TOKYOMANGO

Get your hand-printed limited edition TokyoMango t-shirt now (2 weeks only)

My friend Ben and I made a test run of TokyoMango t-shirts on Saturday. They're really nice, do you want one? If so, you can buy one here. Below are the details:

- All shirts are 100% cotton.
- Each t-shirt will be hand-silk screened by me and Ben on his Yudu machine. The shirt logo was custom-designed by Ben. Mango design courtesy of my web designer James.
- The Women's tees come in a t-shirt style (pistacio and white) and a spaghetti strap ribbed tank (yellow).
- The Men's tees come in orange and white. In the pic above, Ben is actually accidentally wearing a girl's tee, but you get the idea... the sleeves will be more manly on the one you get.
- You can choose a custom colored tee for $25. Just shoot me an email with your preference after you place the order.
- The sizes tend to run a little big (except for the tanktops). They might shrink in the wash.
- Some of you will receive a free surprise Japanese toy or gadget with your t-shirt! I'm just gonna randomly stick them into bags, so keep an eye out.
- We're taking orders over the next two weeks only, at least for this first printing. They'll ship at the end of those two weeks, when Ben & I will silkscreen them by hand.
- Last day to order is Monday, October 5th.

UPDATE: T-shirts are no longer for sale. Maybe we'll do another round sometime!

CELE-BICH: A New Magazine For Celebrity Bitches?

There's a new magazine in Japan called CELE-BICH. Is it a magazine for bitchy celebrities?

Not quite. The words "Celeb" and "Bitch" have slightly different connotations in Japan. The Japanese interpretation of "Celeb" has expanded over the years to refer to a woman who is simply rich and/or wears brand-name apparel and leads an elegant, upper-class lifestyle. "Bitch," meanwhile, refers more to a loose, slutty woman than to "a malicious, unpleasant and selfish woman" as it's more commonly used in the Western world (though it's certainly a versatile word that's used in many different ways).

The publisher reportedly considered a concept surrounding the new "koakuma" (little devil) craze, in which women have embraced an unabashedly deceptive and manipulative approach to winning the hearts of men, as opposed to being innocent and angelic. The problem was, there was already a magazine catering to this market, called Koakuma Ageha. So they decided to create a magazine that can appeal to a wider demographic, "from adults to teens, rich to poor," and came up with---Cele-bich. Because, in the words of the publisher, sometimes celebs want to be bitches, and bitches want to be celebs.

Lots of Sexy Korean Sculptures

Who knew that our neighbors in South Korea had such a vivid imagination when it came to sculptures? Does anyone know what that sign above says? I think there's an English translation below it but I can't really see.

Buddhist Monks Rap to Win Back Believers

Japanese Buddhism these days has been called "funeral Buddhism" because, although 3/4 of the population is registered as Buddhist, people only go to the temples when someone dies. That's why the head monk at Tsukiji Honganji temple in Tokyo decided to hold a fashion/hip hop event last week. Titled the "Tokyo Bouz Collection," the event featured 40 monks and nuns from eight major Buddhist sects blinged out in gold embroidered robes performing a rap version of a Budddhist sutra. They strutted the runway while chanting prayers and throwing confetti that looked like lotus petals.

Link

The Figurine That Poses Like A Woman

Figurine-lovers had something to be extra excited about in 2007—this year marked the debut of the Revoltech line of female toys that can bend and pose like a girly girl. By modifying the limb structures of standard, ordinarily-robotic figurines, the company is quickly developing low-cost, high-output girly figurine collectibles so that anime-obsessed otaku have yet another inanimate object genre to ogle over.

The one pictured above if Rei Ayanami of Neon Genesis Evangelion. You can buy it here (Japan only).

Hello Kitty Gear for Dudes!

I'm serious. Sanrio Co. is coming out with a brand new men's line this winter, featuring manly products like the ones above. Sure, a cuddly kitty with a ribbon is manly....as long as it's printed on a black shirt or its mouthless face is obscured with bubble letters. I'm sure Sanrio, being the marketing geniuses they are, did their research and there's a huge demand for this stuff. Just not among any of the dudes I know.

