Master Blaster

Writer / Translator

Master Blaster is the two-man translating team of Canada’s Steven Le Blanc and Japan’s Masami M, a pair who in addition to writing work are in English education and created the StudyNow app for Japanese students of English.

Together they have written somewhere around 1,500 articles for RocketNews24 covering such diverse topics as Chinese men selling sanitary napkins to each other and a Japanese guy dragging an ear of corn around the Tokyo train system. A few of these were actually good, but don’t take our word for it! Here’s what our beloved readers had to say:

“One isn't always in the mood for bold tastes. But when I'm in the mood for bold flavor I turn to you.”
“Stupid article. Who cares what the Japanese think it's cool. You don't call a monkey, "gorilla".”
“You know, this is about the most cogent explanation of how a turbocharger works that I have ever seen in the non-motorsports world.”
“Thanks for the article peter!”
“It's people like you who make exploitation possible.”
“It looks yummy and the story was great. Thank you for the smile.”

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Posted by Master Blaster (Page 158)

Goki Crane will help you get rid of dead bodies quickly and easily

It’s summer and the cockroach index is at its peak in many parts of Japan. During this time of the year most people have to do battle with our greatest foe, known as the gokiburi in Japanese. We all have our weapons of choice like spray, shoe, or phonebook.

However, even after we’ve slain the beast there’s still the issue of removing the body. Generally with bugs you’d just pick it up with some tissue and chuck it in the toilet, but cockroaches are supposed to be able to survive a nuclear holocaust. How can we be sure it’s really dead from just a little spritz of poison?

Thankfully we now have Goki Crane, a new way to pick up and dispose of unsightly and possibly reanimating cockroach carcasses without getting your hands dirty or your nerves rattled.

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Watch how to make one of Japan’s elite restaurant’s desserts

Located in the posh Roppongi area of Tokyo is RyuGin which was given a three star rating by Michelin earlier this year, and was ranked the 22nd best restaurant in the world by S.Pelligrino and Acqua Panna. Part of the reason for these accolades is the artistic vision of head chef Seiji Yamamoto who enjoys pushing the boundaries of Japanese cuisine.

One example is the dessert seen above, the Ichigo Ame 2011 -196℃ to 99℃. It consists of a strawberry sherbert forged at ultra-low temperatures encased in a strawberry candy coating and served with a hot strawberry sauce. Sounds fantastic doesn’t it?

Of course, going to one of the top restaurants in the world doesn’t come cheap, making the Ichigo Ame out of most of our price range. Luckily, RyuGin had uploaded a reference video to YouTube, so that we can all learn how to make it. Join us as we take you through the process to make this unbelievably sophisticated dessert.

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There have been reports in the Taiwan media this week of a naked man walking and occasionally jogging along the street on a busy afternoon. Passersby caught the event on their phone cameras at various points along his journey.

In a strange twist, however, thanks to the blurry resolution of these cameras the man looks exactly like a real-life titan from the manga/anime series Attack on Titan. The following video illustrates just how eerily close a comparison the man makes with a titan.

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Would you like paper, plastic, or a Captured Alien for your groceries?

Soon to be released by Japanese novelty goods maker Cube is a pair of cute Captured Alien Eco Bags. These bags help reduce waste and make you look like you’re dragging a little green man away to a secret facility in Roswell, New Mexico. It’s win-win!

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Sri Lankan breatharian Kirby de Lanerolle preaches a life without food

Having emerged from a turbulent childhood into a successful entrepreneur and government advisor, Kirby de Lanerolle has done a lot to be proud of. Currently he and his wife Fiona are the founders of the Warehouse Project, a Non-Profit charity which handles food distribution and microloans along with a cooking and recreation space for the impoverished families of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Oh, and he also claims to go several months at a time without eating a single thing except wind, light and the power of god.

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Japanese drink maker investigates the effectiveness of tying your wishes to bamboo

On 7 July, Tanabata kicks off in many parts of Japan. It’s an annual festival season which celebrates the stars Orihime and Hikoboshi, two lovers who are separated by the Milky Way except for this brief moment on the seventh day of the seventh month.

A popular custom during this time for young and old is to write down a wish on a strip of paper and hang it from a bamboo plant. However, as the years go by it seems that fewer and fewer people are going out to make wishes. This is why Calpis Co. Ltd. has decided to spark up interest in bamboo wishes by launching a study of their effectiveness.

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Bicycle helmet law enforced in Ehime, failure to comply is punishable by… we don’t know

Westerners who come to Japan may be taken aback by the sheer numbers of bicycles in use in cities. Equally impressive is the degree to which people load their bicycles with shopping bags, children, boyfriends, and/or garbage bags full of aluminum cans for recycling. And yet, with all this, it’s a rare sight to see anyone besides tiny kids wearing a helmet.

Ehime Prefecture, known for its scenic bike paths and wide use of bicycles for commuting, is hoping to change that by enacting a law instructing cyclists of all ages to wear a helmet, or else.

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1.5-meter snake discovered in home, owner couldn’t be happier

On 18 June in Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture, 48-year-old Kaoru Kurosawa came home to find a 1.5-meter Japanese rat snake on the second floor. Kurosawa quickly took a picture of the serpent before it slithered down a gutter and escaped.

Now, netizens across Japan are heralding this event as a sign of good things to come for Japan or at least for Kurosawa.

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Universal Studios’ real-life Resident Evil simulator set to open 19 July!

