Cool Products Wednesday, April 27, 2011

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 June 2011 The newest issue of Dengeki Moeoh has all the awesome art of an artbook plus many extras and free stuff. We love this amazing snapshot of all that's awesome about 2D anime and game culture in Japan. (Note, please see it on the J-List side.) View products »
	Hiragana Times April 2011 NO. 294 Enjoy the latest issue of the magazine that informs, entertains, and helps you learn Japanese! Tons of great new content every month.
	Myojo May 2011 Get all the latest on the dreamy boy bands from Japan who are managed by Johnny's Entertainment, tons of great photos and more!
	Gorgeous Artbooks from Nitroplus Restocked The complete visual works from the Demonbane series of games, and artist Nishii's personal visual collection of gorgeous art -- back in stock!
	Touhou Project ~ Touhou Defense Fource Check out this fan created homage to the Touhou Project in this frenetic sprite-based action shooter game from Hachimitsu Kumasan!
	Itazura Cat Coin Bank Restocked The most popular kawaii item on J-List these days is the Itazura Cat Coin Bank, with a cat who steals your money. Panda too.
	Gakken Otona no Kagaku vol. 31 * Preorder * Check out the amazing flying machine that you can build yourself, included with the next issue of the 'science magazine for adults'! Preorder open.
	Yuko Ogura Produced Sweets Lingerie She's done music, modeling, voice acting, and so much more, and now the bubbly gravure idol Yuko Ogura moves on to an area that's literally a natural fit -- lingerie design. Check out the wonderful fashion lineup of Yuko Ogura, now available at J-List! Yes, you can own a pair of Yukorin's pantsu! View products »
	Awesome Japanese Fashions Restocked Also in our fashion lineup, see restock of Gothic Lolita fashions, and cute, stylish tops from Y's Enterprise.
	Japanese School Swimsuits, Pink Shimapan Also great for cosplay or casual wear (?), authentic Japanese style school swimsuits and those great striped panties from anime and manga!
	Poddities iPhone Carabiner & Strap Adapters Use your iPhone with cool Japanese phone straps, or add a carabiner clip so you never drop it. See the new Poddities category.
	The Most Kawaii iPod Touch Covers from Japan If you're more of an iPod touch user, Kitty is here to the rescue to get your iPod Touch looking cute and classy! Super Sanrio look for your player.
	Big Restocking of Totoro Plush Toys For the inner Ghibli fan in all of us, check out the toys we got back in stock today. Because we all need more Totoro plush toys in our lives.
	Kawaii Rilakkuma Products Restocked Then enjoy our Rilakkuma instant noodle cooker, a really cute all-purpose bowl, and other cute San-X products.
	Japanese Traditional Kokeshi Pair Dolls ~ Coming of Spring Celebrate the new spring season with with this pair of adorable wooden kokeshi dolls, a traditional Japanese ornamental gift.
	Kanji Name Stamps, Stamp Pads Custom made Japanese hanko name stamps, legal for use in Japan, with your name in kanji. We've also restocked the ink pads today.
	More Gorgeous Photobooks from Japan The awesome book of rural towns around around Kyoto is restocked, plus other photobooks that capture the Japan we can't usually see.
	Soy Sauce Ramen Strap Next, check out this wacky strap that's just like 'fake food' in a Japanese ramen shop display -- perfect for distinguishing your keys or phone!
	Today's New Japanese Snacks New snacks in stock today include 'streaming carp' chocolate, Kameda curry senbei, traditional daifuku mochi (delicious!) and more!
	Koinobori Potato Snack Spring is the season of flying carp banners called Koinobori, and these are the perfect snack to go with the season! Delicious and fun.
	K-on! Manju Gift Box, Other Snacks We've restocked several of the items on our "Anime & Gift Snacks" page, incl. K-On! manju cakes, Akihabara Bunny Shrine Green Tea Cakes and more.
	Restocked Green Tea Kit Kat, More See what will surely be the last Green Tea Kit Kat of the season before summer, plus Pocari Sweat, delicious Hiyashi Ramen for summer and Baked Toppo!
	Kokeshi Bento w/ Built In Miso Soup Bowls Wow, these are the most adorable bento we've seen in ages! Cute kokeshi doll style stacking bento boxes, with black laquer bowls perched atop them to resemble hair. A fresh twist to the bento concept that we're really loving, and great for fans of both traditional and kawaii bentos! View products »
	Restocked Bento Picks & Cups Kawaii bento picks, our Microwave Heart Shaped Egg Maker, Hello Kitty furikake bottle and other items restocked.
	Kawaii Happy Smile Onigiri Wrapping Sheet Make the cutest <>onigiri rice balls in town with these wrapping sheets with smiley faces on them.
	The Handbook of Japanese Verbs Never be at a loss for words when trying to pick an action word to describe yourself in Japanese, or find an obscure conjugation with this handy guide.
	Flashcards for Studying Japanese The old classic standby that enforces your tactile and visual memory, helping you master vocabulary and kanji better than just about anything!
	Restocked Japanese Notebooks Fans of Japanese stationery will enjoy the simple, functional appeal of the Japanese notebooks we're restocking today. Elegant and awesome.
	Fun Traditional Products Restocked Everything from "string telephones" to good luck charms, back in stock today to bring the fun and beauty of traditional Japan to you!
	Triela 1/8 Figure ~ Gunslinger Girl *Preorder* Check out this amazing new figure from Goodsmile and Gunslinger Girl, a match made in heaven. Triela looks gorgeous! Preorder now open.
	Other Preorder Figures *Preorder* Also new for you today, Hayane from Shining Hearts in a lovely Taka Tony illustration, and Yui from Muv Luv Alternative Total Eclipse.
	Tony Taka iPhone 4 Cases ~ Shining Wind *Preorder* These new iPhone 4 cases are breathtaking, with stunningly gorgeous full color portraits by the master Tony Taka himself, taken straight from the Shining Wind RPG from Sega. Multiple versions to choose from so you can pick your favorite girl from the game! View products »
	Hatsu Saya ~ Saya Tachibana Enjoy this stunning look at the gorgeous new AV idol Saya Tachibana, her first in which she bares it all! Lovely curves just waiting for you.
	Shin Meiki Musou Onahole Enjoy these beauties in a parody of the Koihime Musou designs that will take you to heaven! Wonderful new novelty goods toy.
	Kokeshi Dancer - Geisha Girl & Boy Using the alternative meaning for "kokeshi", these battery powered toys will provide all the stimulation you need in a cute and funny design.
	Awesome Restocked Air Love Dolls, More Wonderful air dolls, holes of all shapes, sizes, types and configurations, all back for you today! Check out the Eva parody holes, too.
	The Perfect Pussy Principle Onahole Toys Japan never fails to innovate in the realm of stress relief toys, and this 'perfect' series may just live up to the name. Many restocked.
	Nakadashi to Sexloid! ~ UMD PSP Game If you ever wondered what it would be like to have to choose between the girl who just confessed to you and the android sex doll who was so very lifelike, you can make that choice on your Japanese region PSP in this new eroge on UMD! View products »
	One Piece Parody Doujin Soft Fans of opulent, pixel-perfect 3D animation will love this lush take on Boa Hancock from One Piece, put through everything you can imagine.
	Restocked Doujin Games, Eroge Whether you're into tentacles, 'thick' girls, fighting games with ero on the side, or the Touhou Project games, we've got fun things in stock for you!