Link

Defense Minister Fears Alien Attack

Defense minister Shigeru Ishiba is scared. Not of North Korean missiles or terrorist attacks. He's scared of alien invasions.

While he made it clear that this was his own fear and not that of his ministry, he went on and on about it in a very random tangent at a press conference completely unrelated to aliens. We deployed the self-defense forces when Godzilla attacked the country in the movie, he said, so why not do the same for an alien attack?

"There are no grounds for us to deny that there are unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and some life-form that controls them," he told the press last week. If they descended, saying 'People of the Earth, let's make friends,' it would not be considered an urgent, unjust attack on our country. And there is another issue of how can we convey our intentions if we don't understand what they are saying. We should consider various possibilities. There is no need at all to do this as the defence ministry, but I want to consider what to do by myself."

 

Link (Thanks, Kenji!)

Boy Dies When Head Gets Trapped By Mattress

In a freak accident earlier this month, a 4-year old boy died when his head got stuck behind a reclining bed. When reps from the National Consumer Affairs Center went to the house to investigate, they found that the mattress moved without even touching the Recline button. Dangerous!

The father found his kid with his neck wedged between the mattress and headboard (see diagram to the left) on December 9th.

Link

Hibiya Park Christmas Lights

My mom and brother took this photo of the Christmas lights in Hibiya Park. Pretty cool!

The Chipmunks Christmas Song By Two Chinese Boys

Merry Christmas! I'm in Lake Tahoe with these two silly people (Brian and Jonathan). We just opened presents and made this video, and now we're gonna hit the slopes for a few hours.

"First" White Geisha Not Really First, Will No Doubt Write A Book Anyway

This is Sayuki, who claims to be the first officially white Geisha girl. She started work in Asakusa last week.

Actually, Sayuki is an Australian anthropologist with quite a pedigree—an MBA from Oxford, bragging rights for being the first white girl to enter Keio, film director credits at the BBC and National Geographic, and several books she authored.

Some blogs and news sites have been touting this as a breakthrough moment in the 400-year history of geishahood. Not me. I think "Sayuki" is a brillliant anthropologist who will no doubt write a book about her experiences in a couple years.

Sayuki.net via 3Yen

UPDATE: Actually, Sayuki is NOT the first foreigner/white geisha. As reader Jenn points out, Liza Dalby did this decades ago, as a geisha named Ichigiku. Pics here. (Thanks, Jenn!)

Business Suit for Slackers can be Washed in the Shower

Are you a lazy businessman who hates to the dry cleaner? Do people edge away from you on the subway because you smell so bad? Or maybe you're just too darn busy to even change your clothes at night. In either case, clothing company Konaka is coming out with a new kind of business suit that can be washed with a simple spray with a shower head. Seriously. All you have to do is bring it with you in the shower  (yes, you have to shower) and rinse both the inside and the outside. It comes out in February.

IHT via Gizmodo

Slipper Ping Pong Official Racket

It hasn't been approved for the Olympics yet, but Slipper Ping Pong is an international sport with growing popularity. The game was started in Kahokucho, a small city known for being the #1 slipper manufacturer in the country. As a way to promote tourism—and to get rid of excess slipper materials—they invented this modded sport not so long ago. The most recent championship game attracted competitors from Malaysia and Finland (video here).

Anyway, you can buy the official World Ping Pong Championship slippers on Cataloger's web site.

Kaomoji-kun: ASCII Character Depicts Ultimate Otaku

Kaomoji-kun is a new Japanese mascot/toy that represents the ultimate otaku. His face is made of Shift-JIS art (kinda like ASCII art) and there's a whole back story about his nerdy lifestyle. He wakes up and goes to Akihabara every day. He hangs out in maid cafes, waits in line for silly collectibles, and eats junk food bought from convenience stores.

