AKB48?

While boy/girl bands were quite popular in the West in 1990′s only to slowly (and fortunately) fade from main stream society as us tweens began to realize the mistakes of our ways, this genre of pop-music featuring exclusively male or female “artists” are still quite popular in here in Japan.

I would like to introduce to you Japan’s most adored girl-band, AKB 48.

God… why did I write this post?

Ok, if you got through all of that, I applaud you. You have more patience than me.

Anyway, more about the band.

Currently, AKB 48 is on fire in here in Japan, holding the entirety of the 2011 Top 5 Oricon Yearly Singles Chart (Oricon being the largest corporate entity in Japan that supplies statistics and information on music and the Japanese music industry), selling over 10,000,000 records, and the proud holder of a unique (and slightly disturbing) place in the Guiness Book of World Records.

Bland statistics aside, you are probably be wondering what the “AKB” and the “48″ in AKB 48 stands for.

So I will do my best to explain…

First, let me touch upon the “AKB”.

The “AKB” in AKB 48, as everyone here knows, is an abbreviation for the “otaku” district in Tokyo going by the name of Akihabara. This district is known as a heaven for those geeks and dweebs alike who seek an outlet to curb their comic book, video game, hentai (comic porn) addiction.

But books, screens, and creams aside, there was just something missing for those otaku of Akihabara. YES! These socially awkward dudes needed some musical entertainment to fuel the nerdy flame that resides within all of their socially awkward souls.

So, in order to appeal to a large number of single, hunched backed, ramen slurping, scraggly hair, 30-something-or-other dudes, a group of young (starting at 14) cutesy girls that had the unique ability of producing sound from their vocal chords and looking good in school uniforms were gathered…

Whoa there partner! One of these ladies (Miyu Takeuchi) was born in 1996! SHAME ON YOU!

And thus, with the power of MONEY AND FLAME, Japans most celebrated girl-band, AKB 48, was vomited from the depths of concrete  Tokyo!

But, of course, AKB 48 did not create themselves (its pop-music folks), but rather was the product of a 2005 development by a  Japanese television writer, lyricist, record producer, professor and vice president at Kyoto University of Art and Design – Yasushi Akimoto.

Dude who created AKB 48

LIKE A BOSS!

N E Way, nuff about the “AKB”, lets get into the “48″.

It is a common misconception that the “48″ in AKB 48 signifies the number of members in the group. Yes, although AKB 48 holds the title of “Largest Pop Group” in the Guiness Book of World Records, the number of people participating in the band has little to do with the figure “48″.

Yep, when the band was first conceptualized by Mr. Akimoto, only 28 of the 7000+ applicants were accepted to be full-time members of the AKB crew. That number has increased since then, and the current number of members rests at 59 (with a line up of “kenkyuusei” (trainees) just waiting to increase that figure).

NOW THAT’S A LOT OF ESTROGEN!

Yup 59 girls, all scantly dressed, all mediocre singers (Japanese pop groups almost never sing in harmony), all mediocre dancers (keep it simple so those tweens can remember the moves), and all unnervingly cute.

With all that cuteness, you would imagine that 59 girls is a lot to have on stage, right?

Well if you assumed so, you would not be mistaken.

I didn't even bother counting~!

The girls are broken up into specific performing groups. Team A, along with team K and B, have 16 members, while Team 4′s members rest at a pleasant 11. Each respective team has their “leader”, while Maeda Atsuko, who is probably the most recognizable face in the jumbled mix of makeup and flesh, represents the whole group.

Maeda Atsuko - The leader of AKB 48

Each team performs on a rotating schedule on the 8th floor of first original “Don Quixote” (a popular Japanese chain-store that sells EVERYTHING) located in Akihabara. The shows are so popular that tickets have to be sold in a lottery.

Aside from performing, band members will attend as guests TV variety shows, act in Japanese dramas, appear in commercials, find themselves your students chopstick holders, and even give commentary on the news.

