2007 February

Hey, Gang:
If you couldn’t tell from my posts, I’m a sucker for Japan nos…notlag…nostal…old stuff from Japan.
Here’s a fantastic CM from 1970(?) for JR.
It’s a steam locomotive. A. Steam. Locomotive. How cool is that?
蒸気機関車 / jouki kikansha
Steam locomotive
See the vid, and we’ll talk a bit more later.

The real cool thing about the video is you […]

Just a quick reminder to keep submitting your quotes for the Daruma speech bubbles at the top of my page.
The winner gets their own sterling silver “sugoi” pendant…looks a lot like my daruma pendant (see pic after the ’sore ja’), but with the kanji for “sugoi” (amazing) on it. It rocks!
Send your suggestions to learnamazingjapanese […]

Hey, gang:
Here’s a Japanese Coca-Cola commercial with characters from Sazae-san. I think Sazae-san has been on Japanese TV for longer than I’ve been alive…that’s a lotta years…gakkuri.
Online Videos by Veoh.com
小さいのに、
Chiisai noni
[It’s] so small, [but]
あら
Ara
Oh, my…
たっぷり詰まってるね
tappuri tsumatteru ne
It’s completely stuffed full
何ですって？！
Nan desu tte?!
WHAT did you say?!
一リットルミディペットのこと
Ichi rittoru midei petto no koto
It’s the one-liter midi PET [I’m […]

…be able to say until you actually hear it.
雰囲気
funiki
atmosphere, mood, etc.
…but you don’t say it like it looks. Click on the Daruma pic below for some audio action.

Here are some examples:
大切な雰囲気
taisetsu na funiki
Important atmosphere/ mood
素朴で素直な雰囲気
soboku de sunao na funiki
simple, straight-forward atmosphere
春の雰囲気
haru no funiki
spring-like mood
マウンド上の雰囲気は良かった
maundo jou no funiki ha yokatta
[he] had a good air about him […]

OK…if you have a superfast connection, you’re very patient, or you love Utada Hikaru beyond normal reason, click on the link to take you to a music vid for “Flavor of Life.”
If you don’t….don’t
今日のおまけビデオ:

Sore ja.

Hey, guys:
Here are the music vids for this week:
小池撤平 (Teppei Koike)
君に贈る歌 (Kimi ni Okuru Uta - A Song for You)
# 2 Single in J’land last week

安室奈美恵 (Namie Amuro)
Baby Don’t Cry
#9 Last Week

Funky Monkey Babys
Lovin’ Life
# 11 Last Week
BTW, they’re depicting HS graduation…those tubes the kids are carrying hold diplomas.

平井堅 (Ken Hirai)
哀歌 (aika - elegy)
#27

Sore […]

Hey, Guys:
Sorry ’bout not updating the post below. It’s updated now.
Got hit by a migraine yesterday…unfortunately, I was out driving and about 70 miles away from home. I had to have someone come down and rescue me, since the vertigo is pretty nasty.
Have I discussed migraines with you? I talked about “rokkotsu” (ribs) and “rokunankotsu” […]

Hey, gang:
Imo can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on what or who the imo is:
imo = sweet potato/ potato
imo = bumpkin/ yokel
Now, imo as in “yakiimo” (roasted potato) is just about the best darn thing in Japan. In my wife’s village, the yakiimo dude comes around in his cart, selling amazingly […]

Konnichi ha.
O-genki desu ka?
You know, “o-genki desu ka” is one of the first phrases I learned (”how are you?”), but it’s not used in Japan as much as you might think. From what I’ve seen, it’s used more when you haven’t seen a person for a while…you’re kinda getting your bearings on how they’re doing.
Anyway, […]

Hey, Gang:
Maybe you’ve been wondering what my Daruma guy is saying on the top banners. I have eight or so that rotate through randomly. Click the Daruma pic below and I’ll tell ya all about it…then read the end of the post for a special announcement:

And now for the special announcement:
So you’ve heard what Daruma […]