Radiation in Japan

I caught a new article about Japan's exporters like Nissan and Toyota beginning to check for radiation on products being shipped outside Japan, and thought I'd write about this. While radiation levels immediately around the damaged plants remain high, they are extremely low down in Tokyo, 140 miles (225 km) to the south, and even lower in Gunma where J-List is located. The current levels are higher than before the accident, but still in very safe levels. There's less radiation, for example, than you'd experience flying from New York to Tokyo (air travel always involves increased radiation exposure), and also less than getting your arm X-rayed at the doctor, unless you're in the habit of having X-rays that last 50 hours continuously -- it's so low that you don't need to be concerned. So while the situation remains serious, especially for the unfortunate people in the affected area, there should be no reason to be concerned about buying a car from Nissan or a TV from Sony. And for the record, none of the products J-List sells comes from Northern Japan or any other area affected by this disaster. So feel free to browse our site for bento boxes, fun snacks or shimapan, and know that our products are safe.

By the way, eating a banana gives you 0.1 micro sievert of radiation.

Japanese Couples Holding Divorce Ceremonies

You never know what wacky thing Japan will think of next. As Japanese get older, the divorce rate is on the rise, and more and more Japanese couples are calling it quits for a variety of reasons. Currently around 27% of Japanese marriages end in divorce, about the same as Germany and the UK but still lower than the U.S. rate of 40% or so. The latest fad being talked about in the Japanese news media is what's known as a "divorce ceremony." Sort of like a wedding but a whole lot less happy, these divorce ceremonies let the married couple officially un-do their vows, stating their reasons for wanting to make the break so that things are clear and out in the open. Each party then places their wedding ring on a stone table and smashes it with a hammer. The point is actually to be as positive about the process as possible, and hopefully change rikon (Japanese for "divorce") into re-kon (remarriage to someone new), and hopefully better days for all.