If you are in Japan, you cannot watch TV without hearing about, or laying your eyes AKB 48!

Ok, that was AKB 48 in a nutshell, but what does this mass-produced pop art symbolize about Japanese society?

Well, first we can see that the number of members and their conformity in style more than supports the fact that Japan is a group-oriented society.

Whereas in West, where individuality is the norm, you find that boy/girl bands of the past would each have fabricated personalities within their groups. There was the “bad boy/girl”, the “jock”, the “goody two shoes”, and “the cray-z one”, all who are immediately recognizable to fit that character by their clothing and conduct.

Japan, on the other hand, has all the girls dress the same, sing the same notes, and act in the same way.

The focus here is more on the forest than the tress.

"The nail that sticks up gets nailed down"

In my opinion, AKB 48 would just never work in an individualistic society as its groupistic nature would just not be appealing enough to our youth.

In Japan, on the other hand, the appeal of the group is felt throughout the generations.

The popularity AKB 48 has achieved here that bridges generation gaps, reinforces the notion that Japanese are less hesitant in appreciating things that, in the West, would be considered childish. Its not that every one loves and enjoys AKB 48, but it seems to be more common here to see an older person be obsessed with these pop groups that are seemingly developed to be appealing to younger generations.

Just imagine being happy and proud that your Pa could sing and dance “Wannabe” by the Spice Girls from memory!

ZIGA-ZIGG AWW!

Yes, meet the Washlet. One of Japan’s finest inventions.

"Hey, I'm a Washlet!" "Need to poo?"

You may have already guessed what washlet does from the “wash” and the “-let” found in the words etymology, but did you know that these things have heated seats?

The answer is:

NO!

You, the unenlightened, would have never even been able to grasp the notion such a wondrous thing until the cheeks of your pale buttocks would have the supreme pleasure of being pressed against the thickened D-shaped lid of such a wonderfully conceptualized Japanese contraption.

Not only would you would shudder with joy as your excrement left your heated cheeks, you would have the curious (and daring) opportunity to FINALLY try out that green button labeled, “oshiri”.

“It seems to be the right angle…” you puzzle to yourself.

BUT NO!

Perhaps you would be reluctant on your fist try. Perhaps you would prefer to remain in your safe-zone and use your “smear-rags” (that can hardly be considered sanitary when you really think about it).

Yes, perhaps you would encounter such a mental conundrum on your first encounter with a Washlet – but just you wait! Wait until you sit back down again for your 2nd, 3rd, or 4th pleasantly warm ride.

That shining green “oshiri” button screaming out at you to be pushed…

The warmness of the seat making you relish the thought of adventure…

Yes, we living here have all experienced it.

One day, when you are least expecting it, you might be reaching out for your comforting “smear-rags”, but you may suddenly find your finger has, unconscious to you, secretly placed itself upon THAT button.

“What? Why not?” you think to yourself.

“I hear other dudes using it all the time” you recall.

You then begin thinking of the countless times you heard those gurgly hissing noises which breached the pathetically thin walls that separated you and the persons who have just finished excreting last nights dinner.

Your finger twitches, and hesitates with the excitement of the impending adventure.

“Finally…” !

*Blip*

*ZZZhhg, Whhhirr*

OMG! Whats that noize?

Something mechanical must be extending beneath my comfortably heated ass!

*Shhp, Shhhhhk*

ZOMGROLF!

RIGHT ON TARGET!

*Shhp, Shhhp, Sheeerrrrrrp*

FFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUU~!

ITS WARM~~~!

*ZZZhhg, Whhhirr, SHhhhh*

Am I done?

OMG! I did IT!

…

…

…

Hey, is that a radio?

Today, for the sake of people who read only this blog, I plan to add my two-cents onto that pile of pennies.

Ok, first things first, I want to get across the fact that Japan has the highest ratio of vending machines per capita, averaging at about 1 machine for every 23 people. Yep, with the current population hovering at about 128,000,000 people, that figure would suggest that there are currently more than 5.5 million perfectly maintained and “unvandalized” vending machines in Japan…

WHOA! You could populate a large city with these things!

