Hiroko's Hitokoto

To repair my favorite shoes, I went to Ginza last Sunday. That was a big mistake. Although they didn't have a "Hokosha-Tengoku" (where the roads are closed to cars), the street was still packed with people, and the stores were running outside stalls, making hard to move past on the sidewalks. I was curious and asked the police why they didn't have the Hokosha-Tengoku. The reason was that there are too many trucks needing to make deliveries on Sundays -- apparently because the crowds buy more stuff, the stores need to bring the goods in with more trucks. At the time I thought the explanation sounded reasonable, but in the 4 hours I was there, I only saw two Kimura-ya Bakery trucks. If I owned a store, I would be counting the trucks and telling the police to get their act together. Surely the tens of thousands of pedestrians spending money to buoy up the Japanese economy should have priority over 2 trucks!

Recently we have started receiving some very strange phone calls at the office from some mobile phone users. One of the convenient functions of a cell phone is that it remembers a caller's number. But it's only convenient if the person making the first call gets the number right. So when the cell phone owner calls us back, a conversation something like the following happens, ..."Good morning, LINC Media here." "Ummm, did you call me?" "It's LINC Media here, who is this please?" "My name's Suzuki. Did you call me?" "This is LINC Media, can we help you?" "No, I just want to know why you called." "I'm sorry sir, let me see who might have called you [10 minutes go by as the LINC Media receptionist calls every extension asking if anyone is trying to reach a Suzuki-san.]" "Hello, hello?" "I'm sorry sir, we can't find who was trying to call you, would you like to leave a message?....

Last weekend, I went to Audio Expo at Tokyo Big Site with some friends visiting Japan. One thing I found very interesting was Sennheiser's "wearable audio speakers". The "Surrounder" rests on your shoulders and has left and right front and side speakers. Knowing that it would look really stupid, I couldn't resist trying it on... /;-). They sounded OK but I thought it needed more bass. The woofer is so close but you cannot feel the air vibration. Normally the company has great headphones, but this particular product was very different. I wonder if they are over-focusing on the Japanese market: i.e., trying to make a hybrid which is wearable as compensation for lack of space in the homes here? Anyway, check it out at http://www1.drive.net/sennheiserusa/pages/surrounder.html

Recently the most popular place for tourists coming to Japan is the local toy store. Pokkemon is a huge hit in the USA, and you can only buy 10 Pokkemon cards at a time. Now, if you think you can parallel export these cards to the States, I have news for you that you're not the only one. Apparently more than 60 companies have or make Pokkemon products, and the market size of overall Pokkemon business is JPY500B to JPY600B. The most popular disguise for Halloween this year was, of course, Pokkemon. They have a billboard in Times Square in NY for the movie, which started last week and earned $10.1M/JPY1.05M on the opening day. Posters for the movie are already a collectors item: one was sold on e-Bay for $1225 (JPY128,500). The 51-year-old man who bought it has no idea where he will put it though. I wonder if people in the USA know that Pokkemon has a dark side that many Japanese children became sick after watching a Pokkemon TV show with epilepsy-causing flashing lights...?

Lately, entrepreneurial seminars are the trend. Even elementary students can join the seminars, and experience the team building, business management, and financial reporting lessons offered by entrepreneurial boot camps. One such camp will open a shopping arcade,and let people simulate their business before going public. The idea is to educate children and teenagers, to nurture entrepreneurial spirit. It's interesting that the parents of kids who attend these boot camps are themselves part of the old guard -- rigid, and ready to hammer down the nail that sticks out. But ironically now they are enthusiastic about their kid's entrepreneurial education. Such parents want their kids to be different from the others, so they send their kids to these boot camps. There is so many of them doing that, are they just part of a new fad, or is this change for real?

So, you think that living in the Twentieth Century is complicated? Check this out: The fashion freak's exhibition is held at Tokyo Garden Museum in Shirogane Dai. It's about the history of haute couture from 1870 to 1960. Back in the old days in Paris, upper class women had to change their clothes at least 4 times a day (morning, afternoon, evening, and tea gown!). Then they had other clothes for visiting, the horse races, horse riding, resort stays, etc. Napoleon III's wife never wore the same dress twice, and the other courtiers followed her example, in order not to give a bad impression. Clothing was the major industry during the mid 19th century in Paris. More than half the 110,000 women who had job in Paris belonged to the clothing industry. I love clothes, but not that much. Guys, don't get so worried about your woman's shopping! Just be thankful you weren't born 100 years earlier!

A question to the guys in our office: do you want a Kitty-chan logo on your hair dryer? Well, they've just released "Hello Kitty Homme" for men now. (It sounds like some famous clothes brand, doesn't it?) Recently more women having been giving Kitty-chan presents to their partners. So Sanrio did the natural thing and made a range for l'homme. The range consists of hair dryers, curler sets, body hair and facial shavers, and eyebrow trimmers! Would you like one from your girlfriend/wife?

Do you ever have a moment when you suddenly recall something after smelling a certain fragrance? A dusty closet, your mother's perfume, etc. This season, the smell of Kinmokusei (Oleaceae/Osmanthus) has been giving me flashbacks to my childhood days. This tree originally came from China. Interestingly, almost all the trees on Tokyo streets are male trees -- with no fruit. For some reason, the ancients didn't bring female trees to Japan. I like taking a stroll during this season because I can smell it at almost every corner. I'm enjoying it while I can, because you can be sure that whenever Kinmokusei fragrance is in the air, the rain is not far behind....

