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Post by tangerinesun on Sept 30, 2016 16:51:21 GMT -5
Japan's bitterest feud: Kansai vs. Kanto22015 April 28 by Virginia Lau, for CNN cnn.com/2015/04/28/travel/discover-japan-kansai-vs-kanto/ Robust vs. refined, leader vs. follower, Giants vs. Tigers, standard vs. wtf?
[One major gripe] about Kansai people is that they won't speak standard Japanese, yet judge people who try to speak Kansai dialect. On the other hand, [Kansai natives] sometimes hide their dialect because [they] think some Japanese look down on Kansai folk… I think this is actually not exaggerated. If anything, a little underplayed. When Naoko talks about not being part of the Tokyo music world, you can almost hear her shudder. I remember her criticizing the amount of trash waiting on the street to be picked up in Tokyo. It's just not livable like home, which is a high-rise concrete jungle the size of an ordinary county.
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Post by lazybone712 on Nov 6, 2016 0:02:48 GMT -5
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Post by tangerinesun on Nov 6, 2016 16:34:34 GMT -5
It sounds nice, but it's sanctimonious baloney.
Realize that Japanese students are ceaselessly corrected and evaluated and reported on and tracked throughout their careers. Elementary schools might vary widely on their practices for lower grades, but even if a school happens not to implement formal exams, kids are written up and reported on regarding, well, everything.
Before 4th grade, they get an easier time because they're not yet able to cope with what's coming. They may start with half days, but as they progress it's an 8-to-3 schedule, and then after-class activities are introduced. By middle school, they have the regular school day plus sports and clubs plus hours of homework. Their weekdays are almost 100% committed, and there might be irregular Saturday scheduling. When school's not in session, there are vacation assignments.
Japanese children are well-advised to attend formal kindergartens, which they can start as early as age 3. As in other highly-developed nations, how you did in kindergarten influences how you're placed in elementary school, and so on and so on, up to the university level. The number-one determiner of later advancement is exam scores. But everything about your daily life is decided by how your teachers perceive you and rate you.
The emphasis on manners is because, if you fail to show good breeding, you can forget about access to the better tiers of society. "Moral instruction" is part of a shift over the last 25 years toward a civics curriculum that seeks to make model Japanese citizens, not so much independent-minded individuals. Some previous educational experiments by more totalitarian societies come uneasily to a Western mind.
In spite of all that, public school bullying and harassment of students by students is such a universal fact of school life in Japan that administrators don't really think of eliminating it — in spite of periodic lip service. Manners before knowledge? You could say that there's an entire shadow curriculum of learning to deal with low-level politics and a mind-boggling system of rules, written and unwritten, as well as the art of saying one thing in public, all the while doing the opposite thing in private.
No bed of roses.
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Post by mikado-AKA-Shoknifeman on Nov 8, 2016 10:45:32 GMT -5
Great job everyone, this thread reads like a magazine of Japanese culture, proud to know you guys!
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Post by tangerinesun on Nov 29, 2016 1:20:34 GMT -5
NagashiBefore karaoke, bars already had hundreds of songs waiting to be sung The root meaning of nagashi is a current, like water, but from this a thousand connotations, um… flow. Streaming, flowing, transmitting, carrying along, washing away, draining off, circulating, spreading around, pouring or spilling, broadcasting, panning (a movie camera), scrubbing (a meeting). A bunch of other things related to fluidity. Nagashi belongs to all this: A sink; also a shower area in a bathroomHot water piped straight from the volcanic spring to your bathThin rice noodles from the cook pot to you, via cold water running in a trough or half-pipe, like scary aquatic parasites. This makes eating outdoors even more outdoorsy. Bamboo: nothing it can't doAttractive tomato noodle stoppers Alfresco bliss. The kids will love this, but mom gets to wash it out after. No noodles? Otters, or fish — also fine. Paper dolls ceremoniously sent downriver at hina matsuri take your accumulated evil junk with themLanterns on the current carry hopes and prayersTaxis that cruise instead of waiting at a station or standHold it — taxi, cruising!In the music world, there's a long tradition of wandering minstrelsy. Itinerant buskers have been strolling downtown avenues in hope of getting a party started for I don't know how long. From about the early 1960s, this practice got guitars and came indoors, making bars much more fun. Table-hopping musicians are also engaged in nagashi. These two may just be thanking the proprietor for dinnerBar patrons could request live instrumental support, complete with songbook, for their own vocal rendition of "Snow Flower" — or just have the pro sing and play for everybody as their treat. What fine guys they, and all of us, are. Shotaro Hiratsuka has done this around Yotsuya and Araki in Tokyo for 50 yearsKaraoke machines were a bad blow to the nagashi business. Another example of a skilled trade getting automated out of existence. But it's not 100% gone, because nostalgia is a national pastime. The repertoire now is mostly sentimental favorites, golden oldies. When Jinny Oops wants to have a singalong in Taiwan, they rely on alcohol and microprocessors. http://instagr.am/p/BNCt6wzAl0R JinnyOops! × bacho "Osaka-shou" Taiwan Tour
Taiwan and Japan connected at the wrap party on the last day.
