Maneki Neko! まねき猫が大好きだ！

Kita-Kamakura, Japan 2009

I love Maneki Neko! 
 He's the "The Lucky Cat" or "The Money Cat" (what I most often hear him referred to as).  I've been obsessed with this fat paw-waving kitty for as long as I can remember. Childhood trips into Chinatown (NY) gave my parents plenty of practice in tuning me out. "Look mami, it's the cat again!"  Little did I know then, that most stores and restaurants place this "lucky money cat" in their front windows to bring their businesses good luck and fortune.

But it isn't just this cat that I became obsessed with, because later on in High School when I was exposed to the wonders of Trigun, I fell in love with kuro neko (black cat) who makes appearances sporadically throughout the show. After that, I became the proud owner of the plushie and bobble head (haha - loser!).



So what's the deal Asia? Why all the cats? And it isn't just cats, but human-kitty hybrids. Anyone ever watch/read Loveless? (Who'll fess up?) Even the robotic ears on the Personal Computer Andriods in Chobits resembled kitty ears. Wait aren't we forgetting the most important kitty of them all? - HELLO KITTY!  These Asian kitties are all up in my personal life from "piggy" bank to planner.

"Where should I feed into my obsession Ms. Tenoli?"
Well check a few of these finds out!

Kitty ear headphones at GeekStuff4U.com!
GeekStuff4U is a great website to buy some of the latest and coolest Japanese gadgets. For all those fellow HK fans out there, they even have a special tab for your own shopping enjoyment!

(click on the image to check these out!)

 What about getting your own kitty "piggy" bank?
This little koneko (kitten) paws your money into the box.  You can buy this little fellow on J-list.
They even have a maneki neko "piggy" bank!

All this Asian kitty love is going to empty my pockets! 
しょうがないね。It really can't be helped.  

I mean look at these HK maneki neko version chopsticks I bought while in Japan - hopeless. 

 Hope you all enjoy the rest of July! Till next time!

 - La Tenoli

Mameshiba まめしば！

ね、知ってる？ [Hey, do you know?]
Mameshiba are the cutest [most obnoxious] little beans on the planet.
If you don't know much about it, I'd suggest checking out the commercials on Youtube. These cute, Japanese invented, bean characters [ chili, soy, peanuts, etc ] spill out random, sometimes disturbing, trivia - but don't worry, you'll only get one a day.

To continue with the music accessories theme I have going on here lately, I figured I'd share a way for you to Mameshiba-pimp-out your mp3 ( ^ o^)/

Fortunately [or unfortunately] my mp3 is still up and running, but if that bad boy ever decides to stop taking the charge I'll be investing in an iPod. As a Mac user it would make my life a little easier.

But not to worry non-iPod users (are there still any of you out there?) you can always rock Mameshiba on the go with their tenoli headphones ~

Although I'm currently shopping around for a pair of the DJ-looking-headband headphones, it's always good to have a trusty (tenoli) set of earbuds, especially for flying.

I'm personally excited for payday this Friday because I'd like to treat myself to some Mameshiba things! ~

On a slightly related note, as a Gilman Scholarship Recipient I have to carry out the project I proposed during the selection process. The project I came up with, consists of holding an hour long open session where I get to talk to students interested in studying abroad about overcoming culture shock and cultural differences, focusing mostly on the Hispanic community, since I felt there was a lot I could relate to.
Although my presentation is still in the works, I'm pretty certain I'll be using this Mameshiba video in my presentation! ( ^ w ^.)

Hope you all had a great weekend!
Happy Passover & Easter! ~ Feliz dia de la pascua.
La Tenoli

Anime meets OBEY.

Who said anime dorks can't be hip-hop hip? 

Thought I'd share the interesting find ~ ( ' o ')/

This is definitely going on my list of future purchases!~