FAQs [Nozakibento, 16th October 2010]
Original post in Japanese
I collected together some of the questions I'm often asked.
Basic Information
Name: Nozakibento
Date of Birth: 28th April 1986 (Showa 61)
Height: 177.5cm (as of 2018)
Weight: approx. 60kg
Blood Type: A
Home prefecture: Hokkaido. I was born in Sapporo. I also lived in Tokachi and Kushiro.
Current location: Tokyo (I moved there from Hokkaido in the year I turned 30)
Occupation: A 33 year old amateur idol
Hairstyle: I used to wear a wig, but now I mostly go for a messy style
Visual Acuity: Both eyes are around 1.5 without glasses
Characteristics: Nozakibento
Likes and Dislikes
Favourite food: Sliced senmai (boiled tripe), vegetables in general, meat in general (especially meat sashimi), seafood in general (especially octopus and oysters), anything cherry blossom flavoured, anything yuzu flavoured, rice, miso soup, soba, udon, niboshi ramen, yakuzen herbal soup, grated yam, tofu, shiokara, sushi, sashimi, seaweed, mochi, rice flour dumplings, wheat gluten cakes, keihan rice, oyster soy sauce, slow-boiled eggs, Indian curry from Tokachi, ice cream (especially citrus, mint chocolate, watermelon and vanilla flavours), hard gums, mini Ramune candy, agar jelly, almond tofu pudding, oroblanco
Least favourite food: None.
Favourite drinks: Tea in general, kale smoothie, scented but not sweetened sparkling water, vegetable juice, tomato juice, soba water, miso soup, dashi, non-alcoholic beer, ginger ale, black coffee
Favourite alcoholic drinks: Campari-based cocktails (especially Spumoni), Violet Fizz
Favourite animals: Daring crabs, spotted garden eels, owls, sea urchins when they eat cabbage
My type: Someone with a big heart, who isn't rude and doesn't complain all the time. Decisive, speaks logically and is a fast worker
Favourite scents: Bergamot, yuzu, oroblanco, lemongrass, lemon and lime, eucalyptus, vanilla, incense, hinoki cypress, the smell of hot springs, medicinal water, struck matches
Favourite sports: Table tennis, endurance running, non-competitive swimming, walking
Favourite instruments: When I listen to bands, I tend to focus on the drums, bass and keyboard. If I go to see a symphonic orchestral concert or something, I tend to watch the percussionists. I myself can't play any instruments.
Hobbies: Gaming, listening to game soundtracks, table tennis, reading, darts, being enveloped in aromas, checking my daily electricity bill using a bill management app
Special skills: Ability to work as a librarian, can sing The Tortoise And The Hare starting from different positions, a little bit of competitive eating (can eat up to about 2kg)
Qualifications: Librarian, teacher's licence (for primary, middle and high schools), certified member of the Sports Boy Scouts (link in Japanese), Kanji Aptitude Test Level 2, driving licence (for manual cars)
Person I most respect: My mother
Favourite subjects: Japanese (especially modern Japanese), contemporary society, ethics, politics and economics
Favourite season: The shade in midsummer
Favourite phrases:
80% Preparation 20% Performance (dandori hachibu)
The early bird gets the worm (sente hisshou)
Niche business (sukima sangyou)
Information, Communication, Discussion (houkoku renraku soudan)
Easier said than done (iu wa yasuku okonau wa katashi)
Haste makes waste (tanki wa sonki)
Drink if you want, but be swallowed up (sake wa nondemo nomareru na)
The frog in the well knows nothing of the great ocean (i no naka no kawazu taikai wo shirazu)
A picture is worth a thousand words (hyakubun wa ikken ni shikazu)
Stress-free
Favourite Japanese poem:
'If I live long,
I may look back with yearning for these painful days -
The world that now seems harsh
May then appear sweet and good!'
By Fujiwara no Kiyosuke, translation by Peter McMillan
Favourite place to hang out: Inside a game
Favourite characters: Domo-kun (NHK), Moji-kun (Kotoba no Puzzle: Mojipittan), Zushi Hokki (official mascot of Hokuto city in Hokkaido), Jack Frost (Megami Tensei series), Morgana (Persona 5)
Favourite anime: Eureka Seven
Favourite manga: Love Roma by Toyoda Minoru
I Wonder If I Can Make 100 Friends by Toyoda Minoru
Yoake no Toshokan by Nonou Tao
Other manga I like: Nangoku Shounen Papuwa-kun, PAPUWA, Final Request, Yu☆Yu☆Hakusho, Revelations: Persona, Mind Assassin, Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei, Arakawa Under The Bridge, Fushigi Yuugi, Ranma 1/2, Psychometrer EIJI, The Kindaichi Case Files, Rakudai Ninja Rantarou, Soul Hunter etc.
