Cool Products Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Megami Magazine Feb 2011 The new year is upon us, and with it another crop of delicious moe anime! Megami Magazine is here to celebrate with another issue packed with over twenty large A3-size posters for you to enjoy, and a 2011 12-month calendar too! As usual, Megami is one of the most awesome products J-List sells and we recommend it to everyone! View products »
	Chaos;Head & Steins;Gate ~ Artbook Nitroplus and 5pb created a new genre of "science adventures" bishoujo games, and this book is the definitive guide to both of them!
	Touhou Project Oppai Mouse Pad ~ Inaba Reisen Udongein Inaba, the popular "moon rabbit" from the Touhou project shooting games, is here in a very comfortable form for you to enjoy!
	Phone x Phone iPhone Stand Take advantage of the touchpad feature of your iPhone while you're talking with this handy docking station that provides a real phone attachment.
	Fun San-X Products, Too Fun San-X items in stock today, including those over-ear Rilakkuma headphones and the cute fizzing "Bath Balls" with Mamegoma toys inside. Kawaii!
	Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls 02 (Blu-ray Disc) When feudal sengoku Japan meets the modern day in a fanservice action epic you get the dynamite series that is Samurai Girls. Packed with Blu-ray extras!
	Disappearance of Haruhi, More Restocked These discs sold so fast, we were looking at the Disappearance of the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya. Happily they are restocked + Nanoha & Macross.
	Little Busters Costume Mantle Cloak and Hat set Noumi Kudryavka, the signature character from Little Busters, is here in this costume for you to portray her with all you need to get the look perfect!
	Restocked Striped Panties, Leg Warmers, Cosplay See awesome cosplay items, including shimapan striped panties, our popular Red Scarf School Swimsuit, plus epic leg warmers for winter.
	Various Anime Figures In Stock Enjoy the ecchi Sasami from Little Busters, the amazing Yoshika Figma from Strike Witches, plus pucchi (petit) Queen's Blade figures and moe, er, we mean more. Click to see our awesome lineup of epic figures now. View products »
	Nendoroid Petite K-ON! Full Set of 11 K-On! fans, one of the coolest sets of toys we've ever seen is here. A massive set of 12 kawaii Nendoroid K-On! figures!
	Jason and the Argonauts Skeleton Revoltech Then, let's all bow before the awesomeness of the Skeleton Army Revoltech figures which just came in. Get these guys some K-On! instruments!
	Ceramic Art Experience with Oven Build your own ceramic creations with all you need right here in this awesome craft set. Make traditional Japanese dishes!
	DX Women's Satin Kimono Sakura & Temple ~ Black A beautiful yukata-style Kimono that's appropriate for year-round wear with light fabric and durable printing that looks just gorgeous.
	Crystal Lucky Cat Display  One can never have too much luck, and this cat is here to make sure your have your share! An adorable and skillfully crafted piece of Japanese culture.
	Golden Poop and Toilet Keychain Some things in Japan defy description. This is one of them -- the glorious golden poop good luck charm -- which promises to bring you money-related happiness.
	Restocked Daruma, Traditional Items Take the Daruma Initiative with these traditional round dolls from Japan, restocked today, great for setting goals for 2011. We also have awesome sake cups and other fun items for New Year's. View products »
	2011 Japanese Calendars Just a reminder that we've still got 100 awesome Japanese calendars from your favorite anime, JPOP groups, JAV idols and more. But they're selling fast...
	Jiji Pouch - Kiki's Delivery Service Every day we get new Studio Ghibli products in is a good day, and today we've restocked some fun Jiji the Cat items, incl. a pouch to hold your money.
	Wacky Things from Japan J-List loves Wacky Things from Japan (tm), and today we've restocked that Piko Piko Hammer which Beat Takeshi hits guests on the head with.
	Super New Japanese Snacks A delicious package of traditional shoyu-painted rice crackers, winter-limited Cho-pan by Meiji, plus a new flavor of Ninja Food that makes you smart!
	Super Restocked Snacks Bontan Ame traditional candy you can eat the wrapper of, Morinaga Milk Caramel (Cat Buses love these), Pumpkin Pocky, Country Ma'am Soft Cookies and more.
	Family Size SAKURA JUBAKO Bento Box Nothing says togetherness like having a family or group meal using this giant family-sized bento box, great for entertaining or picnicking, too!
	Other Restocked Bento Box Sets Also restocked: the super-cool WAON Bento Box sets, which blend the traditional with the awesome.
	Perfect Sushi Molds, Gyoza Makers Then, make sushi the right way with these excellent sushi molds. Gyoza and onigiri shapers restocked, too.
	Hello Kitty Face Lunch Tray We always have a large stock of rare Hello Kitty items for you, like the restocked Hello Kitty Lunch Tray, plus fun bento items.
	Health and Physical Education for Over Thirty This book is a health manual for 30 or older which describes how to get along with the opposite sex, if you know what we mean. Great for hikikomori types!
	More Gorgeous Photobooks from Japan The awesome book of rural towns around Tokyo is restocked, plus the fun Children's Advertising in the Showa Era. We love random photobooks.
	Restocked Japan-Related Books The popular handbook for living in Japan is restocked, plus the ultimate guide to Ekiben, or train station bento lunches. Yum!
	Super Awesome Stationery from Japan "Fude" brush pens for calligraphy in all sizes and widths, StitchLock magic staplers, the gorgeous Zebra La Flleche fragrant gel ink set, and more.
	Kuroneko, Super Sonico Figures *Preorder* Lovely figures of Super Sonico, the Nitroplus mascot, and Kuroneko from My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute! Preorders open today.
	Sci-fi Revoltech No.024 Mark VI (Iron Man) *Preorder* Wow, this one was an awesome surprise - Kaiyodo's Revoltech action figure lineup does Iron Man, and he's looking amazing! Preorder now available.
	My Girlfriend is the President *Preorder* A big announcement from JAST USA! They've got the license to produce "My Girlfriend is the President," the hit game from Japanese maker ALcot, with an English uncensored release coming in 2011. Preorder your copy today for free shipping, and check out the official site here. View products »
	Amazing Stress Toys for Guys Got some amazing restocked stress toys, including the Sexy Twins Perfect Body series, the epic Gal Get Chu Digital Vibrator and e-Rotor, plus Zhang Xiao!
	Tamaki Jyumonji 1/7 Cast off Figure *Preorder* A sexy Santa girl designed by the artist of Angel Djibril?! "Cast off", too, which means there something under that outfit for you to see...
	EROS 2.0 Evangelion Onahole: Asuka, Rei, Mari An epic line of stress toys that can only be called art, this is an Evangelion-themed onahole featuring a laser-etched image of Rei, Asuka or Mari inside, which you...well you "enter" in a metaphysical and physical way. Adding to the awesomeness, they come with "LCL" lotion. View products »

