Miki, the photographer thought these hung lanterns in Kasuga Taisha grand shrine
looked amazing during Nara Rurie Illumination event.
She assumed that the couple in this picture must have had a lovely Valentine’s eve^^
Copyright(C) Miki

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Today, I would like to introduce an article about secret affairs of married Japanese.

In the US last year, it seems a jealous granny shot her almost 90 years old husband on suspicion of cheating on her behind her back…(-_-;)  Yes, cheating may result in a very tragic incident like this if it goes wrong…  Anyway, it seems there was a brave person who investigated actual rate of flirting in Japan a while ago.

"bored-now" some rights reserved. flickr

An associate professor of an university in Tokyo investigated flirting rate among married Japanese by a study with 1000 male and female from Tokyo and Osaka in 2004.  As a result, surprising 28.3% of partners have been cheated on them.

…so 3 in 10 enjoy flirting or are suffering from flirting of their partner, which unfortunately doesn’t very rare･･･(>_<)

FYI, a definition of flirting in this survey only means self-motivated contact and doesn’t include emotional one without actual physical involvement.  Well, it is surprising that so many people actually actively involved in such an activity, but more importantly this indicates that there are potentials who hasn’t show action just yet…

"mrhayata" some rights reserved. flickr

Even more interesting thing here is a difference between male and female rate.  When it comes to ‘affairs’, it seems men generally have a bad impression as if they couldn’t stop flirting (sorry, but no offense to those who are very faithful to their girlfriend or wife).  But what a surprise!  There was any major difference between sexes, and men seems to be just slightly free-spirited than women according to the article.

Wow, so it’s not always women who has to try so hard to avoid secret affairs of their partner but also men.

Having said that, the article also shows that 60% of male and 50% of female between 18 to 34 years old in Japan described themselves as single, which means there are still many of old good type of Japanese who is very shy (＾u＾)

How did you like today’s article?

St. Valentine’s day is now over, so if you feel like you haven’t treated your husband/wife or boyfriend/girlfriend well, get prepared for next anniversary or birthday in order to be a happy couple～♪

Source: web R25

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This is a Japanese anime EVANGELION headphone (nerv version). If you are an Evangelion fan, it’s something you couldn’t miss.

In Japan, Evangelion’s new movie is due this autumn 2012, which I’m very looking forward to! ^_^

SPECIFICATION:
Impedance: 46ohm
Sensitivity: 110±3dB/mW
Effective frequency band: 10Hz-20KHz
Max input power: 100mW
Plug: 3.5mm stereo mini plug

We have selling them on our ebay store! Please check it out!

If the eBay link is dead and you have questions about the item, please contact me HERE.

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This is a weekly headline round-up of the posts titled [Japan after Quake] on our Facebook page.

[Feb. 13] Man works to restore specimens at tsunami-devastated museum.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120213p2a00m0na009000c.html

Masaru Kumagai, a 45-year-old curator at the Sea and Shell Museum, has teamed up with people including retired museum workers to help restore the museums’ damaged specimens.

[Feb. 14] World Press Photo Contest -People in the News Stories category -1st prize winner.

http://designyoutrust.com/2012/02/11/world-press-photo-competition-2012-winners/

The photograph shows Chieko Matsukawa with her daughter’s graduation certificate as she finds it in the debris in Higashimatsushima, in Miyagi prefecture.

[Feb. 15] Remade in Japan: a year on from the tsunami.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/lifestyle/travel/usa-long-haul/japan-a-nation-determined-to-rebuild-itself-681136

March 11 marks the first anniversary of the devastating earthquake and tsunami. Didi Danso visits a nation determined to rebuild it.

[Feb. 16] UNESCO’s Kizuna Campaign Sends 30,000 Hopeful Messages To Sendai, Japan.

http://www.asianscientist.com/academia/unesco-kizuna-campaign-sendai-tsunami-earthquake-japan-2012/

UNESCO’s Kizuna campaign, which led to 30,000 messages of friendship from students around the world being sent to their peers in the devastated areas, reached Nakano School, where several bright up the corridor walls.

