Joined: 26 Mar 2007 Posts: 2061 Location: Melbourne Country:
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2016 11:51 am Post subject:
Zentai: Japanese dress in full-body latex suits to escape pressures of modern day life
Japanese professionals, office workers and pensioners are dressing in full-body latex suits to escape the pressures of modern day life.
According to experts, the craze called Zentai, provides welcome relief from a society that demands conformity.
University student Yukinko spends most of her time in the library or at choir practice by day, but she is also a member of the secret Zentai club.
"My family is conservative. They like me to be quiet and feminine but in secret I wear all over tights and let loose," she said.
Yukinko dresses in the latex suit once a week and said she only feels totally liberated and free in her "second skin".
"I'm a different person wearing this. I can be friendly to anyone and I feel as if I can do anything," she said.
In Tokyo, the Zentais are about 3,000 strong and are sourcing new members every day.
For many, it provides a break from the pressures and expectations of Japanese society, where conformity is valued above individual freedoms.
"People can't see us and its difficult to see them," Zentai leader Seiwa Tamura said.
"So whether one is a teacher or public servant, we become without identity and our true self emerges".
The Zentais are all ages and come from all walks of life.
"There is the Japanese phrase "elegance of silence", which means the more you hide. the more attractive you are," said Miu Fujitsuka, another Zentai leader.
And together, from behind the safety of a latex suit, they can be someone else for a day.
Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 12121 Location: It was fun while it lasted. Country:
Posted: Wed May 25, 2016 12:31 am Post subject:
If you're thinking of becoming an idol and a fan sends you a present, DON'T send it back.
Idol stabbed multiple times by fan
20 year old idol Mayu Tomita who is also a third year college student, was stabbed the neck, chest, arms, and back more than 20 times by a fan on May 21. She was taken to the hospital and is in critical condition.
According to the metropolitan police department, they caught a 27 year old man. Tomohiro Iwazaki at the scene. It is said that Tomita was receiving messages continually from the suspect on her blog and Twitter, and she told the police about it.
On the day of the incident, Tomita was scheduled to perform at a live event at a venue in Koganei City in Tokyo, and she was about to step into the building when the stabbing occurred.
When police officers arrived at the scene after receiving an emergency report from an eyewitness, there was a bloody folding knife on the floor, and Iwazaki was standing by Tomita laying in blood. Iwazaki admitted that he stabbed her with the knife.
According to Koganei police, the suspect told them that he previously sent a gift to Tomita, but she sent it back to him, and it made him furious. He also told the police that he intended to kill Tomita and prepared the knife beforehand.
Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 12121 Location: It was fun while it lasted. Country:
Posted: Tue Jun 27, 2017 8:07 am Post subject:
You could call him the Japanese Bobby Fisher except this kid seems pretty normal, Fisher was a total whack job.
Shogi prodigy Sota Fujii wins record 29th straight match
Japan�fs youngest professional shogi player, 14-year-old Sota Fujii, set the all-time record for consecutive victories Monday, continuing a winning streak that has reignited public interest in the traditional board game.
�gI can�ft believe it myself,�h Fujii, a junior high school student, said after defeating fellow fourth-dan (rank) player Yasuhiro Masuda, 19, in the prestigious Ryuo Championship finals at Shogi Kaikan hall in Tokyo.
He has been unbeaten since his debut match in December. His first win in the streak came against the oldest top-ranked player, Hifumi Kato, age 77.
His winning streak has been hailed by players and fans for breathing new life into the world of shogi, which is often described as Japanese chess.
The previous record of 28 consecutive wins was set in 1987 by Hiroshi Kamiya, a 56-year-old eighth-dan player. Professionals are ranked between fourth dan, the lowest, and ninth dan, the highest.
Fujii registered his 28th win last Wednesday, defeating 25-year-old Shingo Sawada, a sixth dan.
Masuda, who turned pro in 2014, is regarded as being exceptionally skilled since he was a youngster.
The victory means Fujii will move on to challenge Ryuo title holder Akira Watanabe, 33.
The Ryuo title is one of the eight contested by professional shogi players. The winner of the Ryuo tournament will take home the largest purse of the year, around 43.2 million yen plus whatever was earned from winning the previous matches.
When he turned pro last October, Fujii became the youngest professional player ever at the age of 14 years and two months. Two months later, he beat the 77-year-old Kato, a ninth dan player, in his professional debut.
Kato, meanwhile, retired last Tuesday after he lost to 23-year-old fourth-dan Satoshi Takano, bringing an end to a career spanning 63 years.
Fujii�fs rise to prominence has inspired brisk sales of books about shogi aimed at children and has inspired more young people to play the game.
Fujii began playing shogi at age 5 after his grandmother gave him a children�fs version of the game. After his late grandfather became no match for him, he started taking shogi classes in his neighborhood.
Shogi can be more complicated than chess as players, given 20 pieces each, can reuse the pieces captured from their opponent and introduce them back into the game as their own. The game, in which players attempt to capture their opponent�fs king, is believed to have originated from the ancient Indian game of �gchaturanga.�h
Fujii�fs success comes at a good time the shogi world as it was rocked in 2016 by allegations that one of its top players, Hiroyuki Miura, cheated with the assistance of software. Miura was later cleared.
The shogi world is highly competitive. An aspiring player typically enters �gshorei-kai,�h a society under the Japan Shogi Association aimed at training young aspiring players under the age of 26.
Only four new players per year can enter the professional ranks through attainment of fourth dan. To do so, they must finish first or second in the twice-yearly third-dan tournament.
There are currently around 160 active professional players. Including retired players, the number is around 200.
Under the Japan Shogi Association, no women have ever attained fourth dan. Females play as professionals in a separate women�fs only category.
The players get their income from playing in competitions. On top of fees for competing in matches and prize money, they can also earn money by giving talks, teaching the game and appearing on TV.
Top players can earn tens of millions of yen per year.
Joined: 13 Apr 2007 Posts: 12121 Location: It was fun while it lasted. Country:
Posted: Mon Jul 03, 2017 6:18 pm Post subject:
And all good things must come to an end.
Shota Fujii's winning streak halted at 29
A record-setting winning streak by 14-year-old shogi prodigy Sota Fujii ended Sunday with his defeat at the hands of Yuki Sasaki, 22, in a high-profile match of the traditional chess-like game.
Fujii, who is the youngest shogi pro and holds the lowest rank of fourth dan, caused a nationwide sensation with his 29-game unbeaten streak in official matches that began with his pro debut in December.
Fujii, a junior high school student from Seto, Aichi Prefecture, set the all-time record for most consecutive wins last week by beating fellow fourth dan Yasuhiro Masuda.
Ahead of Sunday�fs match, Sasaki, a fifth dan player, said he was determined to halt Fujii�fs streak in a match for the Ryuo Sen championship, known as the highest prize among shogi�fs eight major titles.
His first victory of the streak came against the oldest top-ranked player, Hifumi Kato, a ninth dan player, who recently retired.
The winner of the Ryuo final takes home the largest prize purse of the year, around 43.2 million yen in addition to anything earned from previous matches in the tournament.
Fujii broke the consecutive-win record by Hiroshi Kamiya, a 56-year-old eighth dan player, who won 28 straight matches in 1987.
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Funny! 
