Revelation?

It recently donned on me, a reason/solution to one of the problem areas of my life.

I have a tendency that people don’t get my humor. For some reason I come off as a little bit harsh, maybe a little dry too. It may not be just my humor, but also the way I present myself. Maybe it was the way I was brought up, also pieces of my personality. But for whatever reason, the signals are crossed.

Today, I’d like to offer the reason. As I learned in Linguistics, people are often drawn to what they are comfortable with. This also includes what they aspire to be like and people whom they admire. A person’s speech and accent will more often mimic their preferences rather than just their surroundings. As I was thinking today, I feel like some of that has seeped into my subconscious.

The last couple years, I’ve stopped watching TV altogether. The TV in my room isn’t even connected and all I use it for is video games and an occasional DVD. This does not mean I haven’t been watching shows. The TV programs have just been replaced with Anime, and J-Dramas, and Jpop Promotional Videos.

I realize that it’s a rather convenient to blame my own social problems on “TV,”  but I do feel at least some of my humor is lost in the mix. Just like if you told a knock knock joke in Japan, the translation and pacing wouldn’t be successful.

I thought this would be a good time to find out. Go to Japan and see how the country actually works. Spend some times trying to fit in. I’ve always wanted to live there but with all my priorities here, I couldn’t move there anytime soon. So maybe a long/short stay would be better suited. So to let you guys know, I’m leaving for Japan in January. I’ll quit my job in the States and I’ll be gone for about two and a half months. I came across an opportunity to stay in the countryside in Japan with a friend so it was one of those things I had to take. 4Player Podcast will still go on in my absence. Nick and Brad will do the show as normal and we plan to have me call in through Skype along with Travis or Joseph. I’ll still be playing games, although currently the plans are just for handhelds. I’ll still have access to the blog. And we will just have to see where we can go from there.

Thanks to you guys who read this blog. I enjoy posting here and writing when I can. I am currently working to make it into the JapanCast Academy and make it a more relevant site. Check back soon as I think it will be pretty soon.

Thanks again,
David

Whole New Ball Game

I watched both parts in their entirety. Maybe you should too. It’s a pretty big deal.

Holy Shit. Kasai Tomomi, Kobayashi Kana, and Masuda Yuka on Team B.
David

The Next Step (Lesson 2)

If you need to catch up, here’s Lesson 1

So last time we talked, I had introduced you to Maeda Atsuko. She’s probably the most recognizable person in AKB48. She ofter gets center stage and is always featured. She was the first girl I immediately started recognizing and learned her name after that. If you’re having a bit of a time putting things together, here’s a video to help you out.

By this time, AKB48 had just released their next single and this is when I started taking AKB48 more seriously. It was a dangerously cute song. It displayed all the members and I began wondering who was who and which team they were from. It was impossible to tell but I began remembering certain girls as the girl in the yellow dress making a heart sign. Or the girl making a goofy face at a certain point. Seeing a boat load of smiling girls acting goofy just made me laugh. That is the kind of thing that I enjoy about this genre of music. The light hearted goofiness.

Here at this point, I only began to scratch the surface. I was leaving for Japan and little did I know I was about to see AKB48 live. That experience would really open the flood gates to really liking the group. It’s funny now going back to watch this video because, I pretty much can name every girl that makes an appearance. I can tell you which team she’s on, who she gets along with, her catch phrase she uses at live shows and give you most of their measurements.

I’m just kidding on that last part. But going back and watching this video it makes it a little sad and nostalgic. Some girls have moved on and graduated. Some girls who had bigger roles in the group of waned a bit in popularity and now take on smaller parts. When you start liking a idol group, part of your job as a fan is to put your support behind a girl. You hope that your positive feelings and emotions will help her succeed and earn her more fans.

