Japan Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama met with 10 parents and their kids in an informal gathering to discuss the government’s child allowance payments, child care and other child rearing issues. The  80-minute meeting Feb. 14 was held at the Prime Minister’s residence, in a room dubbed the "Pigeon Cafe". The Japanese word "hato" means pigeon.

Hatoyama’s goodwill notwithstanding, Lets Japan was quite impressed by his choice of shirt.

The top ten booms in Japan now.

Forest girl boom. Fashion inspired by Anne of Green Gables. For your fashion life in the forest.

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Tokai region local government mascot character boom. More than 30 municipalities in Tokai have mascot characters.

Calligraphy boom
Influenced by "Tomehane Suzuri High School Calligraphy Club" TV show on NHK-TV. Click here to try NHK calligraphy.

Running boom
A survey by Sasakawa Sports Foundation indicates the number of runners who ran two times or more during the week increased from 2.15 million in 2006 (the previous survey year) to 2.48 million according to the 2008 survey.

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Eco boom
Japanese follow the green theme, from carbon offset mindfulness, recycling clothes, and shorter showers, to eco-cars and eco-bags.

(5)
Castle boom
Influenced by "Taiga" historical stories TV series on NHK-TV.

Sakamoto Ryouma boom
Includes TV programs, books, movies, tours, fairs, restaurant menus, and ramen. The ronin Sakamoto led movement to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate during the Bakumatsu period.
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History boom
Inspired by television quiz programs featuring questions about Japan history.

(2)
Quiet life boom
Leading a slower-paced, low-stress life. Volunteerism, continuing education, personal growth, cultural pursuits, and contribution to society. Also includes leaving big cities to start a farm in rural Japan. (related:  Slow food life.)

(1)
Fried chicken boom
Started in Oita and is now spreading across Japan. More chicken is consumed in Oita Prefecture than any other prefecture in Japan.

Stylish Masks Cool, Steam, and Fit Lips and Noses

Blue surgical-style face masks are being worn by millions around the world in an effort to prevent contracting the swine flu H1N1 virus. In Japan, masks are a common sight anytime people are suffering from a cold, hay fever or other allergies.

The world news reporting of the global swine flu situation indicates the wearing of masks in places other than hospitals is rather uncommon. Japanese have years of experience with mask-wearing, and we’ve gathered the best mask fashions. Choose from the nose-fit models, the form-fitting model with wire, the masks that won’t fog up your glasses, the designer masks, the menthol masks, the tea-filter masks, the masks that feel like a steam facial, and the masks that look like bra cups. Now you can fight the flu in style!

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Posters promoting longer skirt lengths in Niigata high schools are causing a controversy. A group of high school teachers who also act as guidance counselors made the posters and distributed them to all high schools in Niigata prefecture in December 2008. At the end of January, school principals started the "Proper dress all at once together campaign". Parents were sent a follow-up document about the dress-code campaign in February. The material asks parents to instruct their daughters about skirt lengths.

There are three posters (pictured):
"It’s undignified for women" (white); "You can smarten your mind and your skirts if you’re motivated" (pink); "Beautiful style - Why don’t you change your skirt length?" (yellow). 

Many schoolgirls object to the prohibition of short skirts. Some schoolgirls wear sweat pants underneath so they can continue to wear short skirts during winter.

Hiroshi Uchikawa, principal of Koshi High School in Niigata city, and head of the student guidance staff, said, "We’d like students to think (about the issue) through the posters, rather than ordering them to change (the length of their skirts). There are some moves to make skirts longer."

Some teachers at high schools in Japan keep watch for too-short skirts, and if a surprise inspection catches too much exposed thigh, students are told to immediately correct the situation. Sometimes skirt hemlines have been shortened by rolling up the waistband of a skirt. Schoolgirls can quickly oblige a request to lower the hemline. But once out of sight of inspectors, the gals often re-roll-up the waistband.

One TV news report determined the average school uniform skirt lengths in Japan. FNN news reported school uniform skirts come to an average of 13 centimeters above the knee. FNN said high school girl skirt hems in Niigata are 15-18 centimeters above the knee. According to FNN, the shortest school uniform skirts are worn in Niigata, Sendai, and Mito. Medium-length skirts prevail in Tokyo, Sapporo, Fukuoka and Okinawa. The longest are in Osaka, and Kobe.

Some high school students from Niigata on a school excursion to Okinawa received complaints about the length of their skirts from Okinawa locals. The students were told their short skirt length was "unpleasant." The average high school uniform hemline in Okinawa is 7.7 cm above the knee.

Hiroshi Uchikawa, head of Niigata City Taka-shi high school and chairman of the Niigata District Student Guidance Liaison Council Assembly, says he’s aware that girls change clothes on the way to and from school. "The child shortens it according to surroundings and changes into a long skirt at the station on the way to school. A station employee confirms that."

Lets Japan asked two Japanese ladies about skirt lengths, Yoko (age 27) and Keiko (33).

