Tamanoi Blog

[Cammy 0]

  madorosumaru said:

I was watching a show on the travel channel called No Reservations and he went to the place that had the big crab infront of it.

And the that picture of shibuya is great he almost looks angry at the ice cream.

[Kishinoyama 595]

  madorosumaru said:

The time was 26 minutes

[Sasanishiki 57]

I shared a large dessert similar to that (not that big though) in Osaka with a sumo athlete last year!! It was after the World Sumo Championships in Sakai and the athlete was a female lightweight (under 65kg)!! She certainly was able to pack away the dessert!

[Kishinoyama 595]

  Sasanishiki said:

I shared a large dessert similar to that (not that big though) in Osaka with a sumo athlete last year!! It was after the World Sumo Championships in Sakai and the athlete was a female lightweight (under 65kg)!! She certainly was able to pack away the dessert!

She sounds a lot like my wife. I never thought a woman that weighed less than 43kg could eat two Double-Meat Whoppers (Burger King of course) and a large order of French Fries but I sat there and watched her put all of that food away (Blushing...). Needless to say, I was in awe (Nodding yes...).

Edited April 4, 2006 by Kishinoyama

[madorosumaru 7]

There is a comment to the blog that confirms the achievement. It's not clear whether it came from someone from the coffee shop or a person that checked with them. In any case, the writer left the web address for Columbia.

The coffee shop specializes in giant portions of all kinds and a sample menu offers Jumbo Curry and Jumbo Omelets. There are also pictures of several other ice cream concoctions. One has the face and part of the body of the God of Happiness and another is in the shape of Tsutenkaku, a landmark building in Osaka.

The "Mt. Fuji," which Tooyama and Shibuya conquered is on the menu at ￥9800. Although Tooyama mentions in the blog that there were two prior groups that finished the enormous sundae, the web page claims that, up to that point, no one has succeeded in meeting the challenge.

Mr. Yamada, the owner of the shop and the "brains" behind all this creativity, boasts that the "Mt. Fuji" is mere "kid stuff" and that there is the "Mt. Everest," which uses 18 liters of ice cream and costs a whopping

￥24800. And for those that believe the Earth to be a minor planet in the universe, there is the extra-terrestrial "Space Walk," which is large enough to serve 50 people at the outathisworld price of ￥34800.

The writer of the comment wants the sumosan to challenge Everest next year after the Osaka Basho.

[Sasanishiki 57]

My friend and I might have to undertake the challenge this year! Looking forward to that. We'll probably have to do it after competition as she might end up in another weight class if she does it before the weigh-in!!

[ilovesumo 12]

So I guess it is made for 50 people (Sigh...)

But, atama ga ii shop owner ;) to use Rikishi like he did here

[madorosumaru 7]

04/04/06

Sushi Place

Hello! This is Tooyama.

Keiko resumed, starting yesterday.

I diligently worked up some sweat to make up for goofing off for a week.

I will do my best to get ready for the May Basho.

Today, I would like to write something about the sushi place, which, as I wrote about earlier in the blog, provided the rice balls at the time we departed for Osaka.

The picture above shows the framed banzuke etc. on the wall of the sushi place.

Those are gifts from Tamanoi Oyakata and Tochiazuma-zeki.

The frame on the left displays not a banzuke, but an assortment of kensho envelopes.

The sushi house, which is located in Adachi-ku, is called

Fukusushi.

The decor includes a large picture banzuke and a collection of bonus envelopes.

Yoshiazuma-san talking to

[Kishinoyama 595]

  madorosumaru said:

Sushi Place

Thank you again for the wonderful translation. I dare not show this to my wife. She absolutely loves Sushi and I might have to take her out to eat some local Sushi if she sees this. The Sushi here is not the same as in the Fukusushi restaurant but we have to make do with what we have here. (Shaking head...)

[Cammy 0]

Oh man that sushi looks so good.

[Sasanishiki 57]

  Cammy said:

Oh man that sushi looks so good.

Oh man, that katsu-don looks so good!! Might have to find some for lunch...

[madorosumaru 7]

04/10/06

Suspicious Character?!

Good evening! This is Tooyama.

Today

[ilovesumo 12]

(Neener, neener...) Great!

but poor Tokoyama...ouch, that must be hard to handle...He looks like Brian May.

Edited April 10, 2006 by ilovesumo

[Kintamayama 45,252]

  ilovesumo said:

(Neener, neener...) Great!

but poor Tokoyama...ouch, that must be hard to handle...He looks like Brian May.

He looks more like Carlito.

Edited April 11, 2006 by Kintamayama

[Cammy 0]

  Kintamayama said:

  ilovesumo said:

(Laughing...) Great!

but poor Tokoyama...ouch, that must be hard to handle...He looks like Brian May.

He looks more like Carlito.

Oh man he really does look like Carlito that is great Kintamayama (A yokozuna...) (Neener, neener...)

[Fay 1,677]

  ilovesumo said:

(Neener, neener...) Great!

but poor Tokoyama...ouch, that must be hard to handle...He looks like Brian May.

Brian May after eating Chanko nabe three times a day for one year (A yokozuna...)

[madorosumaru 7]

The Tamanoi Blog is apparently on a hiatus, so for those of you that need a Shibuya fix, I found something in a sumo magazine.