"How Did You Learn Japanese?"

Today one of my Twitter followers asked me, "How did you learn Japanese?" That's quite a big topic, of course, but I thought I'd offer some suggestions. I learned Japanese at San Diego State University, and I certainly think a formal study program is a good way for anyone to approach nihongo. That said, there are many alternative ways to study a language these days, including some innovative books and other items we sell as well as online study methods -- heck, you could even start a Twitter account and tweet in Japanese and see what feedback you get. Another bit of advice is to approach the language from many different directions. In my own case, I watched anime (this was back in the days when it was never subtitled or dubbed), read manga in Japanese, listened to and translated JPOP songs, memorizing the songs for singing at karaoke, and kept a diary in Japanese. Another good suggestion is to find a rival. Back when I had a Chinese friend who was taking level 1 of the Japanese Language Ability Test (JLPT) at the same time as I was, and I made up my mind that I was going to beat her score. For a white guy like me, this was quite a goal, since Chinese people have a natural affinity for kanji (they can read nearly anything written in Japanese using the characters, although they can't always tell how it's supposed to be pronounced). Having someone to "beat" helped my Japanese studies and pushed me to get a higher score on the test.

Want to learn Japanese? We have some suggestions.

Natsukashii in Japan: Child's Lunch Plate

We all have fond memories of childhood which make us natsukashii, a word that roughly means "that makes me so nostalgic that I must look like one of those wide-eyed manga characters with a tear rolling out of my eye." Opening my Death Star action playset on Christmas morning back in 1978, eating Sugar Corn Pops while watching Land of the Lost and spending the summer barefoot are some memories that are important to me. For Japanese kids, there's a special kid's meal served at restaurants in department stores called okosama lunch for children to eat when they go shopping with their parents or grandparents. It's basically a plate filled with everything kids love: a "hamburg" steak, spaghetti, rice, an ebi-fry or fried breaded shrimp, a cup of corn soup and some Japanese "pudding" (caramel cream) for dessert. Adding to its awesomeness usually served on a plate that looks like a car or a Shinkansen bullet train. and has a flag toothpick from a random country sticking out of the top. Incidentally, we've gotten in two Okosama Lunch Plate bento plates for your kids, or you!

A "child's lunch plate" makes Japanese nostalgic.

