Won't Miss #352 - "it's Japanese", when it's not

Debu neko may be Japanese, but calicos are not.
In the original Star Trek, the character of Chekov sometimes asserted that something was invented in Russia when it was not. As far as Chekov was concerned, all good things originated in Russia. The Japanese have something in common with that fictional character. They think that a lot of things are Japanese when they are not. My first introduction

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Will Miss #327 - cat cafes

Tokyo has quite a few "cat cafes" in which patrons can go in and play with cats as well as have drinks and food. As someone who loves cats, but isn't allowed to have one in her apartment, this is a pretty nifty service. I'm not sure, but I believe it's also the kind of thing which would never be allowed back home because of concerns about cleanliness when animals are mixed with food preparation

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Will Miss #274 - the SK Japan "metabo" kitty

I have to confess that I am not entirely immune to the "kawaii" (cute) aspects of Japanese pop culture. My head is duly hung in shame at being in my mid 40's and still being lured by the occasional cute thing. One of those things is the SK Japan mascot (called "debuneko"／でぶねこ or "fatty cat") which is sometimes marketed as a "metabo" cat. "Metabo" is the Japanese-English term for "metabolic

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