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5/18/2012

One surprising aspect of the Japanese is how superstitious they are, and there's a long list of "traditional folk beliefs" many Japanese subscribe to, some of which are quite colorful. Don't cut your fingernails at night, or you won't be able to be with your parents when they die. If you sneeze, it means someone is gossiping about you. Don't sleep with your head pointing north (kita-makura) or you will die, and so on. The world of ghosts is also quite popular, judging from the programs on Japanese TV which present shocking "proof" of the existence of these spirits all around us, or from the recent boom in ghost-related anime series. A person's sensitivity to these invisible apparitions is called reikan, and the Japanese believe that some people have the ability to sense these spirits while others don't. In the new anime Tasogare Otome x Amnesia (Dusk Maiden of Amnesia) there's a girl named Momoe who joins the school's Paranormal Investigation Club, but because she has no reikan (and is generally thick-headed), she can't see that the president of the club is the school's ghost, Yuko-san, despite the apparition sitting right in front of her. In my family my daughter is thought to have this ability to see ghosts -- she says she once saw a man dressed in a nice suit nod to her as she walked past a house one day, and we learned later that a man had died in the house the day before -- while I am blissfully ignorant of all paranormal activity around me.


Chopsticks are a big part of life in Japan; some people (like me) have zero sensitivity to ghosts.

It's well known that the Japanese eat with chopsticks, and any dish featuring rice, noodles, fish etc. will generally be eaten with them. (Certain foods like curry rice or steak require Western silverware). Chopsticks are very easy to use: you just hold one stick between your middle finger and thumb, then hold the second with your forefinger and thumb so that you can create a "scissor" action that allows you to pick up food. The use of chopsticks is taught to children at around the age of three, and it's common for parents to want to make sure their kids learn to use them properly before they start preschool, making chopstick use one of the first forms of peer pressure children are subjected to in Japanese society. In Japan there's exactly "one" correct way to do things, a concept that extends to the holding of chopsticks as well, and it's common for conversations over beers at an izakaya restaurant to turn to how one of the members at the table is holding their chopsticks in a non-standard way. Incidentally, J-List stocks many kinds of chopsticks from Japan, including bamboo chopsticks with rough patches at the ends to make them easier to eat with and awesome training chopsticks. We also posted the most awesome Kitten Balancing Game, a game where you place cute little cat figures on furniture with chopsticks, being careful to avoid knocking them down.

The Emperor of Japan and his wife are currently in the UK, making an official state visit to take part in the 60th anniversary celebration of Queen Elizabeth. The Emperor gave a speech thanking the British people for the warm assistance they rendered in the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake and tsunamis last year. Emperor Akihito -- oddly, many Japanese people don't know this name, as he's referred to by various formal labels in Japanese -- is 125th in an unbroken line of emperors dating back 2000 years. Each Emperor's reign is marked by an "era" name, like the Showa Period (1926-1989), when the current Emperor's father Hirohito reigned, and when you live in Japan you become quite adept at converting important dates to the Japanese system (for example, I was born in Showa 43, which translates to 1968.) This year is Heisei 24, the 24th year of the reign of the current Emperor, but he recently underwent coronary bypass surgery, and it's becoming apparently that the Heisei Period might not go on for too many more years.

We've got an exciting announcement for you: we're finally ready to take the wraps off of the School Days Deluxe Collector's Edition, an awesome Japanese-style large boxed edition of the game with extra stuff inside, including an original oppai mouse pad by School Days artist Junji Goto, a keychain of Makoto and the game itself. This is really a special event in the history of English visual novels and eroge, and we're really happy to be bringing you such an awesome game in English with no changes from the original. If you already preordered the normal edition and want to change your order to the DX version, use the handy form we've set up here.

Today's New & Restocked Items

Himo Noren -- Kirino Kuroneko from Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai

Gorgeous Anime 'Noren' Door Curtains Restocked

When we posted the Japanese anime noren curtains, which provide a great way to add a little privacy between rooms in your home, we had no idea how popular they'd be. It turns out that our customers love these Japanese door curtains, and bought our entire stock out. We've got many items back in stock today, including the stylish "string curtains" too. VIEW PRODUCTS

Fujiya Country Ma'am -- Matcha Latte

Today's New Japanese Snacks

Every new J-List update is a great chance to meet up with some fun new Japanese treats, and today we've got extra nice items for you, including Fujiya Country Ma'am Green Tea soft cookies, Yubari Melon Caramels, plus many other products to sample. Try sorting the page by "most wishlisted" order to see what other customers are buying. VIEW PRODUCTS

New and Restocked NSFW / 18+ Products

School Days HQ -- Collector's Edition **Preorder**

School Days HQ ~ Collector's Edition *Preorder*

School Days is one of the best eroge titles ever created, an epic story of the complex love relationship between Makoto, the shy Kotonoha and the cheerful Sekai. Fully animated, the game is like no other, offering a complex gaming system with hundreds of choices. The game includes all the new "HQ" content and additional endings, and is fully uncensored. Preorder the standard edition or this DX one now! (Note, if you already preordered the game, you can switch to the Collector's Edition using this handy web form we've set up.) VIEW PRODUCTS

S1 x Sora Aoi 12 Hours Special ***3 Discs 720 MIN*** (region 2)

Finally, Awesome Restocked DVDs & Blu-ray Discs

Finally, a heaping serving of quality ero products from Japan in time for the weekend, including Yuma Asami's amazing works, the always-popular-with-J-List-customers Flat Tits Hyper Best, Sailor Moon Parody and Cosplayer Machiko Ono HD, Tentacle Ecstasy & Time Stop Wristwatch, the amazing "mega boobs" of Hitomi Tanaka, plus popular lesbian DVDs and Sora Aoi. VIEW PRODUCTS