World Cup Brazilian Chicken Cup Noodles

Posted on June 17, 2014 by superhappyawesome

20140617-100420-36260518.jpgJapan’s gone World Cup crazy! Well, their marketing teams have, at least. Over the next little while I’ll show some of the various promotions that companies are using to try to cash in on the current phenomenon.
It’s pretty exciting to see the bolder flavors and even spices (Japanese food is traditionally very subtle, with little use of, for example, garlic or chili.) It feels like Continue reading →

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Today’s watercolor: Happy Father’s Day!

Posted on June 15, 2014 by superhappyawesome

Interestingly enough, Japan has decided that the colors of Father’s Day are blue and yellow. The flower shops are also full hydrangeas (which makes sense, as it’s perfect hydrangea season) and sunflowers (which makes slightly less sense, as they tend to be a bit later in Summer.) It’s always fun seeing how Japan interprets these imported holidays and puts their own spin on it!

Speaking of which, the idea for turning the kanji 父, or chichi/father, into a mustache and tie, came from a promotion going on at a local restaurant. They have special Father’s Day pancakes which come with a chocolate pen so that you can write a sweet (haha!) message to your Otou-san. It was pretty tasty business!

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Also interesting: an informal poll of the English club yielded only one student out of about 20 who had any plan to give her Dad something. Most of the kids looked at me like I was an alien when I asked if they were at least giving Pops a card. Isn’t that funny? Are you planning on doing anything for Father’s Day this year? If you like, feel free to send your Dad this picture 😀

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Today’s watercolor: Bier und Brezel!

Posted on June 9, 2014 by superhappyawesome

I painted this little mädchen last week before we went down to the Keyaki Hiroba Beer Festival! She’s actually based on the logo for the Frühlingsfest in Yokohama, another Fest I went to with some friends over Golden Week.

The vibe of that one was very different–much more pseudo-German as opposed to the “Craft Beer” spirit at Beer Keyaki. I lived in Austria for a little while, so artificial German things tend to make me itchy.

That’s not to say the Frühlingsfest wasn’t fun. The food was delicious (though pretty pricey) and the scenery was hard to beat–the red brick warehouses of Yokohama are quite lovely. Still, the beer was much better at Beer Keyaki. I’m still dreaming of Johana Beer’s magical Earl Grey Beer! Anyway, I did love Frühlingsfest’s logo, obviously. So what should I paint next?

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Keyaki Hiroba Craft Beer Festival!

Posted on June 7, 2014 by superhappyawesome

Trying something a little different with this week’s video! Last weekend some friends and I went to the Keyaki Hiroba Craft Beer Festival in Saitama. It was a lot of fun and super delicious 😀 Check out the little video I put together! And please like, share and subscribe 🙂 If you have any requests or suggestions for the next place I should do a video like this, let me know in the comments!

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Posted in Japan, Uncategorized, Video | 2 Comments

Cream Stew Popsicle!?

Posted on May 30, 2014 by superhappyawesome

20140530-233224-84744203.jpgTime for this week’s YouTube video–the “Cream Stew” Popsicle from Garigari-kun! If you want to participate in this week’s Giveaway, don’t forget to leave a comment on the video 😀

 

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Today’s watercolor: Why couldn’t the bike stand?

Posted on May 28, 2014 by superhappyawesome

20140528-205917-75557379.jpgSo, first off, I love terrible puns and bad jokes. I also love bicycles (though I haven’t been riding much lately) and craft beer. How does that all come together into one painting?

Well, this watercolor is pretty heavily influenced by two of my favorite artists lately, Frida Clements and Leah Giberson. Frida Clements does amazing ink drawings of excellent groaners, and Leah Giberson just did the beautiful art for New Belgium Brewing’s recent label redesign. It really freshens up the brand while staying true to the spirit of the company and the original art. Both ladies have clean, strong lines and a great eye for composition. I hope to be as good as them some day!

This bike bears a bit of a resemblance to the bike Leah did for New Belgium’s Fat Tire Ale. Interestingly enough, New Belgium is actually opening a gorgeous new brewery in Asheville next year. A job there would actually make me consider moving back to North Carolina! And it’s supposed to open right around the time my contract here ends, hmm…guess I’ll have to keep an eye on their listings!

Anyway, I got a real kick out of doing this one, so I think there may be more terrible pun paintings in my future. Any suggestions?

 

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Today’s watercolor: Teenage Mutant Ninja Squirtle!

Posted on May 25, 2014 by superhappyawesome

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It’s been a little while since I did a Pokémashup (previous ones include Darkwing Farfetch’d and Charizard Godzilla) so I had a little fun with this after they announced the new TMNT movie. How do you think that’s going to turn out? And as always, what should I paint next? 🙂

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Gunma-chan Tattoo!

Posted on May 23, 2014 by superhappyawesome

A friend recently posted the most amazing picture–her brand new Gunma-chan tattoo! Gunma-chan’s been pretty popular lately (our Gunma-chan’s Day Out video has over 5,000 views!) but this is definitely the first tattoo of our pony mascot that I’ve seen. How awesome is this?

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Katelyn Marie recently moved back to America after living here in Gunma. She says:

I look at tattoos as memories of times in my life so I got the mascot of Gunma to represent my time in Tamamura. I also loved that he was at the Tamamura fireworks which I went to and were amazed by. Finally, the rice at the bottom was important for me to include because I rode my bike to and from work every single day through a large rice field. In the end, I also really like Gunma-chan! He’s so cute!

I’ve posted about Tamamura Gunma-chan before, and it really is one of my all time favorite designs. I don’t personally have any tattoos, but seeing this makes me tempted. How about you? Would you get a Gunma-chan tattoo? Or perhaps some other cute character? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to share this post with your Gunma-chan loving friends!

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New Video: Tasting Gari-Gari kun’s Napolitan Spaghetti Popsicle!

Posted on May 22, 2014 by superhappyawesome

photo (6)There was such a positive response to last week’s video about the new Haagen-Dazs Tomato & Carrot Ice Creams that I decided to do another one! Up this week is the Napolitan Spaghetti popsicle from Gari Gari Kun. Apparently these are well known here in Japan, but not selling very well–this one was half off! Please be sure to like and share and subscribe and all that Youtubey goodness. Oh, and watch to the end to see the details of my new giveaway!

 

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Today’s watercolor: Sailor Moon

Posted on May 20, 2014 by superhappyawesome

Big news for Sailor Moon Fans this week! Not only is the new series coming out this summer, but the original is being remastered and rereleased, both on Blu-Ray and Hulu. Oh, and without the changes and censorship that stymied American fans in it’s previous release. It’s such big news that even the Wall Street Journal is covering it, how cool is that?

In celebration I decided to pull this one out of the vault. I painted it a few months ago but never posted it. This seems like as good an occasion as any! What do you think? Did you ever watch Sailor Moon? And what should I paint next?

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