One of the more enjoyable aspects of living in Japan is discovering strange English, which is literally everywhere since the Japanese are apparently dedicated to learning just enough of the language for them to create funny phrases like “For Beautiful Human Life” and “I Feel Coke” and “Crunky Kids Crunch Chocolate.” The Japanese find English to be quite kakko ii (meaning “good style” or “cool”) and like to dress up just about anything by adding some English to it, even when it doesn’t seem to make much sense to you or I. When when I first got here I had great fun roaming through my city with a camera, documenting everything I came across. Then one day I went into a electronics store and the ultimate expression of funny Japanese English: a toaster oven with “It’s” written in large letters, followed by “It’s Contemporary Basic Gear, by Sanyo.” Nearby I found a rice cooker, also with the “It’s” brand on it, and then a small refrigerator, and a vacuum cleaner, and more. Sanyo had developed the “It’s” brand as the perfect way for young people outfitting a new apartment to include a little style, and since I was still accumulating the things I’d need for my new life in Japan, I made sure to buy as many “It’s” products as I could.