Time for Big Cleaning

We hope everyone had a nice Christmas, with many wonderful presents and warm memories with friends and family. Now that Dec. 25th has passed, everyone in Japan is turning their eyes to the most important day on the Japanese calendar, New Years Day. Called oshogatsu, January 1st is a day to relax at home in the morning while reading through the nengajo or traditional New Year's cards your friends sent you. Afterwards, you go out to the local Shinto shrine for hatsu-mode (ha-tsu-moh-day), the traditional first prayer of the New Year, then go visiting with family or return home and eat traditional osechi bento meals that have been made ahead of time. The Japanese like to enter a new year with a clean slate, and everyone does oh-souji or "big cleaning." To companies that sell cleaning supplies, replacement shoji door paper and so on, the week before New Year's Day is, well, Christmas, as everyone stocks up on what they need to make their house spic and span. J-List will be doing "big cleaning," too, taking a few hours off from our normal work tomorrow to vacuum, dust, wipe and wash every square inch of J-List, so we can have a great 2011.

We'll be cleaning J-List from top to bottom for the New Year.

2010 Year End Stuff

We've got plenty of awesome year-end products at J-List right now, including traditional decorations which will bring closure to 2010 and help ring in a whole new year in 2011. If you're making New Year's Resolutions and would like to make learning Japanese a goal for the new year, we can definitely help, with hundreds of study products for all levels, from kanji flashcards to that awesome kanji poster to Hiragana Times. I especially like the new Ultimate Japanese Phrasebook, a great situation-based methof of study that gives you immediate feedback. Wish I'd had this book 20 years ago!

Cool Products Monday, December 27, 2010

Here are today's "really cool products" that I've picked out for you, out of the 30+ new items we've added to the J-List and JBOX.com sites today. Note that some products may be "not safe for work" but that all links will allow you to redirect yourself either to the J-List or JBOX.com websites. To see all the J-List products, check out J-List or the JBOX.com updated products link.