Favourite game: Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers
Other games I like: Shin Megami Tensei 1-4, Shin Megami Tensei 4 Final, Shin Megami Tensei if, Persona 1-5, Devil Summoner: Raidou Kuzunoha 1 and 2, DIGITAL DEVIL SAGA Avatar Tuner 1 and 2, Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 1 and 2, Little Magic, Jake Hunter: Let Time Pass By, LIVE A LIVE, Final Fantasy 5 and 8, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light, Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem, Secret of Mana, Trials of Mana, Schoolhouse Horror Story, Banshee's Last Cry, Jungle Wars 2, Ranma 1/2: Hidden Treasure of the Red Cat Gang, Renegade, The New Hot-Blooded Tough Guy: The Eulogy of Kunio and Co., Puyo Puyo, Puyo Puyo 2, Saga Frontier, Monster Farm, Monster Farm 2, KOF98, SAMURAI SPIRITS, vib-ribbon, Clock Tower 2, Clock Tower Ghost Head, Maria: Kimitachi Ga Umareta Wake, Double Cast, Sakura Wars 2: Thou Shalt Not Die, Kotoba no Puzzle: Mojipittan, RPG Maker Series, etc. As for social network games, I like Kuroneko no Wiz Dx2 Shin Megami Tensei Revelation, and Ensemble Stars!
What I most want right now: Time
Do I smoke? Never. But I have nothing against those who do. I don't mind if someone smokes next to me.
Things I struggle with: Exercise, exercise, exercise, exercise, English, mental arithmetic, making other people cross.
What I like about myself: Large earlobes
What I don't like about myself: The fact that I easily neglect my work if I lose focus.
Do I like nurses? I like them if they're good at giving injections.
Favourite way of heating things up in a microwave: 2 minutes at 500W
Ideal way to spend a day off: Sleep like I've melted into the bed, do the cleaning and laundry when I wake up, play games like I'm bathing in them, sleep again.
Novels I’m glad to have read and why: There's a lot, so I'll just list what I can remember off the top of my head.
★ Criss Cross - Konton no Maou by Takahata Kyouichirou, published by MediaWorks. This was the very first book that made me interested in reading novels.
★ Natsu no Niwa - The Friends by Yumoto Kazumi, published by Shinchousha. When I felt down, I read this and my heart was cleansed.
★ Rirekisho by Nakamura Kou, published by Kawade Shobou Shinsha. Because it gave me courage.
★ Tsubasa wa Itsu Made Mo by Kawakami Ken'ichi, published by Shuueisha. I simply thought that it was a really good book, and reading it made me want to read more books like it in the future.
★ Tsumetai Kousha no Toki wa Tomaru by Tsujimura Mizuki, published by Kodansha. This was the book that reminded me that I wanted to keep reading novels forever.
NicoNicoDouga and Dance covers
When did you start using NicoNico? 2007, in the earliest days of the RC version.
What kind of videos do you watch on NicoNico? Anything.
Were you learning how to dance? I've never learnt how to dance.
Why did you start dancing? I wanted to take part in the first large-scale Cirno meeting. (T/N: An event where a whole bunch of people from NND get together to dance to Cirno's Perfect Math Class. Here's the 2009 version.)
What's the average production time for a single video? It varies.
What's been the most fun thing to dance to so far? Ren'ai Hunter
Which of your own dance videos are you most satisfied with? Domo-kun's dance to MERRY GO ROUND
Where you happy to be chosen in the Geiran videos (A series where a gay man ranked dancers on NND)? I was.
Which version is your current Domo-kun?
Hokkaido and Tokyo version: Tiramisu (Original version. Mainly stays at home. On active duty)
Osaka version: Chocolat (Retired)
Fukuoka version: Fondue (Retired)
Tokyo version: Belgium (Retired)
Tokyo version: Demel (Retired)
What kind of expressions do you make and what feelings do you have when dancing as Domo-kun or in the blue full bodysuit? None
What would happen to you if you drank a strange potion? I'd become aggressive.
Aren't you going to wear a wig anymore? I'd like to wear one again some time soon.
Other
Were you in any clubs during middle school? I was in the table tennis club for all 3 years. My high school club is a secret.
Do you have a girlfriend? It'd be annoying to have to update this page if I got a girlfriend or if we broke up so that's also a secret.
What are your dreams and goals? To make the people I love happy. I want to live in a way that I can look back when I die and think that I lived a good life.
What are your habits? Looking at the ingredients and nutrition facts labels on food. Looking at the ingredients labels on shampoo. Moving around unsteadily. Clicking my tongue without any thought behind it.
What are your typical phrases? Okay (ii yo), I see (naruhodo), Why?! (nande dayo), hahahaha, hah hah hah hah, HAHAHAHA
What are your main principles? To always live calmly, and to never miss an opportunity
Does your Roomba have a name? It's called Junpei.
When did you first meet Domo-kun? A friend gave me a Domo-kun plushie for my birthday and the rest is history.
What was it that drew you to Domo-kun? His loveliness.
Where did you get such a large number of plushies from? Some of them I bought, some of them I received. A few of them I got from a crane machine.
What do you want to do right now? Sleep.
What part time jobs have you done in your life? Waiter at a sushi restaurant, library work, private tutoring.
If you have a child in the future, what book would you absolutely want them to read? You Are Umasou by Miyanishi Tatsuya, published by Poplar
Do you have any rivals? No (because no-one will compete in the same ring as me).
What's your image of the ideal human? Someone who can do fundamental things reliably.
What's your motto? Stress-free
What's the reason for your name?
Nozaki → Named after Nozaki Megumi from the idol group CHECKICCO
Bento → My inspiration
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First published 16th October 2010, updated 1st December 2019