Cross-border Chaos
Even if our birth countries are different, even if they do not understand a lot of the words, these friends are important for the rest of our lives.Xiè xiè (thank you)
KAOS..Epic parties give JO! certain ideas. My head is killing me, but that was such a blast!! What was that song? Why don't we do it for real, you know, oldskool nagashi-style? Wandering around town busking at rush hour is terrific advertising for their blowout one-man club show that's right around the corner. Here they are again later, at home in their usual practice studio in Osaka: JinnyOops! MOTTAINAI Nagashi 2016
Round 1, December 3 has been decided!!!
It's not finalized yet From around 6pm, thinking whether to start out by Namba Station.
Other dates are also determined! I will announce tomorrow!
BGM: Toki no nagare ni mi o makase ("Leave Yourself to the Flow of Time", an enka-like pop number Teresa Teng used to do) Narrator: (Chihiro) Ishida-san (the tobacco-stained fingers )
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Post by thegl0r on Nov 29, 2016 17:41:46 GMT -5
Tan said lots about all sorts including noodles and other food... No noodles? Otters, or fish — also fine. But I'm not too certain I'd like to try raw otters.
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Post by tangerinesun on Nov 29, 2016 20:28:10 GMT -5
Tan said lots about all sorts including noodles and other food... But I'm not too certain I'd like to try raw otters. The otters might just be guests who've truly understood the nagashi spirit. I dug up more on Jinny's new live number: It was also performed in Teresa Teng's native Mandarin. The usual English title is taken directly from that version: "I Only Care About You" or "I Care Only For You". Teresa Teng is one thing Japan and Taiwan can agree on without question. Karaoke video with Chinese lyrics subbed very literally in English, recorded from Taiwanese TV: It's the familiar TT adoring female doormat theme. This particular song is the second-favorite of everything she ever did, according to an internet fan survey by the Teresa Teng Foundation. Her top three: - Spring in the Northland (surprise landslide winner)
- I Only Care About You
- The Moon Represents My Heart (most widely-known TT song)
〜〜〜〜〜 But the song credits (1986) are to a couple of Japanese: Takashi Miki for the tune, Toyohisa Araya for the words. Araya did the song lyrics to another Teresa Teng hit you may recall, " Aijin (Mistress)". Here's for singalongs: Moshimo anata to aezu ni itara Watashi wa nani o shiteta deshou ka
Heibon dakedo dare ka o aishi Futsuu no kurashi shiteta deshou ka
Toki no nagare ni mi o makase Anata no iro ni some rare Ichido no jinsei sore sae suteru koto mo kama wanai
Dakara onegai soba ni oi te ne Ima wa anata shika ai senai
Moshimo anata ni kira ware tanara Ashita to iu hi shitsu kushite shimau wa
Yaku soku nanka iranai keredo Omoi de dake ja ikite yuke nai
Toki no nagare ni mi o makase Anata no mune ni yori soi Kirei ni nareta sore dake de inochi sae mo ira nai wa
Dakara onegai soba ni oi te ne Ima wa anata shika mienai no
Toki no nagare ni mi o makase Anata no iro ni somerare Ichido no jinsei sore sae suteru koto mo kama wanai
Dakara onegai soba ni oi te ne Ima wa anata shika ai senaiThe second-to-last chorus in English: Give yourself over to the flow of time Keep me close to you in your heart Just ripening there in beauty is everything I need from life "Give yourself over" as in entrust, just leave everything to the flow of time. "Keep close" is "yori soi", and soi also means annexation in the sense of marrying. Be right back, I need a few moments with the electric sentimentality extractor (¥18,000 at Amazon.jp)
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 2, 2016 18:05:11 GMT -5
