Hiroko's Hitokoto

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...?