Arashi Around America Tour Project

A response and a caveat

2008-03-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

As we prepare to mail our puzzle pieces, we know that some of you have some concerns about whether our envelopes will be turned away by those fearful 'gatekeepers' who receive the Johnny's Fan Club Mail.

We understand your concern and are aware of the restrictions. In planning this project (almost a year ago from now) we knew of the risk that our envelopes might get turned away, but we accepted it as an unavoidable risk we have to take. We made no guarantees and still make no guarantees that Johnny's or Arashi will read our puzzle postcards.

We've made it so that our envelopes are a standard card-sized envelope, the puzzle piece is light enough that when the envelope is weighed, it weighs close to any 1st-class mail, and the color of the envelope is not flashy (per their guidelines).

It is our hope that the novelty of our idea and of our puzzle pieces will help give us the benefit of the doubt -- instead of having them dismissed right away. Furthermore, the video that we will email to each Arashi member announcing the pieces will, hopefully, pique their curiosity - or at least someone's curiosity - and make them be on the lookout for them.

As much as we wish we can predict what they will do, their reaction to our video and our puzzle pieces is beyond our control. Especially for myself and my sister since we've put in so much for this project, we want nothing more than to know that our efforts will have not been in vain. As it stands, there is no means for us to do this.

Actually there is one way to know -- and that is to try and send our video and our puzzle pieces. There is no other way around it - we won't know until we try. Yes, in a few weeks we may get our envelopes back, but there is also a 50% chance that they will open up our envelopes. If we don't mail our envelopes/puzzle pieces to them, then we have zero chance of them having it in their hands and opening it.

As I told my sister when we were beginning this project, our goal is to hopefully send a message to Arashi. Even if we were successful or not in achieving that goal, we still would have been able to make some 33 new Arashi friends (and have actually met some very wonderful people along the way)...and that's not so bad now, isn't it?

Should our project actually reach Arashi, it will be a big bonus for us, icing on the proverbial cake... But the memories from this project are something that my sister and I will always cherish -- hopefully you will too.

Steadfastly wishing for your continued support and understanding,
Joan

Reminders before mailing

2008-03-21T18:09:00.000-07:00

Okay, we know that like us you all are very excited about finally being able to send our puzzle pieces to Arashi. Here's a helpful checklist for mailing your envelope out:

1. Ensure that your puzzle piece is inside the card.
2. Make sure the card flaps are 'closed' properly to keep the precious cargo inside safe.
3. Seal the envelope.
4. Check that you have the updated Fan Mail Address on your envelope (with the appropriate Arashi member's name on it).
5. Write your name and address on the return address space (top left).
6. Write 'AIRMAIL' close to the mailing/Fan Mail Address.
7. Take a trip to your local post office and ask the (hopefully) nice mail clerk to put international postage on your yellow envelope.
8. Send us an email to let us know that you've mailed the envelope.

That's it! Thank you all in advance for your cooperation and we look forward to hearing from you tomorrow. Our video is also winding down. Our wonderful translator is hard at work and we hope to email it to Arashi in about a week from now. When it's finished we'll definitely share it here ^_^

Mailing Date - Update

2008-03-21T06:37:00.000-07:00

Hello, Everyone!

Thank you to all who have already sent us confirmation about making the address change on their envelopes. We encourage those of you who haven't to please let us know if you're ready.

Sadly, we feel we have to let you know not everyone sent in a picture of their finished puzzle pieces. As we are unsure of the status of those puzzle pieces, we presume these members are no longer interested in being a part of the project and will not be sending their envelopes/puzzle pieces to Arashi. Our message hinges on having all the puzzle pieces arrive. It was also meant to show our unity as fans...if we can't count on all puzzle pieces being sent, we must ask those parties to send us back the puzzle pieces. Or, if they still intend on sending the puzzle piece, do let us know right away.

Since we didn't receive any major objections to our proposed mailing date of March 22nd, all systems are go for sending out our envelopes/puzzle pieces tomorrow. Please refer to our subsequent post for some last-minute reminders before sending them.

Make sure you read it, Minna! ^^v

New Address

2008-03-16T15:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! Hisashiburi.

One of our project team members was kind enough to let us know that the address we put on the envelopes mailed to you has now changed. We will email you a template with the correct address. You can print out the template, cut out the label, and paste and/or tape it over the old address. If for any reason you aren't able to receive our email with the template (it should be in this week's email), the correct address is as follows:

**INSERT NAME OF ARASHI MEMBER ON YOUR ENVELOPE**
Johnny's Family Club
Miyamasu Tower B1F
1-10-10 Shibuya
Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-8550

Please use the same envelope we sent you. We're just requesting you to please tape the new address over the old one. :)

Thank you to everyone for your understanding and cooperation.

Also, in the next week we'll be mailing our puzzle pieces to Arashi. Please confirm by emailing us that you changed the address by Thursday, March 20th. If all goes well, we plan on mailing the pieces on the 22nd.

Scheduled Update #22

2008-01-13T14:36:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

Just some cupcakes we made this morning. Take note of the Arashi colors XD.