Chick fightWomen's pro wrestling in Japan, familiar but even moreso Japan Women's Pro Wrestling: Pure Heart • Pure Wrestlingjwp-produce.com It's pretty much the standard good x evil melodrama, equal parts sex and violence, with extreme regional flavor. Follow along on blogs and at Battle News. Featured: 近藤朱里 (Syuri Kondo)en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syuri Excelled at karate in grade school, fighting professionally a little over 8 years Profile to ~2015 in English at Alchetron – like Wikipedia, only "social" alchetron.com/Syuri-842055-W
2013 February 8 at STIMULUS in ShinjukuSyuri served MMA demonstrations and a predictable triumph over antagonist Satomura in her first self-produced public exhibition. It was her 24th birthday, about a year after she quit kick-boxing for greco-roman wrestling. If you're thinking, "why does she look half a Filipina?", that's because. Enduring vile taunts from Canada's Catherine "Cat" Power. Sister, don't make me come up out of this chair.Cat Power lost her ECCW crown to Kondo in July 2015 and regained it last February, presumably according to an agreed-upon script. Both bouts were held in Japan to promote the Canadian title there. The battle continues!!! God Bless DDT (Dramatic Dream Team)2016 November 23 – God Bless DDT 2016 The 5th match, DDT EXTREME Championship Bout Defending champion Danshoku Dino x Saki Akai 60 minutes, one round, "no woman no cry" rules. If anyone, particularly Saki Akai, sheds a visible tear during the match it's an automatic forfeit. Pulling the woman by the hair is perfectly fine, though. Dino's character is flamboyantly homosexual, so all his bouts are choreographed to suit. Can't *anybody* vanquish this chubby gay guy? It's confusing, because straight men don't know whether to support the leggy girl or stick with the team that shares the Y-chromosome. Related: if you look at the audience ringside, it's maybe twenty percent women. They don't have to think about who their fighter is. It was hoped Akai, whose father is proud promoter and former contestant Hidekazu Akai, could follow up her victory over 15 other contenders in the DDT Rock-Paper-Scissors tournament… but it was not to be. Afterwards, Akai was beside herself, reportedly pulling her sports bra right out of her t-shirt and dashing it to the ground during her post-match interview. Because, you know — she didn't have a gauntlet anywhere about her. Kancho attack!! retaking the offense after a punishing supplex slamVertical supplex is this. A cooperative effort. Pretty obviously, if anything goes badly wrong, someone is going to get ruined. I think the look on the thrower's face is a token of extreme care and concentration. Maruko Nagasaki loses to YuHana's "Angel's Trumpet" throw in the 3rd bout of YOUNG OH OH 27, last March at Saitama's FudadomeDespite the threat of Akai's big boots, Dino held on to finish her with a brain-buster slam to the deck. On the screen at rear is delayed video of the attack. 〜〜〜〜〜 Meanwhile, remember how we were promised a giant robot faceoff between Kuratas from Suidobashi Heavy Industry and that hulking yellow mess from American MegaBot? That was July 2015, and nothing announced yet. Since each machine is valued at well over a million dollars, talk is cheap — very cheap — compared to actually hitting the pavement. For now, all human fighters win against all giant mecha everywhere. 〜〜〜〜〜 LATE UPDATE On Saturday, at Osaka Edion Arena, Hawaiian Lina Fanene, aka Nia Jax (right) is making another attempt to take the Women's Championship for team RAW, against NXT's reigning champ ASUKA. Samoan ancestry. My face is up here. Jax uses her size to intimidate, but ASUKA has dealt with her and arrogant bruisers like her before now. Stay tuned. Look at my face. Do I look worried? ASUKA is an idol-wrestler persona of Osaka's Kanako Urai who also wrestles as Kana. Urai is an illustrator, graphic artist, website and computer game designer… and beauty salon owner… who's done work for Microsoft on the Xbox platform. You probably guessed all that by looking at her.
