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Japan is one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world, a fact that I was reminded of on Thursday morning when the Kanto region (where Tokyo and Gunma are located) got a big 6.7 magnitude shake that seemed to go on for two minutes or more. A staggering 20% of all earthquakes in the world occur in Japan, a chain of islands that sits astride four different tectonic plates, and one of the major challenges to the country has been how to apply its unique engineering skills to make sure buildings and people are safe. It's a tribute to those skills that Thursday's quake resulted in only a few injuries and no deaths, although it doesn't always work out so well. The Great Hanshin Earthquake (Hanshin means "Osaka-Kobe") of 1995 occurred in a region of Japan where strong quakes were less common, and as a result of lower building standards, a staggering 6400 people lost their lives. One of the features homebuilders tout on TV commercials in Japan is how well

engineered their houses are, with special spring joints that allow the homes to rock back and forth flexibly in the event of shaking.

Last time I talked about what makes the Japanese the way they are, putting forth the theory that the strict Junior High School system is a major factor in shaping children into the adult citizens they'll become. Another of the social engines at work in Japan is called hito no me (hee-toh no meh), meaning the "eyes of others," essentially the ever-present invisible gaze of people around you. A friend of mine just built a house in Nagano, and he's enjoying having cleaner air and less people around him than when he was in Tokyo. His new neighborhood has a strict rule, however: trash must be deposited in the appropriate pick-up area between 6 and 6:30 in the morning, which means he has to get up extra early every day to put the trash out. If he were to break this rule by, say, putting his trash out the night before, he'd find himself the subject of the disapproving stares of the other people in the neighborhood, which is a lot harder to deal with than the threat of a monetary fine would be. This sensitivity to how you appear in the eyes of others is probably the primary reason Japan seems so harmonious when viewed from the outside, as gaijin see it. My sixth-grade daughter is half-Japanese, and she somehow managed to inherit my easy-going American personality. When my wife went to my daughter's class for parent participation day last week, my daughter threw her arms around her mother, to the shock of everyone in the classroom. Hugging your mother isn't really done in Japan, and certainly not in the middle of classroom full of the "eyes of others."

There are many strange and new tastes that await a foreigner who comes to live in Japan. Some, like pickled plums, chicken cartilage or the fermented soybeans called natto don't sit too well with me, although I've come to enjoy many other foods, including all manner of fish and other good things from the sea. (At my house, we regularly eat tako salad, which is fresh salad with octopus meat, served with a tangy vinaigrette). Another food I've really come to like is wasabi, an extremely spicy flavoring that adds so much to sushi and sashimi as well as soba and udon noodles. Similar to horseradish, wasabi has a very long history in Japan, and there are documents dating from the year 718 that mention it as a medicinal herb, which is interesting since wasabi is known to naturally fight infections and act as an antibiotic, for example killing the bacteria that cause ulcers. At J-List we have many interesting wasabi products, including the hit snack of the season, Wasabi Doritos, real wasabi in a tube, and a treat I personally love to much on, spicy rice crackers and peanuts called Kaki no Tane, which means "persimmon seeds" because of the shape of the rice crackers. Check them out!

For the new update, we've got some excellent products from Japan for you. You can view all new J-List products by clicking this link.