Japanese couples holding 'divorce ceremonies'?

Freudian Japanese Errors

Every gaijin who speaks some Japanese knows the agony of accidentally using the wrong word of nihongo at an embarrassing time. Like the word kawaii (cute), which is all too similar to the word kowai (scary), though I've dated a few girls who were both. Over the years I've gotten words like inaka (a rural area, or one's hometown) and onaka (stomach) mixed up, along with kirei (pretty) and kirai (hateful) and okage ("thanks to you") and okama (a gay man), with predictably embarrassing results. It's natural for students of Japanese to be curious about some of the ecchi terms, which then come out your mouth at the wrong time, making you say oppai (boobs) when you meant to say ippai (a large amount of something), ero (a catch-all slang word for anything naughty) instead of iro (color), or unko (poop) instead of anko (beans used in traditional Japanese sweets). I still refuse to pronounce the title of The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya in Japanese since the word for "disappearance" (消失, shoushitsu) is so close to 喪失 soushitsu, which refers to losing something that a person can only lose once. Pretty much the worst Freudian word slip-up you can make is to order mango juice from a pretty waitress, but accidentally use the word manko instead -- it's the only really "bad" word in Japanese, as in, bad enough that it will get bleeped if used on TV. (It's the "c" word if you don't already know it.)

Gaijin make Freudian errors when speaking Japanese. Mmm, I could go for some mango juice right now...

Viral Internet Memes You Can Eat

Ever since "All Your Base Are Belong to Us" a decade ago, we've lived in a world of Internet memes, and we pay close attention to what's going viral on the Internet. (On my Twitter feed I post the keywords that our customers are searching for, which is kind of cool to browse through.) Whether it's Morning Rescue, the hangover-curing drink that became popular along with Madoka Magika, the Reddit.com hit Popin' Cookin' DIY Sushi Candy, or old Internet favorites like Tyrant Habanero spicy potato snacks, there's lots of fun stuff to find on J-List.

