The Fox Entertainment

It may be a bit of a stretch to call Satoshi Ishii the Michael Phelps of Japan, but not by much. His victory in the heavyweight judo competition at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing was easily the defining moment of the games for his countrymen and was considered by most media outlets the #1 highlight of the year in all of sports. Though Japan does well at the Olympics for a country of its size and has won gold medals in a number of sports, its important to keep in mind that until the late\’70s judo was the countrys most popular sport.

Ishii himself is also a marketing dream. Hes especially big by Japanese standards with 240 pounds packed on his bulky 511 frame. Not surprisingly, hes tough as nails and a terror on the mat but away from the gym he comes off like an awkwardly cheerful overgrown boy. He definitely seems younger than his 22 years, but gives off the vibe of a nice neighbor boy who youd gladly pay to mow your lawn. Unlike his telegenic American gold medalist counterpart Phelps, who acts as if he spent as much time working on media relations as his backstroke heading up to the Olympic games, Ishiis demeanor is of an athlete who literally spent the bulk of his life in a gym only to emerge and find himself a national hero.

With the ability to offer him the most money and exposure, it seemed almost a fait accompli that Ishii would sign with DREAM and K-1 parent group FEG. Obviously its a good idea to keep your options open in negotiations, so he also reportedly talked to Sengoku parent World Victory Road and Antonio Inokis Inoki Genome Federation pro wrestling group. As expected, however, FEG reportedly presented Ishii with the most lucrative offer: 500 million yen (roughly $5.5 million US) to fight on DREAM and K-1 cards, with incentive bonuses based on his drawing power and performance. He would very likely become the highest paid mixed martial artist in the world before hed even stepped into the ring for the first time.

Ishii then shocked the Japanese fight sport world by categorically rejecting FEGs offer, saying that it was his lifelong dream to fight in the UFC. While this rationale might sound plausible to a US based fan, its akin to a top college baseball player from a SEC school turning down a big offer from the Atlanta Braves saying that its his lifelong dream to play for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan Central League. It frequently comes a shock to US MMA fans when immersed in Japans culture for the first time just how low the UFC ranks in the countrys fight sport pantheon. In MMA, their profile is lower than DREAM and Sengoku, but even smaller groups like Shooto and DEEP. Overall, the interest in and prestige of the UFC is well below not only boxing but even Japanese pro wrestling (puroresu). The UFC is making some progress, and big fights like GSP/Penn and Lesnar/Couture now get higher profile coverage (Lesnar/Couture owed most of its interest in the Japanese press to Brocks run as IWGP pro wrestling champ) but by no means is the #1 US MMA promotion considered on par with any of the major Japanese fighting groups.

Ishii then travelled to Las Vegas for UFC 92, with the Japanese media in tow covering his every move. Upon his return to Japan, he appeared at the Sengoku card in January addressing the audience from the ring and wearing his ubiquitous UFC shirt; his message was that he was going to fight in America for awhile but would eventually return to Japan.

At age 22, Ishiis got plenty of time to develop as a fighter. His biggest downside risk from signing with Zuffa is financial since hed be lucky to get a fraction of what FEG is willing to pay him. The competitive logic of learning his craft slowly notwithstanding, theres a huge risk in automatically assuming that he can fight for the UFC for a few years and then cash a big check when he returns to Japan as the potential of injury and changing market conditions could seriously impact his market value. On the other hand, it could be a risk hes willing to take given that hes got his celebrity both with the mainstream public and in the judo community to fall back on.

Theres another very realistic scenario that it was all a negotiating ploy by Ishii. The UFC was likely willing to play along, figuring that their investment of a few plane tickets and hotel suites would be worth the resulting PR surge in Japan. Ishii and the UFC develop a cordial relationship which could be to the benefit of both parties down the road.

With the recent revelation that Ishii has broken off UFC negotiations to entertain offers from other parties thats starting to look like the plausible explanation for the once hot and heavy courtship between Ishii and Zuffa. Ultimately, the Ishii/UFC affair could simply prove to be a fling that accrued small benefits to each party, but both realized that there was no long term future for the pairing.

As a postscript to the Ishiis relationship with the UFC, it apparently opened the doors for his move to the US for training. That alone is a positive for his future development as a fighter, as hell be training with a whos who of professional fighting. That alone is a career move thats difficult to second guess.