LJ: Do public and private elementary, junior high, and high schools have rules about length of girl’s skirts?
Yoko: Girls is not allowed to shorten their skirt…also.. too longer skirt is not ok.
Keiko: It depends on the schools. There are a lot schools which have the rules about "appearance" including uniforms, hair styles, nails, make-up, shoes, and so on. Some schools are very strict and they never allow the students to make it short. Other schools don’t say anything.

LJ: Who sets the skirt-length rules?
Keiko: I think individual schools set the rules on their own.

LJ: How do the students know the rules?
Keiko: Parents knew the rules because they needed to go to the school orientation meeting. Parents and students receive the document at the orientation. In my school days the rules were written in the student’s pocketbook.

LJ: What is a pocketbook?
Keiko: Pocketbook is a small notebook that students have. It’s combined with student ID in my school. Students receive it from the teacher on the first day of school.

LJ: What about in Japan’s history – the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s – surely students tried to wear short skirts then?
Keiko: I guess that teachers at that time had much more authority/power than they do now, and they didn’t permit students to wear the uniforms in untidy way. Or the ordinary students just didn’t have the idea to make the skirt short. Rogue students used to wear too-long skirts instead of too-short skirts when I was a kid.

LJ: Is the Niigata skirt poster the first time a poster was made about skirt lengths?
Keiko: I’ve never seen such a poster in my life before.

LJ: Why is the poster such big news?
Keiko: Because Mainichi and Asahi have such stupid editors. (I hate both of them.)

A watch with an oversized digital display depicts train station names on the Yamanote train line in Tokyo. The Yamanote Line watch has an Organic Light Emitting Diode display. The functions of the watch are: date; time.

When the time is displayed, the display reads "Train is coming". The date display shows "Through train - doesn’t stop here". The displays can be hidden. The left side of the watch randomly displays "From-To" destinations on the Yamanote line, excluding the station that is the starting point according to the version of the watch: Shinjuku, Ebisu, Ikebukuro, Shinagawa. A marketing tactic targeting railway fans in Japan – they can collect all four models. Available with leather or metal bands. The watch display is 5.5 cm x 3 cm x 1 cm. Price: JPY 23,100 - JPY 25,000. The watch is offered by Seahope. Advertising states that permission for the design was obtained from JR East.

Versatile design: holds wasabi dish at sushi restaurant; handy canned coffee table on the train. Also useful to help you fall asleep. (Watch the boring video)

A design-your-own tee shirt and goods site in Japan is already featuring tee shirts with a President-elect Obama theme. ClubT

Can You ID The Badge?

The number of badges and pins on Japan Prime Minister Taro Aso’s suit lapel varies daily. The purple pin with gold center indicates "membership" in the Japan government House of Representatives. In the photo above, Lets Japan is unable to confirm the memberships associated with the blue ribbon badge, the gold pin, and the red item that appears to be a feather.

photos: Senkyo (9/24); Sankei (10/8; 10/14); standing related Lawyer experience badges (J); CPA badge (J); badge manufacturer (J); Aso hip with comic book crowd.

A tiny dog is the honorary stationmaster at Oku-Nakayama Kogen  Station, in Ichinohemachi, Iwate Prefecture.

 Maron, a tiny 8-year-old Yorkshire terrier, wears a tiny uniform and tiny hat and serves as a tourist attraction for the Iwate Galaxy Railway Company. Since 2000, the dog had been accompanying its owner to work at the then-named Oku-Nakayama Station. In June 2008, the president of IGR officially proclaimed the dog as stationmaster at the renamed station. 

Lets Japan provided extensive coverage of Tama-chan the hat-wearing cat stationmaster.

Railway employees-as-attractions in Japan is a developing trend. A Lets Japan investigation discovered two other non-human stationmasters: Yuji-chan the cap-wearing beetle stationmaster at Kabutomushi station, and Maki-chan the frozen tuna stationmaster.

Baby in Belly

Maternity marks are desirable in Japan. The so-called "maternity mark" tags and buttons worn by expectant mothers alert bystanders to their condition. Japan Airlines now offers maternity mark tags to pregnant women flying domestic routes.

JAL is the first airline in Japan to offer the baby-in-belly tag. In 2006,  East Japan Railway Company, Tokyo Metro, and 14 other Kanto railways began offering "There is a baby in my stomach" badges to rail and subway commuters.

Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare “Healthy Parent and Child 21”  plan is designed to achieve a pregnant-friendly environment, which also includes the workplace environment and passive smoking prevention. Some local governments have issued their own "baby inside" buttons and badges.

The baby badges are intended to make it easier for passersby to know that a woman is pregnant. And there is a helpful video about baby badges on the Japan Cabinet Office  website.

As a public service, Lets Japan offers these 3 original alert-badge ideas for Japan. (Anger Inside; I Am Pervert ; Pacemaker Put In)

links: Baby in Me badges goods ( 1 )  ( 2 ) ;  Other maternity mark design badges goods ( 3 ) ( 4 ) ( 5 ) ( 6 )