Credit: http://www.jmdfoto.com/

So have you all heard about Mr. Ohno's art exhibit this coming February? Very exciting news, right? There's even going to be an art book featuring all his works! So anyone who's making a trip to Japan in February, make sure to check it out. For those of us who can't make it, the book would probably be the next best thing. Let's support him! Who knows? He might make a trip to the States and hold an exhibit here. Of course, that's just wishful thinking by an Arashi fan but anything's possible. :D

We're currently working on the video. It's really nothing too amazing as we have limited software this time around, but we think it's coming along pretty well. Anyone still interested in making a video, it's not too late. We're planning to send the email and send the postcards on the same day, so hopefully when they watch the video the postcards are on their way. Cross your fingers that they actually look out for and receive them. In any case, the puzzle piece pictures have been included in the video so that even if they don't see it, they'll actually know what you wanted to tell them. Thus we've been pressing for the puzzle piece pictures. Thanks to all who have given their pictures already. For those who haven't please do so, that way we can incorporate it into the video.

As much as we would love to have everyone's puzzle piece picture in the video, we also need to move forward with the project. Necessity is pushing us to draw the line. If we do not have your puzzle pictures by Friday, January 18, we can't guarantee that your picture will be included in the video.

We're getting really antsy and probably so are you, but rest assured it's getting there.

Thanks for your ongoing support!

Scheduled Update #21

2008-01-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Joan's back from her little Asian excursion. She went to Japan for a couple of days and had a blast. Suffice to say, she brought back Arashi stuff which are are really nice. Thank you! :D

By the way, we're still missing a couple of puzzle piece pictures. Please, please, please let us know if you're still going to be part of our project or not. As much as possible, we're trying to integrate everyone's puzzle piece pictures into the video we're sending Arashi.

By the way, thank you to those who responded last week, it is much appreciated. ^^v

Again, hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2008! :D

Scheduled Update #20

2007-12-25T16:24:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

Took the chance to update today as both of us don't have work today.

So far we have a fair amount of submissions for their puzzle piece design pictures. Thank you very much to all who handed them in. The submitted photos will be part of the video that we'll be sending to Arashi.

On a more serious note, we'd like to know if some of you are still interested in participating in the project. Either way, please let us know ASAP (at most by this weekend). We understand if for any reason you feel you can't go on with the project as this is voluntary. However we're getting to the final stretch of our project and we want to make sure that all the pieces will be mailed and that at least we have a picture of your puzzle piece.

That's it. Hope everyone has a safe and joyful holiday.

Just a little reminder...

2007-12-17T18:30:00.000-08:00

...that today is the deadline to submit photos of your decorated puzzle pieces.

If you've had a chance to check out our gallery, many of you have already sent in your puzzle piece photos.

Thank you to all those who've sent their photos in! For those who will be sending them in soon, we know you're hard at work on decorating and designing so we'll look forward to your photos.

If, for any reason, you may not be able to submit your photo by EOD today, please don't be shy about reaching out to us.

There have been concerns about not being able to come up with creative ideas with which to design the piece, or their design is not as nice as those in our gallery...please do not let that hinder you. Some of you have already heard us say that the design is only secondary to your message. What's really important is that your message is sincere and honest. A nice design will definitely catch their attention, but it's that genuine message that will surely stir their hearts!

So focus on that message, minna! To quote our beloved Nino in joukamachi, 'Simpuru is besuto!'

Puzzle Gallery

2007-12-13T14:38:00.000-08:00

What we have so far...again we're not mailing yet...we just need a picture of your designed piece by Monday, 12/17/07. :)

Thanks so much to all who have submitted pictures of their puzzle pieces. m(_ _)m

Scheduled Update #19

2007-12-10T11:24:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone!

We're getting really close with our project. The due date to SUBMIT THE PICTURE your finished puzzle pieces is next week,

December 17, 2007.

REMEMBER: THIS IS NOT A MAILING DATE. We will mail our pieces to Arashi around mid- to end-December. We appreciate everyone's patience.

If you have any questions, please let us know.

Enjoy the rest of the week.

Scheduled Update #18

2007-11-11T12:40:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone!

How're you all doing? Hope everyone's doing well.

Thank you to those people who emailed us to confirm that they got their puzzle piece! That is very much appreciated. ^^ And thanks to all those who have already designed their puzzle pieces and sent pictures of their work. Can't wait for the others. We'll try to get the pictures up this week so everyone can see what it looks like.

The due date for submitting your video is November 22. You should have already received a sample video through your emails. If you hadn't, please let us know and we'll send you the link by email. If you are planning to film yourself, you can very well do so however we will need a signed release form along with it. If you need a copy of the release form, let us know as well.

Have a great week ahead.

Scheduled Update #17

2007-11-06T12:37:00.000-08:00

Minna, hello!

Did you all have a good Halloween?
In case you're wondering why you're receiving this scheduled update on Tuesday instead of Sunday, I (Joan) caught the flu last Tuesday and my sister's been really tied up. Gomen, ne, minna...

Without further ado, let's proceed to this week's update:

1. Filming with your puzzle piece - as promised in the last update, for those of you will be filming yourselves with your piece, here are some more details. Actually, since actions speak louder than words, we've put together a short demo clip. We'll be sending an email with the demo clip to you all, so please watch out for it!