When you first get started, or even if you already have, tattoo supplies are a must for each artist. As you learn more about the profession and grow within it, what you use and how you use it will change with you. There are tattoo machines, inks, needles and countless other things that you will need

When purchasing supplies, you will at some point end up buying individual pieces. If you are looking to buy multiple items at once, a kit may be the way to go. Whatever you have for a price range, you may just find the right one for you.

In most of the kits that you will find is the tattoo machine, or the tattoo gun. These vary widely from beginner to the elite which usually consists of three parts; the coil wrap, the grip, and the tips. There is also the power supply and the pedal which actually allows the machine to be used. Do not forget about the rubber bands, rubber rings, and grommets that are essential to the machine.

There are several things that you still need for basic tattooing supplies that may not come in a kit. Needles, for one, may be one of those things. You can buy them individually or in large quantities. The sizes and types vary depending on your preference as an artist. Then, there is practice skin. When trying out a new machine, this can come in handy so you can get some practice in before working on real skin.

Inks come in many many colors and sizes. Before deciding on the brand that you want to stick with, also consider the actual consistency of the ink and how it is made. Many ink colors are made from metals, which some people develop a reaction to. If this is a concern that you think you may have, there are organic inks available. But, remember, there are multiple types of inks to fit just about any skin type and tone.

One of the most important items that will be used during tattooing, is the needle, or needles, itself. When considering on what to buy or to stock, it really is up to what the artist prefers. There are round needles which range from just a few needles to several that have been put together to form a cylindrical shape. Then there are also the flat kind of needles. Several needles lay in a flat row side by side, or in multiple layers.

Tattoo needles are not the only disposable item that you will use each time you tattoo. Paper towels, ink cups, antiseptic spray, petroleum jelly for during the procedure, and a cream to be used on the tattoo once it is done are needed and will definitely be used. Having these items close by will make things easier and safer during the tattoo.

Finding most tattoo supplies does not have to be very difficult, though at times the best of quality items can be more difficult. While some are disposable such as needles and ink caps, things such as your machine and power supply will become a constant companion. No matter what your level of tattooing is, all these things and perhaps more will become a constant in your shop.

One of the most famous dance steps of all time was the one popularized by Michael Jackson. Wikipedia gave meaning to this dance step as “a dance technique that presents the illusion of the dancer being pulled backwards while attempting to walk forward.”

I thought about this meaning and came to realize that there is a stark similarity between Michael Jackson’s life and his popular moon walk. This post will attempt to bring about the morals we can learn from the similarity. In no way am I attempting to degrade Michael Jackson and his achievements but will only focus on the moral side.

Considered to be the most successful entertainer of all time, Michael Jackson sold over 750 million records and won several major awards including 13 Grammies and 13 number one singles. All his lifetime earnings were estimated to be around $ 500 million and this does not even include his music catalog holdings which is rumored to be over a billion dollars worth.

However, despite the popularity and wealth, the final part of his life was filled with struggles of debts and depression. Rumors say that his health drastically declined when he isolated himself from his family, friends and financial turmoil. People from all over the world loved him, yet he died lonely, depressed and broken hearted.

With all the bad circumstances that happened to Michael Jackson during his last days of his life, I thus refer to his final years as his final moon walk. I refer to his last years of his life as his final moon walk because no matter how much he tried to move forward in his life, his actions only caused him to move backwards. But unlike the moon walk, everything that happened to him in his final years was not mere illusions. Here are things about the life of Michael Jackson that I think will give us lessons in life:

1.) Try living within your pay grade – In spite of the millions of dollars Michael Jackson earns every year, his extravagant lifestyle forces him to spend more than $ 20 to 30 million above what he earns. His display of extravagance has caused him to be in so much debt that certain well known persons, including a Bahrain Sheik, blamed him for his inability to pay what he owed. This incapability resulted to his losing of his valued Neverland Ranch. While his assets still have greater value over his debts, he still died owing $ 400 million. Even if Michael Jackson had the right of living extravagantly, he should have been wise enough to live within his pay grade and made an effort of taking care of his finances. His inability to live within his pay grade brought about so much financial problems that he got more depressed.

