Chesto

2008-2010

Hello!

This is Destini who hasn't used this account in ages, LOL. I'm mainly on LJ now. :3 However, because I have a lot of important memories and posts here, I wanted to preserve them.

Hopefully if we spoke a lot on Vox, we can keep in touch. :)

CHESTO!★☆★これからもARASICKしてきます

WELCOME TO MY BLOG

Hi, my name is Destini. This blog is where I keep up with Arashi fandom. I'm a huge Arashi fan, residing in Las Vegas (Nevada) and I try my best to think of ways to promote the North American fan base to Arashi and Johnny's Entertainment.

 

ARASHI AROUND AMERICA

ArashiAroundAmerica.net is my main way of going about the above stated mission. We think of projects and such to try and gain Arashi's attention. We also have a Fans Database so that we can have visible proof of the existing fan base here in North America.

 

CURRENT PROJECT(S)

ARASHI AROUND AMERICA x THE SMILE PROJECT | http://arashiaroundamerica.net/ for details about this on-going project!

 

TOMODACHI NI NARIMASHO(W)

I'll add anyone here! The larger the audience, the more successful projects will be. Also, I just love meeting new Arashi fans. No need to ask if you can add me, help yourself. I look forward to meeting lots of new fans and friends within this amazing fandom.

 

MY FAN REPORTS

Here are links to events I've gone to involving Arashi and the reports I've written about them. After checking out the pages that get the most hits here, these reports are some of the highest. I don't know why but I guess people like fan reports? So here are the links in a easy to click place.

 

Jun Matsumoto in Las Vegas | Part 1 Part 2

Jun Matsumoto in Los Angeles | Full Report

Sho Sakurai in New York City | Film Review

Mezamashi TV Johnny's Fan Karaoke Filming | Full Report

 

 

SHOURAI | LiveJournal

My LiveJournal (Note: Friends Locked. Please ask to be added.)

 

THEQUIZSHOW | LiveJournal Community

A community for Sho Sakurai's drama, "The Quiz Show, Season Two."

 

DAKARAHAPPY | LiveJournal Community

My graphics, summaries, scans, and etc community. Not regularly updated.

 

ARASHIAN SUB TEAM | Fansubs

I work here! I'm apart of AGE Gumi. Please support our subtitles.

 

AGE AROUND ARASHI | Fan Radio

AST AGE Gumi's fan internet radio show for Arashi. It's pretty cracky - check it out!

 

AIBAKA | Message Board

The message board that I help moderate. Check out the U.S. Fans Thread. :)

 

SHOMYGOSH | Twitter

I use Twitter like a crazy person. Protected updates but I pretty much add any Arashi fan.

 

ARASHI NO NAKA NI | Travel Blog

Recently created blog to chronicle my travels in Japan, Summer 2009.

Arashi Fans Worldwide - Let's Be Heard!

Destini here. :)
This post serves as a guide to any visitors who may want to contact Arashi or one of Arashi shows. It also has links to projects, campaigns, and the like that I think are epic!

If you'd like me to post a link to your campaign, drop me a comment here and tell me about it! I love hearing about other Arashi fans supporting our boys!

Note: Realize that for a few of these methods, you need to have a general understanding of Japanese. Since the idea of so many overseas fans is a bit new to Japan, not all the sites are foreigner-friendly. (I.E. not having an Overseas option for Place of Residence).

Though - please take advantage of the options you do have where English is okay or where being out of the nation of Japan is okay. To make it easier, I've implemented the following legend:

ENG | This method is English-okay! (Mostly.)
JPN | Need to have a grasp of Japanese.
NI | Need to be living or stationed in Japan for a period of time.
INTL | Can be living anywhere in the world.

Recent Additions (updated 06/26/09)
Added Arashi10Sai.com.

SNAIL MAIL ARASHI (ENG | INTL)
Want to write a fan letter to Arashi? Here is the address below!

ARASHI - ARASHI MEMBER'S NAME
Johnny's Family Club
Miyamasu Tower B1F
1-10-10 Shibuya
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8550

I.E.
ARASHI - SAKURAI SHO
Johnny's Family Club
Miyamasu Tower B1F
1-10-10 Shibuya
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8550

Tips
Use basic English. It's none of Arashi's first language. If possible, get your letter translated.
Don't overtly fangirl in the letter. "I LOVE YOU MARRY ME NAO," is probably inappropriate.