This funny little video explains.

Notcot via PingMag

Enter/Shift Key Cell Phone Straps

Do you love your keyboard so much that you wish you could hang out with your Shift key all the time? This cell phone strap series from Strap-Ya features some of the most important keys on your computer--Shift, Enter, Esc. (I actually hardly ever use the Esc key anymore, come to think of it.) Anyway, they come in white or black, they're fun to push, and they're kinda cute.

Buy yours here.

 

Fake Boob Balloons Grow When You Squeeze

You could use balloons or lots of cotton balls, but this "Sexy Bomber" rubber ball duo is probably a lot better. Someone found this in a 100 yen store in SF. It's compressed in such a way that when you squeeze them, they actually get bigger. Now they just need to figure out how to make real breasts do that, and we don't need silicone anymore...

via Boing Boing

Japanese Men Sit and Pee to Please Wives

The Mainichi reports that 40% of men in Japan sit down to pee instead of relieving themselves urinal-style. Apparently, the trend is more prevalent among younger men, which is kinda surprising. But even more surprising to me is the fact that the surveyors (toiletmakers at Matsushita Electric) attribute this trend to women telling their partners to do so. Why? Because if you've ever lived with a guy, you know that male pee splatter is a pain in the ass to clean. Sometimes it ends up on the floors and walls. Disgusting.

Three years ago, Matsushita Electric noticed this trend and actually started designing toilets with larger holes.

Robot Plays Soccer

Don't feel like exercising today? Don't worry, the robot will do it for you. Fujitsu's new robot, HOAP 3, can dribble pass, and shoot. The day when we sit down as spectators to an all-robot soccer game pitting competing robotics firms against each other feels suddenly not that far away.

(Image via Mainichi Daily News & Reuters)

New Ear Device Makes Whispers Totally Audible

If you're a construction worker or you work in a nightclub, you might want to get an e-mimi-kun, which is basically an earplug that has noise-canceling capabilities and a microphone that detects air vibrations in your ear canal. NS-ELEX developed the gadget using a chip made by Sanyo.

Link

Video: Roboticized Folk Song With Funky Beats

Check out this animated, synthesized version of an ancient Toyama prefecture folk song called Kokiriko Bushi.

via Pink Tentacle

Colorful Bomb-Shaped Tissue Cases

Sick of ugly branded tissue boxes? Here's a selection of multi-colored spherical tissue boxes that can double as room accessories. Great Christmas gift if you live near Tokyu Hands—that's where they sell them.

Unique Hat/Scarf Designer Accessories from Osaka

For my birthday, my little brother got me a really cool piece of clothing from Tou Product. It's an Osaka-based fashion/design firm that makes these classy shirt-like cotton/cashmere pieces that turn into a hat or a scarf or a head wrap, depending on how you wear it.

Tou Product main page (Japanese)

 

Bunny and Cube for Stray Office Cords

Here are two creative ways to reduce jumbled cord messes in your office. The lime green gridded cube can house several cords at once, while the bunny is intended for just one—though his long ears can be useful for looping rubber bands or your keys on.

Product page (Japanese)

VideoClip: Handheld TV Recorder/Player from Takara Tomy

VideoClip, Takara Tomy's newest multimedia toy, lets you record segments from any TV show and play it back on this cute little handheld. It has really simple controls—pause, play, fast forward, rewind—and can store up to 8 hrs of video or 60 hrs of audio. For those who don't like baby pink or baby blue, there are other patterns you can download on the web site and stick onto the surface.

Product page (Japanese)

Flexible Tripod for your Cell/Digicam

Since Japanese tourists love to take photos, especially with small point-and-shoot digicams and cell phones, this flexible tripod is indispensable on any overseas vacation. Stand it up on a table, wrap it around a tree, hang it off the balcony....the legs wrap around almost anything and the adjustable mount snaps onto most gadgets.