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Post by thegl0r on Dec 12, 2016 22:00:07 GMT -5
I was aware of women's wrestling in Japan and out of curiosity have watched little snippets. I appreciate the amount of training and skill of the contestants and all of the rehearsal that must have gone into the bouts and sometimes things can still go horribly wrong and people can get injured. But its not really my thing even though it is a chance to watch two fit and scantily clad Japanese girls grappling with each other. Having said that, I did click on a couple of tangerinesun 's links and wound up watching this match. You can probably guess by the leg-wear who I wanted to win, black over-the-knee rules in that particular contest for me. You also can probably guess by the amount of paper streamers that got thrown who was going to win. It was still fun to watch. There should have been more girlish squeals and a bit more hair pulling to make it seem more real. I'm sure we've all seen enough drunken girl fights outside pubs or clubs to have some sort of image in our minds.
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 13, 2016 21:09:04 GMT -5
...sometimes things can still go horribly wrong and people can get injured... Syuri deposed by Makoto 2014You can probably guess by the leg-wear who I wanted to win, black over-the-knee rules in that particular contest for me. You also can probably guess by the amount of paper streamers that got thrown who was going to win. It was still fun to watch. There should have been more girlish squeals and a bit more hair pulling to make it seem more real. I'm sure we've all seen enough drunken girl fights outside pubs or clubs to have some sort of image in our minds. Haha, these are pros. The dramatic injuries are mostly in the scenario, but of course, sometimes they do get creamed in the ring. I am not enough of a fan to know how they avoid being black-and-blue from head to toe. I think the women do a much better job of looking out for one another than their counterparts. It's pretty classy, actually. 〜〜〜〜〜 IKKE MAKOTO!! The nice girl got a win. I think the disrobing party was merely a warm welcome to the underdog challenger, who was looking like she just came from a maid cafe for a minute there. It was still Syuri's match, because she made it work, starting with the nice dump to the mat at 10:55 and some super passive support while getting kicked and jumped on around 14:00. Obvious abdominals of steel. I think it's good for Syuri's long-term likability to get checked when she's too dominant. And besides — that belt needs to travel around a little. 〜〜〜〜〜 You'll be glad to know ASUKA successfully defended her title for NXT Japan. Everybody's moved on already, but I don't see any official video of the match. I consider the bottom/center German supplex breathtaking. Well, the upside down lift is pretty fine, too. Good to see that the cocky wasn't drubbed out of you. The last time they met, Asuka had to pick Nia Jax apart with kick-boxing before she could be swatted down and crushed by the titanic one. Asuka's not exactly slight, but a 160cm rainforest pixie versus a 183cm/120kg battlewagon… the smaller girl can climb Jax like a boulder, and still have no good options when she gets to the top. Teaser, so viewers would know who the players are. They're both spectacular characters. Asuka's snotty and conceited, yet warm and sympathetic. I especially love Nia's expert blend of Darth Vader and Wicked Disney Queen. Asuka faces her toughest challenge yet in Nia Jax at NXT TakeOver: The End... 2016 JUN 07 WWE (03:22) The towering Nia Jax poses the biggest challenge NXT Women's Champion Asuka has faced since arriving in NXT. Can The Empress of Tomorrow topple her monstrous opposition? Find out at NXT TakeOver: The End…Well, she only had 6 months in which to be challenged as Asuka at the time. But am I supposed to be in doubt? 14 minutes from their first meeting last summer. Don't pay attention to the announcers, it's bad for your brains: Nia Jax vs Asuka NXT Women's Champion2016 AUG 18 by WOMENS REVOLUTION (14:36)