E-MAIL ARASHI RAJIO SHOWS (ENG | JPN | INTL)
Arashi's radio show all have e-mails that listeners can send messages and comments to. Why not give it a shot! You never know who's they might read on air~

OHNO SATOSHI | ARASHI DISCOVERY
arashi@fmyokohama.co.jp

MATSUMOTO JUN | JUNSTYLE
arashi@nack5.co.jp

AIBA MASAKI | AIBA REKOMEN
arashi@joqr.net

NINOMIYA KAZUNARI | BAYSTORM
nino@bayfm.co.jp

Tips
If you can type the messages in Japanese or get it translated, I'd implore you to.
Though, about 4/5 members of Arashi are learning or trying to learn to speak English well. So it may just be great practice. :)

ARASHI NO SHUKUDAI-KUN (JPN | NI)
Arashi no Shukudai-kun's submission form has specific radio buttons for you to click. Here are the translations for each button.

ゲストからの宿題 (Homework from the Guest)
Oishii Ryouri | Delicious Foods
This is the section of the show where the guest ask for delicious food! If you have something to submit here, then try it out.
You probably need to have a good idea of Japanese food and restaurants and all that jazz.

イメージ宿題 (Image Homework)
"Kinou no yoru, nani shiteta?" | What did you do last night?
If you have a "guest imeji' or an image of what you think the guest did last night, send it in!

番組からの宿題 (Homework from the Program)
Shiodome Aibaland | Send in fun games for the guest and Arashi to play together!
This is the current Program Homework. We've all seen Ai-land so if you have a fun game, send that in! It'd be great to see an overseas' fan's game on the show, na?

ARASHI NO SHUKUDAI-KUN BBS (JPN)
The official Arashi no Shukudai-kun website has a BBS board that anyone can post to. It's for posting your opinions about each week's episode.

Ozarashi was kind enough to translate the BBS page and form for fellow fans! Please visit her Vox here for the translation!

ARASHI NO SHUKUDAI-KUN AUDIENCE MEMBER (JPN | NI)
Since there was interest expressed in this, here is the forum link I was looking for that explains the process. From the sounds of it -

   1. You have to send in your request to a Japanese address from Japan.
   2. You have to ballot.
   3. You have to be a FC member.

ARASHI AROUND AMERICA.NET (ENG)
This website looks to serve as a hub of North American representation of Arashi fans.

STORM NEWS! (ENG)
This weekly video presentation of the latest Arashi news has been one of my favorite fan-created projects I've seen thus far! Everyone check it out! Lets support fellow international fans throughout the globe~

ARASHI CONCERT IN THE US PETITION (ENG)
This is a steadily growing petition to get Arashi to perform in the United States. Big fan or small, please sign it to show your support and to show that they do have fans all over, supporting them.

ARASHI10SAI.COM/ (ENG)
This website was created for interbational fans to congratulate Arashi on their 10th Anniversary! Please visit to see the many ways you can do so! :)

Guide/Tips for Getting Concert Tickets (Incomplete)

Hello everyone! Today, I'm here to compile some links on how to aquire concert tickets, along with some personal commentary and experiences that I've had.

The reason for this is because an amazing occurrence happened where I've literally been contacted by 10+ people today in regards to it! So I figured making this post for them and others to benefit from in some way would be nice. It'll also give me peace of mind, knowing I shared as much knowledge as I could and helped in some way. I truly do hope this is at least slightly helpful for someone!

Disclaimer: Results May Vary.

My Experience with Buying Concert Tickets | For starters, I was in a situation where I knew somebody. So basically, nothing I'm about to say is going to help you. It's to just explain how I got concert tickets.

I searched everywhere for help, but couldn't afford any of the sources. Finally, I had to ask a friend. She forwarded me to two sellers. One sold me tickets for $300/pair. Another sold me four tickets for the original FC/Non-FC prices. That's all. In all honesty, I was very lucky in my situation. I don't even think it'd happen again. I'd be grateful, but you know.

Tips I Have For Potential Buyers | Here are a few things I would suggest.

1) Do not rely on any one method!

I see a lot of people who post on forums and websites, asking for help but don't really go further. They wait and wait and wait for a reply and by the time they realize that no one will probably get back to them, it's too late.

2) Realize that tickets are not promised just because you're in fanclub.

Members of JFC have just as much of a stressful time attempting to get tickets. If they don't win, they have to do the same - find someone willing to sell them tickets. FC merely gives you an earlier chance to buy tickets - it does not PROMISE them.

3) Be prepared to spend money.

One problem I had early on was that I thought I'd get tickets for close to the original price(s). I was sorely mistaken. As it states above, over $400 was paid to go to concerts. It is not cheap! 

4) Just because you spend a bit of money, don't expect spectacular seats all the time.

Personally, just going to a concert is more than enough!

Further tips may be added.