The nuclear accident in Ibaraki Pref. is one of the most shocking new items in a past few years. To me, it is not only just news: my parents and grand parents live in south Ibaraki. Although they're about 30 km away from where the accident happened, you cannot tell how much radiation affects people. I can understand that we need nuclear power to produce electricity in Japan because we do not have enough natural energy resources. But the problem is, Japan does not have sufficient crisis management systems. People have a natural tendency to believe that the ills of the world won't affect them. But honestly speaking, how can you tell? Especially, human error caused the accident this time. Mistakes can have far-reaching consequences: computers gave us Y2K, butterflies cause hurricanes, and Kanemaru gave us Obuchi! Are you prepared for unpredictable events?

Have you tried a drive-thru at McDonalds? I heard someone say that in Japan now you can do a drive-thru order by bicycle. Really? I would imagine that it would be hard to take an order on a bicycle or scooter, because it's hard to balance bags, bars, and cash. But, apparently, lots of school kids like the challenge of doing a drive-thru by bicycle, and yes, Big Mac does sell food to them. One day, McDonalds had an old man walk down the drive-thru' lane and talk into the mike. The staff told him to come inside because he could be hit by a car, but he couldn't hear what they were saying. In the end, the Mac folks gave up trying to argue with him and let him "walk" the drive-thru'. Only in Japan!

The sale of toys for age OVER 15 is growing. A toy maker will start promotion of old fashioned robots for professional single males who have the discretionary income to spend on these products. The robots are from TV cartoons such as Gundam, and are made of plastic, but also titanium or gold-trimmed metal -- so that they look different to the toys kids UNDER 7 years of age buy. Although the robots are quite intricate, they are not so expensive. One unit sells for about JPY5,800. For those 25-year old guys not wanting to be seen buying kids toys, there is also a website you can order from. I think it's interesting that although these guys (primarily) want to have the latest electronic toys such as Palm Pilots, they also somehow need to balance the new stuff with something "retro" like these robots. I guess that the amount of money men spend for their toys increases in proportion to the their age...

I had chance to talk to my father at home because I had some business questions to ask him. After the conversation, he said "Your mother is in Hawaii with her friend" very sadly. Mom and Dad last went to Hawaii together, during Golden Week. But, this time, she is on her own with her best friend! She is more outgoing than Dad. The thing is, he is still working, and it is not easy for him to take vacation. But for her, work is just a small part of life, and there is so much else for her to do, so many adventures to have. I know who's genes I inherited.... ;-)

Have you seen transparent cup noodle from Nisshin Foods? The skeleton cup noodle will be on sale from　September 13. The skeleton goods are booming in the　market since iMac was introduced. The sales pitch is　that it's fun to watch the instant noodle growing　right there in your cup, after you add hot water. If you see a transparent cup noodle, buy it, because　since they're only making 1 million units, it's sure　to become a collector's item.

Did you know that Nov. 11 is "The day of Pocky & Pretz"? The Japanese snack foods company Ezaki Glico registered with the Japan Anniversary Association (yes, there is such an organization!), that Nov. 11 is their snacks celebratory day. The reason they picked Nov. 11 is that the date (1111) looks like two pairs of Pocky and Pretz sticks standing next to each other. May sound silly, but this kind of marketing -- just like Valentines day (where women buy chocolate for the men) brings chocolate companies like Glico billions in extra sales. Now, I wonder if I can register my birthday on the Anniversary calendar. I'd would call it the "Be kind to Hiroko Day", and everyone called Hiroko would receive a day off from her boss!

A man in Holland found 2 drawings of Rembrandt Van Rijn　(1660-1669) among the used books, which he bought for the equivalent of JPY2,850. A specialist says that the drawings are probably worth approx. JPY1.88M. There is a popular Japanese TV program where specialists value the audience's "treasures". Some of the things submitted look totally useless/worthless to me, but you never know. For example, a man who thought his vase was worth JPY2M, turned out to be holding a JPY5,000 forgery, and actually the box it came in was worth more, at around JPY15,000. On the other hand, a woman brought in a drawing and asked the specialists to tell her who painted it, was told that it was by a famous master and worth JPY20M. Yes, someone's garbage is someone's else's treasure. Now I wonder who'll pay us for all the Coke cans we throw　out every day?

Besides puri-kura, you will soon be able to try nail art at arcades. It's fast, easy, and cheap (JPY300 for 2 prints). I predict all the ko-gyaru will have prints on their nails. When I was in high school, manicures were against the rules. I wonder how teachers will deal with their students if this trend catches on...?

I read news that Hato Bus (you might have seen some of their yellow buses cruising around) is offering a Tokyo Ghost Story Tour from next month. It is a 7-hour tour and costs JPY8,300 for weekdays, and JPY9,300 for weekends. The idea is to visit places which have scary backgrounds, and get a cold sweat on your back as a way to cool down. There are so many awful stories and happenings on our planet already, I wonder why we need even more horror?

On the way to my home last night, I saw 2 BIG FROGS sitting on the street in Tokyo. It was dark and hard to see, and I almost stood on them. I am from the countryside, but I have never seen such huge frogs at home. On the News I heard that there are 2 monkeys running around Tokyo. Hmmm, and I thought Tokyo is a city, but then again maybe not.

Last night was Tanabata. According to a myth from China, a princess (Orihime) and a man (Hikoboshi) can meet once a year, last night. Orihime is the constellation Vega and Hikoboshi is Altair. A funny thing is that they could've met more than one day if they could communicate better. After being commanded by the Sky King to break up, Orihime promise to see her lover "7 days from 7th" (「七日、七日に会いましょう」). Only, Hikoboshi got it wrong and repeated "Let's meet on 7/7" (「七月七日に会いましょう」). Still even a week a year seems too short for a pair of star-crossed lovers....