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 13, 2016 21:26:00 GMT -5
Taro Okamoto and Osaka's Taiyou no Tou (Tower of the Sun)en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_of_the_Sun Built from a design by the artist Tarou Okamoto for the Expo '70 world's fair in Osaka, it still stands on a part of the site that was dedicated afterwards as a commemorative park. Not too much is left of the expo 45+ years later. The tower has been patched up a number of times to keep it from falling completely apart, but is still a little decrepit. As part of ongoing efforts to keep it in shape, it's about to become a movie. 〜〜〜〜〜 Okamoto died in 1996. His studio in the Aoyama section of Tokyo is now a public memorial with a sculpture garden and an active Twitter feed: Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum @taro_kinenkan 4 Jul 2015 On a rainy afternoon at the Memorial Hall, there were cheers from inside the building. Kawaii, kawaii, Taiyou-chan had suddenly appeared. The museum turned into a toy box!!Okamoto's hometown of Kaswasaki got up a delightful museum of his work, and his mural "The Myth of Tomorrow" was installed in 2008 at the Tokyo Shibuya JR station. OKAMOTO Taro: Nuclear proliferation, tradition and "The Myth of Tomorrow"By Donald C. Wood from research by Akiko Takahashi, for The Kyoto Journal , digital edition no.77kyotojournal.org/the-journal/culture-arts/okamoto-taro-nuclear-proliferation-traditions-and-the-myth-of-tomorrow/ Taro Okamoto Memorial Museum @taro_kinenkan Aug 18 [Gallery Talk Today] We are presenting inside the hall for 15–20 minutes starting at 2pm today (Friday, August 19th). No reservation necessary. We'll be waiting for you.Taro didn't only work at monumental scale. He's the guy quoted as saying, "Isn't it nice to find a face in the bottom of your cup?"
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 17, 2016 22:51:31 GMT -5
NTV interviews foreigners in Japan – English subtitles 日テレ外人街頭インタビュー 英語字幕 2014 MAY 15 by 情報一番 (18:36) [Unusual Birthplaces] It's your turn next⇒ http : // mania110.xsrv.jp/a2 (parked domain)AMUSING, HUH? Non-native persons never lose their weird interest. Although actually, the weirdest thing to me is hearing Ukrainian-/ Azerbaijani-/ French-/ Irish-/ Ugandan-accented Japanese. FAVORITE FOODS 00:15 California: Edamame, shelled… or unshelled 01:07 India: Wasabi, especially with almonds 02:00 Ukraine: Japan's deep feelings for food 02:40 India: Japanese beef curry is better than the real thing 03:25 American: Eel dinner as a present… but I ate all the eel JAPANESE CULTURE 04:25 Azurbaijan: Our customs are so much alike 05:35 Alaska: The tall mountains of Dewa 06:05 Germany: Escalator etiquette in Tokyo × Osaka 07:05 Malaysia (via Gunma): Umeda is the most harmonious place 07:50 Ireland: Foreigners like myself could ruin Japanese society FASCINATING THINGS 08:54 Sri Lanka: Hairdressers say "thanks for your hard work" when you're just lying still 09:28 America: Words like pokapoka, karikari, paripariiiiiii – you feel them inside 10:10 France: Youji (something you need to take care of) is a magic word 10:52 England: The neon in Shibuya filled me with deep emotion 11:20 New Zealand: There are smilies in my kanjis OTAKU DELIGHTS 13:12 Uganda: Not "like" an electric rail car, it *is* one (hits on a maid) 14:28 France: Please wear a sailor suit and call me "sempai" – you too, interviewer-san WORDS OF WISDOM 15:42 America: You're in the presence of Bon Jovi 16:17 Egypt: Hiroshi Madoka is a living national treasure 16:30 America: The Duck Face is kawaii… but not yours (hit by interviewer) 17:20 England: I love Yodobashi Camera… why am I lugging this laptop?
