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December 31, 2005
Monkey Business
If you haven't heard it yet, its well worth checking out Ricky Gervais (he of "The Office" fame) and friends' podcast. And for those who are wondering, the story about the lion mutilating 42 Cambodian midgets is a fake.
Posted by Marcus at 2:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 29, 2005
Enough already!
Listen guys, I love Star Wars too (the original series, at least) but ENOUGH ALREADY!
Posted by Marcus at 12:50 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 24, 2005
Christmas Karaoke
Posted by Marcus at 11:26 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
December 11, 2005
Not turned-on by 360
I happened to pass the giant Bic Camera electronics store in Yurakucho yesterday morning on my way to work. Outside, there were half a dozen Xbox 360s set up for passers-by to test drive, as well as a large number of consoles pre-bagged and ready to take home.
What I didn't see outside the store, however, were customers. With ten minutes to go before the store opened, there wasn't one customer waiting in line.
Like its predecessor, it looks as though the latest version of the machine has failed to impress the Japanese.
Posted by Marcus at 10:00 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
December 10, 2005
Australia vs The World
Woke up this morning to discover that Australia has been placed in the same group as Brazil for the World Cup Finals in Germany next year. Shock, horror! One great bit of news from the draw however - Australia is playing Japan in the very first round! It all begins on 12th June in Kaiserlautern, then Australia go on to play Brazil at the new stadium in Munich on the 18th and Croatia in Stuttgart on the 22nd June.
Naturally I'm excited because Australia's first World Cup Finals appearance in 30 years is to be against the team from my adopted home. Hell, I even spent yesterday afternoon trying to negotiate FIFA's archaic website in search of tickets.
Now, if I only knew where Kaiserlautern is...
Posted by Marcus at 9:18 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
December 9, 2005
Its been a while
As its been so long since my last post, i thought I'd give everyone an update on what exactly I've been up to lately.
The big news is that I've FINALLY moved out of my old apartment in Otorii and into a much nicer one on the Seibu line, not so far from Takadanobaba in Tokyo's inner west. After five years of sharing with backpackers from New Zealand, foul-mouthed thugs from Belfast, wannabe DJs from Canada etc. its great to have a place to call my own, even if right now the new tatami in the guest room makes the whole place smell like something like the inside of a lawn-mower.
Why didn't I move before now? Mainly because moving house here in Tokyo is extremely costly, even if you're only renting. In the first month alone, there's the rent, the deposit, the agent fee and usually a further month or two's rent to cover what the Japanese innocuously refer to as "key" money - basically a gift for the landlord, payable on the day you move. That's not to mention the cost of moving itself (in this case a Nissan van for the day) or having the utilities connected!
Thankfully, the hard part is behind me now. All that remains is for me to sort through about a dozen or so boxes full of magazines, instruction manuals, scratched DVDs and half-completed Japanese worksheets ;-)
Posted by Marcus at 4:10 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack