas Eve I want write about some of the history of Christianity in Japan. The first documented christian to visit Japan would be Francis Xavier in 1549 whom was affiliated with the Portuguese Catholics. It was assumed by the Japanese that Christianity was a new religion from India for several mistaken reasons. Over the next 50 years the Christian faith had grown to very large numbers until 1603 when Leyasu Tokugawa became the shogun of Japan, he placed limitations on missionary work, which lead to the outright banning of Christianity in 1626, in part because the Shogun was concerned that Japan might end up as a colony of foreign powers, as was happening in asia already, and they were also concerned that the rice farmers would turn on the government over the rice taxes. Despite the banning, thousands of kakure-kurishitan (hidden Christians) continued to practice their faith in secret, creating statues of Maria reworked to resemble Buddhist Bodhisattva and passing the torch from generation to generation. They even hidden icons of the reworked Maria image into lamp posts and roof tiles of temples, to let Christians that were on the run that they were with fellow Christians at these locations. Some hidden Christians ran to small islands to continue there faith, in which one island colony of Christians was not even known to exist until 1890 went they made them self's known. When Japan was reopened to foreigner access in 1853 many Christian clergymen were sent from Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox churches, though proselytism was still banned. After the Meiji Restoration, freedom of religion was introduced in 1871, giving all Christian communities the right to legal existence and preaching. Since World War II the number of Japanese Christians has been slowly increasing. I believe GOD has a plan for Japan and we Christians need to continue to empower these people to push forward. The thing that make me so mad about missions to Japan is missionaries have to rely on numbers to continue their work, every mouth asking for donations, this is not the way we should be going about this. I know money is important to missionaries but I feel like something is lacking when it comes to Japan. Please pray and support someone in Japan Today, I know I am.

A Japanese Kirishitan crucifix, 17th century. Christ is depicted as Buddha-like, in the center of the cross.

Christmas has been established as a secular holiday which was first capitalized on around 1910. Today Christmas Eve is seen as a romantic night young couples to go on a date and then on Christmas day many Japanese eat Christmas Cake (A Japanese Invention) and chicken from Home or incidentally KFC, in which has long lines on Christmas Day due to Turkey being rare is Japan and the Japanese don't have much taste for it.

Well, Just a little update about my latest life challenges. I'm out on my own, working with a friend, starting a Text Message Marketing business which will be one of dozens of services I will be offering to small businesses over the next year. Within one month we should have 31 clients and then he thinks he could get a total of 100 clients by the end of the year, per his relationship with dozens of Dunkin and Subway owners. Ever since my mom re-awoke my passion of Revival, I can't get enough of World Revival Church in Kansas City. I want to see Revival flood this globe and this is my fuel to reaching Japan. I see people whom I have known since I was little and they still struggle over tithing and believing GOD will get them though. Now, I'm not saying I'm perfect but come on this is not hard. That is one reason I like WRC because they being a new challenge to my walk with GOD. People want meat in their relationship with GOD not watered down kool-aid. Well, time for bed! Sleep Well and merry CHRISTmas.

Pocky Day 2011

Today is a day for celebrating Pocky.

Today is a very special day, one I've been waiting for for a long time: Pocky Day, 2011. The Japanese are fond of assigning special importance to days of the calendar, often for arbitrary reasons, like October 10 being "Moe Day" because of the way the date looks like the kanji for moe when written a certain way, or November 26th being designated ii furo ni hi or "good bath day," a day for companies that make interesting bath products to promote their wares. Since Heisei 11 (1999), the makers of Pocky have designated November 11 as Pocky and Pretz Day, since 11/11 looks like four little sticks lined up. Well this year is extra special since the date is 11/11/11, the only such day this century. So grab some Pocky and much on it now!

Pocky has gone from being a wonky snack worshipped by anime fans to become the flagship of Japanese snack culture all around the world. The chocolate-covered pretzel stick, which gets its name from the pokki! sound you hear when you snap one in half, was first introduced in 1965 by the Glico Confectionery Company under the not-so-cool name of Chocoteck, where it was an instant hit. The story behind how the company was founded is quite interesting, by the way. At the start of the 20th century, the son of Riichi Ezaki died due to poor health, and the saddened Ezaki went a seaside fishing village where he happened upon some children playing. They were exceptionally healthy, which caused Ezaki to look into the reason for their good health. He determined that a compound found in oysters called glycogen was a factor, and in 1919 he resolved to found a comp any that would manufacture sweets for Japan's children that would improve their health, to be named Glico, after the glycogen compound. The now-famous image of the Glico Running Man was adopted because one piece of Glico candy contains the energy you need to run a 100 meter dash. The company has brought out many hit products over the years, but none quite as iconic as the legendary Pocky. We hope everyone has a fun Pocky Day today!

