Good evening from Japan, where calories are always corrected labeled as “kikocalories.”
First of all, sorry for the problems with our mailing list. Due to a glitch with our ISP, the list went out a day late. Also, the non-adult list contents were sent out to the 18+ list members, making some think that they were on the wrong list. Sorry about that!
No study of Japan is complete without mention of two major themes, tatemae and honne (TAH-tay-MAH-ae and HON-neh). These are two difficult concepts, which are woven into the fabric of Japan as a nation. Tatemae could be translate as the ideas expressed in public or the way we pretend society is, while honne is the way we really feel, or the way the world really is. Often tatemae are the things you say to people in certain social situations, even though you don’t feel that way inside. When I see my wife, who has mastered English and lived in the U.S., talking with the other mothers in the neighborhood who have never been outside of Japan, I can see some tatemae in action: she has to hold her own real opinions back much of the time. Tatemae can also exist in the society at large. For example, gambling is illegal in Japan, so you win “prizes” at Pachinko parlors, which you “sell” for money at small shops located conveniently next door. Prostitution is also illegal, yet there are “soaplands” where a beautiful girl will give you a “full body wash” in a bath (including one in Shibuya, located right behind a police station). And on Tokyo’s busy Kan-Nana Bypass, the speed limit is a meager 40 kph (24 mph), but anyone actually going that speed would surely cause an accident — so everyone speeds along at 90 kph (55 mph).
As time goes by, younger Japanese become more and more dissatisfied with the “little white lies” of tatemae around them. They become more direct and less subtle, which causes frustration in the generation of older Japanese who like their social relationships to be a little fuzzy. Japanese students, who learn six years of English while in school, often have a fixation about English speakers, that they “always say exactly what they think, no matter what.” In a situation where you might reply in a very vague manner in Japanese, you’d often reply with a straight “yes” or “no” in English, and they think that directness applies all the time. The truth is that we have plenty of tatemae in English too — times when it’s improper to say something to someone even though it may be the truth. My wife has a Japanese friend living in Los Angeles who really goes overboard, always saying whatever’s on her mind no matter what, including comments on the weight and eating habits of people she hardly knows. We don’t invite her over very often.
It is the winter of our discontent in Japan right now, with roads everywhere blocked by sudden road construction that materializes around this time of year. Japan’s fiscal year ends on March 31st, and as in the U.S., government bodies that have money left in their budgets have to give it back at the end of that time, so they work hard to spend the money instead. It’s said that the construction industry is to the Japanese government what the military is to the U.S. — construction of roads and housing is core of the Japanese economy, and most Japanese don’t have a problem with road crews tearing up perfectly good roads to fix a pipe that wasn’t broken, if it’s for the common good. Throughout the past decade of off-and-on recession in Japan, the government has embraced public works as a way to kick-start the economy, spending endlessly on roads and bridges that are largely unnecessary, spending enough to build the Panama Canal each year. This deficit spending has not helped the economy and has only succeeded in lowering Japan’s credit rating with Moody’s (not Moodyz) to below that of Botswana.
