Rachel is an English major, but wishes she could minor in the Internet. In terms of Japanese cultural export, she especially likes San-X characters (Afro Ken, anyone?), the films of Miyazaki and Ozu, Boris, and Boredoms. She loves the absurdities of pop culture from every country, but thinks the Japanese have a unique aesthetic sensibility and an often superior imagination. Her fascination with Japanese pop culture and all things kawaii began when she started working at a toy store her freshman year of high school. With an entire section devoted to Sanrio and San-X, she soon found herself the owner of Hello Kitty stationery made to look like toast, several plush incarnations of San-X characters, an army of metal wind-up robots, and an inconceivable amount of stickers. She once saw someone else carrying the same Hello Kitty handbag she had, but that person was a five year-old girl.
She would also like to share these two links:
Beautiful hand-painted photos of 19th century Japan
Pokemon collector breaks world record with more than 13,000 pieces of memorabilia
Like Kogepan, Rachel is usually disgruntled.