Goemon

Kambei/snoflake: Thanks for the confirmation and info. It seems like Kagura has adopted a sensible approach to off piste (as long as people act responsibly for their own safety). Sounds alot like the Niseko local rules Looking forward to checking it out this Saturday.

I just heard from a friend that they do not patrol the Kagura area of the mountain anymore. They've just set up some "well-marked" roped areas, but everyone just ducks the ropes and goes off-piste. Can anyone confirm/refute this? Heading up there this weekend.

Zwelgen: are you sure that the 20% reduction is not really just the tax on the Pension Refund? You can apply to get that tax refunded in full. (meaning you still get the 0.5 months for six months, etc.) Just wondering 'cause I haven't seen any news of the change. But then, usually they pass this kind of change without any easily accessibly notice

Maybe this one I found will confuse things further Irish Net Nippon Pension Interview

Mogski: Can you explain the difference to me? I though the Shokai Hoken is the name of the Social Insurance Agency in Japan and that they administer the Kokumin Nenkin (= National Pension system?).

Here is some general information on how to get the pension refund: Pension Refund Info Please note that the rates shown in that page do not reflect the recent change which Zwelgen mentions.

For all you hip hop lovers: Rappin\' Mascots Also gotta recommend the "FabricLive:05" hippity hop mix by Deadly Avenger. Gomez were great at FujiRock last year.

I rode a magic carpet at Shiga Kogen last week, but I don't think it was specifically for kids; it's main purpose was to get people up a small hill to a bridge leading to another area. Pretty weird conveyor belt action.

Enderzero: I'm in Tokyo, but originally from New Jersey. Getting ready to head up to Nagano right now to celebrate National Foundation Day. Like Badmigraine points out, the best thing about Blunt is that it wasn't one long commercial for the biggest board companies. Of course, it WAS filled with heaps of ads, but they were pretty arty layouts. I have a stack of copies in storage back in the US. Speaking of arty layouts: just picked up a good picture book called "Blower: Snowboarding Inside Out". After 5 seconds of flipping through it, I reccommend it.

Anybody here ever used to read the US snowboard magazine called "Blunt"? It was made by the same guys who put together the "Big Brother" mag. Sadly, "Blunt" died several years ago just after putting out the Whitey-directed "Warriors" snowboard vid. They had the potential to develop into "Jackass on Snowboards".

The Big Brother vids are also good and were the real genesis of all of this.

That must have been "The Bridge Over the River Why?"...

National Foundation Day. It celebrates the day in 1952 when the construction companies and government joined in harmoney and began filling most of Japan with cement to give it a nice solid foundation.

Sorry for that last post. I'll keep it clean from now on.

Enderzero: I really wanted to post the one you mentioned 'cause it's my favorite...but it was too asterisked. (please send children out of the room) "You can feel the Sweat of my Balls! You can feel the Sweat of my Balls! You can feel the Sweat of my biggity Balls!"

MC Gusto in tha muthaf*ka: "Float like a cannonball! Sting like a shark! I'm that crazy n***a Waitin' for you in the dark! Straight outta Locash!"

On a hip hop note: if you like Automator, then I assume you LOVE the following: Doctor Octagon (album he did with Kool Keith, which I think is even better than Deltron3030 'cause Q-Bert's doing the scratching) Bombay The Hard Way ("brownsploitation" album he did) I just picked up "Bear Witness III" this weekend by Automator and Q-Bert And if you like J5: Blackalicious People under the Stairs Dilated Peoples World Famous Beat Junkies

Danz: Yeah, I grew up in Central NJ (Bernardsville). Used to go to Vernon Valley back in the day when they had a Playboy Resort there (never stayed there, mind you). The surface there was deadly icy whenever I went and there were busloads of NYC schools dumping dangerous kids on the slopes. Also went a few times in the summer when it became "Action Park". They had cement bobsled chutes running down the mountain that you rode on a little piece of plastic with a handbrake. There was nothing to keep you on the track and the only safety measure was some haybales at the sharp corners. Might be

Quote: riding down the steepest slope (which is not much...we are talking new jersey here...) Danz: where was that NJ mountain? Vernon Valley/Great Gorge?

I prefer BHG's earlier album, "Use Your Fingers"; songs are funnier 'n' funkier on that one.

Nekobi: 2 good choices! I was just telling someone that Sublime album never gets old. Unfortunately, Liz Phair's later stuff never matched up to Exile, imho.

enderzone: The AirH service is a creative way that the telecoms are trying to squeeze some more money out of the PHS systems, whose subscribers have seriously dwindled. Still, WiFi systems using 802.11b are being studied and implemented also (for instance, to provide internet connection on trains). If you're interested, you can find alot about AirH on this website (check for "PHS" articles): http://www.mobilemediajapan.com cheers

You might want to try here: http://www.bento.com/wkbeer12.html or here (not really online ordering, but): http://www.bento.com/beerstor.html BTW, Isn't the local Guinness brewed at Sapporo Brewery?

Unless there is a "hot spot" specifically set up at the hospital for that use, your friend most likely won't be able to connect that way. The plug-in cards need to connect via a cellular network (either PDC or CDMA) which, as you mentioned, isn't allowed at hospitals. Have you checked with the hospital to see if they have a network your friend can use? My guess is that the hospital rooms here are not connected. Good idea if they were though.