Kendama is a traditional Japanese toy.
Much like a yo-yo, with practice you can master the basics of Kendama…and with a lot more practice, you can learn to do the “fancy tricks”.
Basically, Kendama is a wooden hammer-shaped toy with a small, a medium-size, and a larger “dish” and also a “spear”.
It also has a string attached with a wooden ball at the other end of the string. The ball has a hole in it.
To play, you have the ball hanging freely and move the Kendama in a manner that makes the ball swing up and then you catch the ball on either one of the “dishes” or the spear.
And then make the ball move to one of the other “dishes” or “spear”.
You have the ball go from one to the other as many times as you can before the ball misses.
Here’s a video of someone who is excellent with the Kendama.
The video tells the names of a number of Kendama “tricks”, and then the man in the video demonstrates them (and he makes them look easy):
Have you ever tried a Japanese 「けん玉」 (“Kendama“)?
Are you good at it?
I don’t have too much interest in most spectator sports. I enjoy the Olympics, boxing, and American Football.
I didn't know the NFL updated their logo in 2008.
When I first came to Japan, American Football was never shown on TV here or even mentioned in the newspapers (except for the English-language papers). Most Japanese people had never seen an American football* game.
*(I say “American football because that’s what the game is called outside of the U.S., to differentiate it from soccer (which is often called “football” outside the U.S. (Japanese usually refer to that game as 「サッカー」 (soccer) though))).
But the NFL (America’s professional football league) stepped up their campaign about five or six years ago to make American football popular in Japan…much like soccer, baseball, and basketball are.
The NFL has played games in other countries, including Japan, to try to increase interest outside the U.S.
But it has had limited success.
In Japan, though, around five years ago, the NFL helped introduce American football to high schools and colleges in Japan.
At first it wasn’t popular and the only students who joined their school’s American football team were the ones who didn’t make the soccer or baseball teams. But the games slowly begun to grow in popularity here…although it has nowhere near the popularity that it has in America (yet).
And now American football has begun to be shown on TV here in Japan. Not every game…only the Superbowl game and a few other key games.
And the games that are shown are aired late at night and edited to fit into the time slot.
But that’s enough for me. Even if every game was aired, I’d probably only watch the Superbowl and games that the “Tampa Bay Buccaneers” played (I grew up in Tampa Bay, Florida).
Tampa Bay Buccaneers logo
Last night I watched the Superbowl playoff game of the New Orleans Saints versus the Minnesota Vikings.
New Orleans Saints
vs.
Minnesota Vikings
The final score was New Orleans – 31 / Minnesota – 28…so the New Orleans Saints will play in the Superbowl against the Indianapolis Colts.
Indianapolis Colts logo
So 「第４４回スーパーボウル」 (“Superbowl 44“) will start in America in less than 24 hours from now (Sunday, 2010 February 7 at 6:00PM (American EST))…but it won’t air in Japan until about fourteen hours later.
If you’re in Japan and you and to watch the American football Superbowl game…it will be aired on 「日テレ」 (Nihon TV) on Monday, 2010 February 8 at 24:29 (aka. Tuesday, 9 Feb at 00:29AM).
Do you like American football? What’s your favorite team?
Will you watch the Superbowl? Which team do you hope will win?
Just a few stories that were in the news that got my attention:
★ In 1985, many of the biggest pop stars in America, including Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Bruce Springsteen, recorded a song together titled “We Are The World“.
The aim of the song was to raise money to help Africa. In fact, the group of singers were collectively known as “USA For Africa“.
And now, twenty-five years after the song was recorded, the producer of the song, Quincy Jones, has assembled another group of today’s most popular singers in America to sing a remake of the song.
This time the song is being used to help the victims of the earthquake in Haiti…and the song is being called “We Are The World 25 For Haiti“.
★ Asashoryu, the sumo champion is Japan has retired.
Asashoryu is from Mongolia
He’s a great sumo wrestler and earned the rank of 「横綱」 (Yokozuna…”Grand Champion”)…but he’s constantly gotten into trouble both inside and out of the ring.
His latest scandal was when he recently went out drinking and seriously injured a man when he went into a drunken rampage.
★ The annual 「札幌雪まつり」 (“Sapporo Snow Festival“) in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan starts today and goes until 2010 February 11.
