The Itoi connection is of the main reasons for my interest in this product, of course--hello, the man gave the world three of best video games ever in Mother, Mother 2 (EarthBound) and Mother 3--but another is I love that a culture of creativity and customization (for lack of a better phrase) has built up around these planners in the last few years.
So, in early January, when the "Onett" (yes, the same Onett that's found in Mother 2 and EarthBound) cover once again became available for purchase--it was sold out for a while at the end of 2014--I nabbed one.
Although it was left on my doorstep a few weeks ago, it took me until this past weekend to take some photos of it.
Before we get to my snapshots of the snazzy Onett cover, let's check out the similarly snazzy packaging that protected my Techo and related products as they made their way across the pond.
As nice as Hobonichi's packaging is, there's little question that it pales in comparison to the Onett cover (and associated components) that I mentioned earlier.
For example, check out the Mr. Saturn-branded "pencil board" (above) that was stuck inside my Onett cover. (You can slide this accessory under the page you're currently writing or drawing on to keep from marking the ones below it.)
As for the Onett cover, well, it kind of speaks for itself, don't you think? (It's showcased in the photos above and below this text, in case anyone missed that fact.)
Unfortunately, I haven't actually started using my Techo, so I can't yet share with you any cute, crude or otherwise creative doodles. (That's mainly what I'll be including in my planner, in case you're curious.)
As soon as that happens, though--and it should be soon, as I did a bit of "practice doodling" on random pieces of paper over the weekend--I'll photograph or scan my favorite concoctions and then publish them here, on Instgram, on Twitter and maybe even on deviantart.
23 comments:
Waaaaaah, i'm so jealous! :P
Ah, sorry, Adam :( I bought it as a special gift for myself after getting my new job. Now I just need to start using the damn thing XD
You've made a great investment! The book itself is so lovingly made, with fun quotes on every page, and has a lot of cool stuff in the back as well! I started off with an English one for 2015 and hope to advance far enough in my studies to pick up a Japanese one for 2016. And then that cover.... gahhh, it's probably one of the best things I've ever spent money on.
Not kidding...I sat here reading with my mouth open. I'm in awe. That is gorgeous!!!
Hey there, Justin! Yeah, this kind of thing is like a wet dream for folks like you and me, right? As such, I have to make sure I don't just let it sit there, looking pretty. I think from now on I'll stuff it in my field bag as I'm heading out the door to work. After all, there are plenty of things that could be addressed in this sucker these days--work stuff, school stuff, "learning Japanese (again)" stuff ... and of course doodles :)
Ah, so you have one, too, Zach? That's great! I went with an English one this time around, as I wanted to be able to understand the quotes and such, but hopefully in future years I'll be able to buy the Japanese version instead. Speaking of which, I'm back to learning Japanese again. I'm only at the beginning at the moment, but hopefully I won't be "stuck" here for long. (And hopefully this time I won't be sidetracked by some random life event.)
I know what you mean re: Japanese. I worked my way through to season 4 of that TextFugu site you recommended (I think you did? Or I just remember you were using that as well?), but found myself endlessly distracted and eventually discouraged. The internet is a hard place for me to work on course material... and getting as distracted totally ripped apart my kanji memorization. Recently, though, I got a realllly good book that helps to remember all the kanji, so I decided to put TF on hold until I get to a comfortable stopping point with the book. Hope your studies prove good!
Hello again, Zach! Actually, I wasn't the one who recommended TextFugu to you--or at least I don't think I was the one who recommended it to you. I do believe it was mentioned in the comments section of one of the posts I published about learning Japanese, though, so maybe that's what you're thinking of?
At any rate, what's your opinion of TextFugu, if you have an opinion about it so far? I see it offers a free month/lesson, so I may have to give that a try regardless.
Also, if you don't mind me asking, what book are you using at the moment to help with your studies? I'm still going through katakana and hiragana at the moment, but I should be able to move past that next week, so I'd love to hear which book is bringing you so much joy the moment!
I've found Textfugu is a really great site to learn but I would hold on for the moment as a new improved version is going to come out hopefully soon (etoeto.com currently in alpha testing)
Do you mean that a new version of Textfugu is going to be released, Luis, or a competitor to Textfugu is going to be released?
It's just a newer version--if you purchase access or a season pass or whathaveyou to the current TextFugu you should still have access to EtoEto when it comes out (from what I understand?).
I think TextFugu's pretty good! I think it's Kanji memorization tactics are similar... but a bit lacking compared to this book. The way he's going about it (in TF) is with radicals and incrementally including more strokes, whereas Heisig (the book i'm using) prefers to follow a similar system that just happens to make a looot more sense (how to make the brush strokes for each kanji, remembering them in larger pieces by their actual meanings, etc. I can send you a scan of a couple pages to give you an idea?).