For the new update, we’ve got some excellent products from Japan for you. They include:
- First, for we’ve got some great Sanrio and Hello Kitty items that are only sold in Japan
- If you love Japan’s anime video game world, we’ve got a super art book of .hack // TheWorld, a smash hit fantasy video game featuring all the anime and characters of the Playstation 2 game
- We love Shirow Masamune’s great manga works, and we’re happy to have stock of the *bilingual* manga to Ghost in the Shell, which features both English and Japanese text as well as beautiful full color printing
- I am a big fan of Ultraman and am happy to be able to sell a new toy + candy series, featuring the famous monsters of the original Ultraman series, each very detailed and complete with base for displaying and ramune candy inside
- Also very cool, we’ve got a new Large and Medium Totoro keychain from Sun Arrow
- For fans of Blythe, the eerie but fascinating-looking doll from Takara, we’ve got more Pucchi Blythe figures, fashionable and really fun to collect
- For fans of cute anime girls, enjoy the Figure Maniacs soft vinyl figure of Mei Uzuki from Gao Gaiger Final
- Sailor Moon fans have something special: a super-cool Sailor Moon headset with microphone, so you can sing karaoke just like a Japanese idol singer (comes with a video too)
- For fans of our unique Japanese snack foods, we’ve got delicious Meiji “Precious Milk” chocolate squares, fun Anpan Man chocolate lollipops, some really funky (but delicious, trust us) dried squid, and for Kitty fans, delicious filled marshmallow balls that are really fun to eat
- Also, some delicious strawberry chewing gum with Xylitol, an ingredient popular in Japan that aids the health of your teeth and fights cavities
- Look for restocked items, such as miso soup (always a hugely popular item at J-List), furikake (food which you sprinkle over white rice), and more
- For anyone looking for something wacky from Japan, enjoy “gum erasers” that erase pencil marks normally, but they’re soft like chewing gum and smell great — we’ve got cola and jasmine in stock
- We love Japanese pens and stationary, and are happy to have some really handy Japanese pens in stock — they come in beautiful color and the pens look like crystals when you write
- For those who like wacky Japanese messages, we’ve got some nice wooden signs with amusing messages on them
- Finally, look for super-cute Japanese happy face reflective stickers, a great way to relieve stress from your feet, more cool Hamtaro dress-up dolls, Japanese origami paper, and more!
For our adult customers, we’ve got many new 18+ products. They include:
- First and foremost, we’ve got the dynamite new issue of Urecco, chock full of positively beautiful Japanese gals like Akira Watase, Kaede Matsushima, Ryoko Mitake as a cosplay angel, and lovely covergirl Masa Sato
- For fans of lovely hardcover photobooks, see the erotic offering of Shien (photos by Seiichi Nomura) and the lovely pure nude photobook of Yui Asahina, with the odd title of “Shoot Up!”
- Also, another “Chinkame” format photobook, which features incredibly sassy photos of kogals in true Tokyo style
- For lovers of erotic manga, find many new excellent books, including the fantastic “A Married Woman as Mitsue” and Fujimi Comics’ “Shiri-Chiri” that is just incredible
- For DVD lovers, we’ve got more dynamite European girls for you, with two new titles featuring French and Russian girls — this is an incredible series that we really love (region free)
- The Adult Video Wrestling series by Kings Video features really excellent and realistic action in the ring, with real dedication shown by all participants towards putting on a good show — enjoy a new 2 hour AV pro wrestling release today (region free)
- Japan’s fetish for “panty stockings” (known as “panst” in Japanese) is quite famous — see a delightful all stocking, leg and toe fetish DVD for you (region free)
- We love Kuki’s No Cut!! series, which gives you 3 hours of superb AV action on one low-price DVD — enjoy the super sex of Sakurako Kaoru (region free)
- For fans of extremely high-end Japanese lesbian DVDs, we hope you’ll try out the new offering from the Le-Zu-Bian series, featuring a memorable performance by Yukari Kano and Yuka Kato (region 2)
- Finally, look for fresh stock of other DVD titles including the sold-out Czech and Hungary DVDs, sure to be runaway hits, as well as Mourning Dress Sisters, Endless Lesbian, All Nude Challenger, Akira Watase’s Lewd Woman Kiss & Sex, and more!
Remember that J-List stocks many items for fans of “cosplay,” the Japanese hobby of dressing up like your favorite anime or other character. From actual items you can buy and wear (including the line of excellent high school uniforms from Nagoya’s Matsukameya, sold exclusively through J-List) to a full line of comics, DVDs and dating-sim games that cater to cosplay fans, we know we’ve got something for you.
Recently overheard: “I am the Lorax. I speak for Hello Kitty for Hello Kitty has no mouth.”