2. Instructional video - sorry to disappoint...this is not a video that will show you how to imitate Arashi's cool dance moves. It's just another short clip that will show you how to put your piece in the card and close it back up. We're sure you all have figured it out by now, but we were in a video-taping mood so we thought we might as well - in case anyone would need it. Here's the link...

How to close your card back up (and hopefully not crease it too much) XDDDD
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4256262580910364217

That's it for this week! We hope you all are having fun decorating your puzzle pieces and if you run into any challenges or have any questions, feel free to email.

Mata, ne!
Joan and Jean

Scheduled Update #16

2007-10-28T17:04:00.000-07:00

Hi, Everyone!

Genki, de? Hope you all are well!
Were any of you able to catch GRA this week? We still haven't been able to see it, but if you have, feel free to share with us what you thought of this week's show. Don't be shy, now!

Or did you get to see Nino's new CM for the New Year's postcards yet? We must say that it's making us think of sending our cards/puzzle pieces in time for New Years XDDD But we'll save that discussion for another update ^^;;;;

Alright, onto to today's update...

1. Confirmation of puzzle kit receipt - Did you each receive you puzzle kit, minna? As we had mentioned in last week's update, the puzzle kits were mailed out last Tuesday, 10/23. If you haven't received your puzzle kit yet, feel free to drop us a note. Some of you had already left comments and sent emails confirming receipt of their puzzle kits. So it looks like they are getting to most of you already...Yay!!! Thanks to those who had let us know their kits arrived, and we hope to hear from more of you soon.

2. I got my puzzle kit...Yay, now what? - Now that you have your puzzle kit, we just wanted to remind you all about a few things:

a. READ THE ENCLOSED INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY!!!
b. Please DO NOT mail your puzzle piece, card, envelope until we give the go ahead! We'll mail them all at the same time.
c. Remember to take pictures of both the front and back of your piece.
d. Do not seal your envelope until you have taken a picture of your piece!

We realize it's hard and we're all excited to send them to our 5 boys, but we ask for your patience and restraint!! Gambatte, minna!

Other than the above, feel free to decorate your piece per the instructions^^ In a separate email we sent some pre-made messages to help you all formulate your message to Arashi. Again, if you were not able to receive this email, please email us and we can send it to you right away. It was brought to our attention that the kana/characters were not appearing for some. As a quick remedy, we will try to save the pre-made messages as an image/photo and resend it. In theory, this should address it, but if we come up with a better way to make it work, we'll surely do that too :)

If we may make one suggestion, should you wish to write on the back of your piece directly, we've found that using glitter pens (silver or gold) work best ^^v

3. Comments - ever wished that you'll be notified when we've responded to your comment? Blogger has a new feature where you can sign-up to be notified when you've left a comment on one of our posts. Read about how to subscribe here.

That's it for this week's update. We anticipate that by next week, all the puzzle kits have arrived. That being said, for the next update, we'll try to provide updated guidelines on filming yourself with you puzzle piece.

Take care and have a safe Halloween everyone!

Joan and Jean

Puzzle kits are on their way!

2007-10-23T20:31:00.000-07:00

Yes, as we mentioned in last Sunday's update the puzzle kits have started their journeys to each of your mailboxes.

We dropped them off today and USPS should have them out to you - hopefully!- in the upcoming days. For our members in Canada, yours were sent out today as well.

Please be on the lookout for them, minna! And feel free to email or comment when your puzzle kit arrives.

Let's keep our fingers crossed that the kits get to each of you all in one piece (pun intended!)
and that they arrive sooner rather than later!

That's it for now! Hope you're as excited as we are^^

Scheduled Update #15

2007-10-21T17:11:00.000-07:00

Minna!

Hisashiburi!! Did you all get to catch the first episode of GRA? Or Nino's rendition of Aiba's "Friendship" song on Bay Storm? Better go catch them if you can...especially Bay Storm! We're sure you'll love it like we did.

Ookay, on to today's big update...

On Tuesday, we'll be mailing out the puzzle kits. ^^v

Yes, the moment you've all been waiting for is here. Hopefully, by the next update, you will have your own puzzle kits in hand. Please be on the lookout for them, minna! And if you can email or comment back when you've received it, that'll help us in making sure each puzzle kit arrived safely.

Guidelines on how to personalize your puzzle piece are included in the kit. Kindly read them before personalizing and feel free to contact us with any questions^^

If you are planning to film yourself for the video, we will be giving you further details on when to submit your videos.

That's it for now, everyone...'til next week's update, be well and have a great week ahead!

- Joan and Jean

Scheduled Update #14

2007-09-30T19:55:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone. Hisashiburi! Today is the end of September and thus the end of our little "tour" for the project. It was really great meeting up with fans and hopefully we can meet up again soon. ^^

Stay tuned...we hope to have more frequent updates now that we're done traveling.

Have a great week ahead!

Scheduled Update #13

2007-09-02T14:59:00.000-07:00

Konnichiwa minna-san! ^^

We're beginning our travels finally! :) See you!

Also...to those who are filming themselves, we will extend your submission date. We'll email you the details. Please email us back if you have any questions.