Heisig is a fancy professor who's really down to earth (this is the author of the book I'm referring to) and holds an incredible grasp on the language. Where I don't know as much about the author(s) of TextFugu, I do really enjoy how they handle grammar and pretty much everything else. The book will only help you to remember the Kanji, but offers nothing in the way of pronunciations or sentences or learning the actual conversational skills of the language, but it will help a ton as kanji are going to be the biggest hurdle in the language (in my humble opinion!).
Here's a link! Lemme know if you wanna see more about the book or see some examples: http://www.amazon.com/Remembering-Kanji-Complete-Japanese-Characters/dp/0824835921/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
Yeah, it's an upgraded version of textfugu, there's also a site exclusively to learn kanjis (wanikani.com) which is what I'm using at the moment (think it was made by someone that now works with the authors of textfugu) I really like how it makes a little more sense than learning kanji in TF, the SRS (spaced repetition system) is really helpful in keeping you hooked along the way.
Thanks for the recommendation Zach, I'm gonna check the book, sometimes I don't have internet access for a week or more and I could really use a book that teaches kanji in a similar way :)
Thanks, Zach! I've definitely "heard" of Heisig and his book(s) before, but that's it. (As in, I don't know much, if anything about them.) I'll have to check them out once I've progressed far enough to have to worry about learning and remembering more kanji!
Yes, I agree. I wouldn't mind a bunch of learning options, to tell you the truth--mobile app, on line and even physical book...
Having a physical book on my person at work and whatnot has been wonderful. Being able to take it with me places without the hassle of carrying around a laptop or internet-savvy device feels great. Not to mention just feels easier to focus on!
I mostly feel the same way, Zach. I mean, I love being able to use my phone for some aspects of this process (I'm currently using a rather nice app to re-learn my kana), but I also like the idea of using a website and a physical book, too--so all of my educational bases are covered, I guess :)
I've also enjoyed using the Genki books so far, I have to say, although I've yet to pull them out for this round of learning. I have a feeling they'll be entering the fray late next week or the one following that, though, as I'm flying through the kana "alphabets" at the moment!
Yeah, get your hiragana/katakana game down first, then i'd recommend going through a bit of the basic grammar and sentence stuff. After you figure out that the kanji would be a wise thing to pick up since very few use furigana (the little kana above kanji for pronunciation guides, in games like in Ni no Kuni/Animal Crossing). Lemme know if you need anymore info on the book!
What apps, books, sites, etc., did you use to learn grammar, sentence structure and more, Zach?
So far in my studies I've relied on Genki, although I'm open to other sources, too!
(Heisig pretty much sticks to teaching you kanji, right?)
Ah! I just saw this. Sorry!
I mostly use the aforementioned book, TextFugu, and the AnkiDroid app that TextFugu recommends for flashcards on your phone. I've used the cards that TF's provided, along with some other really good programs (Anki has a lot of really cool flashcard packs you can download for free!). And that's really it for what I use! I also practice constantly by writing things out and forcing myself to stare at Japanese webpages/following Japanese twitters, watching anime in subs whenever I have the option, etc.
Thanks, Zach! And no worries about taking a while to get back to me. I understand completely, believe me!
Hmmm, it looks like I'm going to have to seriously consider TextFugu/EtoEto--and soon! Especially since a "forever" pass (or whatever it's called) on TextFugu currently costs only $99, and it sounds like that's going to go up, and possibly quite a bit, once EtoEto launches.
So, maybe I'll start my free trial this weekend. If I like it, I'll pay the $99 for "forever" access.
Also, I'll have to check out Anki, as it sounds like the online portion is free, although you have to pay for the iOS "companion"?
And then, of course, I'll also have to consider Heisig when I finally start digging into kanji.
For the moment, though, my Dr. Moku apps are doing a good job of bringing me back up to speed RE: kana, and after that hopefully TextFugu and my Genki books will help me move further down the path to understanding all of these crazy, wonderful Japanese games I've bought over the years :)
Weird! Anki was free for my Android... Maybe the iOS is cooler? Though it is a free PC/Mac download! How much is it for iOS?
Also: I dunno if TextFugu will rise in price with EtoEto, but that might be a good idea! Check it out and feel free to ask me any questions you might have about future content to get an idea if it's something you'd be up for.
The Genki books look cool and I wanna invest in one of those at some point too, just to round myself out and make sure I'm retaining a lot of the grammar stuff.
A bit late to the party, but i've finally ordered myself one of these. Can't wait for it to arrive! >_<
Hey, it's *never* too late to join this party, Adam. Congrats!
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