Music: Throwback

Japan has been somewhat of a nostalgic trip for me, musically. It seems that a lot of the music i like, that the people around me back home dont care about, is embraced by the Japanese in ways.
For example, i never, in my 26 years of living in UK found another person who really liked New Jack Swing besides ME or anyone who knew/cared what it was. Sure, people know who acts like Boyz 2 Men and New Edition are but i think many dont realise that those acts were all part of one specific era in music.
However, i recently came across a bar here in Yokohama, a small quaint place that can hold maybe no more than 10 people, which specialises almost entirely in that kind of music. The barman stands in front of a wall of thousands of vinyl records, almost entirely New Jack Swing era related. Whats awesome is that he plays a song and virtually every time, i know what it is! Not only this bar, but department stores and Karaoke booths have some of my favourite songs not only in the New Jack swing era but also other songs in the 80s, 90s etc. I just want to share SOME of the songs that have recently come back into my life.....





Of course, i tried not to put Montell Jordan, Boyz 2 Men or R Kelly in here cos those ones are too obvious :p wondering if i should make a part 2 of this. Growing up in the 80s and 90s yet still you might have missed out on some serious classics! Or at least you might hear these songs and say "oooohhhh shittt! i remember this shit! this was the jam!!"

Eatin sum Whale!

Last night, i ate:

Whale katsu

Whale sashimi

Whale something

Whale Bacon

And it was delicious! You know what, im pretty sure a whale is just a big cow in water because it was just like beef. The taste was a little similar, the texture and appearance too. Though i did feel a bit guilty afterwards because, its a whale afterall :(

Japanese: New Study Technique!

Ok so the weekend was full of sleeping, drinking, karaoke, Mad Mats` visit and the Superbowl. I did manage to finish my culture essay on time but have barely studied for the test so here i am at 7am trying a new technique......

The new technique is based no a theory. The theory is that if i have discussed a grammar point with somebody, it is usually quite fresh in my memory. This comes from a discussion with Lucy the other day about the grammar point for "ただ~" (just/only~). At that time i didnt have a clue what the grammar point meant but after having discussed it just once, it is the grammar point that i have remembered the best for todays test. So how can we apply this this theory....

Discuss the grammar point with yourself :D. Ok so let me explain how to do that:
Record an MP3 of yourself saying a sentence in Japanese and using the desired grammar point.
Listen to that MP3 over and over again so that you have both dicussed the grammar point and heard somebody else discuss it, in this case, yourself :p. Admittedly, i hate hearing my own voice as im sure a lot of people do and i sound like a complete idiot. However, I have faith in this method so....

Ill let you know how it goes! Im hoping that as i read certain grammar points and vocab in the test, it will spark a recollection of that sentence used in the mp3 file.

Marvel Movies: Captain America News Roundup

Ok so there has been a lot of talk lately about the Captain America movie, which will begin production in June, so i felt i should address it. Here are some of the things which have been announced:

• Cap will be cast by March 1st and will be American
  
• Film will be shot in HD (with the possibility of converting to 3D afterwards)
• To be shot in a different style to all other Marvel films
• Mostly using sets in the UK
• Cap will be played by a relatively unknown actor rather than a big hollywood name
• Surrounded by big name actors (like Thor)
• Red Skull is the main villain
  

Some notes about the costume and plot details from director Joe Johnston:

“The costume is a flag, but the way we’re getting around that is we have Steve Rogers forced into the USO circuit. After he’s made into this super-soldier, they decide they can’t send him into combat and risk him getting killed. He’s the only one and they can’t make more. So they say, ‘You’re going to be in this USO show’ and they give him a flag suit. He can’t wait to get out of it.”

“So he’s up on stage doing songs and dances with chorus girls and he can’t wait to get out and really fight. When he does go AWOL, he covers up the suit but then, after a few things happen, he realizes that this uniform allows him to lead. By then, he’s become a star in the public mind and a symbol. The guys get behind him because he embodies something special.”

“He realizes the value of the uniform symbols but he modifies his suit and adds some armor, it will be closer to the Cap costume in some of the comics in more recent years . . . this approach, it’s the only way we could justify ever seeing him on a screen in tights, with the funny boots and everything. The government essentially puts him up there as a living comic-book character and he rips it off and then reclaims some of its imagery after he recognizes the value of it. We think it’s the best way to keep the costume and explain it at the same time.”

more on the casting of Cap:

“Well, we’re testing five or six guys… The youngest is 23, the oldest is 32. Most of the guys in the war are just kids, 18 or 19, but we want to go a little bit older. We have to have somebody locked in before I leave March 1 for London.” - Joe Johnston, Director

and something which Joe Johnston has also revealed.......The Invaders will be in the ENTIRE second half of the movie!! :O. OMG We might get to see Union Jack!!!! :D


This past week or so has been great in terms of Cap updates and i am pleased to say that im happy with all of them. On paper, it all sounds brilliant. Even the way they intend to address the stupid costume issue because lets face it, they HAVE to have the costume somehow and what Johnston has said about how he is gonna deal with it sounds perfect. Im so excited!!!!!