Link

Ocean's 13 Wannabe Teens Arrested

Several weeks ago, a team of Tokyo teens decided they loved Ocean's 13 so much that they wanted to be just like the characters in the Hollywood movie. So they put on some cool clothes, stole a station wagon, picked a few pockets, and planned a grand getaway to Hokkaido.

When they were arrested recently, the four boys told the police: "We wanted to look really cool like the guys in the movie."

Sorry, kids. No matter how hard you try, you will probably never look like Brad Pitt, George Clooney, and Matt Damon. Nice try.

Link

Leather Briefcase for your Cell Phone

Cell phone worship has gone so over the top in Japan that we now have leather briefcases just for carrying our handsets around! Comes in black, tan, brown, and white. It can be hung from your belt buckle or handbag, and is also useful as a cigarette case or coin purse.

Link

Robot Solves Rubix Cube in Seconds

A robot called Cube-Kun debuted earlier this month at the TEPIA exhibition in Tokyo. His sole purpose? To solve Rubix Cubes within seconds. He has a giant flat screen for a face. When you give him a Cube, he quickly registers what the six sides look like, displays that on his screen, and then figures out a solution in approximately one second. Then his hands get to work. Created by Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

via Impress Watch (Japanese)

Japrock Christmas Wishlist

So my friend Lisa does this blog, which I secretly love along with Liz Phair, Welsh Corgis, back rubs, and other things I don't talk about around town. So when I suddenly I had the urge to contribute, I was stoked to hear an immediate yes come back along wih a Typepad password...

Julian Cope is an author and musician best known for chronicling (and thereby popularizing) old German prog and hard rock albums in the 1990's compendium Krautrocksampler. So why namedrop Cope on TokyoMango? Because the prolific blogger and rocker just did it again for Japanese rarities of the 60's and 70's!

Japrocksampler: How The Post-war Japanese Blew Their Minds On Rock N' Roll is actually way duller than what I expected, especially after lifting the BEST ALBUM COVER EVER for the artwork from the Flower Travellin' Band's debut LP Anywhere.

There are a couple of awesome stories weaved in with bands I actually care about, one of which involves a plane hijacking, so that was sweet. But the academic writing style mixed with two opening chapters revolving entirely around obscure minamalist Japanese composers influenced by John Cage and drugging it up with pre-John Yoko Ono, is enough keep this one off any casual reader's Oprah list.

Designer Origami Chandeliers and Coffee Tables Take Paper Folding to a Whole New Level

Kyushu artist Takayuki Senzaki transforms the traditional Japanese art of folding paper into a creative and awesome-looking new medium for interior design. He uses unique patterns and angled lighting to construct chandeliers, tables, and other room ornaments that make for great eye candy, all viewable in a unique exhibit entitled Orikami.

More pictures and an interview with the artist can be found on PingMag.

Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 5

When I got back to New York City, I wrote a letter to the president of Yamada's US branch, Stacy Akiyama, explaining what happened. I saw it as a clear case of sexual harassment.

Of course, Stacy came back saying that he didn't. In fact, he had a younger guy (who was also involved in the beer-pouring incident) write a formal letter of apology to the company but let Miyazaki off scot-free.That's how it's done a lot of times, I guess—they try to minimize accountability of the important people.

Ultimately, I settled for a shopping spree at Kenneth Cole. Sounds ridiculous, I know, but the 22-year old me was satisfied with some new leather boots and the corduroy skirt I always wanted, as a replacement for the outfit that was ruined by the beer. Besides, was I really going to take legal action against the company? No...that would be so un-Japanese of me, and besides, with all the top management denying that it ever really happened, the chances of winning were slim.

I quit a few months later and went to grad school to study women's human rights instead.

And now, five years later, Miyazaki and Stacy are both in jail.

The end.