Methods To Buy Concert Tickets | Here are a few ways I have found or heard of to buy tickets. I've never used them! Remember my story above - I worked with two individual sellers. So I cannot give you any advice or opinions further then what I have written below.

If anyone reading this does have experience with any of these services, I'd really appreciate any small reviews/comments you may have about it to add to the post! It really helps on deciding who to go with when you can read others' opinions about it.

Name: Tenso.com

URL: http://www.tenso.com/en/

Service: Overseas Forwarding Service

About: Tenso.com enables you to purchase and receive merchandise from Japanese shops that are unable to ship overseas. Tenso gives users their own Japanese address! Essentially, if you sign up for a website that requires you to have a Japanese shipping address, Tenso will give you one. Each address is basically a warehouse where your package(s) would be shipped to. Upon recieving the package, depending on its weight, you will be emailed an invoice to pay to have it shipped to your home. It's that simple.

From what I understand, shipping prices depends on the size/weight of the item. 

I converted 1pound (1lb) into grams (Tenso's unit of measurement). 

It equaled 453G.

EMS Shipment Charge: 1500

Shipment Handling Charge: 490

Total Shipping Total: 1990

Notes: Yahoo! Japan Auctions is listed as one of their recommended online shops. Therefore, I assume that you could be able to purchase tickets through them.

Notes: This service cannot be used to join Johnny's Fan Club. In order to join FC, you need more than a Japanese address. You need,

A Japanese Residence Address (Tenso provides a warehouse or post box address)
Two phone numbers (Home and Cell Phone)
You have to mail it within the country of Japan
etc etc...

So this service, as stated, is to be used for online websites that are selling tickets and not to join fan club.

Tips: Tenso.com has links that translate the recommended online shops to English. However, it's broken English and may seem difficult to navigate. Your best bet would be to use some Japanese in the search string, regardless of Tenso's translated version of the site(s) to find the items you're looking for.

Further Information:

Guide to Tenso.com | http://www.tenso.com/en/guide/

Shipment Process | http://www.tenso.com/en/shipping/

Recommended Shopping Sites | http://www.tenso.com/en/shopping/

WILL BE UPDATED! 

I'm still going through websites and other services to list up here. Please check back~

VS Arashi Opinion Forum

Doing some research, guys! I'd like to hear everyone's opinions regarding VS Arashi, since its just recently spun into a totally new level. Golden Time, huge SP, new games, the works. I'd really appreciate it if you didn't mind just even leaving a sliver of your opinion regarding this.

Amongst the International Arashi fan-base, VS Arashi didn't seem to be as popular as say, Arashi no Shukudai-kun or the older shows. However, it's very popular in Japan. 

Arguments I've heard from various Int'l fans is that it's very repetitive & therefore, they don't feel the need to watch it. They get bored easily, and such.

However, I've also heard that since it's so straight-forward that it's an easy watch because of the limited Japanese used. So they tend to tune in because it's easy to process.

My question basically is, Honestly speaking, Do you like VS Arashi and if so Why do you like it?

If you like it,

• Have you liked it from the start or was there a recent spark of interest?

• What makes it enjoyable?

If you dislike it,

• Have you always disliked it? Were you once a fan & then grew to dislike it over time?

• Do you see yourself giving its new Golden Time Renewal a chance to see if you find interest?

Other points?

• Thoughts on why you think its so popular in Japan? (I don't feel like this is a guess that its popular because it was moved to Golden Time so it must be somewhat popular. LOL)

• Do you think VS Arashi can be to Arashi akin to SmaSma is to SMAP? (Basically like their namesake show, so to speak.) 

• If not, do you think they already have/had a show like that? (Other current Arashi shows, older shows.)

Tell me your opinions! :) Be as long/short-winded as you wish. All opinions wll be counted! Also, if you wish or do not wish to be directly quoted, please state so.

Why are you asking, Destini?

Well, as some (most?) of you may be aware, my career goal is to be a journalist. It's my college major and I want to start learning how to collect information from others and compile them into informative articles. 

I feel like one of the best ways I can start getting used to this is to focus on areas I have a huge interest in. So that's why I'm starting with Arashi!

This may all spin-off into being something bigger but for now - expect an article regarding the international fan-bases take on VS Arashi, Arashi shows in general, and such. :)

MatsuJun Birthday Letter/Card Project

Hey guys! For a third time, we'd like to gather letters from American fans to send to Johnny's FC! This time, the occasion is MatsuJun's birthday!

As with Nino's Birthday Letter Project, Cards are fine as well!