As a bonus, we'll reveal our picture with Arashi at Carnegie Deli here in New York XD. Can you spot Arashi? Hint: Those familiar with their Nino-less trip to NYC should be able to spot them. ;)

It was chotto hazukashi since there were actually people dining right by that wall where the pictures are XDDD. But the fangirls inside of us prevailed! >< To top it off, when we re-watched the NY Special video again, we realized we sat at the same table as Arashi did ^^v.

A close-up picture of the picture :D.

Arashi is a good enough reason to dine at the Carnegie Deli, but the food is excellent, too. Normally, people line up outside to get seats. In our case we didn't since we went at around 8:30 PM.

All right we still have to get ready for our trip. Ja mata! ^^

Scheduled Update #12

2007-08-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

Konnichiwa minna! :)

How's everyone?

We're currently working on the puzzle kits. We really do believe you'll also be blown away at the design of the card. Just a little patience, friends. It'll surely be rewarded. ^^ Please be reminded that those who did not submit the necessary information for the puzzle kit will not have a chance to get their kit anymore.

We are also pretty much set with the video phase of our project. To those we'll be visiting, please watch out for an email from us to confirm that you can meet us on designated dates. For those who are filming themselves, we'll be giving you instructions, as well.

So, that's it for now. We're mecha excited about this project! XD

A short note...

2007-08-14T12:55:00.001-07:00

What's up everyone? This isn't an official scheduled update...but just wanted to take this chance to say a couple of things.

So far we had a good turnout for those who wanted the puzzle kits as well as participants in the video. Thank you to everyone who are supporting the project up to this point! It is very much appreciated. m(_ _)m

We still have a couple of puzzle kits left and we have contacted the people who have signed up with us from the beginning. If there are no takers, there is a possibility that some people will get two pieces instead of one.

That's it. We'll keep you posted, as usual. Enjoy the rest of the week everyone!

Scheduled Update #11

2007-08-05T18:00:00.000-07:00

Wow.

That's all we can say.

We received the puzzle from the vendor 8/3/07. And it's just...amazing! It's mind boggling. Kyoku-chan, our artist, hontoni arigatou! Nyan-chan, our translator, hontoni arigatou! T_T So far, we're in very good shape. (For an image of how the puzzle looks like, it will be emailed)

So what's next? Well, we just want to remind everyone of the release forms. The due date is on August 6, Monday(that's tomorrow, yo!). If you want to participate in the video, please have your release forms filled out and emailed to us by then.

Also, we'd like to explore adding a new feature for the video phase of our project: filming yourselves. Instead of us going to you, you could simply film yourselves with your own cameras and send us a copy of the video. Please note, you'll still need to sign the release form even if you choose to film yourselves. If there are any takers for this idea, please do email us.

For those of you not participating in the video, please see our emails regarding your postcard puzzle kits for further instructions. We'll be emailing that information to everyone in our mailing list anyway, since it includes an image of the puzzle

We've also bought the envelopes already. v^^v

Here's a preview of how a puzzle piece would look like, back and front.

That's just an example and not my final message design, and I (Jean) will still be working on it later. Can you imagaine how amazing it'll look once they're all next to each other? That's when we got hit by another idea: Once you've finished designing the back of your puzzle piece, why don't you send us a picture of your final piece front and back? That way we can collage them and put them together in one big picture and post it up here in the blog so everyone will see each other's works. Wouldn't that look great? While there will be a few limitations, we encourage everyone to be creative in designing when you get your kit. We can't wait to see how everyone designs their messages! ^^

Well then, that's it. Have a great week ahead of you and we look forward to hearing from you guys soon!

Scheduled update #10

2007-07-29T17:48:00.000-07:00

Hello Arashi fans! Isn't everyone excited that Jun is finally going to be in next week's MMA Bangohan episode? Not that Ohno and Aiba did a bad job for 7 straight episodes (they were actually pretty good)--but in fairness, Jun's a lot less busy now that Bambino's done. Soon, Aiba will be in his butai so we might see more Ohno and Jun episodes this time around. ^^

On to the actual news on our project...

We are modifying the schedule a bit to account for increased time in creating the puzzle. We are working to get back on track once we start the video phase of the project.

***

Some good news. First, we have the release forms ready. So, if you had said in the sign-up that you were interested in participating in the video, you'll be receiving a form shortly via email. Please remember to email your filled out forms by Monday, August 6. Please fill it out by hand, scan it, then email it to us. When you meet with us, bring the original hard copy with you so that you can give it to us. Any questions with that, please address it to us.

***

Also, we have the final image set up for the puzzle design.

Subarashii, ne? Our artist Kyoku-chan did a very good job! Didn't we say you'll be blown away? We were so we hope you are too!

The image is already in the process of being made into an actual puzzle. So just sit tight a bit, folks!

***

About the envelopes: We didn't receive any objections on the color, so we're sticking with yellow.

***

We weren't able to attend Otakon last weekend, but hopefully those who did had a great time meeting with fellow JE fans.

***

All right, that's it for now. Please still continue to support us. Hope you all have a good week ahead of you!

Scheduled update #9

2007-07-15T14:29:00.000-07:00

Konnichiwa!

How is everyone?