(Read Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 4)

Mole Bashing Game

This is a pic of me playing mogura tataki. What is this game called in English again? I can't remember. Mole hunting? Anyway, these arcade versions are alright, but by far the best mogura tataki game ever is on the New Super Mario Brothers cartridge for Nintendo DS Lite. It's one of the mini-games, and in addition to trying to hit as many moles as you can, you have to avoid the Luigi heads that occasionally pop up between them. Tricky!

Yayoi Deki is the New Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Deki is a new Japanese artist whose repetitive patterns and bright colors are reminiscent of the other artist with the same first name, Yayoi Kusama. The main differences are that Deki is 30, not 80, and that she draws flowers, not dots. Although she does sometimes draw dots, too.

Also, Yayoi Deki's like this super cute bubbly girl.

Link

Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 4

We were a group of about 10 people—about 4 of us from the NY office, 4 from the LA office, the lady from DC, and Miyazaki from Tokyo. We hit up a couple of ordinary-ish bars but they weren't entertaining enough to be any fun with these old geezers in tow. So we ended up at Coyote Ugly.

The hot, busty girls at Coyote Ugly were standing on the bar dancing, grinding, and pouring beer into the horny dancing guys' mouths. Miyazaki looked entertained. The old man was dancing and smiling and having a good time. I felt like I had succeeded in showing this tight-lipped Japanese businessman a good time on his trip to the United States.

Then the girls on stage starting pouring beer down each others' cleavages. The crowd roared. Wet t-shirts and beer! Woohoo!

I felt something cold and wet on my shirt. I looked up, and there was Miyazaki with his beer bottle tipped over my chest. I stifled a scream, grabbed my co-worker's arm, and pulled her outside.

It was the most humiliating moment of my career. I was in Vegas, drenched in beer, standing outside a slutty club where a dirty old executive of the company I'd just started working for had treated me like one of his 17-year old hostess girlfriends.

My co-workers from NY were as pissed as I was at what happened. They walked with me back to the hotel, listened to me rant, and got me some dry clothes. They stayed up with me late into the night as I plotted my revenge.

The next day, while Miyazaki was eating breakfast, my immediate boss made him stand up and apologize to me in front of everybody—including the company's namesake and president Mr. Yamada. Old, drunk Miyazaki didn't remember a thing from the night before, but I'll never forget the moment he stood up and bowed down to me. I am sorry! He said. Words that, today, the entire country of Japan is waiting to hear from him for the crimes he committed.

To be continued...

(Read Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 3)

Prank: Hang Your Bratty Baby On Your Car Window

Here's a perfect holiday gift for your baby-hating friends. It's a rubber doll with flimsy fingers that you can shut your car window on.

Continue reading to see a picture of how it can be used...

Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 3

Before I go on to tell you what happened on that night in Vegas, here's a little background on what makes Motonobu Miyazaki relevant today:

Miyazaki was sick of being the #2 guy at Yamada. In June 2006, he left to start his own firm, a direct competitor. He called it Nihon Mirise Corporation—a "rising company" destined for greatness. A credible source once told me that "Mirise" is a double entendre: "Mirai" means "future" in Japanese, but "Mirise" is also short for "Miyazaki rising." The company's name is drenched in one man's ego and desire for power.

Miyazaki took some of his loyal followers with him when he left, including some of the guys I used to work for. Things were going smoothly for a year and change—the company had money, clients, and a growing credibility.

Then, in early November, all hell broke loose. Someone found out that Miyazaki had transferred over 100 million yen from Yamada International to his new company, and he was promptly arrested on suspicion of embezzlement. The scandal was all over the news. A co-conspirator was the president of Yamada's international subsidiary, Osamu "Stacy" Akiyama, who followed Miyazaki's order to transfer a bunch of money to Mirise after he left.

As the investigation continued, all kinds of other sketchy truths came out. A former vice defense minister was involved—he'd let Miyazaki treat him to dozens of expensive golf trips and meals (totally illegal). The duped company, Yamada, was found to have been padding bills from clients since the 1970s to meet sales goals. Akiyama was extradited to Japan, where he went straight to jail. (He made sure to feed and foster his dog before he left his home in LA.)