	Dengeki Moeoh Feb 2011 Whether you love 54-page bishoujo calendar extras or the sexiest artbook-style galleries in magazine form, the newest Moeoh is here to help!
	Vivid ~ Aoi Nishimata illustrations The genius behind SHUFFLE! and countless other games and illustration work is here with her first official artbook, and it is beautiful.
	New Year's Decorations Bring the spirit of the Japanese new year to life with this traditional braided rice shimenawa, a wreath designed to bring good luck and ward off evil spirits in the coming year. A beautiful and dignified way to add color and authentic Japanese tradition to your New Year. View products »
	Year of the Rabbit Traditional Display ~ 2011 Also, 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit, and we've restocked several of our popular traditional display items for the new year.
	Mini EMA ~ Lucky Wishing Board ~ Rabbit  One of the most important New Year's items is "wishing board" which you write your wish on then hang it at a Shinto shrine. May your wish come true in 2011!
	Sasara Kusugawa Figutto Action Figure A fabulous cat girl figure, this is a unique sculpt of Sasara from the popular eroge ToHeart2. Comes with various optional parts.
	New Anime Figures In Stock Also, enjoy the awesome villain of the Black Rock Shooter universe is in stock in Nendoroid form, plus the Metis from Persona 3 Figma!
	Hello Kitty iPhone 4G Cover ~ Hello Kitty & Elmo  If you love cute things from Japan, check out the Hello Kitty iPhone 4 cases we got in stock today. Really cute items from Japan!
	Evangelion NERV iPad Case, iPhone 4 Cases Also, the Evangelion iPad case is in stock, so get yours before they disappear. We also got the awesome Eva iPhone cases in.
	Big Restocking of Artbooks Many amazing artbooks restocked, including Shunya Yamashita, Railway Girls, Queen's Blade Rebellion (Shigi) plus the amazing Moe Moe Encyclopedia.
	Gorgeous Shirow Artbooks Restocked Also enjoy some of the most amazing illustrations by Shirow Masamune restocked for you. So detailed, so dreamy to stare at for hours!
	The Ultimate Japanese Phrasebook: 1800 Sentences for Everyday Use Incl. CD If you're planning a trip to Japan, working on your conversation skills for school or business, or just want to catch more of what's said in anime, this book will be an indispensable companion. A handy reference with virtually all the phrases you'll hear or use in common Japanese, the companion CD will make sure your pronunciation is spot on as well. Situation based Japanese learning, a great idea! View products »
	Hiragana Times Jan 2011 No. 291 Keep up with current events in Japan and topics of general interest with the beginner-accessible magazine that includes handy kana phonetics.
	Fruits Jan 2011 NO. 162 The magazine that speaks truth to urban fashion is back with another hip, street-level look at current trends in Tokyo, 2011 style.
	Haikyo Discovery ~ Discovery Ruins Explore locations time forgot with this amazing book on Haikyo (abandoned building) hunting by photographer Tetsuro Kobayashi. Restocked today.
	Mousse-chan Kira-Kira Paper Clay Sweets Shop  Craft your fun with this new edition of the Mousse-chan clay sweets shop, the most artful and inventive crafts project you'll see, in pretty pastels!
	New Snacks From Japan Delicious and spicy Habanero chips in two new flavors, awesome Kinoko no Yama cookie + chocolate mushrooms, plus Lotte's My Cube gum! View products »
	Restocked Traditional & Other Snacks Enjoy traditional dagashi snacks plus Lotte Pie no Mi, Japanese Bublicious gum, Takoyaki Puff Snacks, plus Japanese Kit Kat in European Cheese flavor.
	Restocked Ukiyoe Food Drops Candies I love the ukiyoe traditional Food Drops candies, with classic flavors and beautiful Edo Period art printed on the tin. See the restocked flavors today.
	Traditional Bento Restocked That awesome 3-tier "picnic style" bento is back in stock, plus the Red x Black Diet Slim Bento for losing weight and the large Men's Gold & Silver Bento!
	Totoro Thermal Bento Box Set Flower in Garden Studio Ghibli provides what may be the most heartwarming bento set we've ever seen, which keeps your food warm and stored in a compact package.
	Okosama Lunch Plate ~ Shinkansen, Car Meal time has never been this fun! Durable plastic dishes for your little ones that will delight while they eat, featuring a stylized convertible car and shinkansen bullet train. A little slice of Japanese culture just made for kids to enjoy. View products »
	Fun Hello Kitty Products Restocked The adorable Kitty-chan comes out pipin' hot and fresh with these muffin molds. Also, we've got that Hello Kitty sandwich maker restocked.
	Amazing Chopsticks from Japan Training chopsticks for kids (or anyone who needs a hand), awesome portable chopsticks for bento, and bamboo cooking chopsticks!
	Restocked Bilingual Cookbooks, More Also, enrich your culinary lifestyle with our full line of English-Japanese cookbooks, putting hundreds of healthy and delicious recipes at your fingertips.
	More Awesome Japanese Pens Several amazing fude brush pens, plus the official Kanji Entry Pen for Elementary School, Karen Pink pen for stylish women, and a mechanical pencil.
	3D Mt. Fuji Crystal for Souvenirs Whether you're looking to immortalize a classic vision of Japan or a great gift for a Japan-loving friend, this display is sure to captivate.
	Restocked Miku Hatsune, Clannad PSP Titles Whether you want to get your rhythm on with Project Diva or experience the drama of Clannad all over again, we've got your PSP bases covered!
	Haruka Morishima 1/8 Figure ~ Amagami SS *Preorder* When you hear the maker is Max Factory, you know we're talking about quality figures. When you hear Haruka from Amagami (aka Morishima-senpai), you know we're talking about her quality figure. In a sexy black swimsuit and peeping coyly back over her shoulder, to be exact. Note that J-List cannot be responsible for any nosebleeds you may experiencing when viewing this figure. View products »
	Ryomou Gothic, Angel Beats Figures One of the most distinctive and sexy Ryomou figures from Ikkitousen, plus new Angel Beats figures up for preorder today!
	Cool Bakuman Nendoroid Figures Yes! From the makers of Death Note comes Bakuman, the inspiring story of up and coming manga artists now adorably recreated in Nendoroid form.
	A-TRIP ~ Anri Okita A gorgeous display of one of the most adorable nude models around, Anri will delight with her lush curves and endearing physical personality.
	Sweet Devil of Extracurricular Activities Today's hot new "H" manga is a look at the steamy world of after school activities where girls get down and dirty in their gym uniforms. You'll love the variety of stories in this excellent manga, from sukumizu to sports uniforms and much more. View products »
	Love Body Ren Pillow & Hole A new exciting product from Japan's stress relief engineers, this addition to the industry is sure to help at the end of a long day when you need to unwind with a quality novelty goods item. View products »
	TENGA EGG 2010 Winter Limited ~ Twinkle  The specially branded new designs of the stylish TENGA egg stress relief toys is limited edition for this winter only! Check out the unique look inside.
	Restocked TENGA Stress Toys, Famous Lotion Next, we have some of our most popular stress toys for you. Because sometimes we all have a little too much stress in our lives.