We didn't get to update last week as there wasn't much to report on. But, we'll try to make up for it this week...Ikimasho?

This week's update includes:

I. Tekkonkinkreet releases in the US
II. Puzzle design nearing completion
III.Envelope selection

I. Tekkonkinkreet releases in the US
Did any of you get a chance to see Tekkon in the cinemas? It was released in NY and LA last Friday and will be released in Portland, OR at the end of the month. The best part is all of them are screening the movie in Japanese with Eng subs! With Transformers and Harry Potter also showing this week, we might find ourselves in a dilemma of which to watch first, but for those who can watch Tekkon, let's go and support this, ne!

II. Puzzle design nearing completion
Our winning artist is hard at work putting in the finishing touches for our puzzle design. She's been working very closely with us and we will be revealing it to you all very soon. Without giving anything away, let us just say that we think your patience will be rewarded. Stay tuned!!

III. Envelope selection
As we mentioned in the Project Plan/Outline, each of the puzzle kits you will be receiving will include an envlope. This is the envlope we'll use to put our individual puzzle pieces in and mail to JE. To help everyone in recalling, here's what we said about the mailing envelope in the Project Plan:

1. Will be a distinctive color that we’ll all decide on
2. Having the same envelope will make it uniform and easier to spot

The time has come for us to choose the color of the envelopes we'll be using. Due to postal restrictions barring bright colors, we've decided to limit our choices to pastel colors. We've come up with some options below:

a.pastel yellow
b.lavender
c.pastel blue
d.pastel orange

In the end, we decided on going with pastel yellow -- we must admit our newest CD, Time, had some influence on this choice^^ And we like how harkens to the "Kiiroi Namida" motif.

We recognize that everyone is quite busy, so for this round, we thought we'd try something new. Instead of doing a poll, we'll collect the number of responses that run counter to the pastel yellow. If we receive responses from more than half of you, we'll reconsider. But if there's no negative responses, or very little, we think it's safe to assume everyone(or the majority) is okay with the pastel yellow.
So if you don't agree, make sure to send us an email at arashiaroundamerica@gmail.com by next Saturday, 7/21.

Well, that's it for now. Everyone have a great week ahead and enjoy listening to TIME!!

- Joan and Jean

And the winner is...

2007-07-04T17:42:00.000-07:00

Konnichiwa, minna!

We had promised to update yesterday, July 3, 2007 but failed to do so. For that, gomen! We got caught up in family activities for 4th of July and had no access to email.

Ja, enough about us!

But first...we want to thank everyone who voted! It was a really tight race so that means that the entries were really good. We are honored to have such talent among us. ^^

Well then, without further ado, the winner of the Arashi Around America Postcard Puzzle Design Contest (phew!) is...

Entry B!!!

Congratulations!

'Til next time, folks. Have a great 4th of July!

Scheduled Update #8: Design contest, etc...

2007-07-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

Argh! It's Sunday again. That means it's Monday again tomorrow! XD Gambatte minna!

***
This week's update includes:

I. Postcard Puzzle Design Contest
II. Release forms

***
I. Postcard Puzzle Design Contest

We've sent an email last night regarding the design contest. If you have not received it, here's the link directing you to the contest proper (ie. to see entries and to vote):

http://arashiaroundamerica.blogspot.com/2007/06/postcard-puzzle-design-contest-voting.html

Again, voting is until July 2, 2007 (also the day when Nino and Sho appear in Tokyo Friends Park XD). The winner will be revealed on July 3, 2007.

II. Release Forms

This is for those who said they're interested in participating in the video.

We are getting ready for our second phase of the project: the tour itself. This would involve us filming you the fans. With that, we believe it's practical to get everyone's consent first before actually flying in to your location. We will be emailing everyone release forms to be filled out and returned to us via emaail. PLease fill in the forms by hand with a black or blue pen, and then scan the completed form to be emailed to us. Please, please, please if you are under 18, have your parent or guardian to sign the consent form for you. When we meet up with you, we will collect the orginal copy of the form.

***
For the next update:

1. Status of the contest and where we are with the actual puzzle making

2. Other matters that come up

'Til next time. Have a good week, minna!

Postcard Puzzle Design Contest - Voting

2007-06-30T18:49:00.000-07:00

Thank you to those who submitted their artwork! They're all great and it'll be a tough competition.

We have a total of 3 entries for the contest. The winner will be determined through a ranking method. Voting will last from today, June 30, 2007 until July 2, 2007. The winning entry will be revealed on July 3, 2007.

We'll keep the voting anonymous but do keep in mind that you can only vote once.

For the purposes of this contest, the entries are not optimized and are watermarked. Obviously, when the winner is chosen, we'll send the image to the puzzle-maker optimized and without the watermark.

The voting form is found below the entries. Please base your rankings on the design entries below. Also consider the following criteria when evaluating the images:

- Must contain the message (in Japanese Kana - not in English)
- Encapsulates unity of fans
- Showcases North American flavor ( yes, both US and Canada, please!! )
- Creative
- Maximizes space
- NO COPYRIGHTED WORKS PLEASE!! Must be completely original (sorry, folks, no arashi pics unless you have explicit permission to use them)

Any questions please don't hesitate to contact us about it.

Good luck to all entries!

