The Eastern Edge

Dear USA;You can have the most medals.You can have the most money.In fact, you can have the rest of the world.But, USA, you can't have Hockey!!HOCKEY IS OUR GAME!! more »

It's a real shame that Ponyo is getting little recognition outside Japan, and even less by people over the age of eight.I wrote about that on the blog yesterday and then watched Ponyo again last night after a 5k run. Something about running on a cold nig… more »

Almost time to kick off a three day weekend that will be jammed with 10 hours of Aikido. Most of the rest of the time I'll be reading Yotsuba To! If only we could all look at each day with the wide-eyed wonder and enthusiasm that Yotsuba does! O… more »

I use this Grinch pic every year, but this year I found myself wondering why I know so little about one of my favorite cartoonists/writers from when I was a kid, Dr. Suess.Imagine my surprise when I found out that not only was he vocally anti-Jap… more »

Just a post to say that I haven't dropped the final part of the Urasawa interview translation and abandoned this blog. On the contrary, I'm nearly finished my next piece of Urasawa goodness, and I expect to have it ready early next week... more »

Just when I thought that educating the Japanese public about changes to the legal system via women's underwear was about as low as they could go, Triumph International is once again triumphant in pushing the boundaries of bad taste and insulting a genera… more »

I am just realizing immediately after typing it that the title of this blog post invokes all the wrong images. However, I'm going to leave that to your imagination to elaborate on. What I meant was simply a "quick" post with "Vagabond" artwork. That’… more »

⇒ This is old news now, but the Anime News Network reported that the am/pm chain of convenience stores in Japan has begun a test manga rental program. Unfortunatley they fail to mention what they will do about the manga that they are already renting… more »

Sorry, Urasawa fans, but no new Billy Bat until next week's Morning and I haven't finished quite enough material to start posting about the Urasawa interview yet. Things have been pretty busy for the last week or so, but I am working on it and I promi… more »

No word on fatalities, but at least three people were nearly throttled to death in Japan when they trusted their foot massage machines with other parts of their bodies. It seems they didn't realize that it isn't a good idea to stick your neck in the rol… more »

One of my pet peeves is the Japanese insistence on using English when they use terms like "Samurai" to refer to athletes and sports teams. The latest team of "samurai" is their next entry in the World Baseball championships. I doubt they see the irony… more »

This just hit my RSS feed and for a second I thought I'd subscribed to The Onion or something instead of ICv2. Batman Sues Warner And Nolan Published: 11/12/2008 12:46am The city of Batman, in southeastern Turkey, is suing Warner Brothers and Dark… more »

With both Vagabond and Billy Bat on hiatus for the next seven weeks, I will be deprived of my little bit of Weekly Morning entertainment to break up my dreary workweek. I'll have to survive until Urasawa and Inoue get around to giving me a reason to both… more »

From Japan Today: Guilty or not guilty? Lingerie maker Triumph’s campaign girl Hiromi Nishiuchi, 19, wears the “Jury System Bra” which was created for the company’s 2009 spring/summer collection held at Tokyo Ryutsu Center. Triumph Internation… more »

Clearing the Cache is what I'm going to start calling posts in which I unload the many bits & pieces I've collected from the internet but haven't used in other posts. They seem to collect like lint in favorites lists, folders, notes, and other places… more »

Just a few bits and pieces I found on the internet today: First off is another story about Tama the Stationmaster cat. I've written about him a few times and, while I like the story about this little station and it's resident cat, I don't want to h… more »

“Contrary to the rumors you have heard, I was not born in a manger. I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father, Jor-El, to save the planet Earth.” – Presidential hopeful Barack Obama, during humorous remarks at a charity dinner. more »

I'm looking forward to the U.S. election next month on November 4th and, despite what Dennis Miller says on his radio show that I've am still addicted to, I am rooting for Obama all the way. I'm sure McCain went through hell at the Hanoi Hilton, and I more »

Yes, I lifted that title from George Carlin, but I mean it as a tribute. Besides, I often use fecal matter references and aren't most musings on blogs really just someone's brain droppings? My cerebral bowel movement for today relates to a post I wro… more »

The above is a promo photo of ultra-super-model Yuri Ebihara pushing her new line of stockings in an ANA flight attendant uniform. For the reasons behind the uniform etc, see the news item here. I've been in Japan long enough to not be fazed by any uni… more »