[Feb. 17] Robot seals heal hearts of Japan tsunami survivors.

http://www.france24.com/en/20120217-robot-seals-heal-hearts-japan-tsunami-survivors-0

High-tech fluffy seals that respond to human touch are the latest weapon in the battle against depression for survivors of Japan’s tsunami disaster.

[Feb. 18] Japan tsunami’s aftermath leaves grieving mothers still searching for children in school disaster zone.

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1133603–japan-tsunami-s-wake-leaves-grieving-mothers-still-searching-for-children-in-school-disaster-zone

“I’ll never be at peace if I don’t find her head,” says the mother, her eyes brimming with tears. “She also won’t be (at peace) where she is.”

[Feb. 19] Film about Japan disaster awarded special mention at Berlin festival.

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/arts/news/20120219p2g00m0et061000c.html

A short Japanese animation on the theme of last March’s devastating quake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear crisis received special mention on Friday at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival.

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Have you ever used an abacus? It’s an old-fashioned calculator, really. There might be many types of abacuses in the world. In Japan, we call an abacus “soroban”. You can see an example of a classic Japanese abacus in the photo above (this one happens to be a shortened version for children). Have you seen these in your country? If so, does this look similar?

One day, our blogger, Ms. O, comes up with the idea of making abacuses with unusual materials. I will introduce some of them!

Her first materials are beads. It will be very cute (^^)

Also, she uses some wire and disposable chopsticks.

It’s starting to look like an abacus already.

Wow! This is really pop and cute XD.

The color gradation is beautiful. I want a real (not cheap handmade with chopsticks) abacus like this. Well, actually I can’t use an abacus though… ^^; Actually I learned how to use one when I was a child, but I don’t remember the skills anymore!

And now Ms. O starts making another, more tiny abacus.
Seems quite difficult to stick the wire into the bead holes.

Haha! So tiny. It looks like a USB stick or something.

Uh-oh. It might not very suitable for actual use LOL. 
There seems be some more. Let’s look at Ms. O’s creations.

This is one with pearls. Looks like a mermaid’s abacus

Oh! I love this one too.

Seems like this one with this acrylic frame and the previous one with the colorful beads have become my favorites (^^).

Which one do you like the best? (If you’re actually using this for a calculator, you might want to choose the basic wooden one, though…)

Source: Daily Portal Z

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This is a handmade (cell phone) strap with Japanese Nanbu Iron plate painted a flower.

The flowers are birth flowers, so there are 12 different designs to choose from. This one is for May (lily of the valley).

Each one is wholeheartedly painted by a craftsman. By wearing your birth month’s accessory, you might get mysterious power!?

[About Nanbu Iron...]
Recently, Nanbu Iron has increasingly gained an international appreciation in the fashion world in such places as New York City and Paris.

Today’s popularity of Nanbu Iron can be directly traced back to its roots 400 years ago.

During this time period, King Nanbu, the leader of the Nanbu people of North Eastern Japan, cherished the quality and strength of the Nanbu Iron while having a keen eye and deep appreciation for art; thus, under King Nanbu’s patronage the Nanbu Iron casting techniques and avenues of artistic expression flourished.

Today’s two particularly popular items that came out of this time period are the vine-shaped handled iron teapot and the decorative iron wind chime.

Both items are very beautiful to see and touch.

What makes the vine-shaped handled teapot significant is the brilliance of the casting techniques.

Previously, teapots were cast from a mold, but with improving techniques under King Nanbu’s leadership blacksmiths were able to create an artistic handle separate from the cast pot.

This vine-handle was hammered – not cast – into shape.

We have selling them on our ebay store! Please check it out!

If the eBay link is dead and you have questions about the item, please contact me HERE.

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Normally, this scenery can only be seen on Setsubun
and during bon festival (14^th and 15^th Aug as well as 3^rd Feb);
however, special exhibition is on now!!  To 14^th (Tues) 17:30～20:30.
Copyright(C) Miki

This is JAPAN Style!