Translations Gone Wrong

I almost hate writing anything for this one because I have no idea what this is, I guess the translation is something along the lines of "please be respectful of the people on the dance floor by not smoking" the translation however seems to fail to capture the nuances of the English language. To be honest, this wouldn't normally have such an effect on me except it was a bar predominantly for foreigners. I guess I will leave it up to you to decide.

Japanese Rocket Launcher

I keep this around just in case things get serious, I know were to go to take action...

CROCS... Now "Made in China"

This one is for Heather. After working at The Bradley, I do feel a slight connection to that silly little rubber shoe. I was very excited the first time I saw someone else in Japan wearing them. I still have mine, bright orange and begging for attention, I wear them anyways, if you own a pair you understand why. I was walking through Tokyu Hands one day, (Tokyu hands is kind of like the catch all Wal-Mart esque store that has just about everything) and I notices a display of CROCS. I was really surprised to see them there, after all, I still thought that they were produced in Boulder. And then it happened, I turned the shoe over and there is was... the label I never thought would reach a Boulder based company and yet there it was, "Made in China." It was at this moment that my heart sunk and Globalization took on a completely new meaning to me. Who would have thought that a rubber shoe would change my way of thinking more than years of study in political science and philosophy. Perhaps again, I am being a bit dramatic, I just never thought that the shoe that represented everything "Not Made in China" would take the turn.

Not So Much Valentine's Day

I was trying to write this last week but every time I would write, I became a bit too cynical and extreme. I won't be the first to admit that when I don't like something, sometimes I let it go too far and so I decided to let it set for a week and then write about it. Here's the deal. I don't like Valentine's Day. In the states, I never had a Valentine and so perhaps I am a bit bitter toward the holiday as a whole but I can't help but be a little upset when the first Valentine's day that I actually have a valentine, the tables are turned. Confused?... so was I. It turns out that in Japan Valentine's Day is a holiday where the women give men gifts, chocolate and so on. The men are not expected to do anything on this day, and not until March is it reciprocated, though only to the women who have given you something on Valentine's Day. This "new" holiday is called White Day, and from what I hear most men don't even remember it! From what I can gather, the Hallmark holiday making agency that was set out to conquer Japan realized that they could never sell a holiday like Valentine's Day to the men and had to market it to the women. And so it go that this is the story of my first Valentine's Day in Japan.

Just Me and My Blogger... in English

Today, I thought I would be productive, after booking a hotel in Kyoto for when my parents and brother come to Japan, and organizing all of my music after a complete PC overhaul, I felt motivated to continue on my drive. I went to the blogger site as I usually do to access my blog account only to find that it was all in Japanese. I have seen this happen a lot in the last couple of days because all of my old settings were lost. It was touch and go for a couple minutes when I couldn't read the Kanji to understand where to go to create a new post. Luckily, good ole' blogger hasn't failed me yet and the help section is still in English no matter what locale you are in! I guess my point is that even though I live in a foreign country and every day I am reminded of it in everything I do, somehow, when I am in my room, sitting at my computer, Japan becomes only a name and I remain an American, speaking English normally and scraping by in Japanese and a site dictated in Japanese still scares me more than a tarantula in my bed... and yet, for all its worth, I wish I could keep the settings in Japanese, just to prove to myself that I could do it.

Akiba Server Store

Akihabara is one of those places that is entertaining to go to every once in a while, and then, only if you are in the mood to go and have a specific and directed purpose for going. In Akihabara you can find cross dressers, maid cafes and a plethora of "geeks." I say that, but I am pretty sure it is something you have to see to believe. Imagine a bunch of small streets lined with stores housing thousands upon thousands of rewritable cds, cables and things I don't even want to know about. Now, gathering around these hubs of electronic mayhem are men, dressed in pocket protectors and a love of fantasy gaming. This is Akiba summarized. I have never and will never have a reason of my own for going to a server store, and so, when I ended up at one I felt it was only necessary that I take a picture, knowing that I may never be back... god willing.