Hot on the heels of their hugely successful recreation of the zombies, characters, and pasta dishes from the hit video game and movie franchises Resident Evil, Universal Studios Japan (USJ) is teaming up with Capcom once again this summer to bring us an even more authentic survival horror experience in the form of Resident Evil: The Real (Biohazard: The Real in Japan).

Rather than simply walking around getting spooked by zombies, USJ is providing visitors with their own replica gun, a limited supply of ammo, and only a few minutes to survive an onslaught of zombies and other creatures from the Resident Evil series. Hear that? That’s the sound of millions of gamers’ day being made.

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We try 400-year-old Ghost Child Care Candy – so good it’ll raise the dead

In the Higashiyama area of Kyoto City stands a candy shop which boasts a unique regular customer, the specter of a woman who comes for their candy. The legend began in 1599 and has been handed down from generation to generation to the present day.

The shop, now called Minatoya Ghost Child Care Candy Main Office, only sells its legendary Ghost Child Care Candy. RocketNews24’s Kuzo decided to head down to Kyoto to investigate the bittersweet story behind this candy shop’s connection to the other side.

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“Someone is dead in your room” phone call triggers Osaka’s eeriest dead body incident

Police in Sakai City, Osaka are currently investigating a 46-year-old man found hanged in an public housing complex apartment that wasn’t his. The actual owner, a 21-year-old man, has since disappeared. This strange story all started when the young tenant received a phone call from an unidentified man speaking in a Tokyo area dialect that said “someone is dead in your room.”

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Lotte releases gum for women over 50 that tastes like women over 50, it’s surprisingly good

Gum can be a great way to freshen your breath or relieve stress, but by the time you’re old enough to have huge amounts of stress and coffee-breath, chewing gum can look kind of immature.

But food and candy maker Lotte is looking to shatter that stereotype by producing a gum target directly at women over the age of 50. Oddly enough their strategy seemed to be making it taste like a woman in her fifties.

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Japanese woman, unaware she was pregnant, delivers baby into cesspool

Firefighters in Okayama Prefecture, Japan, responded to an emergency call yesterday claiming, “A woman gave birth into a cesspool-type toilet and the baby fell in.”  We’ve seen a similar incident play out in China about a month ago, but this case sheds light on a lesser known mental condition.

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Trial begins between Australia and Japan over whaling

On 26 June at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Australia made its first arguments against Japan’s scientific whaling program which they assert is a cover for commercial whaling in violation of international treaties. Ever the political hot potato, the move is sure to ruffle some feathers both at home and abroad.

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Japanese pigeon bravely flies to Canada, owner won’t pony up dough for its return

In a rare feat of feathered flight, a racing pigeon from Japan has managed to somehow traverse the entire Pacific Ocean and wind up on the west coast of Canada.  Sadly, the pigeon’s original owner wasn’t willing to pay to have the brave bird brought back, but things have ended up working out well for the little guy.

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Table tennis champ Zhang Jike wins tense rally… with his foot

While China is lamenting its soccer program they can take heart knowing that their table tennis skills are second to none thanks to athletes such as current world and Olympic champion Zhang Jike and third-place Xu Xin who can be seen in this video rallying it out like the pros they are.

However, at one point in the video, Zhang pulls out a secret weapon that no one–especially Xu–could have seen coming: the bottom of his shoe.

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A look at how Thai bikers roll: with guns, skulls, and pretty birds

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A chance encounter on the roads of Thailand led Mike Swift to take a video of a biker so awesomely weird that he put it out on YouTube as soon as possible. At first you’ll notice the pet bird which obediently flies alongside the woman as she rides, which is wild enough, but you’ll soon find that this little half-minute clip is deceptively deep.

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Get paid 10 bucks an hour to sit and take naps at Kyoto pickle shop

Nestled in the mountains of Sakyo, Kyoto lies Yasehieizan-guchi Station. Expect for the autumn when tourists from neighboring cities flock to see the changing foliage, it’s an almost eerily quiet corner of Japan.

Rumor has it that a small shop selling pickled eggplant is offering a rare part-time employment opportunity.  For a wage of 1,000 yen (US$10) or more, they will pay someone to do nothing but sit around. Hours are flexible and benefits include arranged transportation to and from the jobsite along with naps.

Mr. Sato headed for the hills of Kyoto to verify this job and possibly consider a change in occupation himself. What he found, however, was the sad but touching truth behind the Mata Tora pickle shop and their weird job offer.

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Scientists suspect eating more fish may help to curb anxiety

There’s a lot of talk about omega-3 fatty acids and their controversial health benefits ranging from cancer to joint pain and even mental disorders. And now it looks as if a team led by Masayuki Sekiguchi at the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP) in Tokyo have found another thing omega-3 possibly cures: lingering fear.

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New line of Vice Fairy men’s yukata uses the best slogans ever!

While Japan trudges and sweats its way through a finicky rainy season, everyone is awaiting the typically scorching hot summer that lies ahead. During the holidays many men in the country turn to the traditional garment called a yukata. A yukata is a loose-fitting kimono made of cheaper and lighter material than usual. To put it simply; it’s a bathrobe that’s acceptable for outdoor use.

But let’s say that you want the comfort of a yukata, but not the appearance of an alcoholic shut-in who’s lost all self-respect. For that, designers in Japan offer a slew of stylish yukata for you to choose from.

However, among all the competing brands these ads from Vice Fairy really resonate with guys like me and many other men in Japan. I don’t know why but their slogans seem to have the impact of a 10 ton steel fist.

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