2.) Trials abound and life is tough, so learn to face them – No matter how much success he had in his life, Michael Jackson, has never learned to face trials in his life. Whenever gets demoralized by problems, he would run away and instead use drugs, detach himself from reality or hide himself through plastic surgery. Once problem that worsened his life was when he was accused of child molestation. He became more withdrawn after it. In an article written for the Daily Mail, J Randy Taraborrelli has this to say about how Michael Jackson face problems, “He surrounded himself with children, animals and a false reality – so much so that he never learned how to cope in the real world. He never wanted to grow up, and his managers encouraged these eccentricities when they should have encouraged therapy.”

3.) True happiness and joy never came from fame and fortune – Despite what the records and others say about Michael Jackson’s successes as an entertainer, it cannot hide the fact that his last days in earth was not filled with satisfaction and peace. Yes he may have broken records, evolved the music industry, pierced through racial barrier or gained the love of millions of fans around the globe but he died with so much depression, the feeling of unloved and unhappy. His is isolation from his family and friends did not even help him at all but in fact worsened his problems.

There are so many lessons to be learned from the King of Pop’s final moon walk, but I will stop here and let you think more of the King of Pop’s final moon walk. I am hoping and praying that you can see lessons from his final moon walk. Let us just hope that our final moon walk would turn out to be much better than the King of Pop.

Most gyms aren’t worth it. Yeah, you might be a gym devotee, or you think you’re happy with your current setup, but let me tell you something – there are other ways of working out you should try.

If you love the gym, this isn’t going to convince you of much, but if you are a bit sick of it, read these 5 reasons and then toss your membership.

#5: It Costs Way Too Much.

Gyms are unbelievably expensive for what they offer. Is there anywhere else in the world where you go maybe 2, 3 times a week, do all the work yourself, and pay extremely steep fees for the privilege? Hey, if you’ve got a great gym and can afford it, more power to you. But there are just too many out there that are complete rip-offs.

#4: The Kind of People Who Seriously Frequent Gyms? Nuts.

People sometimes come to the gym so often that they literally lose their minds, forgetting that the gym is a venue to getting in shape, not the be all and end all of their social calendar. If your gym is full of these people, be warned – you could become one, too.

#3: The Sweat of Others is Not Pleasant.

Sure, the paper towels (or dirty towels brought from home) and the little spray bottles are there, but really loads of people just don’t bother to wipe down the machines they’ve been using before. You can block it out of your mind, but that only works until you sit down on a machine that is dripping with sweat and realize it is definitely not your own.

#2: Repetition Breeds Contempt.

A good thing about the initial gym experience is that you can build up a routine: you go in, do the exercises you need to do, and then leave. But after a few months, unless you’ve become addicted to the effects of your workout, you will realize that staring at that same TV over and over, no matter what’s on – well, it is boring. And after a while, boring becomes annoying.

#1: Outdoors Equals No Costs and No Limits, Either.

If you work out at home or outdoors, you can literally go wherever you want. You can invent new running routes every single day, stop in a different park and do body weight exercises, take a resistance band out in public and work out there is no limit when it comes to opening and closing hours, no boring repetition, and no costs.

If you love romantic comedies, then you’ll enjoy the new movie Love Happens, starring Jennifer Aniston and Aaron Eckhart. This tender romantic story is a perfect “date movie,” and there is basically nothing in it to offend.

A great evening in would be if you watch Love Happens online with a big bowl of popcorn or take-away pizza. It’s also a good flick for a night in with friends. In Love Happens, Aaron Eckhart plays a motivational speaker with a best selling self-help book who teaches a seminar at the hotel in which Aniston’s character owns a florist’s shop.

She is rather a mess of insecurities and has sworn off men altogether, until she meets Eckhart’s seemingly wise self-help guru and is intrigued by him. Alas, he has his own problems.

Watch Love Happens online and you’ll discover that he is an even bigger bundle of insecurities than she is. He may look confident, but this self help sensei has his own problems and it takes the help of an ordinary woman (if one can call someone as pretty as Aniston “ordinary”) for him to come to terms with them.

When we, his seminar audience, and Aniston’s character see him walk across hot coals with bare feet, we believe that he is possessed of extreme confidence. But this handsome, “perfect” man who helps thousands of people is human after all.