As a result of their plenitude, vending machines can be found nearly anywhere in Japan – on the side of lonely country roads, in department stores, or even outside the equally numerous convenience stores. I mean, there are sometimes glowing rows of these guys located right in the middle of quiet residential districts.

These bad boys (aka, vending machines) sell just about anything you can imagine (eggs, tobacco, beer, noodle soups, T-shirts, neck ties, 10kg bags of rice, cars, the infamous “girls dirty panties”… and the list goes on), but the majority of them sell good ol’ fashion liquids.

Yep, drinks.

One of my favorite things about Japanese vending machines is that they offer you the selection of hot or cold drinks. And I can tell you, grabbing a can of COLD coffee after groggily waking up on a hot and humid Japanese summer morning, OR grabbing a HOT pint of the brown stuff to warm your freezing paws in the winter, is like heaven for a caffeine-addict like myself.

Anyway, the idea of canned caffeine brings me to another question. Why on earth do we not have canned coffee back home?

Why are our vending machines limited to concentrated juices, waters, or sugar filled energy drinks? Why can’t we have a little hot coffee in there? Or some chilled sugarless teas?

BOSS Coffee - Rainbow Mountain Blend! (Seriously one of my favorites)

Oh man, I can tell I have been living here for too long as I have begun talking about ADDING selection to vending machines rather than getting rid of the autonomous mechanical vendors themselves.

I remember as a University student, or just as a Canadian, that there was this huge movement to stop buying bottled water or bottled drinks for that matter. I am assuming this movement still exists, but the general argument was that these disposable plastic containers are bad for the environment… Duh!

There is no such anti-PET bottle movement here in Japan, nor any movement to stop the ridiculous obsessiveness the Japanese have of wrapping stuff in hordes of plastic!

Nuff said!

The lack of mass self-criticism the Japanese have when it comes to unnecessary waste, leads me to call into question the authority of the Kyoto Agreement; an international protocol which Japanese officials created in order to set the international standards of acceptable carbon foot prints.

It is wrong, on so many ways, for the Japanese to think that they have the edge on “green thinking”.

BUT, that is another topic.

Since we have touched on the subject of the environment, and the Japanese relationship to it via vending machines, I would now like to point out that one of these bad boys that offers both a selection of hot and cold drinks, consumes about as much energy in a year as the average Japanese household.

Yup, an average 4 person household!

BLARGH!

OUCH! The electricity bill!

But, lets try to finish on a positive note!

Aside for the benefit of conveniently refreshing drinks located never more than a block away, and the fact that Japan does have a wonderful recycling system for the unnecessary garbage they produce, there has also been a push by Asahi, Japans leading “soft-drink” manufacturer, to include free Wi-Fi to 1000 machines by this year and to increase this number 10,000 by 2017.

And THAT, my friends, seems like a splendid idea~!

I was then shocked (and appalled) to find out that this character is actually considered to be cute amongst Japanese children and adults alike.

I mean, look at the guy!

Anpanman - You made barf a little in my mouth the first time I laid eyes on you...

Anyway, Anpanman has been rated the top fictitious character for children ages 0-12 in Japan 10 years in a row, and is branded on nearly anything you can think of: bags, boots, chopsticks, pencil cases, steering wheel covers, snack foods, insurance commercials, etc.

Yep, Anpanmans face can most likely be found anywhere there are humans residing in Japan, and, as a result, often appears as a character in my English classes. (Pfft, kids over here don’t even know who the Ninja Turtles are! What a sad childhood indeed!)

Starting his red-cheeked career off in a picture book series conceptualized by Takashi Yanase, it has been more than 35 years since Anpanmans debut in 1973.