Entry A:

Entry B:

Entry C:

**** PLACE YOUR VOTE BELOW ****

Edit: Contest has ended. Thank you for voting!

Scheduled Update #7: Project Timeline, etc.

2007-06-24T14:18:00.001-07:00

Hey, everyone! How are you all doing? June is just flying by so fast, it seems like! Gambatte, minna!

***
Today's scheduled update includes:

I. Project Timeline + Details
II. PuzzleDesign Reminder
III. For interested people who want to join

***
I. Project Timeline + Details

The project timeline and details will include, as it says, a rough timeline that is alloted for this project. You'll be able to see the our target dates for specific phases of the project. It also includes details of different aspects of the project. It is a Word document that will be emailed to you.

II. Puzzle Design Reminder

The Puzzle Design submission period is ongoing at the moment. The last day to submit entries is June 29, 2007 PST/PDT. Please refer to the PuzzleDesign Post and the entry answering questions we received from you about the design.

III. For people who want to join

We have received several requests regarding joining the project. We appreciate your interest in the project. If you wish to join, please be reminded of the following:

1. You are most welcome to be part of the video if we are going to the area you're located.
2. We cannot guarantee you a puzzle piece.
3. We'll need a statement from you verifying you are over 13 years old and that you are located in North America. Send your verification to arashiaroundamerica@gmail.com.
4. Once we receive that verification, we need to collect some data from you (it will be the same data collected from people who filled out the formal sign-up form). Please read our privacy policy here.

***
For the next update:

- We'll give you a progress report on the puzzle design contest (We'll reveal the winner within the days of 7/3 - 7/10).

Thanks and have a good week ahead! ^^v

IMPORTANT! Please read - Postcard Design Deadline is Friday, 6/29

2007-06-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

Yes, Everyone... The deadline for submitting your design for our postcard puzzle is Friday --not Wednesday -- 6/29. (One of our members had brought the error to our attention...thanks, dear!)

Gomen, ne?? Our apologies, minna, for the confusion.

Are you all hard at work with your designs??

Like we mentioned in Sunday's update, feel free to be creative! You can be as realistic or as abstract as you want!
Just make sure to follow the guidelines we gave... we really don't want to have to disqualify an entry on a technicality. And please incorporate the US and Canadian flavor... get those creative juices flowing!

We received a few questions and would just like to post them here in case any of you were also wondering and were just shy to ask:

The design will only be for the front of the puzzle, right?
- Correct. Only the front side of the postcard puzzle will display the design and the unified message(in Japanese). The back side will be reserved for our individual messages.

Is it okay if we put the design on an 8.5" x 11" sheet? won't we lose some of the image quality when we blow it up?
- You can, just keep in mind our final postcard puzzle size will be 18" x 24". The closer you are to the scale of the final dimensions, the more the space will be maximized. Say, you have a photo in the shape of a square...for you to make it rectangular you'll either have to stretch the sides (thus distorting the photo) or crop the top and/or bottom...either way, you have to alter the photo and lose the original image. If the photo was in a rectangular shape to begin with, the less the distortion to the image when it's blown up.

Any ideas on how I can scan my design?
- We understand that unless you work at Kinko's, it's highly unlikely any of us will have access to a commercial-use scanner/printer/copier for free. That being said, you can either:

scan your photo in sections. label each file appropriately, send it to us and we'll take care of putting the files together.
do the above, but you put the sections together and send us the file.
take a picture of your design with a digital camera (make sure the setting is on high res) and send the digital file to us

Or, you can go to Kinko's and ask them if they can scan your design (caveat: they may ask you to pay) XD If the above are not an option, do email us.

If there are any other questions, feel free to reach out to us!

We know there are some cool ideas for designs already in the works!! Gambatte!! We'll look forward to receiving your entries!

Scheduled Update #6: We have our message! Calling all artists!

2007-06-17T15:07:00.000-07:00

Konnichiwa, minna! Genki de?

Before we get down to business, let's greet our beloved Nino a very happy 24th birthday!
O tanjoubi omedetou, Nino!!
Seems like he's got a busy year ahead, ne!! Gambatte, Kazu! We're here to support you!

Okay... now on to the serious stuff... In this week's update we have:

1. Our unified message
2. The start of our postcard design creation
3. Postcard design criteria and deadline
4. Project timeline

1. Our unified message
Thanks to your suggestions and to the lovely Nyanchan who translated for us, we have put together our unified message. This will be the message that will be revealed once all the pieces of the puzzle have been put together. Everyone had very good suggestions and we really tried to incorporate them all. We're really excited about it and hope you all will be too!

Without further ado, here it is:

嵐のみんなさんへ、

「A.Ra.Shi」の”dream"はアメリカにでも栄えります。＾＿＾
私たちの愛や感謝や友情を感じてください：３
ここに遊びに来て、自分で確かめてくださいね？：D

嵐の北米ファンのみんなさんから。

Translated:
To all of Arashi,
The 'dream' of 'A.Ra.Shi' is flourishing even in America^^
Please feel/sense/experience our love and gratitude and friendship:3
Please come and visit, and confirm it for yourselves ne :D
From all of your Noth American fans.

Well, minna, what do you think?