October Post

Well, The month is almost over and the cold is setting in more and more every day. Halloween is only days away and the abandoned store fronts that are rented though the month of October to just sell Halloween stuff are now in full swing. I don't celebrate Halloween nor believe in it but I do like that idea of anyone getting the chance to dress up like anyone they want. I actually think that pretending to be someone or something else can be a very healthy way to release stress and for once not care what people think of you. That is one reason I love the idea of cosplay so much. I remember dressing up as a Samurai (I was just wearing a kimono.) at Blockbuster one Halloween night.

Halloween is here again. Time to get the cosplay out.

The other day I was thinking about the interesting fact that we Americans find modern Japan so interesting, such as sleeping pods that you can rent for just a couple hours to get a nap or the fact that their  large soft drink is about the size of an American small soft drink, like wise I was thinking that there are many things that the Japanese find interesting about us such as why our drinks are bigger then theirs or that you can buy mulch at the gas station in the spring (This one recently interested me) or a pizza can get your house faster then an ambulance. These sorts of things interest the Japanese about us as much as it interests us about them.

My Japanese tutor is returning this weekend after extending her trip to Japan by three weeks due to her daughter getting burn. Hope she has great things to share.

Japan has the third highest suicide rate in the world.

The other day I learned that some young girl (I really don't know much about the story) last week committed suicide by letting her self get hit by a passenger train in Peotone, Illinois. I heard that just as the train was about to kill her; she made eye contact with the engineer. Regardless if I got the story right or not the point is that this kind of thing is happening everyday in Japan and being that Japan has the third highest suicide rate in the world, it make me ever the more persistent in getting to Japan. Yesterday, something very interesting happening to me which I am surprised it took me so long to realize it. A few weeks ago I went to World Revival Church and had a really awesome time and one thing that I remember as being good but did not fully understanding was a quote that Steve Gray made during his message, He said "Use what you have... Take action! Take what you have and give it out for the Kingdom of God! Stop wishing upon a star.", as I said, it was good but I did not know what to make of it until yesterday when I was downtown walking to my first stop when I noticed a homeless man sitting on a crate along the side of the walk way reading a bible. As I continued to walk; I remembered Steve's quote and thought to my self, how can I expect GOD to send me to Japan to help the suffering if I am unwilling to help those in my own backyard. So without much hesitation I walked into the Dunkin Donuts I was about do some work in and asked for a cup of hot chocolate (Yes, It was free because I was working there) and on my return trip I offered it to the homeless man and continued on my way. Some time later I was walking to my second stop when again I noticed another homeless man, I passed that guy several times as I brought stuff from my car to the store and each time thinking more or more about if I should help him too. My self was saying stuff like "You already did your good deed for today" or "People are watching, What will they think of you?", On my last pasting I finally thought "I do it or not, God help me decide!" when suddenly I was just pasting the guy and some string came lose from my bucket of string (A professionals must have.) and got tangled around my feet like it was being controlled to, I struggled to make the last few steps when the string got worst and tangled in my hand carts wheel so bad that I came to a complete STOP!. Tided up with nothing to do but free my legs and cart, I thought "OK, God you got my attention.". I went to the store and dropped that stuff off and headed back the homeless guys way and ask him to join me for lunch. I found out that his mother was abusive and left his dad who just died the year before from illness and he is now homeless since this summer. I bought him a sandwich and when we were talking I asked him what his next steps were to getting back on his feet. His answer was that he was in need of a job. I offered to call an owner of some Dunkin Donuts in Chicago and put in a word for him and he was more then willing to take my offer. I called and he went his marry way. If I improved that guys life or not the point is that I must use what I have to carry out GOD plan on my life instead of complaining. Why wait for the position within an organization before I work for his kingdom.

Chiori Version 9

Just thought I would post the 9th Release of my Original Character "Chiori Greene" on my blog.

The sketch I used had been a requested I made from a freelance artist at the Anime Central Convention.

September Post

This is a time in my life where I need to make progress within my life and I find harder then ever to make progress. I am making some good money again and I have been determined to finally make it to Japan by next May. Because of some mistakes I have made I own a little money here and there but I am unable to pay back any of it with ease. I lost my unemployment back in June and now I am making just enough money to make small dents in my debt. This is discouraging because I wanted to have visited Japan since 6 years ago. I have made no wasteful spending for a last couple months now and I am looking forward to this May that it will finally be my turn for some reward.