The movie was filmed in Vancouver and Seattle, the setting for the story, so the film has an edgy bohemian chic perfect for dressing Aniston up in a number of outfits that may be too casual for New York, but are perfect in the Pacific northwest. You could even watch Love Happens online with the sound off so as to concentrate on all the great ideas for perfecting the kind of bohemian style that Aniston pulls off so well here.

There’s no problem with watching the handsome Eckhart – him with the lantern jaw and dimpled chin – as he wears a series of sartorially perfect creations, either. So if it is a slow Friday or Saturday night and it’s raining and cold and you simply want to stay in and entertain your brain without having to make too much of a mental investment, you should watch Love Happens online and believe in fairy tales for a couple of stress-free hours.

Most people will not admit to being superstitious. Perhaps that’s because the definition of superstition’ is an unreasonable belief based on stupidity or fear, or both. Nobody wants to appear ignorant or fearful. Yet you may find well-educated, awfully successful people who will not walk under a ladder or who will bury the pieces of a damaged mirror or who throw salt over their shoulders if salt is spilled. You’ll find people who, if a black pussy crosses their path, turn around and go home or take another route to their destination.

Black cats are somehow related to malicious, with magicians, and even with sickness. Black doggies have been assigned the blame for everything from a run of bad luck to the plague and all the injustices of the Earth.

Actually, superstitious beliefs change from country to country and even from area to area. Having a black cat cross your trail in England or Japan is claimed to bring’ luck, but having a black pussy cross your path in America and some other EU nations is believed to bring’ luck.

Having a black moggy cross your trail isn’t the only legend that relies on black cats :

* In Scotland, it is believed that a unusual black cat on your porch brings prosperity. * Italians believe that when a black pussy sneezes, all who hear it’ll have good luck. * Egyptians believe the life-giving rays of the sun are kept in the eyes of a cat at night. * In Ireland, murdering a pussy brings 17 years of bad luck. * In America, it’s ‘bad’ luck to see a white cat at night, but ‘good’ luck to fantasize about a white cat.

ancient Egyptians worshiped pussies, and anyone that snuffed out a cat was executed. In the Middle Ages, when magicians turned into a concern, the black moggy was linked to magicians and to devil. Some assumed that a magician has the power to transform herself into the form of a black moggy, so that the notion that a black pussy that crossed your trail was basically a camouflaged magician was born.

Sometimes called ‘Rafa,’ Rafael Nadal is a local of Spain who has made a massive impact in the world of tennis.

Born June 3, 1986 in Manacor, Mallorca, Rafael Nadal is the child of Sebastian and Ana Maria Nadal. His sister, Maria Isabel, is 5 years younger than Rafael and is his only sibling.

Standing 6’1′ and weighing 178 lbs, Rafael Nadal changed into a professional tennis player in 2001 after having played since four years of age. Fans shouldn’t let this young age trick them as Rafael Nadal nabbed his first championship at only eight years old.

Under the guidance and teaching of Toni Nadal, his uncle, Rafael Nadal started learning how to play tennis extraordinarily early in life as is evident from his early championship.

Toni, who remains Rafael’s coach, is a particularly crucial part of this kid’s success.

In 2005, he won 11 titles and also captured recognition as the ‘Most Improved Player’ for 2005 as named by the ATP.

In June 2006, Rafael Nadal won his 2nd Roland Garros crown and also scored his 100th claycourt career victory.

That same month, Rafael Nadal turned twenty and finished his teen years with major success.

Even though Rafael Nadal is right-handed, he plays left-handed and produces a backhand using both. As with many top athletes in their sport, Rafael Nadal is managed by IMG and is sometimes found in Nike clothes.

If you are asking for an autograph, be certain to include a SASE ( self-addressed stamped envelope ) together with your request.

It is usually recommended that fans not send any item that they cannot afford to lose, for example prized possessions and/or limited edition collectibles.

As with all mailed autograph requests, there’s no guarantee of an answer.

Depending on the athlete’s schedule, autographs may be authentic, secretarial, pre-printed or not possible to provide. Patience is the key to requesting autographs by mail, particularly when you are talking about an athlete as popular as Rafael Nadal.

Letters and requests should be mailed to:

Rafael Nadal ATP Tennis 201 ATP Blvd. Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082.