galaxicosterous

7-11 stores in Japan are celebrating the anniversary of some BIG ROBOTS with some big giveaways. To mark the 30th Anniversary of GUNDAM, 7-11 has special giveaways, exclusive products, and other freebies.

There's plenty of GUNDAM swag to be had and other stuff can be won through drawings (I've only won some coffee so far =P). It's just a way to sell more stuff and it works! I've become a sucker for collecting the keitai/cellphone straps that come attached to drinks.

And of course, there's GUNDAM keitai straps (I only have #2 & #6, so far...) My thoughts: "I'm not that thirsty but I'd sure like that mini plastic robot." *Pepsi, sold!*

I've done this before with Star Wars Be@rbricks...

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On Saturday, I walked around Yonemachi (米町), a neighborhood in Kushiro (釧路). There's a park, fantastic views of the ocean (and heavy industrial ports! :P), and most interestingly, at least a dozen temples and related buildings. Kushiro may not be much older than much of the western United States, but strolling around this part of the town, the place feels much more dated and seasoned. Also noteworthy ~ all cobblestone streets and lots of stray cats (that's not unusual though).

I'll upload more photos of my solo stroll on Flickr.

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This is the car I drive in Japan, quickly parked in a 7-11 lot. It's a 5th generation Toyota Chaser and it's quite awesome. It's rear-wheel drive and apparently was the competitor to the Nissan Skyline sedan(!)

It can be crazy to drive this beast down narrow streets and alleys but the engine has quite a lot of power and that makes driving fun...needs a bath btw. I'll treat it to one on the next nice-ish day!

I've gotten used to driving on the other side of the road -- so much so it'd be initially tricky to get around in the USA =) Also, I'll take new photos when I get winter tires put on since I'll have new rims.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Chaser

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Hockey is quite popular in Kushiro. Between schools, clubs, semi-pros, and pros (Nippon Paper Cranes!), there's hundreds of teams in this town. I play for two of them (somewhere on the low end of the skill spectrum of course). My club team's captain asked me to be a goal judge (the guy that sits in one of the two boxes behind each goal and turns on a red light when someone scores). I went expecting the game to be just between two other clubs and well,...I was wrong =)

Turns out the game was apparently an exhibition between the top two women's teams in Japan! Granted, it was their B teams but nonetheless, the top 2. It was a fantastic time, I got fed, and was even able to snap a few photos from my vantage point. None of them do justice or are too action-packed because I was working and couldn' point and focus while the players were coming towards my goal or shooting. Yet more proof of something that I expected to be mundane becoming something awesome (that's happening all the time it seems!)

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Why I love the Indies Issue promo compilation CD exhibit A: "Moonshadow" by Eccy. The beat on "Moonshadow" pounds through the foggy layers of sound that stir into a melody and it's all quite electrifying.

The song isn't featured on the solo trackmaker's latest album, BLOOD THE WAVE, but it really makes me want to hear anything else by him. BLOOD THE WAVE dropped on September 16th and features new collaborations with SHING02, Predawn(!!),  and Fat Jon.

http://www.myspace.com/eccytrv

image via http://www.public-image.org/project/2009/01/21/publicimagefoundation-vol2-unit-report.html

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This is what the place looked like when I went there back in August.

               

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New favorite magazine. Good finds and comes with a 19-track compilation CD inside. http://indiesissue.net

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In the future, robots will teach art classes and make music. They will tell you when to take your vitamins and when to go to sleep. That’s why it’s incredibly important that humans be nice to them and keep them happy, so they’ll let us stay up late on weekends.

In other words, welcome!

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