I hate making progress then other things fall apart. I finally made a few hundred on the side which could have given me some progress and then I had an on the job injury last week. I have been off work for one week and just went back today. 8 days ago I was pulling some wire in the ceiling in a Dunkin' Donuts up north and behind my back a Light Fixture fell from the ceiling and cut the back of my calf. There was four code violations with the construction of the drop ceiling which includes: 1. The fixture was 2'x2' in a 2'x4' opening with no cross bar. 2. No side clamps holding the fixture to the bars. 3. More then 5' of BX from the light to the junction box. Which left the light hanging 6 inches from the ground. 4. No anchors (Wire or Chains) connected to the fixture and the joists. I went to the Hospital and received 8 stitches and an expensive hospital bill. (Don't get me wrong we have the best health care system in America with some faults that far exceeds to quality of any system in the world.)

On a lighter note the guy who took me to get an X-ray was named Ray. So now I have the joke X-ray Ray. LOL.

As I mentioned before I have been learning Japanese from a private tutor. My progress of learning Japanese is coming along. I get all fuzzy inside when I make my own combinations of words to form sentences that where not directly thought to me. My vocabulary has been lacking since my primary focus is on learning the Japanese alphabet.

By the way, For anyone out there that is interested in learning kana like I am should check out this website I found. (http://www.manythings.org/q/kana.php?u=hiragana) It has some different kana (hiragana and katakana) quiz flash card games. I can already see my progress in learning kana when I get 102 out of 105 correct. That right, 105 variations of unique sounds in the Japanese alphabet. Plus, not to mention that their are two different alphabets with the same sounds and the over 2000 kanji characters which are combinations of kana sounds. This is nothing like when I used "Hooked on Phonics" when I was a kid.

One interesting thing about Japanese is the heavy use of loans words from other languages. Many loan words we use in English come from French, for example, words like beef, pork and poultry came to indicate the meat of cows, pigs and chickens through the interaction between French-speaking landowners (who ate the meat) and their English-speaking hired help (who tended the animals). Most foreign loan words in Japanese are from the 20th Century but quite a few others came into use in the Edo Period and before, including tempura (from the Portuguese word for spice), ga-ra-su (window glass), ko-hi (coffee), and ki-ri-shi-tan (Christian). (Remember, In Japanese, "i" makes the sound of "e" as in "he") In fact, these words have been used for so long they have kanji characters assigned to them, which violates the (modern) rule that katakana is to be used to write foreign loan words.

This time will be different because this time I am laying the stepping stones to solidly hold feet as I make progress to Japan Such as supporting a missionary family in Japan since last march and now seriously learning Japanese. I am putting my money where my mouth is. Please continue to pray for me.

June Update

I can not believe the craziness that had prevented me from keeping my blog more up-to-date. I have been doing contract work for someone on the side, installing DVR (Digital Video Recorders) in over 300 Dunkin Donuts within the Chicago land area with very little time to focus on other things and my favorite of all announcements is that I am now taking Japanese Lessons from an Private Tutor. Unforchantly, I have to drive 45 minutes every Sunday to north Chicago. The cost is only $30/hr which I hear is very competitive. I am learning a lot and can not wait until the next lesson. That was my quick update and I wish I could say more but time is not on my side right now.

Sayonara,
Joel Greene

Facts of Japan: Vol. 5.30

One reason anime is able to affect us so deeply is the quality of the voice actors, and without the outstanding performances of names like Megumi Hayashibara (Rei Ayanami), Kikuko Inoue (Belldandy, Kazami from Please Teacher), and Toru Furuya (pretty much every major male role in the 80s), the characters and stories wouldn't be so enjoyable. Back in 2007 attendees of Anime Expo were treated to a visit by the voice actresses of the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Aya Hirano, Chihara Minori and Yuko Goto. One of the most embarrassing moments came with the M.C. asked the girls how they came to be professional voice actors, which in the case of the Japanese stars involved attending special "talent" schools for years and giving up much to realize the ir dream of going pro. When the English voice actors were asked the same question, the answers were basically, "I saw an ad in the newspaper, went down for an interview and got the job that day."

Facts of Japan. Vol. 11.5.1

Tall Fences on Japanese High Schools are to prevent suicidal students.