Now, there is hardly a day when Anpanman is not played on TV, and the animated series which began airing in 1988 now boasts a whopping 1000 episodes! In every 25 minute episode Anpanman, playing the leading role, acts as a bringer of justice in his eternal struggle against the evil Baikinman (Bacteria-man), who is set to wreak havoc on citizens living up and around the house of Uncle Jam!

A picture book featuring Anpanman, Baikinman (front-right), and friends!

So what makes Anpanman so special? What makes his round face so appealing to the Japanese?

Well, I have absolutely no idea, but all I can tell you is that “Anpan” is the Japanese word for “anko-bean-filled-bun”, which is a common dessert/snack found here in Japan. The “man” at the end of Anpan”man”s name is the English word for, well, “man”. (Just think Megaman and you will be on the right track).

Anko Bean Filled Bun - "Anpan"

So why is Anpanman called, “Anpan-man”? Well, there is quite a simple answer.

You see, Anpanman’s head is MADE OUT OF A ANKO BEAN FILLED BUN!

Yes, he is a living bun, filled with sweet anko beans.

Oh, but that’s not where it ends!  NO! Anpanman is not stingy when it comes to sharing his tasty face, as he will rip pieces off of his round head and hand it out to his hungry friends.

Yeah, you heard me! Having chunks of flesh the size of tea-cups ripped off the side of your head might phase you, but it would never phase the sweet and gentle Anpanman.

Ditto to the caption above!

HELL YEAH!

It is said that Yanase’s conceptualization of Anpanman and his all-you-can-eat head, came from his days fighting in World War II in which he found himself often confronted with the prospect of starvation. During times where there was a lack of food, Yanase often dreamt of eating “anpan”, and thus the idea for the edible hit-character was born!

Ok, Anpanman, you have grown on me, and I can now say that you do not look like a cats anus.

]]> http://nipponwaters.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/who-is-anpanman/feed/ 1 alecxvi anp_top1 ap_dekkanuri_main images eat_my_face anpanman-illust http://nipponwaters.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/bloooood/ http://nipponwaters.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/bloooood/#comments Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:10:54 +0000 alecxvi https://nipponwaters.wordpress.com/?p=2553 ]]> Every couple of weeks there is a blood donation mega-bus that comes to Nayoro city hall. I have never given blood here in Japan, as I always thought that there would be some restriction against me being a foreigner, so I have never entered that bus… UNTIL TODAY!

Yup, today I gave blood for the first time in my life, and I am a little ashamed to admit that it has taken me this long to do so.

Anyway, all the nurses and doctors in the bus seemed to be having fun cause there was “a foreigner on the bus”. They wouldn’t stop trying to talk to me in English…

Actually, that usually annoys me, but given the seriousness of the situation, and the lightheartedness of their conversation, I was happy to have the awkward “I can’t speak English” conversation with them.

Feels good to give blood!

You ARE invited!

Although they may not be thrilling, I guess the point is to show you guys what winter is like in here Nayoro. All the pics below were taken within 3 minutes walk from my house.

More pics will be added of my workplaces soon!

YAY!

The original plan was to have Ayumi pick me up at the Chubu airport, go somewhere romantic in Nagoya, give Ayumi her 5th year anniversary present, and finally propose to her in some sort of romantic setting (all while having her sisters secretly hovering around in the background taking pictures of the special occasion). Anyway, I spoke with Ayumi’s sisters beforehand and had everything planned out nice and good, but when it came down to it, Ayumi fell sick and she could not come and pick me up at all. I landed in Aichi-prefecture alone, and my plans of going on a date with Ayumi in Nagoya (with her sisters secretly tagging along), had failed!

ZOMG!

I took a lonely 2 hour bus-ride from the airport to Toyota city, all while wondering if I would have a sick Ayumi-chan on my hands when I arrived. Turns out, when I arrived in Toyota I was STILL alone. Yep, things were not looking good. Ayumi was 30 mins late in picking me up, and during the time I waited at Toyota station, I was actually seriously considering postponing my proposal as I expected to be meeting up with an Ayumi who was too sick to be able to fully enjoy the precious occasion.

