coinlockersbaby’s Neighborhood

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

I've finally been able to complete my Harukachan shashinshuu collection as after months of searching I found a auction seller in Japan who had a copy of Harukachan's "Haru Card" trading card book which was published by Wani Books back in 2000 and has remained quite a rarity as far as availability. Her two earlier shashinshuus are also out of print but usually show up on auctions pretty regularly.

Harukachan's pb collection is a rather modest one as she only released four shashinshuus and "Haru Card" being a trading card book has only a little of its contents dedicated to photo shoot pages while a larger portion is actually a thick cardboard "page" which is hollowed with four pockets which house the trading card set. Her shashinshuu "3" is the most creative of the releases as it contains bonus items including 4 trading cards, message card, and photograph along with a 3 year span of Harukachan photos. Her shashinshuu "18" though is possibly the best shot and with a more mature Harukachan...the camera loves her even more it seems!  Suenaga Haruka nearly single handedly brought the world of the gravure idol to prominence and she's possibly even been on more idol magazine covers than Britney has been on less than flattering scandal rags front pages. :P....I'm afraid it's really close but while Harukachan is celebrated as one of idol's cutest, Britney is...well Britney. The moral to learn here is perhaps this...too much paparazzi = really bad things! :O Harukachan is also well known in the world of commercials, advertising, and has also appeared in dramas, movies, and the popular Go! Go Sentai Boukenger series where she starred as...appropriately, the Pink Ranger. ^-^ The complete "Haru Card" collection is comprised of a total of 60 cards and each card book came with four random trading card packs which contained 7 cards each. 9 special cards which feature golden colored signature writing are also part of the 60 card set and I'm not sure if it's just pure luck but all 28 cards that were included in my pb had no duplicates to my delight. ^-^ I've scanned all 28 cards below and on the backs of each card is either a portion of a larger photo which can be put together to form a larger image if one has enough consecutive card numbers in a section of the card collection while a few other cards feature an additional regular photo on their backs. The front two pages of the card book has a complete listing of every card in the set and while I see no real way of ever completing the 60 card set at least I know what the images look like but more or less I think I've gotten by pure luck the card images that I would've wanted had I actually been able to choose them myself instead of receiving them in the random manner which card sets are usually presented as such was the case here. Harukachan's so cute in all of these card photos and I'm sorry that the clarity may not be the best as these standard sized cards' images are a bit enlarged here. ^-^  

My mom found this issue of duet while in Hokkaido and this is the first time I've heard of this publication and for only 560 yen it's quite impressive as in addition to being quite thick with 188 pages it also includes a two sided pull out poster (this month features Yamashita Tomohisa/ Ohno Satoshi & Ikuta Toma), countless various features on music releases, shows, idol news, interviews as well as a thick glossy 2 sided card which features Hey! say! BEST & Hey Say! 7.

But of course it's Arashi on the cover which makes this magazine most collectible for me and what a great looking cover it is! I just wanted to share scans of my favorite artists from this issue which follow: First Arashi...Matsujun's got a perm!... ...and Tackey... ...& Tsubasa. Really well shot pictorial! And Shokun also has a feature towards the back of this issue as well.

At last my BK version BK vs. C-ute battle concert DVD has arrived! There are two copies and Anise & Cloves I'll be contacting you soon through PM so that I can get your copy sent out to you. ^-^ I won't be receiving C-ute's version of this battle concert until later this month when another order arrives.....ah I know that they're of the same show but I just couldn't resist the group specific extras that differ in each version. :P Cdjapan also sent a single promotional photo along with Kyanari club's newest single release "Hitomiga kira kirara" and the girls are really growing up quickly and they're sporting quite a spunky style here!....I call them Tsunku's "secret" idol project. :P And then there's Kohachan's latest Kirarin anime release "Papancake".....I'm really anticipating a pv filled with dancing pancakes, talking strawberries and maple syrup colored walls!...lol okay I know that the maple syrup walls sound a bit far fetched! :P 

...well not me but mom had a great time there! Just a little post about my mom's recent trip to Hokkaido and as I haven't got all of the details just yet, here are just a few photos and thoughts. Her visit was with a 10 day tour group and she said that everyone was really friendly and kind. :) Temperatures were in the 80's for the most part and the rain stayed away for most of her tour with only light sprinkles here and there but one thing that really surprised me initially is that most of the hotels outside of the cities keep their thermostats to pretty warm temperatures even this time of year. Some of the rooms she said were actually quite warm! :O But I guess it does make sense as much of Hokkaido is of a colder climate for much of the year and they probably relish the warmer temperatures that summertime brings...thus no cool air in hotels. Sapporo was much different with of course much larger crowds and actual air conditioning in their hotels which I imagine was much appreciated for the tour group!

