New Alarm Clock

I had been looking for a bedside clock/radio/CD player for a while now with no luck. I just happened upon this Marantz today and decided to go for it. It features all of the above with bass and treble settings, two remote controls, 8 color display backlights, etc. And there's an additional speaker on the back for really nice sound. I just hope it lasts a more than a few years. I hate throwing electronics away.

Mark, Carlos, and Booska

Met up with Mark Nagata and Carlos Enriquez Gonzales last night. They were here for last weekend's Wonder Festival. Mark brought a sample of his upcoming Booska figure, which was designed by Martin Ontiveros and sculpted by Kiyoka. It's made in China but the quality is quite impressive and the paint work is pretty nice. Carlos brought one of his colorful fiberglass creations as well.

Wonder Festival Winter 2008

For those not familiar, Wonder Festival is a toy, character, modeling, and hobby show that happens twice a year at Tokyo Big Site in Odaiba. This is one of the bigger events in Japan, taking up 3 or 4 halls of the convention center. One of the unique things about Wonder Festival is that fans are able to produce, make, and release their own versions of their favorite characters, and get a one day license to officially sell them at the show. Of the hundreds of otaku booths at the event, there are usually a couple of interesting releases. This time, Gargamel released a Tomy licensed Microman Acroyear soft vinyl figure, and Charactics had Henshin Cyborg and King Walder mini figures. I think these were my favorites from today's show. I was also able to score a jumbo unpainted M1 Booska at the M1 ring toss. Soon after that, I wandered into the used and vintage toy area and found this vintage Popy Makoto Chan figure for super cheap. Pretty stoked about today.

Sunday Driver

The view from the Tokyo highways is quite different from what you see from the train windows. Here are a few pictures of today's drive to Wonder Festival at Big Site in Odaiba. It was quite smooth, no traffic at all, but very windy. Wonder Festival pictures coming next.

Electric Killers

Neon yellow and pink Killers. I really like how these turned out. But I could only make one of each.

Skate and Destroy

Went skating with Yutaka and Naoya tonight. This is the first time I've skated hard since my knee was injured last year in California. It felt pretty good and we all had a lot of fun. It was cold though, close to freezing.

Garage Sale & Stuff

It's been a cold but nice February. We got lots of snow at the beginning of the month, and now it's pretty sunny most days. I've been fixing up my bike and setting up skateboards in anticipation of spring. And I'm not sure how this relates to anything, but I'm having a garage sale. Random soft vinyl bits and pieces of all shapes and colors. This will be a Cometdebris mailing list release. Here's a sneak peek, two Killer Two Pak test paint figures. Each is one of a kind.

New Zip Zinger

Just set this up today. It's a bit wider than the Zip Zinger Nano I had, so it feels a lot better under my size 10 feet. With Indy 149s and Spitfire 55s.

Japanese Terrorists Strike Again

This time their kill included a mother minke and calf. It looks like they'll stop at nothing, even the young are targets. Not to mention they continue to invade sanctuaries and ignore various international laws. The photo above was taken off the coast of Australia, and the government is considering taking legal action. To protect Japan's "culture", Japanese media continues to keep all whaling news from the public. www.seashepherd.org

Even More!

Yes, it's snowing once again in Tokyo. This is probably the heaviest snowfall so far this year. It's only been falling for about 3 hours and it's already 3 or 4 centimeters deep. I think it's awesome. Hopefully it sticks around for a while.

Snow! Woo Hoo!

I took these recently painted Woos out into the snow early this morning.

More Snow!

We got a bit more snow yesterday and early this morning. Unfortunately it didn't last very long. Most of it was gone by noon today.

Bullet Train Sushi

Our nearby Kappa Sushi just installed a Bullet Train for special orders. In addition to the usual conveyer belt, they now have a single express line which transports up to 4 plates of sushi at a time. For popular dishes that are hard to grab or special requests, they now have a touch panel menu. A few minutes after placing your order, it zips down the track and right to your table. The stylish and aerodynamic train is operated by two kappas in the cockpit.

Demons Out! Good Fortune In!

Today was Setsubun, a kind of rutual event to get rid of evil and bring in luck. Mamemaki (bean throwning) is a big part of the ritual. To do this, you need to get an oni (devil or demon) mask and dried soybeans. These are sold in most supermarkets and convenience stores. Someone wears the mask to symbolize the oni, and everyone chases him out while throwing the soybeans at him. All the while chanting "oni wa soto! fuku wa uchi!" (demons out! luck in!). If nobody is willing to play the oni, you can just throw the beans outside. Some people also eat as many beans as their age for good luck, and an extra bean for next year. I was able to find a Zagoran sized mask, so he played oni this year. Bring in the luck!

Snow in Tokyo!

It snowed all day today. A little messy but a lot of fun. This is the most snow we've seen in a while. Last winter it didn't even snow at all. Here are a few pictures of the neighborhood.

Ojo Rojo

Here's my Ojo Rojo for Martin's Rock n' Roll Fantasy show at Grass Hut.