By the time she arrived the weather was cold and drizzly, the evening sky had darkened to a flat gray, and I was completely lost as to where and how, and if, I should propose to Ayumi.

But, not all was lost! When Ayumi opened the car door to let me in, I found her to be in relatively good spirits, although a little sleepy. Seeing my somewhat healthy girlfriend sparked a determination within me to finally get this “proposal thing” over and done with.

It was GO-TIME!

As it was already too late to head to Nagoya for our romantic date, Ayumi proposed we go to the nearby “Hourankei”, a mountain that is famous for its meandering paths draped in the colors of autumn. Of course, I was in for it!

Hourankei in Aichi prefecture

By the time we arrived it was pitch-black outside, but luckily enough the rain had waned and the neon colored maples clinging to the mountain paths were all lit up.

The place was bustling with young couples on dates and the paths were muddy from overuse. Me and Ayumi made it to the top of the mountain in about an hour, and along the way, I was scoping out places where I could give her the 140 page hand-crafted scrapbook/album I made for our anniversary. It was a monster tribute to us as a couple as it documented nearly all the experiences we shared together in the past 2 years of our relationship.

The plan was to present the album to her, look over the fond memories we shared together in the past couple of years, then propose to her once she reached a special note adhered to the final page.

As there were no perfectly lit places, nor any comfortable sitting areas at the top of the mountain, I settled for a well-lit bench along the river running at its base. I giddily gave Ayumi her album for our 5th year anniversary, and we began giddily flipping through the pages together.

Everything was going well, but when we finally reached the end of the album a young couple came to sit at the bench next to us. At first I was a little annoyed at the invasion of privacy, but then I saw this couple as a golden opportunity for pictures to be taken of me and Ayumi’s special moment. I suddenly left Ayumi’s side, jumped in front of two completely bewildered strangers, and begged them to take my $1500 camera all while I was shaking at the knees.

When I returned, Ayumi was super-confused at what the hell was going on.

“Why are they taking pictures of us?” she asked.

“I dunno!” I belched.

“What? What? Who are they? Why are they taking pictures” she insisted.

“Hey, what’s on the next page?”, I coughed, whilst nudging her arm to encourage page-flipping.

Ayumi turned to the last page and found a note/booklet. In it was a brief letter of love, which ended with a set-up to my once-in-lifetime question.

I got on my knees, said a some words which I cannot remember for the life of me, and proposed to Ayumi Kato.

A once in a lifetime question

She could not believe what was happening, and as a result she kept on asking “Really? Really? Really?” in rapid-fire. I was starting to wonder if anything had gone wrong with her pretty head. A fever maybe?

“What should I say?” she asked.

“Whatever you want” I replied whilst still on my knees.

“Un!”

“And what does that mean?”, I asked, hoping that I had correctly interpreted her Japanese way of saying “yes”.

“YES!” she cried. “Yes YES!”

.

Anyway, she said yes.

We hugged, and I put a ring on her finger that was about 3 times her size. (I still have never bought her a ring that fits. Its some kind of on going joke we have.)

Things could not have gone better!

We thanked the couple taking the pictures, said our goodbye’s, and had a look at the photos they took. Execpt the picture above, 96% of all the photos look as if an old piece of cow-dump had been smudged on a steamy unwashed bathroom window!

Ah well, I am just happy that we have physical copies of the memories, even if they are muddy-blurs of digital data.

Shortly after our engagement, me and Ayumi head back to her car so that we could go our for supper and celebrate. Halfway there, her dad called and “insisted” that we come back straight-away.

He wanted to drink, and was getting an itchingly impatient while waiting for me, his drinking buddy, to return after nearly seven months.

So we went back home, and did not say a word to her parents that night… Actually, as I had an interpretation/translation training seminar in Shiga-ken, the prefecture next-over, we were unable to tell her parents about our engagement until a week later.

But that, my friends, is another story.

