Friday, May 28, 2004
>> Shinkyokyuu no Hitsuyou
But how many people, masochists included, would voluntarily fly to a tiny island off Okinawa and chop sugar cane for one month? In Tetsuo Shinohara’s “Shinkokyu no Hitsuyo (The Necessity of Deep Breathing)”, the answer is Japanese twentysomethings who want to refreshen their hearts and minds under the blue Okinawa sky … or something like that.Besides the young Tokyoites, the film also stars actor Saburo Kitajima (“Untamagiruu”) and actress Taeko Yoshida (“Untamagiruu”, “Pineapple Tours”), both from Okinawa.
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
>> Pop.i-O gets along with IE/Win
Those of you who use Internet Explorer for Windows (i.e., at least version 6.x) should now be able to view the site correctly. Still, you can do no wrong by downloading yourself a better web browser but that’s just my humble opinion. If you’re still seeing something that you feel shouldn’t be a part of the design, try refreshing/reloading your web browser or emptying its cache. If you’re experiencing problems with IE 5.x, please let me know as I don’t have one that I can use to test the site.
>> Wedding bells for another Okinawan J-pop star
Ex-SPEED member Eriko Imai (20) has announced her plans to marry SHOGO (24), vocalist from the J-pop group 175R (Inago Rider), according to a notice from her official website (dated 5/10). The couple, who met through a friend more than a year ago, are expecting their first child in the autumn. Eriko joins fellow Okinawan J-pop star YUKINARI from DA PUMP who is also expecting a child this year. Wow.Monday, May 10, 2004
>> Pop.i-O’s Spring 2004 Contest
It’s been a l-o-n-g time but finally, here’s a new contest for you, my precious readers. I must warn you that the Pop.i-O’s Spring 2004 Contest will not be an easy one. First, the prize: Banda Tontonmi’s debut album “Saudade de Uchina”. Second, the contest: on Pop.i-O’s new banner, name all of the album covers that are on it (see, I told ya it wouldn’t be easy); i.e., the artist names and the album titles. If you can go even as far as to list the record label and release date for each album, I’ll throw in another CD! Good luck!
The contest will last until we have a winner or until my next (easier) contest in the summer. :)
To enter the contest, send me an email at riccin[at]internet-okinawa[dot]com, with “Contest” in the subject line, or to make the whole process a little easier, just click here to email me. (Btw, there are 15 albums in all.)
>> Lorraine Kaneshiro Cultural Benefit
The HUOA (Hawaii United Okinawa Association) will be holding a cultural benefit for the late Lorraine Kaneshiro on Sunday, May 23, 2004, from 10:30am to 2pm at the HOC (Hawaii Okinawa Center). For more information (as well as where to buy your tickets) please visit the HUOA website or call the center at 808-676-5400.
[View the flier—Adobe PDF
1.59 MB]
Wednesday, May 05, 2004
>> i-O BBS
Who doesn’t love a good discussion?I practically live there so I hope you’ll join and keep me company. :)
Join us at the i-O BBS (bulletin board system) and join the internet-Okinawa community! One of our newest Team i-O members, Derek Young, established this new system for us to facilitate interactivity and community amongst our members and site visitors.
What good is a discussion board without any active discussions? That’s where YOU come in! Please jump in and start participating!
If you have any questions about the BBS, please drop us an e-mail at support [at] internet-okinawa [dot] com.
See you in the BBS! Let’s start chatting!
>> Order Your Very Own NS&CS T-Shirt
I received my Noborikawa Seijin & China Sadao (Respect Records) t-shirt in the mail last week! To order your very own t-shirt, go to their website and follow these steps:- After the splash page, you will enter their information page. Scroll down until you see the image of the t-shirt and click on the link to the left of it.
- You should now be on the t-shirt promotion page. From here, scroll down to the online form. (Note that they are only offering three t-shirt sizes: S, M, L [these are Japan sizes so they are a bit smaller than US sizes].)
- Fill in your name in the first blank area, then hit your “Tab” key (nifty trick huh? you’d be surprised that not many people know about this) to go to the next blank area and fill in your email address.
- The next three blank areas are asking for: your zip code, followed by your shipping address, and lastly your phone number (don’t worry, they won’t call you).
- The pull-down on the left side is asking for the size of your t-shirt; the one on the right is asking for your order quantity.
- Finally, click on the little button (it’s read soushin in Japanese and means submit) after the rather lengthy blank area to complete your order request.
Way cool t-shirt!
Tuesday, May 04, 2004
>> Coco d’Or
Coming off of a successful live performance in Seattle for this year’s Sakura-Con 2004 (an anime convention) has given hiro (SPEED) the confidence she needs to move forward with her latest project: Coco d’Or. The Coco d’Or project, featuring hiro as a jazz singer, will introduce her fans to a mature (she turned 20 this year), sophisticated artist. The cover album will feature jazz standards such as “Fly Me To The Moon” and “Lullaby of Birdland” and is set to be released on the 26th of this month.
Monday, May 03, 2004
>> New Artist of the Year: Orange Range
Congratulations to Orange Range who were one of the winners of the 18th annual Japan Gold Disc Award’s New Artist of the Year! In winning this award, Orange Range (they sing the theme song “Michishirube∼a road home∼”, from the Fuji TV drama Fire Boys) joins these other Okinawan artists Kiroro (13th), DA PUMP (12th), SPEED (11th), and BEGIN (5th). Let’s hope they win the Artist of the Year award next year!
