When I went to Japan last year, I scrubbed my laptop of non-essential data and encrypted my home directory, to avoid any hassle if it got stolen. It sounds like I should have been more concerned about the boys working Customs.

Or perhaps not, since they just waved me through in both countries, without even a cursory inspection.

It’s obvious that the behavior described in the article can’t be extended to more than a tiny fraction of travelers, but without clear guidelines explaining what they can examine and for how long, I can understand why businesses would be very leery of allowing employees to take laptops across the border. I pity the fool who tries to separate Lucy from a laptop, though…

While a lot of folks are busy crying “police state”, I’m thinking more along the lines of “poorly-trained flunkies with no oversight”. Which is more dangerous, but less scary.

Japundit has a Personals site, which they run ads for in a sidebar on their home page. I’m not interested in joining, so all I get out of it is an occasional thumbnail headshot of a pretty girl.

This one jumped out at me in a different way. “Ai84” looks disturbingly familiar:

She has been out of sight for a while, and she certainly couldn’t do worse than her previous boyfriend. Probably not her, of course, but stranger things have happened.

…would be the deRapper, which automatically identifies and deletes gratuitous rap sequences inserted into otherwise pleasant songs. You’d probably have to upgrade to deRapper Pro to add the ability to filter out rap background “vocals” that intrude on the actual song.

[this post brought to you by Melon Kinenbi’s Akuma de Fake, Onegai Miwaku no Target (Melon Pudding Mix), and Kousui (Hard Flavor Mix), the latest such vandalisms to pass my ears]

Um, wow. Shin Cyborg Shibata, starring the members of Melon Kinenbi. I may have to buy both DVDs.

[Update: Warning! Do not exceed recommended dosage. Excessive viewing could prove fatal.]

I didn’t know that the USPS had established a list of 208 standard street name extensions. Until today, I wouldn’t have imagined that anyone would consider importing that list into an HTML form as a pulldown menu.

The worst part is, there’s actually a reason for it…

[Update: Thanks, guys; the check is in the mail. More new-camera-porn here.]

Now that you’re releasing a 24+ megapixel full-frame 35mm CMOS sensor, don’t you feel a little stupid for making some of your high-end Zeiss lenses for the Alpha line APS-C-only? I doubt you’ve actually sold many of them, given the price and scarce distribution, but still, you had to know that full-frame was a requirement for a serious player in the DSLR market, and your recent announcements show that you’re not just keeping the low end of the old Minolta lineup.

Just to be clear on this: if you put that sensor into a body that’s the equivalent of Minolta’s 7 or 9 series (pleasepleaseplease a 9!), you’ve got a customer here already waiting in line.

Just to be clear, the web site listed in this picture of a Gion nightclub is Not Safe For Work.

Most guidebooks will tell you that Tonki has the best tonkatsu in Tokyo. After eating there, I’m willing to believe them.

The trick is finding the place. These pictures are descriptive rather than scenic, so they go below the fold:

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