I went to this festival in 1992 and I can tell you the huge, elaborate snow sculptures are amazing! If you have a chance, you should go see this festival.
I wrote a post last year that my oldest daughter took (and passed) her high school entrance exam…and that I gave her a special Kit-Kat chocolate before her exam (Click here to read it).
Well, last week my second daughter took her high school entrance exam for the same school that my oldest daughter attends.
Just as I did for my oldest daughter, I gave my second daughter a package of special Kit-Kat chocolate to wish her luck.
「ミルクコーヒー味」 ("Milk Coffee flavor")
Today the results of the exams were announced. My daughter passed!
So beginning this April, my two oldest daughters will go to the same high school (my youngest will still be in junior high).
***
Also, as I wrote yesterday, it snowed in the Tokyo area last night.
There wasn’t much snow in Tokyo this morning…but I had to go to a rural area to the north of Tokyo. There was more snow up there this morning.
I took a few photos with my cell-phone camera.
Here they are (click them to enlarge):
Snow on a mailbox.
***
Tomorrow is the Japanese holiday 「節分」 (“Setsubun“).
Click here to read my post from last year in which I explain this holiday (and some other Japanese holidays in February too).
Every morning I watch a television show called 「めざましテレビ」 (“Mezamashi TV“).
I watch this show every day while I’m getting ready for work and eating breakfast.
This show is a news magazine type show.
Of course they give the weather forecast every morning. And this morning, they said that it would be cloudy in the morning, then rain after lunch, and then begin snowing tonight and tomorrow.
And it happened just as they said. It began raining after lunch and now it’s snowing.
It doesn’t snow often in Tokyo. Usually only one or two times a year…and very rarely does it snow heavily.
It’s forecast to continue snowing tomorrow…but I doubt the trains will be delayed. I hope not.
Weather forecast for 2010 February 1 and 2 in Tokyo.
The weather forecast for Tokyo for 2010 February 1 and 2 says 90% chance of snow tonight (but it’s snowing now…so I guess it’s actually 100%), then 50% chance of snow tomorrow until 6AM…after 6AM, it should stop snowing.
Today the temperature was 5°C (low) to 9°C (high). Tomorrow, it’s forecast to be 1°C (low) to 10°C (high).
How’s the weather where you are?
+++++
Also, we usually watch the テレビアニメ (TV cartoon) called 「ちびまる子」 (“Chibi-Maruko“) on Sunday evenings.
It’s a fun cartoon.
The マンガ (comic) series of 「ちびまる子」 (“Chibi-Maruko“) began in 1986.
The アニメ (cartoon) on TV started in 1990 January…so the TV series is celebrating it’s 20th year now.
I came to Japan in 1990…the same year that the 「ちびまる子」 (“Chibi-Maruko“) TV cartoon started.
(There was also a short-run live action TV series with actors that resembled the characters. But it wasn’t nearly as popular as the anime).
「ちびまる子」 (“Chibi-Maruko“) is drawn by an artist named さくら・ももこ (Sakura Momoko)…and the main character in the series is also named is さくら・ももこ (Sakura Momoko). Her nickname is まる子 (Maruko).
The story and characters are based on the artist and her family and friends when she was a third-grade student in the mid-1970s.
Have you ever watched the 「ちびまる子」 (“Chibi-Maruko“) TV cartoon or read the comic?
I mentioned in an earlier post (click here to read it) that McDonalds in Japan is currently offering fours burgers (one-at-a-time) collectively known as “Big America“.
The burger that they’re currently selling is called the “Texas Burger” (my oldest daughter and I tried one each. I thought it was mediocre…my daughter hated it).
Well, even if you’re not in Japan and can’t try these burgers…you can visit the McDonalds Japan website and try the “Big America Burgers” game.
Since the current burger is the “Texas Burger“, the current game on their site is the “Texas Burger Game” (next month, when they begin offering the “New York Burger“, I’m sure the game on their site will change, too).
"Texas Burger Game"
To play this game, you click “Start” and then point your mouse on all of the burgers, fries and drinks that appear and click your mouse to “lasso” them in.
When the game ends, you are given between one to five “sheriff stars” depending on how much food you lassoed.