Cool Products Monday, April 25, 2011

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 Girl's Style May 2011 Check out the magazine with all the latest news and scoops from the world of Otome games and Yaoi/BL games, anime and manga in this exclusives and extra-goodies-packed issue! Starry Sky artbook included. Recommend for all otaku girls! View products »
	Cancel a format ~ Hetalia Parody Doujin Soft Next see a wonderful romantic and ecchi doujin otome game where you play a girl surrounded by the male Hetalia cast.
	SHOXX May 2011 vol. 219 Next, get all the awesome photography you've come to expect from the magazine that focuses on the J-Rock and visual scenes in Japan!
	Pop-up Hello Kitty Oil Absorb Paper 50 Sheets A cute fashion accessory that perfectly wicks away any excess sweat or skin oil, leaving your complexion pure and beautiful! Genuine Sanrio.
	Hello Kitty to Issho! Mini Dakimakura A super awesome item for collectors of extremely cool Hello Kitty products, we've got four mini dakimakura hug pillows featuring "pop and cute" redesigns.
	Evangelion Car Sunshade ~ Asuka, Rei The new Eva movies have inspired tons of awesome Evangelion swag, and these new car sunshades featuring Rei and Asuka are just sweet. The best thing is, they're awesome otaku items that are easy to use in any car which are also functional. View products »
	Layered Parka Tops ~ Long Length Type Check out this new fashion item from Japan, a stylish slim parka in layers that looks and fits great. Plus you have that "Sith Lord" thing going too.
	Pink Ribbon Hello Kitty High School Bag  If I were a student now, I'd totally carry one of the cool Japanese school bags we've got, which you can see in most anime series. Restocked today.
	Speaking Mameshiba Plush We just love these plush Mameshiba toys, which talk when you squeeze their little backs, telling you interesting but useless trivia. Restocked today.
	Rilakkuma Dock Connector Neck Strap Keep your phone or Apple music player secure and in reach with this cute strap. Restocked for you today.
	Awesome Totoro Products Restocked Totoro fans know that J-List always has awesome products for them, and today we've got that epic Totoro plush backpack and Totoro Thermous for bento.
	Black Gold Saw Nendoroid Figure Now in stock! An epic figure of one of the foes from the Black Rock Shooter anime, with a superb Huke design and distinctive extras you'll love.
	KOINOBORI Display ~ Carp Streamer The windy spring season is here, and right in the middle of it is Children's Day, the day for flying colorful-streamered carp flags to look beautiful in the breeze. You can enjoy the 'feel' of the Japanese wind with your own koinobori display, great for your desk of shelf! Their blowing simulates carp swimming upstream to spawn. View products »
	Nintendo DS Software to Learn Japanese See Hiragana Study with Anpanman, Perfect Kanji vol. 1, Kanji Test for 2.5 Millions, Dora Gana ~ Learn Hiragana with Doraemon and more.
	Today's New Japanese Snacks One of my favorite "Japanese" foods is korokke, Japanese style croquettes, and we have a new Korokke Snacks that's really epic. Also Pure Gummy!
	Restocked Japanese Snacks Enjoy the last (?) Japan Kit Kat before chocolate is removed for summer, plus Bull-Dog Sauce, Fuwarinka Rose Gum, Strawberry Pocky and more.
	House Morning Rescue The energy drink that grew to fame thanks to commercials during Madoka Magica is available at J-List! Quench your thirst with the power of moe.
	Awesome 'Furikake' Restocked Furikake is any dry food you sprinkle over rice, and we've restocked several types today, incl. "Deco Bento Furikake." Fun!
	Bento Boxes Fit for a Samurai Got restocked bento boxes too, including the Sengoku Samurai Bento which not only are large for heavier eaters, they have awesome kanji on them for the many fans of Japanese history who also like bento. Bonus: they are large in size so you won't be hungry after eating your lunch. View products »
	Natural Leaf Bento Tote Bag  A natural pattern for an eco-friendly lunch solution! This bag is meant to keep the bento inside warm or cool, giving you the perfect meal.
	Easy Microwave Rice Cooker, Rice Scoops Our popular Microwave Rice Cooker is back in stock, which saves you from having to buy an expensive electric rice cooker. Also our silicon potato peeler!
	Bilingual Books Restocked Then see other popular books on Japan restocked, including the bilingual Living Japanese Style vol. 2, TOKYO Greatest Travel Tips and Eating in Japan 3.
	Restocked Japanese Notebooks, Pens & More Popular notebooks to help you learn hiragana and kanji, the official Kanji Entry Pen for Writing that Japanese kids use, and more.
	The Coolest Sake Cups in the World The next time you have friends over for sake serve them using these awesome shunga ("spring pictures") cups, featuring the famous art of the Edo Period.
	Restocked Miso Soup Bowls, Kitchen Items We've got a large selection of Japan's wonderful traditional dishes, bowls and kitchen accessories to assist your cooking or meal presentation!
	Anime, JPOP Songs from iTunes Japan Awesome new single by the lovely Nana Mizuki, or head over to the JPOP side by browsing the top 100 singles in Japan right now.
	Houshouden Sonken -Renge- 1/7 Figure *Preorder* Wow, an exquisite new figure from Shin Koihime Musou and Griffon Enterprise! Check out the zettai ryouiki zone here.
	Steins;Gate Nendoroid Figures *Preorder* Fans of the 'science novel' Steins;Gate and the now airing anime will love these cute new Nendoroid action figures! Preorders up today.
	Awesome Evangelion Plugsuits Figures *Preorder* Today we have two new Evangelion figures we recommend for preorder, since they'll be popular. Enjoy Asuka and Kaworu from the new Evangelion 2.0 movie
	Restocked Queen's Blade, Other Artbooks See great Queen's Blade artbooks restocked (Reina and Mix), plus the Moe Moe Devil and Tokimeki Memorial Girl's Side books.
	Awesome 'OreImo' Stress Toy Restocked I can't believe my little sister is this... well, just check out the toy, the most popular in recent J-List history. Restocked today (but for how long?).
	Other Restocked Anime Stress Toys Also enjoy the epic Fera Zoma mouth simulator that's totally kawaii, plus AKETEMITE, the onahole in a stealth package for privacy.
	Stress Toys for Our Female Customers, Too We've been told by our female customers, "The 'stress toys' you sell make me wish I were male." While we can't do anything about that, we are always happy to carry awesome toys for our female customers, like the Hello Kitty vibrators we've restocked today, or the classic "Rotar" [sic] that has a place in your special drawer. View products »
	Three Methods to Conquer the World ~ PSP Eroge A gender bending romantic comedy of world conquest by a demon prince turned into a demon princess, from the makers of X-Change! For your PSP.
	Download 'H' Game: Amorous Professor Cherry Another game we love is Amorous Professor Cherry, the story of a teacher who goes way beyond the call of duty. A great game from the creator of Sagara Family.