One thing that always deeply concerns me and drives my passion to bring salvation to the Japanese people is their extremely high suicide rate. I once heard a Japanese Missionary post that it is not uncommon that if you go the train stations in Japan and all trains are stopped, because the another poor soul committed suicide by jumping off the train platform. On many Japanese High School Roofs instead of simple fences they have installed massive 14 foot fences that curve inward to prevent suicides. Factors in suicide include unemployment (due to the economic recession in the 1990s), depression, and social pressures. Suicide is predominately the result of a combination of factors such as healthcare provision, social attitudes, cultural influences and economic distress. I personally believe that high levels of are because the Japanese are not finding wholeness within their own society, religion (Buddhism) and work. This is the reasons that we Christians need to reach Japan -- especially after this recent disaster -- to help prevent the high numbers of Japanese Suicides.

April Update

"General Education Diploma"

I have still been pursuing Japan with a passion and I can not believe how much trouble I am still having. The other day my Dad spoke with my Grampa and asked if he would be interested in going to Japan. My dad reminded me that my Grampa made me a deal last year that if I was to get my GED then he would pay the whole $3000 to $5000 for my trip to Japan. When he said it I was in shock that I completely forgot about that offer but at the same time am not surprised that I forgot. I can point out several times that either of my grand parents made an offer and never carried it though. For example when I was 16 they promised that if I got my Drivers License that they would pay for half of my first car but now I am at my First and Second car and the whole thing has come from my own pocket. So I am not surprised that I had forgotten.

I have a personality that if someone is trying to bribe me with something to get me to do something then I don't want to do it even more but my Mom says that for the size of this offer you should just simply buckle down and do it. I did declare that if my reward does not go to plan then I will have even a harder time in the future to trust any offers -- bribes -- from my grandparents, PERIOD. I HATE TESTS. I HATE BEING TESTED. I hate them so much because I feel like I am being forced to use my brain to make no progress nor anything constructive. I had to take a compass test last Fall and it was like a nightmare to do. To make it worst the compass test was only 3 subjects and 50 minutes but the GED test has 5 subjects and can take 2 to 3 hours, time is strictly controlled and you have to schedule a testing. Deep down inside I feel that this fear is sign enough to say that I am suppose to do it. I don't want to be afraid of this but for once this is something I can not get over. I wish I could just drive to someplace, take a small test and be done but no I got to find a center, take a pre-test, take refresher classes, schedule a test and then take the test which could take weeks of time. I already feel my hair falling out. RRRRRRRRRR!!!! I need help.

I would like to point out that it was this month of last year on the 10th that I was laid off from my job at AT&T. Just a side note.

"Tokyo Magnitude 8.0"

Just four years ago there was a anime made called "Tokyo Magnitude 8.0" which tells the story about two siblings who have to find their way home after a magnitude 8.0 earthquake hitting in Tokyo. The Tokyo Tower and the Rainbow Bridge both crumble and the landscape was changed in an instant. Many anime fans noticed the similarity to the recent disaster in Sendai. Since the situation is not interesting enough to help with news stations ratings, many people have been asking about the nuclear issue. From what I heard the levels of radiation at the nuclear power plant in Fukushima was determined to be level 7, the same level as Chernobyl. On April 1st it was observed about 2 to 3 times the normal amount of radiation (0.10 uSv per hour) in Tokyo. (http://chottomatte.net/2011/04/01/tokyo-radiation-levels-daily-updates-april/) To have an effect on one's health, it is said that one must be exposed to 100 mSv=100,000 uSv over the course of a whole year, but if one is exposed to the current levels of radiation in Tokyo for one whole year, it would only add up to about 1/114 of that. Therefore, these levels wouldn't have any kind of effect on one's health locally or if you came in contact with products from the Tokyo area. The risk of cancer from 100 mSv would only raise by 0.5%. This is the farther lower level than the one of possible harm that tobacco incurs. Worrying about this level of radiation is like worrying about the risk of cancer that comes with wearing clothes that have been exposed to tobacco smoke. Because of the overreaction to these radiation levels, people are hesitant to buy Japanese Products. Remember, in light of this incident Imports will be watching Japanese Imports more closely. So it is more important now than ever to support Japan by continuing to buy Japanese products!

