From The Chi To Sakai

 In Japan, you often come across a lost article of clothing on the street. Usually a glove, scarf, or hat. If you come across a lost item, standard practice is to pick it up and set it in a highly visible spot where it won’t be trampled upon. The idea is, the person who lost the item will retrace their steps and find said item.  Take a ten-minute walk and you’ll usually spot these lost items awaiting their owner. Typically, the item is placed on a nearby fence or ledge. And every time I’ve seen one, I’ve wondered, ‘Does this actually work?’  Well, turns out…it does! Yoko lost this glove about a month ago. We retraced our steps and couldn’t find it then. Fast forward to three weeks later, we’re walking through the same arcade, and there it is, waving us down! We weren’t even looking for it, and we found it. Trust the system. 

The next installment in my series, ' Juan VS 100 ', in which I play Japan's favorite video games, is Tetris for the Nintendo Game Boy. Now we're talking. Tetris (along with Super Mario Bros.) represents my earliest memories of video games. In America, it was packed-in with every Game Boy, and that's how I received mine. Countless hours were spent curled up on the couch, backseats of cars, under the sheets, trying to improve my score. Owning this boxed retail copy now is such a nostalgia trip. Oh...Tetris is Russian, isn't it? Please excuse the bad timing. Sweet Lord, the immaculate condition of this 33-year-old game. Thank you, Japanese people. I have never looked through a Tetris manual in my life. Interesting that the slide-over technique is taught within. Note the unlimited spin is not yet part of Tetris, making this a less-forgiving version of the game. Instant time warp. My best thrift find in Japan; an original (mostly) working Game Boy for only ¥110 ($1).

Recorded on December 1, 2021.

The next installment in my series, ' Juan VS 100 ', in which I play Japan's favorite video games, is Nobunaga's Ambition Xevious for the Nintendo Famicom. Oh, this was a tough one... Unlike Xevious, this game came in an oversized, plastic clamshell case. The sticker reads ¥5,200, but the suggested retail price on the box is ¥9,800! I believe I paid ¥300. That extra cost can be attributed to the additional chips needed to run a game that was very much considered advanced for its time. Hence, the much larger cartridge. It does come with what is essentially a book.  That's 30 plus-year-old cellophane tape. The game has you assuming the role of ruler of a town in Japan during the feudal 1500s. Now, I really don't know anything about Japanese history, but apparently, this is the most interesting, action-packed, romantic time. You pick a town you want to rule over and make choices to keep your citizens happy and healthy. Watch out for that plague. Unlike Xevious, this

As a skater, I'm constantly scouring Google Maps for spots and parks to practice. One free park resides near Shijonawate station, a neighborhood that looks like it hasn't changed since the early 80s, in the city of Daito. But near the station, I stumbled across a very new and chic outdoor plaza, Keitto , complete with dining and shopping. A stark contrast to the rest of the neighborhood, it was a look around. Not the easiest place to get to for us; it took an hour and a half to reach by multiple trains. That's primarily due to the mountains (visible in the background) that we had to go around. From Osaka directly, just about a 30-minute train ride. The plaza hosts various independent shops, cafes, bakeries, and craft stores. I love it when I stumble across a shop that I know I can use for gifts for my partner. At least, I think so... Don't you sometimes wish you were small again to play with things designed for children? Of course, we weren't going to come if there

As the first installment in my series, 'Juan VS 100' , in which I play Japan's favorite video games, I played Xevious for the Nintendo Famicom. Xevious debuted in arcades in 1982, making it the oldest game on the list, in which it ranked 62nd. I had trouble getting my hands on an arcade machine, so I settled for the Nintendo Famicom (NES in the West) version of the game, released in 1984.  I was able to find a complete in-box copy on Mercari (Japanese eBay) for ¥1,234. It's an old-school top-down shooter. You pilot a future fighter ship and try to blast enemies. I love how Famicom packaging is only as big as necessary.  It's strange to hold a game that's older than I am. Xevious is very much a game-ass game; you move a thing around a place while trying to shoot/avoid other things. I'm glad that my first game in this series was one of these, because this style is at the very essence of gaming. There's something primal about trying to survive an onslaught