Archives For japan

I thought I might have bought my last Shiina bluray last time, but I guess not? It does look like I might add Shiina Ringo & The Others Dwell: The Air Pocket Zone (椎名林檎と彼奴等の居る真空地帯) [HMV JP] to my collection because I cannot resist.

Damn, Japan. You got too much time in your hands xD

Everyone’s a big Pythagora Switch fan~ and Asahi Kasei has taken promoting their plastic wrap and ziploc bags to Pythagora levels with this commercial.

Complete title is まいにちを、たいせつに~キッチンのからくりじかけムービー~全篇

Original upload was located at youtube.com/watch?v=57KCM5LRmmk

Look who’s playing her Solar Emotions LP

ToT

I’m a stan. I have decided to stan forever. LOL Well, at least a few years. A few years in this day and age is an awfully long time, which is practically forever. I’ve seen relationships that have lasted less than my two and a half years as a moomoo. xD

I’ve been a fan of Yu Aoi for a decade now [1][2]. I’m expecting my moomoo status to be just as long.

If they ever do an event here. I’m done for. LOL I’ve been wanting to feed them my whole moomoo life, as the Grandma Radish that I seem to be turning into.

Damn you, Solar, you making me cry for picking that song for Solar Gamsung. LOL

Like- the song on its own is super sad, but it works well with its video… but the Japanese version? Literally, Nada Sou Sou. xD With the Shamisen, and the goddamn subs in Spanish. ToT

Makes me miss my dad so much.

Me acostumbré a rezarle a la primera estrella, al atardecer miro al cielo y con el corazón lleno te busco. En la tristeza y la alegría, pienso en esa sonrisa; si desde donde te encuentras, me puedes ver, yo viviré creyendo que seguro nos encontraremos algún día.

GINZA has just published a piece titled REDI no Shozo (レディの肖像, Portrait of a Lady) by Tomoko Kurose; and two black & white shots by Yasuhide Kuge. It’s a rare interview because it’s actually readable in Google Translate, lol. She talks about taking photos (she’s bad at it), what feelings she gets shooting movies and working on stage, how she perceives herself, a bit on her childhood, her work on voice-acting for animation… some talk on Penguin Highway and her speech for the Japanese Academy Award win where she talked about movies and being bullied.

Give it a read.

Amy the celebrity-endorsements-don’t-work-on-me is back XD and must reveal that now I drink much more caffeine than before (I blame Turkish coffee) and I’ve been drinking Soju. Damn it, Korea. And I begin talking about drinks because Yu-chan has a brand new sponsor in Asahi for their Asahi Mogitate (アサヒもぎたて) campaign. “Mogitate” means “fresh-picked,” and it’s the name of their new ‘ready-to-drink’ (RTD) product— Chuuhai aimed at women. The err… Drinks Association in Australia (?) has a really explanatory post on Asahi’s road to design the perfect RTD that women (and men) want to buy.

I didn’t know the beer market in Japan had been shrinking. This is first news to me. Recommended watch: The Birth of Sake. Also, you gotta read about the Japanese whisky market and prices. Japan and their collectors’ stuff.

Chuuhai, on the other hand~~~

I do wonder if Yu-chan still sponsors Kirin xD

Here’s the most recent one titled Mogitate and Summer Veggies Curry (もぎたてと夏野菜カレー)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QME4RowP8AU

There’s also a Making Of xD

The first one out back in early May is called Mogitate and Young Bamboo Shoots (もぎたてと白子たけのこ) after the break~

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I’ve been watching NHK’s asadora, Hanbun Aoi (半分、青い。), intermittently like I always tend to do. At first, Mei Nagano made me think of a grown-up Ashida Mana which made no sense… even though Mana-chan is enormous and the last time I saw her it made me feel like those parents who watch their children turn into teenagers in horror. lol

But now I was watching the most recent episode of Tsurube no Kazoku ni Kanpai (鶴瓶の家族に乾杯) on NHK Premium, and she was featured wearing an up-do samurai bun, white baggy clothes; so relaxed, enjoying her snacks, a dip of her feet in onsen water, greeting fans and playing other young girls. Dorky charisma, yo~ It takes a special ability to have people younger than you to “kawaiiiiiiiiii” you so sincerely. LOL

I like mentioned back in April [1], Yu-chan is featured on Hoshikuzu Scat’s (星屑スキャット) most recent music video directed by Birds Without Names director Shiraishi Kazuya~ The song, titled Shinjuku Chanson (新宿シャンソン), is featured on Kesho-shitsu (化粧室), the first album of the drag queen group, and was written by multi-talented illustrator-actor-writer Lily Franky.

‘Tis a thing of beauty~

I was just staring into space in the middle of the night, unable to sleep, and it hit me that it’s been ten years— It’s my 10th anniversary for a lot of things: it’s my tenth anniversary of Juri Ueno~~~ and Last Friends turned 10 this year! It’s also ten years since the Beijing Olympics, ten years since Beijing, Beijing! Wo Ai Beijing; it’s been ten years since BiBi, ten years of YAM Magazine, and ten-mother-freaking-years since I became a fan of Yu Aoi [1][2][3][4][5]. It didn’t come in this order, but you get the idea.

May 16th is the date. Remember that. This should’ve been posted that day, but I’m way to giddy to wait. It’s taken me a long time to sit down and look back at years of archives to update this entry, but I suppose it still beats trying to figure out how to write a comprehensive Wikipedia entry.

Yu-chan and I, we’ve had our ups and downs, but I’ve always tried to stay as loyal as possible. LOL I may not stalk her tags online 24/7 (all my Japanese sources in English are rubbish now) and my Japanese skills are in the gutter, but I’ve managed to remain the biggest English/Spanish-speaking Yu Aoi fan in this side of the hemisphere (if not the world, xD). It’s been a good ride, Yu-chan. I’m looking forward to all the catching-up of all your latest movies. Here’s to another decade with Yu!

Cheap Yu-puns intended~

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I was gushing about it over the weekend, but I thought I should also post about it here.

I think it’s oddly befitting that Yu-chan wins her first ever (unbelievable, right?) Japanese Academy Best Actress trophy the year that I’m celebrating my 10th year as her fan. It’s so moving. I’ve had a moving couple of days [low-ley Mamamoo insert, lol]. It was so satisfying seeing Yu-chan being so overwhelmed and so overcome with emotion that it just made me happy for her.

I haven’t seen KanoTori yet, ‘coz duh~ Japan obviousness xDDDDDDDDD but I’ve heard great things about it and, frankly, Yu-chan rarely disappoints me (I’m looking at you Henshin xDDDDDD). I had totally forgotten that Hula Girls was a supporting role for Yu, and that One Million Yen Girl was her last lead for a very long time… until Azumi Haruko and KanoTori.

Please, Yu-chan, don’t make us wait another 8 years or near-decade for your leading roles. You know it’s been ten years since Osen and since Camouflage?

Here’s to many many many more years of successes, Yu!

Your one and only Spanish-speaking Non-Japanese-speaking fan. xD