To be continued...

(Read Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 2)

 

How To Make Japanese Fried Chicken

Check out my friend Alyssa's Japanese fried chicken cooking video. This is actually a recipe that I borrowed from my friend Satoko in college, and that Alyssa subsequently borrowed from me.

Maybe I'm biased because she's one of my best friends in the world, but I love listening to Alyssa's random musings. I always joke with her that she has no inner monologue.

I like to use thighs, not breasts, but I think this is a total dark meat/light meat preference thing. Also, I hate shrimp, so no changing it up with little shrimp things for me.

Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 2

The following day, a corporate conduct expert sat us down in a giant meeting room and talked to us about sexual harassment. It's not okay to make suggestive comments to your coworkers. It's not okay for the boss to grab his secretary's ass on his way to the bathroom. Despite its obviousness to most people who have been in the workforce in America for awhile, the Japanese contingency sat there with blank stares. (What do you mean, it's not okay? I spent decades being loyal to my company just so I could be a boss and do that one day.)

The seminar ended at five, and then we had a dinner to go to. I don't remember what we ate. I do remember walking in a couple minutes late and getting in trouble with the lady who headed the Washington, DC office. I was the newest and youngest Yamada employee at the meeting, and it was slightly embarrassing.

To redeem myself, I invited the lady to go bar-hopping with us after dinner. She was older, but whatever, she said yes. And then she said, invite Mr. Miyazaki! I looked across the room at the senior managing director of our parent company. I flinched at the idea, then looked at my co-workers grinning from ear to ear, and thought, why the hell not? So I went up to the guy—sixty-something years old, and the #2 guy at the company at the time—and said, "Mr. Miyazaki, we're going for a drink. Would you like to come with us?"

Miyazaki said, "Yes. I have a 17-year old girlfriend in Japan." I said, "Wow. That's cool."

Actually, it's not cool at all. I knew immediately that Miyazaki was one of those DOMs—dirty old men who frequented hostess clubs and cheated on their wives and probably did all kinds of other unethical shit I don't even want to know about. I could only hope that he would behave himself or go off on his own at some point in the evening.

To be continued...

(Read Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 1)

Christmas Music Video Featuring My Mystery Friend

Check out this new music video by Tokyo/SF-based indie rock band The Beautiful Losers. One person in this video is an old friend of mine. Can you guess which one?

Miyazaki Rising: A Story of Power, Prison, and Sexual Harassment Part 1

As promised, here is the story about my episode with jailed embezzler Mr. Miyazaki in Vegas...I will be writing it in installments, updated daily:

My first real job out of college was at the New York branch of a Japanese exporting firm in the defense and aerospace industry. My task was simple — I logged purchase orders for hot shot defense contractor clients and made sure their stuff got delivered to the Japan Defense Agency on time and undamaged. The company was Yamada International Corporation, a fully owned subsidiary of Yamada Corporation, a private trading house, well-known in Japan for delivering quality engine parts and spy equipment to the JDA—a faithful client.

I worked in a small office near Grand Central Station in New York City with about 15 others—all young, single, Japanese citizens who'd been living in the US with working visas for several years. We were a fun crew—we sent each other silly intra-office notes, bonded over which $6 lunch to buy from the bento guy who came every morning at 10am, gossiped about our colleagues at the parent company in Japan, and questioned why we couldn't wear sneakers to work or why all the women in the company had different titles than the men.

It was October 2002, and Mr. Yamada invited the entire company to an annual meeting in Vegas. Despite the promise of boring meetings two days in a row, we were psyched to be there—besides, it was Halloween weekend. My co-workers and I went to a Halloween superstore on Manhattan and bought costumes. (Tom was a pimp; Yukari was a french maid; I was a slutty pirate.) We each got our own rooms at a kitschy Vegas Hotel. On the first night, we partied it up at some fancy nightclub in the Bellagio.

To be continued...