	Sharon 1/8 Scale Figure ~ Quiz Magic Academy. Cute character from the anime Quiz Magic Academy, rendered in pre-painted PVC loveliness for you. How do they get the anime hair to look this good in three dimensions?
	Eika Ichijo Hug Pillow Case ~ Sky Girls. The anime Sky Girls by Mecha Musume creator Fumikane Shimada is a great one, about beautiful girls who defend the Earth using advanced mecha. Now you can sleep with the cute lead character Eika with this new "hug pillow" (aka dakimakura). So cute and fun!
	Newtype Japan April 2008. Another new of Newtype, the Moving Pictures Magazine, which is usually only available through our popular revolving magazine subscription service, but we got some extra copies in. Each issue is loaded with free stuff for you.
	S Cawaii May 2008. J-List also carries dozens of great anime, manga, toy and magazines for men via our "reserve subscription" service. We also have many outstanding fashion magazines from Japan which are fascinating to look through. This is S Cawaii ("Super Cute"), normally only available as a subscription, but we have some individual issues in today.
	R2-D2 Shampoo Bottle. We've posted two more collectable Star Wars shampoo bottles: the all-black R2-Q5, seen on the second Death Star, the green R2-A6 (the green R2 unit in the service of Naboo).
	Exodus Guilty vol. 1-3 Set. J-List carries the outstanding interactive anime games from Hirameki International, all-ages games that everyone can enjoy. We're reducing the price of their Exodus Guilty trilogy of interactive DVD games which are played in any standard DVD player -- you can pick up the whole set for a great price now!
	New Salad Pretz, Candy. Today's new Japanese snacks include the delicious Salad Pretz from Glico with new cheese spice included, as well as yummy Lemon Collagen Candy from UHA.
	Wasabi "Kaki no Tane" Rice Crackers w/ Peanuts 6 Packs. Then, the Official Japanese Snack of Peter, this is the amazing rice cracker + peanut treat Kaki no Tane, which means "persimmon seeds" due to the shape of the rice crackers. These are coated with super spicy real wasabi, which will clear out your sinuses for you, we can tell you. Highly recommended snack item.
	KASURI x WAGARA Multi Mini Tote Bag ~ Red, Blue. Here are two great traditional Japanese cloth bags of extremely high quality, a great way to add a touch of Japan to your daily stole. Love the deep red and blue coloring.
	FUURIN ~ Japanese Summer Bell -- Gold Fish. In the summer there's no sound more pleasing than a Japanese wind chime, or fuurin, and here's a great one featuring images of goldfish.
	DX Tatami Setta with Leather Sole ~ L size. J-List loves to bring you cool traditional items from Japan. Here is another pair of really well made setta sandals, which we call tatami sandals since they're made from the same materials. Great for guys or girls.
	Mugen Puchi Puchi -- Endless Pop Pop - Pink & Blue. See more of those popular "bubble popping" electronic keychains that make a pop, pop, pop sound when you press the buttons. Pink and blue are restocked today.
	80's Hello Kitty Microwavable Tight Bento Box. For bento enthusiasts, here's a cute Hello Kitty lunchbox that's got removable sections allowing your rice to be separate from the rest of your lunch Great Sanrio item from Japan.
	More Bento Stuff. See more stock of the Retro Trading Mark Bento Box that's been a top seller more than a year, as well as the "STRIPES" Eco-Conscious chopsticks and more traditional miso soup bowls for your kitchen.
	Hello Kitty Chirimen OTEDAMA ~ Pink. Otedama (OH-teh-dah-mah) are bean bag toys that have been around in Japan for centuries, which have been updated in the form of a really cute Hello Kitty bean bag toy from Sanrio. There something satisfying about holding these things, I'm not sure why. Back in stock today!
	Restocked Traditional Items. See our Happy Message Lucky Cat Strap, a beautiful wooden kokeshi doll for displaying, and our popular omamori traditional Japanese good luck charm (red), back in stock today.
	*Ninja Weapon Keychain ~ Jitte Goyou* / Red.** The jitte (JI-teh) is a unique weapon designed to stop a sword attack, used for centuries by ninja and samurai. We've restocked our jitte keychains in case you find yourself being attacked by small swordsmen and need to repel them.
	Edo Style Handy Accessory Pouch. Also: this is a cool cloth pouch you can use to keep your money, credit card and other important things in. It's modeled after string-tied pouches used in the Edo Period.
	Japanese in Mangaland Vol. 1. Learning Japanese through manga comics, what could be cooler? This is a great book that teaches you basic Japanese using this popular artform.
	Hiragana Times 258 Apr 2008. Hiragana Times is an outstanding magazine that gives you articles both in English and Japanese each month which are very interesting. Great both for students of Japanese as well as anyone who wants to keep up with current events here!
	Restocked Studio Ghibli DVDs. J-List carries the official English-subtitled and dubbed DVD releases of the films of Hayao Miyazaki from Studio Ghibli, and today we're restocking Howl's Moving Castle and My Neighbor Totoro. We also sell great upscaling region-free DVD players with HDMI outputs to watch them on, if you're interested in one.
	Magic Ink Set ~ Multi School Marker with Retro Design / 8 colors. Here's a set of really cool "magic" marker pens that are as colorful as their retro package design is cool. For making broad, thick permanent lines in any color, this pen set is highly recommended.
	Doraemon Crayons, Pokemon Tracing Paper. See some fun items today, including deluxe crayons for for fans of Doraemon, the robot cat from the future, and paper that helps kids learn how to draw Pikachu.
	Restocked Japanese Snacks. More snacky goodness from Japan today. See Lotte Black Black Tablets (candy) loaded with caffeine, Pocari Sweat Powder for making the iconic drink at home, Glico Cratz in Pepper Bacon flavor, Ramune candy in Orange Soda flavor, and a favorite of mine, Tomato Pretz!

For fans of our NSFW items from Japan, we've got many new and restocked products, too -- click here to see all new products.

Remember that J-List carries an extensive line of original kanji T-shirts and warm, soft hoodies that are a great way for you to bring a little kanji into your life. We've got dozens of designs, including humorous messages that might serve as great conversation starters, designs that might help you find romance, aesthetically beautiful kanji characters that capture your personality, cool anime T-shirts, or designs that are just plain wacky. Please note that we're always in the process of closing our older designs so we can make room for new ones, so if you've had your eye on, say, that "Kiss Me, I'm a Gaijin" T-shirt, we recommend that you snap it up now, lest the shirt you want become unavailable.

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