Facts of Japan: Vol. 3.1

While Japan has always had a reputation for taking ideas from the West and improving on them (sometimes beyond recognition), the reverse is often true, too, and Japan has long served as a well of inspiration for various creators from the West. I read a lot of science fiction books, and it often seems I can't pick one up that doesn't have Japanese themes in it somewhere, with the best example being William Gibson, who built his career by weaving ideas he got from Japan into his books. Star Wars is filled with Japanese cultural and visual elements culled from Japan's films and history, from Jedi Knights to the Force to the design of Darth Vader, whose helmet and "first name" come from famous warlord Date Masamune. (I always wondered why Obi Wan Kenobi was wearing a kimono and bowing like a Japanese person.) When the new iPad was announced, people in Japan observed that the fancy magnetic "Smart Cover" looked exactly like the covers used to keep the bath water warm in between use.

Japan Relief Work - Update 2

I am still waiting to make the proper arrangements to help with relief work. The e-mail I received from Amy Eby was quite promising but when I sent a check up e-mail she was no longer available for contact. As it looks now is they might be interested in getting me volunteering at their HQ Office in Tokyo and going out on Relief Work when needed.

I need everyone for pray that GODs hand will be in this and help provide me with decent housing for I really don't want to stay in a lonely hotel. If I can find reasonable housing then the cost of my trip would be much less and the duration can be much longer.

Round Trip Flight: $1,000.00 to $1,500.00

Hotel: $50.00 to $100.00 /per day times 30 = $1,500.00 to $3,000.00

Food: $50.00 /per day

Trip Cost: $3,000.00 to $6,000.00

Hoping to provide more details very soon.

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Facts of Japan: Vol. 3

When you study a foreign language, sometimes one of the first things you learn unavoidably are the "naughty" words -- that's just human nature. However, students of Japanese are often surprised to learn that most of the bad words they're used to in English don't map over very well. The most common Japanese insults include baka(BAH-kah, stupid), aho (ah-HO, the Osaka-ben version of the same word), and boke (BOH-kay, basically meaning "nim-wit"). Almost all the anatomical words you may be used to just don't work in Japanese, nor does the "F" word, which doesn't even exist, except occasionally in English as a foreign loan word. The most basic Japanese swear word is probably kuso (KOO-soh), the "S" word, yet it's interesting to note that it's not considered a bad word, as it's used in children's anime like Yu-Gi-Oh quite often and no one thinks anything of it. It addition to the primary meaning, the word kuso can also refer to various bodily products. The stuff that comes out of your nose is hana-kuso (nose-sh--), and ear wax is mimi-kuso (ear-sh--). The stuff that builds up in your eyes as you sleep is me-kuso (MEH-kuso), and plaque on your teeth is calledha-kuso. Now you know some interesting (and probably useless) Japanese vocabulary words!

Facts of Japan: Vol. 2.2

The ongoing crisis in Japan has caused a lot of deep thinking about the country in general by the Western media, and one article I caught on CNN was titled, "Are the Japanese Different?" This is certainly an interesting question: does Japan's calm, ordered response to this unparalleled disaster indicate that they're somehow fundamentally different from the rest of us? On the one hand the answer is yes -- Japan is an island nation with an incredibly unique and strong culture that enabled it to resist colonization by the Mongols and the European powers (the only Asian nation other than Thailand to achieve this), and it spent 250 years closed off to other nations, living in a highly structured inward-looking society. On the other hand, the common Japanese belief -- really more of a national meme -- that they are fundamentally different, that (for example) the Japan ese langauge is more difficult than every other language in the world and that Japanese brains are are uniquely tuned to speak it, is obviously untrue. These beliefs are part of what's called nihonjinron (lit. "theories of the Japanese people"), a body of ideas about the Japanese as a race put forth by both Japanese and Western writers who were trying to describe Japan's "special" role in the world before, during and after World War II. Among other things, the Japanese fascination with blood types determining one's personality derives from nihonjinron ideas, from back in the days when the Japanese Empire tried to figure which blood type made the best soldiers (it was type O, if you're wondering).

Facts of History 1.0: The Real Battle of Los Angeles

You might have heard of the movie coming out called "Battle of Los Angeles" but did you know it was based on a real event. In 1942, five years before Roswell, a huge craft was spotted coming in low over Los Angeles. It was hit by spotlights and photographed. The first thoughts were not of Extra-terrestrial but that it must had been sent by the Japanese. While it sat over the city, nearly motionless, and in plain view of thousands of folks and because of the recent Pearl Harbor incident the army started shooting anti-aircraft guns at it. 1300 rounds, 6 people died and shrapnel rained down. What ever it was, it eventually cruised off over Long Beach and disappeared into the night. The next day the above photo was published in the LA Times. Several years later the government claimed it was a weather balloon. Why is that always their explanation?