Quiz: Which Japanese Superhero Team Is This?

Which team of Japanese superheroes is this?

I actually forgot, but I'll send out a prize to whoever figures it out and proves it to me first. Remember—this is kind of a trick question because there was a different team of multicolored superheroes every year for several decades.

Satellites for Human Rights in Burma (Wired Story)

I have a story in the December issue of Wired about a map geek who uses satellite imagery to track human rights abuses in countries like Burma, Zimbabwe, and the Sudan.

During the first two days of the military crackdown in Burma this September, horror stories leaked out of the country via Internet and cell phone: the junta firing into crowds, monks bloodied by beatings, activists burned alive. But on the third day, silence. Web and mobile connections went dead, and Lars Bromley realized, "Oh, jeez, I'm going to have some of the only looks at these cities."

Continue reading...

Video: Taxi Driver Is A Stunt Man Prankster

A guy gets on a cab. Cab driver asks him if he should take the quicker route. Man says, yes please. You'll see what happens next in this crazy prank video.

Some captions:
Every so often, the panicked passenger says: "Who the hell are you?"
Cabbie responds: "I'm just a taxi driver."

The passenger also says things like: "Look straight ahead!" "There's construction!" "Go back!" "My door!" "A giant sign!" "Fire!"

The cabbie doesn't say much, but at the very end, he makes sure he asks for the fare: "660 yen."

Japanese Doggie Dressed As Santa

Happy Holidays! I'm going to Hawaii for a week, but don't worry—I've saved a healthy front-log of posts that are timed to go up every day while I'm gone. They include silly videos, pictures from my past trips to Japan, a pop quiz, and a massive story about the time a certain Mr. Miyazaki, who is now in jail, poured beer down my shirt.

Machine Measures Belly Fat While You Lie Down

In February, Tanita will start selling this revolutionary body fat percentage checker that doesn't even require you to get up. All you have to do is lie under it for a while.

via Impress Watch (Japanese)

Fake Injury Cosplay Popular Among Geek Girls

These days, otaku don't just like cute girls--they like their girls bandaged, eye-patched, and otherwise naked. This relatively recent Akiba fetish is dubbed "kegadoru"—think "kega" (injury) and idol—and has made its way into cosplay circles nationwide. It's actually not a bad idea for a Halloween costume.

Link

New York City's First Anime Fair Starts This Weekend

The Javits Center is holding NYC's first annual Anime Festival this weekend. It's gonna be chock full of excitement for anime fans—free screenings, pop music, speaker panels, even an on-the-spot voice acting contest. Be there.

Chimps Outsmart Humans In Memory Tests

The Primate Research Institute in Kyoto discovered that young chimps have a much better memory than humans. Wow.

Sega's New Samurai Game for PS3

Sega's new PS3 game titled "Ryu Ga Gotoku" is action-packed warring samurai goodness. It features the faces and voices of some pretty big-name actors and music by hip-hop artist Zeebra. It comes out March 6, 2008 in Japan. More images after the jump.

The Four Immigrants Manga

Anyone interested in manga, Japanese humor, Asian-American history,or immigration should pick up a copy of The Four Immigrants Manga. It's a series of comic strips drawn and written by Henry Kiyama at the turn of the 20th century. Kiyama was a young Japanese man who came to San Francisco with three of his friends in search of work and a better life. What he finds there isn't exactly what he expected.

Kiyama's adventures span from mishaps with his rich white employers to surviving the great earthquake to finding a picture bride. Sure, it's funny. But it's also a great insight into the experience and resilience of Japanese immigrants of that era.

Author and translator Fred Schodt discovered Kiyama's work over half a century after it was written, and got permission from his descendants to publish it in the US. Amazing stuff.

Beer Mug Tells You How Many Calories You're Consuming

This beer mug tells you how many calories you're consuming. According to these metrics, 300ml of beer equals 150kcal. Anyone know if this is true? (Give or take a few, depending on what kind of brew you're drinking.)

Link