I think this is a big part of being a fan of a girl group. This is a point when you become more deeply entrenched in supporting a member that is not necessarily the most popular. All the general fans know Maeda Atsuko. She’s the most popular and recognizable member. I really like Kobayashi Kana. She gets less air time. I think she is just as funny of goofy as the more popular members. Maybe she’s not as talented or not as skilled. But she can get better right? People don’t know her and to me she’s kind of like a diamond in the rough, an undiscovered talent. In a way, she’s more personally mine to support because I picked her out of a group of all amazingly cute girls. I think that’s a feeling a lot of fans get. It’s kind of a good feeling. Wishing someone the best and wanting them to succeed.

It’s not always the case. Some of my favorite members have come and gone. Some are still around but while it’s not officially a demotion, you can see that they’re not as prominent as they once were. New members are introduced to breath new life. They’re all ridiculously cute and some of them seem interesting enough. But this unfamiliarity is something that is hard to overcome. It’s something I’m exploring right now as AKB48 has gotten through it’s first major graduation. A lot of new members have been introduced and even more, the groups have been shuffled. It’s a lot for my to relearn and accept. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Next time, my first live show and Boku no Taiyo.

David

This was really weird

So I came across this girls videos. I think she’s a youtube star in Japan. It’s really weird. She’s really pretty. And this video has over 4 million views. Cotorich.

Enjoy it,
David

I Didn’t Even Know

There was a new Ajikan song. I didn’t even know. I’m trying to fight the feeling of not accepting something because it’s new and different, but their new song is kinda weird. We’ll see how I feel about it in a week or so.

David

I found a Job in Japan

I found a job in Japan, this is what I’ll be doing. Except much more handsome.

David

Taken From Shinoda Mariko’s Blog

I don’t even know how a situation like this happens. But I guess only in Japan with a Japanese Girl Idol Group.

Yep, Cute
David

So What is AKB48? (Lesson 1)

Maybe you’ve been around and heard me talk about AKB48. You’ve heard that their a 48 member girl group divided up into three teams – Team A, Team K, and Team B.

Sure, now that you know that, what else? It’s kind of a daunting task to start listening to a group as large as AKB. It’s hard to pick out one of the members and become fond of their personality. It’s hard to distinguish between a bunch of cheerful energetic girls, but trust me, there’s a difference.

So I think the best way to start off your introduction to AKB is to recall how I myself started listening to them. The first AKB48 song I ever heard was Keibestu Shiteita Aijou. Even now I have trouble remember the song name. I remember watching this video and looking into a sea of black school uniforms. Actually, this isn’t even the whole group. For most of the singles release, there are only a few regulars who get picked to be featured in the single and/or the promotional video. Here is the video.

Now that you’ve seen the video, some things that I took out of it. The song is a little dark for my tastes. There’s a few references to suicide. There’s a uniformity and struggling to break out theme for the girls. The dancing is somewhat suggestive and also a little overly dramatic. I’m still unsure about how I feel about the flutes in the back ground. The video ends with kinda a haunting end and the girls looking back at you. It’s kinda creepy. Going back and watching it now, it’s an awesome feeling to be able to pick out each girl by name and kinda see their characters and how far they’ve come along. But back then, I was only able to notice a few that stood out. See if you can pick them out. You should look for them in the second verse after the first chorus ends at the 2:00 mark.

– There is a girl who looks exceptionally young. Her head is always akwardly tilted to the side .

– There is a girl who’s face is very intense. I remember being overwhelmed by her look.

– There is a girl who has short highlighted hair. One of the few brown haired girls. I thought she was really cute.

– There is another girl who is very cute and has short black hair.

She has a solo part where you only hear her voice. You eventually notice that she is pushed to the foreground multiple times and can be considered the “main” character. She was the first member I began to take notice of and eventually learned her name. Maeda Atsuko.

I’ll leave this lesson off here and continue another time.
David

Moteki no Uta

My Favorite Idoling!!! song.
David

For Those Who Care

This is What I’ve Been Up To.

Megane Moe

David