Tokyo Times

Photographs from a small group of islands

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Sumo time

This Sunday the first Sumo tournament of the year starts (don’t get too excited), and as it’s in Tokyo a ticket has been acquired. The plans for the day are already decided. Namely, getting there early so we can get near the front (before the rich folk who have reserved the outrageously priced seats arrive), and get some close-up pictures. Then retire to our seats (the cheap ones) at the outer reaches of the hall, and proceed to get rip roaringly drunk. It is a sporting event after all.

To get into the sumo mood, here’s a quick True/False quiz:

1. Some Sumo wrestlers in the past have had silicone implants on the top of their head in order to meet the sports height requirements.

2. Lower ranked wrestlers have to wipe the senior wrestlers posterior after, ahem, a toilet visit.

3. Despite being fat, and with a tendency to sweat profusely, Sumo wrestlers do well with the ladies.

Answers below the picture.

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Answers

1. True. The height requirements are strictly adhered to, so some potential wrestlers are prepared to go to such drastic lengths to enter the sport. There are also stories of prospective wrestlers being hit on the top of the head just prior to the physical. The resultant lump helping them achieve the desired height.

2. True (perhaps). Fortunately I haven’t witnessed such a thing, nor seen any photographic evidence, but from all accounts it’s true. Maybe.

3. True. Despite their size, it’s not uncommon for some of the higher ranked wrestlers to bag one of the attractive TV presenters or celebrities that abound on Japanese TV. The top wrestlers it has to be said make an awful lot of money. Not that that has anything to do with love of course. Merely stating a fact.

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Mambow!

I know a lot of people like to give their car a name. And that’s fair enough I guess. Each to their own and all that.

But there are names, and then there are names. Some of them are so good that it would appear they need to be written on the car for the whole world to see. And when you’ve chosen a name as good as Mambow, then why not?

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mambow02.jpg

A Mambow indeed eh? It’s even got a bed! I’m sure if I’d had this vehicle when I was single, I’d have been beating the ladies away with sticks.

How much fun it would have been to utter the line “Would you like to come and see my Mambow?”

Oh, the number of juvenile quips associated with this must be endless. Must resist…

By the way, what’s a mambow?

Categorized: Odd

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Shit happens

I’d forgotten all about this, but I remembered it this morning. For reasons unconnected with the incident I hasten to add. Such a disclaimer will become understandable shortly.

During the holidays, the missus was watching television, and as I walked into the living room, I saw glimpse of a TV talent running off screen. He looked somewhat embarrassed and was certainly in something of a rush. This speedy departure was greeted with a mixture of laughter and disgust from the studio audience and his fellow TV celebs.

Having no idea what was going on, I said to the missus

“What’s he doing? Why as he just run off?”

“He’s just shit in his pants” was her swift and decidedly frank answer.

“Oh” was the most I could manage in response.

I waited a little while for some kind of explanation, or a little bit of elaboration, but none was forthcoming. She just carried on watching the show as though nothing especially out of the ordinary had occurred. Maybe it hadn’t.

It left only one option. I quietly turned around and left the room.

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Internet

Here’s something I found over at hella cres. It’s a short documentary from about 10 years ago on “internet”. It would appear it’s the same as the internet, just minus the the.

It sounds all well and good, but it’ll never catch on.

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The British Dollar?

Did I miss something over the holidays? Has the British government avoided all talk of the Euro by linking up with the United States instead?

Watching Yeovil v Liverpool in the FA Cup last night (hardly a classic I know, but I don’t get to see much live football so I’ll watch any game that’s on) the commentator kept speaking in Dollars. Whether he was talking about a player’s potential value, or how much they were bought for, he only mentioned Dollars, and not Pounds. What’s going on?

I’m not sure if the game was being screened by the BBC, ITV, or Sky, but it was certainly a British production and not an international one. So what’s with the Dollar references?

Is this a common occurrence with football commentators these days?

I hope not, as I was having to convert Dollars to Yen, and then Yen to Pounds. I worked it out that El-Hadji Diouf was bought for 6 billion Pounds. That can’t be right can it!?