2. The start of our postcard design creation
Now that we have our message, we'd like to call on all our artists in the group. We know we have quite a few and are hoping to tap your artistic talents! Today, our postcard design creation begins! If you recall, the design will be on the side of the postcard where our unified message will reside and will also be revealed once all the pieces are put together. Here are some illustrations to help you visualize how the finished postcard puzzle will look like. The front side will have the design and the message, the back side will have our individual messages. This puzzle is just divided into squares for demo purposes, but the actual one will have real interlocking puzzle pieces, knobs and all.

Again, we welcome all ideas and we encourage everyone (even those who don't think they are not so artistic) to send in their submissions.

Once all the entries are in by the deadline we'll hold a poll and the design that gets the most votes will be the one we'll use! Anxious to start designing? This brings us to our next topic...

3. Postcard design criteria and deadline
Alright, to assist you all in creating a design, we've put together a set of criteria and listed them below. This will also be the criteria we'll use in the poll to judge all the entries. Here ya go:

Basics
- Must contain the message (in Japanese Kana - not in English)
- High resolution file (ideally 5400 x 7200 pixels would be best; at the least 1800 x 2400 pixels) This is the requirement from the vendor who we're looking to use to create the puzzle. If you experience or foresee any difficulty with it, do let us know and we'll see what can be done**.
- File format must either be: pdf, jpeg, tiff, psd, ai, eps, bmp
- Please try to scale: 18" x 24" will be the final size of the finished postcard
**Note: You are most welcome to scan your image and we'll try our best to blow it up to the desired resolution. The minimum requirement for this process is that the image fits within a regular sized copy paper (8 1/2" x 11").

Artistic content
- Encapsulates unity of fans
- Showcases North American flavor ( yes, both US and Canada, please!! )
- Creative
- Maximizes space
- NO COPYRIGHTED WORKS PLEASE!! Must be completely original (sorry, folks, no arashi pics unless you have explicit permission to use them)

Medium
- Prefer already digital/electronic entries
- If not digital, it must be easily scannable/digitized
- You are free to use any medium as long as it will translate well blown up to an 18x24 size

We'll be glad to answer any questions on the above.

The deadline for submissions is: Wednesday, 6/29. Due to the high resolution of the file, we figured the most suitable way to send your work would be to upload your entry to megaupload or sendspace and email us the link. If you are new to uploading on either megaupload or sendspace OR if you would like to use another method, feel free to email us.
Poll/voting will commence on 6/30.

Looking forward to seeing your submissions!!!!

4. Project timeline
We have hashed out our project timeline and will be emailing them to you. With that in hand, it should provide an idea of where we're at with the project.

We think that's already a lot to take in for this go around! Our project is in full swing!!! We just like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for staying with us up to now and we hope you'll continue to support the project!

If you have any suggestions for the project, please do not hesitate to send them to us via email, arashiaroundamerica@gmail.com, or commenting on the blog!

'Til the next update, enjoy the rest of your week, everyone!

Scheduled Update #5: Puzzle Message

2007-06-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

Hello, minna! How's everyone doing? Did you guys order the new Arashi album yet? :D Let's support our boys, ne?

Nino's 24th bday will be next week already! Do you think they'll have anything special set up for him in next week's Mago Talk? :D

***
We mentioned last week that we were going to give specifications for the puzzle.

The first step to it is to agree on a unified message that will be written on the puzzle. >< We figured that if we have a unified message first, then our design can reflect the message that all of us have agreed on. ^^

From today (6/10/07) until Wednesday (6/13/07), we'll be accepting any ideas / suggestions to be included in the finalized message. That is what theme(s) should we have for our unified message? For example, gratitude, how much we love them, a concert here, etc.

After we've received suggestions, we'll combine them to come up with our unified message. Due to space restrictions for the design of our jigsaw puzzle, we'd like to keep our message to one sentence. Of course, we'll try our best to include everyone's suggestions.

***
For the next scheduled update:

1. If ready, the unified message
2. Puzzle specs for design

***
Thanks! Looking forward to everyone's responses! ^^v

Scheduled Update #4: Final Count!

2007-06-02T18:48:00.000-07:00

Hello! How's everyone? Hope everyone's June starts out well.

Been hearing rumors of Aiba-chan's perm. Wonder how it looks like. >_>

Did you guys get to see the lates Kodomo no Bangohan yet? One of the funnier epsiodes! As expected of an Ohno-Aiba pairing! XD The blender part was just too cute. Next week's MMA is Sho and Nino as grandkids. Wonder when Jun and Nino will go for one of those Edo trips? ><

***

Final Count

Thanks to all who signed up using our official sign-up form! Sign-up ended last Thursday, 5/31/07. The final count was tallied at 32. v^^v

If during the course of the project, you know someone who wants to join us, don't hesitate to contact us. ^^

***

Puzzle Design Contest

A number of you said that you are willing to share your skills with regards to art or design. For that reason, we decided to make a contest to choose what design to put on our puzzle. We'll give the minimum criteria and deadlines in the next update or the one following that. As of the moment, all we can say is that it should include our one unified message for Arashi.

***

For The Next Update

1. Puzzle Design Contest Criteria and Rules

2. And whatever else comes up as usual. :)

Ja mata!