Kazuyoshi Shibuya looks as if he was born to be a sumo wrestler--with his healthy round body that is about to burst at the seams. And as Fate would have it, he has had a long, intimate relationship with sumo and Tamanoi Beya, long before he joined the stable and became one of its brightest young hopes for the future. "By the time I was 12, I knew there was no other future than as a rikishi," he recalls. "And I never even considered any other heya."

As a child, young Shibuya lived in Adachi, maybe five minutes or so by bike from Tamanoi Beya. He started sumo as a fifth grader and, by the time he was in junior high, he would beeline to the heya everyday after school. There, he would participate in afternoon keiko with the "Young Guys," "borrowing their chest" and doing shiko. Each summer, he would even join the rikishi at their camp in Fukushima.

There were five sibling in his family--four of them boys. Leading the omnivorous pack, young Kazu was eating his family into the poorhouse. In desperation, his parents came up with an edict: "No seconds." "Those were really tough times," Shibuya said with a look of sadness. "But I realized we had a big family."

Tamanoi Beya came to the rescue. "Why don't you eat at the heya," came the magnanimous offer. "Here, you can eat all you want." Kazu did not have to be asked twice. From that day on, he would be at the heya nearly everyday for keiko, dinner and even his nightly bath. "It was so delicious," Shibuya remembers nostalgically. "I used to eat 5 or 6 big bowl of rice each meal. On good days, I could finish 7 or 8 donburi."

Thus, it was to no one's surprise that he joined the heya upon his graduation from junior high. Since then, things have progressed smoothly and he is in makushita in less than three years. Although he has been overshadowed by the super-prospects, Sawai and Kageyama, Shibuya has caught the eyes of the sumo cognoscenti. "Now that I've gotten this far, I want to make juryo while I am still in my teens," Shibuya said hopefully. His technique is simple: oshi and tsuki. "I am clueless once I grab the mawashi," Shibuya said quite self-aware for a kid. "In any case, all I do is get myself into a ball and roll through my opponents."

Tochiazuma, the big honcho of the heya has this to say: "His best feature is his forward attack. He does have a bad habit of taking it easy during keiko. However, he is just getting started. Sooner or later, he will be up coming up the banzuke. It's something to look forward to."

[ilovesumo 12]

  madorosumaru said:

"In any case, all I do is get myself into a ball and roll through my opponents."

;-) spin dash attack of sonic the hedgehog :-P

[Mark Buckton 1]

interestingly his sister is missed - IIRC - Japan or thereabouts level volleyball player.

His school was #9 Junior High School - just around the corner from #4 Junior High School (Beat Takeshi's place) and 100m from my work place. By the school gate is a rather famous (locally) hair salon with a board showing the win loss records of all Tamanoi blokes during basho and it is opposite the street down which Azuma, his Mum, Dad and sis live(d). Very close to a pretty big Catholic Church.

Actually recall seeing him (Shibs) there as a kid but the 5 mins away stable was the old place in Umeda. First time I saw him and he was a legit rikishi, he cleaned my bike as I left Tamanoi one day and the rain was falling. Not just seat - frame! Very polite all round.

Another interesting point - kids at his school today have no idea who he is. :-P

[madorosumaru 7]

04/19/06

Scenes From Our Daily Life

Tokiryu striking a pose in the kitchen.

Hello! This is Tooyama!

It

Edited April 24, 2006 by madorosumaru

[Cammy 0]

  madorosumaru said:

Oh man that picture is great.

And I guess Tooyama will have to get quicker with his camera next time, before Shibuya has a chance to eat the cake.

[madorosumaru 7]

04/20/06

Chanko Nabe

Picture of

[madorosumaru 7]

Speaking of "Soppu Chanko Nabe," one can buy a kit from a catalog gift outfit called "Shaddy." Interestingly, this company has come out with a new TV commercial featuring none other than Yokozuna Asashoryu.

In the CM, there is a "Shaddy Family," whose grandpa is a die-hard fan of the Yokozuna: "I can't help it but I like him so, so much. I want to send him a gift."

The wise member of the group, Mom, of course, suggests they go to the Shaddy store. There the family has plenty of products to choose from.

The next sequence shows Asashoryu receiving a package containing "Cereale," a line of skin care products.

Ryu is all smiles as he exclaims, "So smooth; so smooth."

You can view the CM at this page. Go down to the picture of Asashoryu and you have the choice of the 15-second version or the 30-second one.

In the description of the shooting of the commercial, it is said that Ryu was so enthusiastic that he refused the use of a stand-in for a shot that did not show his face, only the hands. He insisted on doing it himself and went through take after take until everyone was satisfied. Throughout the shoot, he was friendly and cooperative to all the staff even though the process must have been quite tedious.

A very unreliable observer, who had snuck into the location, later explained why Ryu was in such a jovial mood. All during the session, the Yokozuna was heard to mutter to no one in particular, "Hakuho's skin may be lighter, but mine is sooo much smoother."

Edited April 22, 2006 by madorosumaru

[madorosumaru 7]

  Quote

[madorosumaru 7]

04/21/06

Yakult

Hello! This is Tooyama!

Here is a bit more for an update today.

I apologize for the drastic drop in the quality of the picture today.

I took the photo with the camera feature of my cell phone.

I borrowed a single lens reflex camera from a friend the other day.

As a result, the recent pictures have been crystal clear.

SLR sure takes good pictures, but they are too expensive for me.

Today