Alec Louis-Seize and Ayumi Kato are now happily engaged!

• Organized the HAJET Welcome Party in which 70 people came (September 10th a day after my 26th B-day)
• Received notification that I passes 2kyuu (second highest level in the Japanese proficiency test)
• Went back to Canada to Visit Enlai for the first time (September 15th-30th)
• Made a 250 page hand-crafted scrapbook for Ayumi (October)
• Went to Taiwan for Wiwi and Kun’s wedding (met up with Ayumi, Kayo, Lydia, and Micheal (End of November)
• Went to the Interpretation and Translation course in Shiga-ken, just between Nagoya and Kyoto (early-December)
• Proposed to AYUMI (December 3rd)!
• Went Nagoya for Christmas and New Years
• Went to Nagano with Ayumi’s family for snowboarding
• Went to Kyoto/Kobe to see Ritsumeikan University and Hang out with Jo

Of course I had SOME down-time, but I felt so far behind on my blog that I did not want to even touch it.

This is my attempt at “getting up to date”, so that I can move on and continue writing!

From now, I will be posting SHORTER entries, more often!

I hope you enjoy~!

Its now September 1st, 2011 in Japan, and this marks the second day of your life. It truly saddens me that I was unable to be there for your birth, and the fact that I will not be able to be by your side for your first couple of years of life, makes living half-way across the world that much more difficult. I wish I could have been there for all the landmark occasions, but I have to follow my own path (as selfish as it sounds). Regardless, I will be with you soon, meeting you for the first time in almost exactly two weeks. I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to meeting you!

To tell you the truth, Mr. Newborn Enlai, I was worried about how good of an uncle I would be. But now that you have come to this world, I know I that I will try to be the best uncle I can be. I felt a rush of love when I saw your first picture, and that cemented into my heart that your are MY little nephew, and I, your loving godfather!

Its still hard to believe that I am an uncle!

Myself aside, I think you are a very lucky child, Enlai. You are coming into the world with two terrific parents! I know that Matt and Ann will raise you well, feed you delicious food, and introduce you to the beauty of this world that is sometimes hard to find. Not only will you have great parents, but you will have wonderful grandparents as well. My parents are some of the nicest, most sincere people I have ever met, and the Wens are kind and hospitible. No doubt, me and Ayumi will try our best to be there for you, and I am sure that Wendy will do the same. You shall never feel a lack of love in your life; and that is a rare beauty that not many people are able to experience.

Enlai, I wonder what you will become, what you will accomplish, what things you will dirty your hands with, what kind of personality you will develop, and what type of friends you will make. I hope for you to be strong at heart, while being humble and kind. I hope for you to find yourself, and your path in life. But most of all, I hope for your happiness!

If I can give you one piece of advice Enlai, it would be this.

“Be kind to yourself, let others be kind to you, and… know that you are loved”

Welcome Enlai!

I look forward to the day that we will meet!

Love,

Uncle ALEC!

Hokkaido not only has the lowest population density in Japan, but  it also has the highest number of ALTs, as well as the highest yearly turnover rate.

I think that says a lot about living in Hokkaido, Japan. According to my inquisition, not many people asked to be placed here, and it seems unlikely that anyone outside the JET program would be wanting to be hired into a small northern town in Hokkaido. I could be wrong, but I suppose the reason why there are so many JETs, and not private hire ALTs, is because that not many people feel the desire to teach in this area of Japan. As a result, the JET program comes to save the day with their “set in stone” ALT placements. So, naturally, if not many people want to be here privately, there are more JET ALTs. And consequently, if those JET ALTs have been placed here against their will (like me), there is also a high turnover rate.

I myself find it hard to be “away” from the “real” Japan (especially because I am away from my girlfriend), but there are benefits to working and living here in Hokkaido. One, being that there is a strong ALT community that really knows how to have some fun. I must admit, even though I have to live away from my Chan for another year, I feel happy that I will be able to spend one last year here in Hokkaido with the friends I have made in the past year!