Please show your support for Jun, and wish him a pleasant birthday in any way you'd like! Please send all cards/letters to:

AAA Project

P.O.Box 27222

Fayetteville, NC 28314

Project Deadline: August 14th, 2009

Please make sure your letter arrives to the above address on the 14th or before. No late submissions!

Things to Remember:

This project in particular is only  for fans residing in the United States.

Please keep letters to a one page minimum if possible.

Do not include things like images of yourself, cutout images (from magazines) or printed images of Arashi, money, or anything else that breaks Johnny's FC rules.

Otherwise, have at it! Be creative! Lets wish Jun a special birthday from his US Fanbase.

Arashi Around America - Re-Open For Business

Hey guys! Destini here. :) Sorry for mine being busy - I've been so busy that I never got the chance to mention that Arashi Around America has been re-opened!

We have a new setup and everything!

http://arashiaroundamerica.net/

Please Check it Out! Also, check out AAA.net latest list of Staff: Including our new Web Designer, Katy!

The Smile Project is still going on strong, so be sure to submit your testimonial about how Arashi makes you smile!

We're always accepting photos, videos, and media from any fan events or gatherings! Currently, we'd love media from both events of Jun Matsumoto in Las Vegas & Los Angeles and Sho Sakurai in New York City.

Have an upcoming fan gathering? Let us know and we'll post it up for other N. American fans to see! The larger the gathering, the better!

Arashi Around Japan - Nisenkyuu!

Hey guys! I'm back in Japan. I didn't really mention it here, huh? ^^;; WELL everything's all epically fun! :) Will post more pictures soon!

Johnny's FC Mail | Tour Information, Translated by Dellie

I got the email today and my buddy Dellie (namidairo.vox.com/) translated it for me! 
Here you go, further information about the concerts and balloting. :)

●嵐　ファンクラブ会員限定　情報メール●『メール伝言板』６月２５日号

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣￣
お待たせいたしました！
WE HAVE MADE YOU WAIT!
嵐デビュー１０周年全国Tourが決定！！
ARASHI’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY, NATIONWIDE TOUR HAS BEEN DECIDED UPON!
＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

◇史上初の国立競技場3日間連続公演を皮切りに全国５大ドームツアーがスタート!!
A historical 3 consecutive days that will open a nationwide 5 dome tour is starting!!~ 

◇会員優先受付案内◇ 
Information for Priority Applications

※申込締切日にご注意ください！
※Please be aware of the application cut-off dates.

【国立競技場公演のみ】　⇒　最新会報４４号に同封して現在ご案内を発送中。
For Kokuritsu -- The newest bulletin (number 44) will have details enclosed and is currently being sent out.
☆申込締切日⇒７月１３日（月）消印有効　※転送不要郵便。
Application cutoff date -- 13/07 (Mon) - postmark validity (??) - Postal service forwarding is unnecessary.


【5大ドーム公演】　⇒　案内準備中。
5 big dome performances -- Information is currently being processed.
☆申込締切日⇒７月末予定。お待ちください！
Application cutoff date -- Around the end of July – please wait!


◇申込条件◇
Conditions for Applying

国立競技場公演から１公演日、５大ドーム公演から１公演日、合計最大２公演日の申込みが可能です。
You may apply for 1 day of Kokuritsu and 1 day of the 5 big dome performances – making it a maximum total of 2 possible days for you to attend concerts.

※1公演につき4枚まで。
※For each performance you may get a max of 4 tickets

※同行者の会員資格は問いません。
※Fellow travelers (Non-FC members) may qualify (for tickets) under FC members.



【　公演スケジュール　】
Performance Schedule 
◇東京・国立霞ヶ丘競技場（屋外・国立競技場)
Tokyo – National Stadium (Kokuritsu Stadium) - (Outdoor Kokuritsu Stadium)
　８月２８日（金）１７：３０ 28th August (Friday) at 5:30pm
　　　２９日（土）１７：３０ 29th August (Saturday) at 5:30pm
　　　３０日（日）１７：３０ 30th August (Sunday) at 5:30pm

※７月１３日（月）申込締切。
※Cutoff date for applications – July 13th (Monday) 
※１公演のみ４枚まで。
※You may only apply for 4 tickets per performance venue



◇５大ドーム公演 
5 Big Dome Performances

◆福岡ドーム Fukuoka Dome
　９月１８日（金）１８：００ 18th September (Friday) - 6pm
　　　１９日（土）１８：００ 19th September (Saturday) - 6pm


◆京セラドーム大阪 Kyocera Dome Osaka 
　９月２５日（金）１８：００ 25th September (Friday) - 6pm 
　　　２６日（土）１８：００ 26th September (Saturday) - 6pm
　　 ２７日（日）１６：００ 27th September (Sunday) - 4pm