Games: Plants Vs Zombies

Through a discussion with Mats today, we remembered this awesome game that nearly cost me my third year in Japan. Right before my final exams i discovered this gem and tried my best to fit it into my busy revision schedule which it eventually trampled all over and i ended up completing the thing before exams were over. I highly reccomend this game, its funny, it kills a lot of time and is the best tower defense game ive played.

When you finish the game, you get this awesome music video :D

Residency in the 4th year: some rules!

One of my classmates recently made a group on facebook about living together in the 4th year. I think its a really good idea that not only would you live with your friends, but fellow classmates. They are talking about moving into victoria halls but i have already made my mind up on Severn Point. Im not sure if anyone is gonna want to move in with me, Mad Mats has yet to make his mind up too. But anyway, i set up some "reasonable" ground rules lol.

1. I dont like loud noises after 1am (im trying to fucking sleep ya know what i mean?)

2. I like the kitchen and dining area to be kept reasonably tidy. I
regularly clean up the kitchen and dining area (by myself i might add)
which i honesytly dont mind but if you`re gonna shit on me by not doing
me the courtesy of keeping... things in order then fuck off

3. If you are gonna overflow the bin my advice is....dont fuckin overflow it! at least empty the fuckin thing

4. Dont fuck around with the refridgerator settings. you`ve frozen my fuckin chicken!!!!

5. Theres a notice on my door saying "im having a nap". Guess what?! Im having a FUCKING nap! so fuck off!

6. I sing in the shower. deal with it.

7. Dont leave your dishes in the sink cos i cant wash mine if yours are in there all covered in shit now can i?

Its meant to be funny but at the same time, im kinda serious! I always feel like there are less like-minded individuals like me living in dorms. But why would anyone want to live in a zoo? Personally, i am an awesome flatmate to have and if you dont think so? then you obviously dont know what you have til its gone :p

Studying Kanji

So im still struggling with Kanji. It seems like no matter how hard i try i just cant become good at learning them. The best thing ive found so far though, is a neat flash card program reccomended to me by my classmates called Anki.


Its way better than the flash card program i had before and if i can pass this Kanji test tomorrow then i fully reccomend it lol. Im done with making physical flash cards. It was way too time consuming and the thought of ever having to re-do any of them or look through them again bugs me out. Ill stick with the Anki for now and you can download it HERE

LOL wtf happened to Shynes voice?

Case in point, DJ Khaleds new shit song "All My Life"


Shyne comes in at about 1:32. I actually burst out laughing when i heard him. dude sounds like hes 100 years old or the cookie monster or some shit lol. Completely forgot he got out of prison. Id be interested in him making another "Bonnie & Shyne" type joint again with that voice. It would be hilarious!

Notes about being a foreigner in Japan......

• Old people will tell you to "shut up" in Japanese. No, you are not being loud at all right? But you ARE foreign and one old mans jealousy that you have a friend to talk to whilst him and his wife havent spoken more than a grunt to each other for years is enough for him to speak up about YOUR presence in HIS country. (im being completely over the top but who cares right? :p)
• People will stare at you as you walk by and talk about you while you go shopping, occasionally mentioning the word "gaijin" or "Jason Mraz"
  
• Taxi drivers are really fun to talk to
• Taking your own alcohol into the Karaoke booths is apparently, not allowed afterall

"My Essay" with bonus topic:- "This blog is useless"

Honestly, i think my blog is pretty useless lol. The original plan i set out to do i didnt even follow through with. I hardly even have time for drawing these days! However actually, i did whip up a quick cover for my essay titled "A Future in shades of grey"

Though the cover was completely unnecessary, i wanted to sensationalise my essay. See?! maybe i even sold you on the front cover already! Well guess what? There is no Pikachu and no zombies in this essay, NO! Its all about the elderly population of Japan and the worrying future of a country full of old people and no young workforce to support it. There simply wont be enough people around to change all the piss bags!
Well anyway, i basically just expanded on an old essay and requested to the head of the exchange program, upon handing over my essay, that i would like my sensationalistic cover to be considered for some kind of extra creative points. Im not gonna hold my breath.......

Youtube: Peter Chao

This guy kills me lol! check him out on youtube here