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 18, 2016 18:24:11 GMT -5
A foreign gentleman whose favorite is "OREIMO" – His heart is warmed by saying, "Onii-chan" 2014 MAY 15 by 情報一番 (1:33) [OREIMO] It's your turn next⇒ http : // mania110.xsrv.jp/a2 (parked domain)One more foreign visitor curiosity from classic network TV. The Danish guy says he came to study Japanese, because he wants to go deeper into anime and manga. I doubt that's what he said on his application papers. This gets an "Aha!" from the interviewer. "What… is your No.1 favorite anime!!?"Sidelong glance. This question is graded. Does he realize his future is at stake? Ore no imouto ga kon'nani kawaii wake ga nai (My Little Sister Can't Possibly Be This Cute) ** That's a seriously long handle. The interviewer acts like she's never heard of it before. She'd be the only one. Apparently the short name "Oreimo" is scandalously funny, and I don't know why. Everyone giggling and/or blushing"In Japan right now, lolita and little-sister characters are popular…"But what, most of all, do characters say that makes them moë (infatuatingly on the tender cusp of adolescent awakening)? Unfair question. Dissertations have been written about this.We don't see the negotiation, but it seems the interviewer offered to speak a phrase if the handsome foreign guy can come up with one. It must be the right phrase. Struggle ensues. Please let me hear you say "Onii-chan (big brother)"!!! Usually, an outburst of affection or the opening shot in a long fusillade of pleading, bullying, manipulating or attention-getting. "Onii-chan? You want *me* to say it?" To her own embarrassment, the interviewer bats out an onii-chan just like a pro! THAT'S MOË!! And you're over 30.— When I say that, do you get any kind of a feeling? — I do, you know. It warms my heart. ** OREIMO followed the canonical development path from light novels to illustrated comics and on to serialized TV and games. It concerns the problematic relations between an average shlub high school student, Kyosuke; his superstar kid sister Kirino; and her competitive friend Ruri, who happens to be Kyousuke's classmate. And more! Will Kyosuke ever grow into a normal adult? Don't count on it. Having this as your favorite series means you are probably a clinical geek, the same as snapping at a bass lure means you are probably a bass.
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Post by tangerinesun on Dec 18, 2016 18:38:26 GMT -5
Wrap 'n' RollDon't let them look at the bottom of the box LESS PAPER Diagonal Gift Wrapping2011 DEC 15 by Charles Fung (04:49) Here is how to determine the size of paper needed.
Using traditional method, a 9"x6"x4.5" box will need a piece of 29"x23" gift wrap paper. Using my method, choose the smallest side to be the height (4.5"). Then measure the length of the diagonal of the 9"x6" rectangle (works out to be about 11" in this case).
Take the diagonal length and add 2 times the height (11+2x4.5) to get 20". So a 20"x20" paper will do the job instead of the 23"x29" needed for the traditional method.
If you like this video, check out my other gift wrapping idea: youtube.com/watch?v=U4Sh78zuNAQ youtube.com/watch?v=nmxaRq4D6FA NO TAPE, NO RIBBON Japan Gift Wrap Hack [No Tape, No Ribbon]2016 DEC 08 by BeatTheBush (01:37) Japan Gift Wrapping Hack modified to use no tape. Original Video Explained: youtu.be/BQM8KKP-3OoOriginal Video: youtu.be/fh_Rg6e4SY8 NO PAPER Furoshiki 1 – Basic Knot & Wrapping2009 OCT 25 by UKhizenya (10:00) Shopping with Furoshiki
The 'My bag movement' of using no plastic bags for shopping has become popular but it is a little troublesome to carry a separate bag for shopping. It is almost impossible if you go shopping straight after work. However, the furoshiki does not take much space in your handbag or coat pocket and you can easily put the equivalent of a shopping bag of groceries into one furoshiki.
Its so easy; all you have to do is tie both ends together.
www. hizen-ya.co.uk (broken link) Maybe more accurate to say that if you carried enough bags to do everything you can do with a 105cm furoshiki, you would need a bag to put all your bags in.
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Post by thegl0r on Dec 19, 2016 14:27:44 GMT -5
Thanks for finding the Furoshiki 1 video. I thoroughly enjoyed it, so much so that I eagerly sniffed out its sequel, Furoshiki 2 hoping for a return of those cute socks but found some other items of clothing instead. Furoshikis are so cool, especially the ones with different colours on each side. I keep meaning to get a big one as the small ones I've got for bundling things together are only just about big enough to wrap a paperback book which was what I'd wanted at the time, but they're no good for carrying the shopping home. Or I could just get a length of some cheap polyester fabric to make use of. Polyester is durable, can be "sewn" with a candle and holds a good knot which is also easy to undo again. If you get it right.
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