My brother lent mom his Sony cybershot camera which is a lot better than the one I have and while she did take quite a lot of pictures a lot of them include shots with others in her tour group so I'm really hesitant to upload those here...so I've only included the scenic photos instead. I thought this was cute...she took a photo of one of Hokkaido's furrier inhabitants, or was he/she just sitting upon a bench which she thought was of interest. :P The architecture here is so interesting and it really has that distinct small town aura about it...the building on the left makes me thing of those little clock house carvings while I'm not quite sure what to make out of those tall poll carvings on the right hand side. I wonder what's inside that little little wooden cabin...?? My ramblings here are just that, as I actually haven't had the chance to go through these photos with mom so that I could properly ask what is being depicted in each shot....sorry about my randomness. :P Hokkaido I found out is really known for their lavender!...and the shops in many areas feature everything from lavender soap to lavender scented wine!...and after all this was the "Lavender Tour" they were on. ^-^ The high price of fruits in Japan has always amazed and shocked me!! :O One melon for how much?!!! Now the square watermelon...that's pure genius, saves space and will amaze your friends at the same time! She didn't see any of those on the trip though...but I can only imagine how expensive they would be! I think these are called "hairy" crabs?? I'm not sure where the hair is though...maybe underneath, but in Hokkaido this type of crab is extremely popular and a boasted cuisine of theirs. And then of course there was shopping!!! It seems that mom's mission was to bring back lots and lots of food from Hokkaido although this first photo has a case of lavender soap, lavender oil, and lavender wine....oh and quite a few of those cute little bags with the designs sewn onto the outside...sort of like having a bag with a little plushy attached to the outside. :) Sapporo whiskey...I personally think that whiskey is yuck!...but I'm sure it will make a nice omiyage for a friend. :) Their "finest quality" dried salmon!!!..now that I did ask to keep! ^-^ Much of the items she brought home are wrapped like gifts and I think most of it will be given away to friends of hers at work and elsewhere. The "Furano wine" in the center here has me quite curious as it promises a lavender scent...I think the dried scallops were one of the more expensive items here. So much food items......... ...and I didn't even photograph everything in these photos as there's just so much!!! Okay I just had one of these...yum!......dried plum (ume)!" I think we only get to keep one bag of these though. Ah cute little magnets!...and mom brought these soba noodles back for me too....so interesting with the rope attached and... ...well I just had to hang it up somewhere! :P Mom was born in the year of the rooster which explains all of the roosters in our home........there are lots of them!! The soba seems almost decorative...kind of a shame to eat them I think. :) And besides all the food shopping mom did get to check out a few of Hokkaido's music/video shops although she did miss a large one in Sapporo and just didn't have the time to back track. I was really surprised when she brought Tackey & Tsubasa's latest single release back for me! Ah but we're almost done watching "Taiyou no kisetsu" so I'm sure that Tackey is quite firmly stuck in her mind by now. :) The store clerk even gave her a T&T poster too although it was early in the trip and it didn't make it back quite in good shape. It was so thoughtful of her to get me this CD but she was a little disappointed as I already have this release (above) along with the other 2 versions. So I was thinking that I could give this LE copy away of "Koi uta"...it's the type A version with a bonus DVD containing a special 21 minute clip! I'll have giveaway information posted here soon! ^-^ I hope someone out there loves Tackey & Tsubasa too! Mom also brought these magazines back for me too...funny the one on the right is a t.v. watching guide but Arashi on the cover of Duet, a magazine that I've never heard of before looks awesome! Thinking about scanning some of it... ^-^