Click here to try the McDonalds Japan “Big Texas Burger Game“…and then tell me in this post’s comment section how many “stars” you got.
I tried the game once and only got two stars.
+++++++
Also, if you visit the post I wrote last year about the upcoming Karate Kid remake starring Jackie Chan, you’ll notice that I recently updated the post and added a video of the movie’s official trailer.
In America and China many 「トヨタ」 (Toyota) cars are being recalled because there’s a possibility that an ill-fitting floor mat can cause the accelerator pedal to stick which could cause an accident.
And now 「ホンダ」 (Honda) cars overseas are being recalled too.
I heard that Toyota and Honda dealers in those countries are losing a lot of potential business because the public has become hesitant to trust the safety of those cars now.
「トヨタ」 (Toyota)
「ホンダ」 (Honda)
This issue isn’t an issue at all in Japan.
Most Japanese feel that the cars being recalled overseas are different because they were made in America or China.
Japanese cars in Japan are made here…and anything “Made in Japan” is seen as superior in quality and safety.
So, Toyota and Honda dealers here in Japan aren’t feeling the affects of the recall overseas at all.
In fact, Toyota is the best-selling car in Japan…and has been for many years.
Has your image of Japanese cars changed because of this recall?
************************
On a totally unrelated subject…
I found out that Gene Simmons (of the rock band KISS) did a TV commercial in America for the Dr. Pepper soft drink.
His son is also in the commercial.
As I don’t live in America, I don’t normally watch America TV…but thanks to the internet in general, and YouTube specifically, I was able to see it.
It’s here:
Do you live in America? Have you seen this commercial on TV before?
In Japan, KISS has done a few TV commercials too.
I wrote a post about them last year. Click here to see that post.
I like movies.
I used to watch them alot more often when I was younger…but I still like to watch a movie that looks like it’ll be good.
If you like movies too, let’s play a kind of “Movie Trivia Challenge”.
I’ll write a trivial fact in this post about a few movies…if you recognize what movies I’m describing, then write the titles in this post’s comment section.
And also write a trivia question of your own about a movie or movies, and me or anyone else can try to guess the movie.
So, here are my questions:
1. What movie starred Clint Eastwood, Jim Carrey, and had a cameo appearance by members of the rock band “Guns ‘N Roses?
2. What movie starred Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito and Christopher Lloyd?
3. What was the first movie that Johnny Depp appeared in?
★ The murder trial for the man who killed and injured a crowd of people in the June 2008 “Akihabara Attack” began today.
He entered in a “guilty” plea and apologized for his crimes in court today. Admitting guilt and showing remorse often helps defendants in their trials in Japan.
The likely verdicts in this case will either be the death sentence (which is done by hanging in Japan) or a life sentence.
Please click here to read my post from last summer about the one-year anniversary of this attack.
★ The iconic Seibu Department Store will close their large store in 有楽町 (Yurakucho, Tokyo) near 銀座 (Ginza, Tokyo) on 2010 December 25th.
This store has been a landmark in Tokyo since it opened in 1984.
But due to the bad economic times recently, not enough people have been shopping there these days for the Seibu group to afford the rent in Ginza.
The plot of land that this store’s building is on is the most expensive real estate in the world!
The Seibu Department Store pays ¥1 million (about US$10,000) in rent for this spot.
New Years is Japan’s biggest holiday. The holiday has many traditions in Japan.
One of the traditions is sending 年賀状 (New Years postcards).
One the back of Japanese New Years postcards, in the lower right-hand corner, is a six-digit number.
Every year in late January, the Japan Post Office has a New Years Postcard Lottery.
Yesterday was this years drawing.
The winning numbers for the 2010 年賀状 (New Years Postcard) lottery:
★ First Place (TV, computer, travel, digital camera or an office set)
– 975424
★ Second Place (Wii, digital camera, DVD player, TV)
– 259668,
– 446722, or
– 630838
★ Third Place (brand name merchandise)
– any number with the last four digits as 0977
★ Fourth Place (postage stamps)
– any number with the last two digits as either 00 or 52
★ “C” Prize (JTB ¥5,000 gift certificate)
– any number with the last five digits as 27520
Did you get 年賀状 (Japanese New Years postcards) this year?
Do any of you cards have a winning lottery number?
I have three winning cards…all for postage stamps.