◆札幌ドーム Sapporo Dome
　１１月１４日（土）１８：００ 14th November (Saturday) - 6pm
　　　　 １５日（日）１６：００ 15th November (Sunday) - 4pm


◆東京ドーム Tokyo Dome
　１２月４日（金）１８：００ 4th December (Friday) - 6pm
　　　 　５日（土）１８：００ 5th December (Saturday) - 6pm
　　　　 ６日（日）１８：００ 6th December (Sunday) - 6pm


◆ナゴヤドーム Nagoya Dome
２０１０年１月１６日（土）１８：００ 16th January 2010 (Saturday) - 6pm
　　　　　　 　１７日（日）１６：００ 17th January 2010 (Sunday) - 4pm


※７月末申込締切。
※Applications will close at the end of July
※１公演のみ４枚まで。
※Limit of 4 tickets per performance




【　ファンクラブ受付チケット代金　】
Ticket price for balloting FC members

１枚／7,000円（税込）
7000 yen EACH. (Includes tax)
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

＝　＝　＝　＝　＝　＝　＝　＝　＝

◇よくあるご質問◇ 
FAQs

Ｑ１．国立競技場公演と東京ドーム公演に行きたい！
Ｑ１．I WANNA TO GO BOTH KOKURITSU AND TOKYO DOME!

⇒Ａ１．国立競技場１公演日と東京ドーム１公演日のお申し込みができます。
郵便局備付青色振込用紙を２枚用意⇒７月１３日までに国立競技場１公演を選んでお申込み。
５大ドーム申込案内到着後、申込締切日を確認して、東京ドーム１公演を選んでお申込み。
⇒Ａ１．You may apply for both Kokuritsu and Tokyo Dome performances.
You may acquire a blue back deposit transfer paper at any post office -- Choose ‘Kokuritsu’ and apply before the 13th of July.
After the information on the 5 dome tour has arrived, (it’s being sent out) confirm the cut-off date, choose ‘Tokyo Dome’ and apply.


Ｑ２.国立競技場２日間申し込みたい！
Ｑ２.I want to apply for 2 days at Kokuritsu
⇒Ａ２.NGです。1公演日をお選びください。
⇒Ａ２.NO. NO YOU MAY NOT. You may only choose 1 performance date (at Kokuritsu)

Ｑ３.大阪ドームと福岡ドームに申し込みたい！
Ｑ３.I want to go to both Osaka dome and Fukuoka dome!
⇒Ａ３.NGです。いずれか１会場・１公演日をお選びください。
⇒Ａ３.BUUBUU. YOU CAN’T! You may only choose 1 performance date at 1 venue

■詳細はジャニーズネット嵐会員ページをご確認ください。↓（随時更新）
Further info is available at the Arashi FC member’s page
https://www.fc-member.johnnys-net.jp/login_member.html

　　

■嵐 １０周年記念
Arashi – commemorating 10 freaking glorious years.

Arashi10Sai - 10th Anniversary Project Site

Hey guys! I'm here promoting a friend's project that's currently going underway! You all might already know about the project that je_playground is promoting - notes to the boys to say "Happy 10th Anniversary!"

Well now, there is a website being built for the purpose of further promoting international fans by showing images of fans at fanmeetings, fans' stories, and much more!

Arashi10Sai can be found here: 

http://arashi10sai.com/

They are looking for submissions for all over the world! I really like the idea for this project and I'm sure it'd be great if people could take the time to share their stories and memories with fellow fans and of the boys.

The site is also looking for a Japanese translator because the eventual goal is to show it to Arashi some how! So submit if you can and who knows what may happen!

If you have any questions, be sure to contact any of the site's staff! I'm sure they will be more than happy to assist! I'm going to add the link for this project on my main post: Arashi Fans Worldwide - Let's Be Heard!

[To clarify: This is not my project. I'm helping promote it. :)]

AST - Mezamashi TV "Strangers On A Train" Press Conference

[AST] Mezamashi Strangers On A Train Press Conference

[AST] Mezamashi Strangers On A Train Press Conference

If you thought we were stopping releases of everything else -- well you were dead wrong! (Get it? Dead? 'Cause Nino is a murderer?? ....never mind.) AGE Gumi is back with another small treat for Nino Month!

Here is the Press Conference for Ninomiya's new butai, Strangers on a Train, subbed! Please support our releases by either commenting here or on our team's LiveJournal!

File Size: 141MB

Duration: 1:41

Please, No Streaming This of Release or Any of Our Other Releases!

Megaupload (Full): Download

MediaFire: .001 .002

More Projects To Come from AGE Gumi

Utaban

Music Station