What's on Tonight
Doesn't matter where you live, if you've got TV, there's going to be stupid/weird stuff showing from time to time, right? Well, in Japan, the weird/stupid stuff is... limitless. Here's what I saw, in just one hour of evening telly:
1) A bunch of comedians forming an impromptu brass band and trying to perform a fairly complex piece while running side-by-side on a giant treadmill for five kilometers.
2) A bunch of comedians taking turns being spun on some weird spinning machine until they're so dizzy they can't see straight and then being made to walk a narrow platform on either side of which is a pool filled with water heated to 50'C (and, to be humane, I guess, a really small kiddy pool filled with crushed ice in front of the scalding pool of water).
3) A pilates instructional program featuring twin redhead instructors who speak in unison in Japanese and have matching pigtails.
4) A show in which numerous dog owners are "kidnapped" while out walking their dog to see what Fido will do when it sees its owner being stuffed into a minivan and driven away. Complete with moving, dramatic music when a dog gave chase.
5) A reenactment of a controversial incident in the 1976 Olympics using Barbie and Ken dolls controlled in traditional bunraku style.
1) A bunch of comedians forming an impromptu brass band and trying to perform a fairly complex piece while running side-by-side on a giant treadmill for five kilometers.
2) A bunch of comedians taking turns being spun on some weird spinning machine until they're so dizzy they can't see straight and then being made to walk a narrow platform on either side of which is a pool filled with water heated to 50'C (and, to be humane, I guess, a really small kiddy pool filled with crushed ice in front of the scalding pool of water).
3) A pilates instructional program featuring twin redhead instructors who speak in unison in Japanese and have matching pigtails.
4) A show in which numerous dog owners are "kidnapped" while out walking their dog to see what Fido will do when it sees its owner being stuffed into a minivan and driven away. Complete with moving, dramatic music when a dog gave chase.
5) A reenactment of a controversial incident in the 1976 Olympics using Barbie and Ken dolls controlled in traditional bunraku style.
4 Comments:
Hey Rachel
That's really funny. Do you have cable tv? I can't live without my cable tv in Japan. Quite frankly, I soon got tired of Japanese tv: game shows about food, quiz shows about food and onsens, onsens special, best ramnen shop special... and the screaming, aaahh-ing and eiiiiii-ing really does my head in after a while.
Now that we live in Singapore, TV is a little better but there's only one cable provider. Not much of a choice we have here. I think I know the show with the 2 gaijin chicks. Is it a pilates programme on NHK? Still on the subject of Singaporean TV, I love the multi language channels and the subtitles!
I'd like to see more pictures of your dog. We are thinking of getting a Jack Russel terrier.
Best,
Eve
Hi Eve,
I know, why does everyone have to scream so much on Japanese TV? They must be exhausted.
I do have cable, but I actually don't watch that much TV in general, so, despite the screaming, I manage to enjoy all those crazy variety and quiz shows--and, yes, even the gazillion ramen specials.
Oh my god, you know the twin gaijin pilates instructor show?! That's insane. I think you watched too much TV while you were in Japan. Ha, just kidding.
I promise to post more pictures of Edward, when I have a free moment. And Jack Russels are adorable, but I hear they can get into a whole lot of trouble because they're so intelligent and get bored easily.
Hi Rachel
Those twin gaijin pilates instructors freak me out! Actually, there is a HUGE residential block across from me and I liken it to cable TV. Just the other day, we saw some drama unfold where this 7 year old kid started chucking things down ( a broom, a mop, some paper)and then his mother came and started caning him (or what sounds like it). We couldn't believe it.
Yes, a lot of people we know have Jack Russells live in homes with gardens. I wonder how they will be like in an apartment. Did you get Edward before moving to Japan? If not, what was the quarantine process like? Do a lot of real estate companies turn you down immediately when you mention pets? I hope we don't have have much trouble although I can already imagine 2 gaijins (one that looks Japanese but isn't really) and a dog would be quite unpopular with the real estate agents.
Best,
Eve
Hey Eve,
Holy cow, where are you living? Nothing interesting ever happens in my apartment block. Wow, sounds rather scary, but maybe the mother had been pushed beyond all sane human limit?
I'm sure a Jack Russell would do fine in an apartment, as long as it got lots of walks. We actually decided to move and get a dog about the same time, so it worked out well that way. I guess it helps that my husband is Japanese, but we didn't have too much trouble with the real estate agents. They're pretty prepared for people with pets but the problem is that the selection of pet-OK apartments tend to be (a) very limited, (b) very old and sometimes dirty, (c) very small (1K types, if that means anything to you), and/or (d) for some reason quite far away from the train station.
But that was a few years ago now, so maybe the situation has improved. Definitely more and more Japanese people are getting pets, so I bet the housing market is having to accomodate that.
Also, we did a lot of searching over the Internet, which helps you find only pet-OK places.
from Rachel