Scheduled Update #3 : Sign-Up Part Deux, etc..

2007-05-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

Hello friends! How's everyone? Sorry for the late update. We had a little family get-together yesterday to celebrate birthdays. It was fun! Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend, as well.

Are you enjoying your Arashi Around Asia DVD? Looked so much fun! Definitely inspires us to work harder on this project! ^^

***

Update highlights:

I. Official sign-up count as of May 28, 2007

II. Clarification on the postcard aspect of the project

III. For those who commented in the first post expressing interest in the project

IV. Project roll-out links

V. Update #4 preview

***

I. As of today, we already have 15 people signed up. So we're looking for at least 3 more people to meet our minimum quota. The maximum is 98 so do promote our sign-up until this Thursday, May 31st. ^^ Just remember that if possible, please give us a link to where you're promoting it so that we can keep track where we're actually getting promoted.

II. We also want to make clear that if you sign up with us, you automatically are part of the postcard phase of the project. In other words, we don't require you to join the video but we do require you to be part of the jigsaw postcard.

III. We tried our best to track down the people who left a comment in the first post who wanted to join the project. However, if you did leave a comment back then and are still interested in joining us, kindly sign up in the official sign-up form found here. Please read the instructions carefully! Sign-up is only until Thursday, May 31 so do sign up as soon as you can!

IV. Our project has been rolled out in the following links (*Updated: 5/29/07):

1. splatteredjeans.livejournal.com (~~friends only post~~)
2. islandarling.vox.com
3. sassy-arashi.livejournal.com
4. aibakaland.forumup.org
5. luvsosweet.vox.com

V. For our next update:

1. We'll be giving the final count to the project sign-up.
2. And anything else that comes up. :)

Later!

(un)Scheduled Update #2 - Sign-Up, etc...

2007-05-24T11:29:00.000-07:00

Hello! This is the second update. Sorry it's a bit late since we had some technical problems earlier. How's everybody? Hope everyone's doing well.

We know you're dying to hear details of the second update, but first we'll be taking this opportunity to introduce ourselves, jr Storm, to you. My name is Jean while my sister and partner in this project is Joan. We're from New York. We got Jun-baited into this whole Arashi fandom. Yeah, just wanted to throw that in there. We'd love to hear how you got into Arashi, too. ^^

Oh, and a disclaimer. I was reminded by this when I paid a visit to Julie's website for Arashi FC...We are not in any way affiliated with Johnny's Entertainment, J-Storm or anyone in Arashi. This is an independent project away from all the big honcho stuff.

All right enough with that...now for the real updates...

***

As we mentioned in the last update, we were working on the sign-up sheet for the project.

Here's some good news...We finally have an official sign-up sheet found in the link below:

http://arashiaroundamerica.wufoo.com/forms/arashi-around-america-signup/

Sign-up ends on May 31, 2007 and there is only a limited amount of spots so check out the link and read the instructions there. Please read the instructions carefully!

For all those who have already expressed that they want to be part of the project, kindly fill out the sign-up form as well and be officially counted. ^^

Our privacy policy can be found here.

***

We're working very hard on the project plan. So hang tight while we put the finishing touches to it. m(_ _)m

***

To coincide with the launch of our sign-up sheet, we'll be promoting the project in the following websites / communities:

1. splatteredjeans.livejournal.com
2. islandarling.vox.com

If you would like to help us promote the sign-up by posting in your website / blog, just let us know beforehand by commenting to this post. That way we can also mention it in the list above.

***

Anyway, for our next update:

- We will let you in on the current number of participants as of May 26, 2007.

- And if anything else comes up...^^;;

Until then! :)

- jr Storm

1st Ever Scheduled Update

2007-05-13T18:00:00.000-07:00

Wow...

The outpouring of support is just amazing. You ALL are AMAZING!!
We can't even keep up with all your messages coming in... but we'll try our best to respond to everyone ^^

Thank you for the pledges of support, for spreading the word, and your eagerness to declare your love for Arashi!

In return, we pledge to keep you updated on the progress of this project. We'll let you know what've done so far and what our next steps will be. So, short of you all physically being with us, it will feel that you are indeed moving with this project every step of the way.

With that, we give you our first status update:

1. Status update schedule - After this status update, all status updates/highlights will be posted every Sunday at 6pm EDT/EST. We figured this makes it easier for you all to know when to expect the update. You can just bookmark the blog and check in on Sunday evenings! Of course, we'll still be posting in between updates and any major developments will be posted as soon as they come. Hopefully, once we have a mailing list set up we'll try to send you an alert after the weekly update has been posted or for any other big announcements.

2. Arashi Around America PV - The Arashi Around America PV has been uploaded to the blog. It was first launched at the "Show your love for Arashi" contest in Aibakaland. If you didn't get to see it or if you haven't had a chance to see it yet, you can now watch it right here! Simply click on the embedded video on the upper right hand corner of the first post and watch it load on the page itself...it's pretty neat actually...so go try it out!

3. Blog posting - People that don't have any google accounts can now post a comment on the blog! Originally, only people with google accounts can leave a comment, but we've been able to change that and let anyone comment.

In progress:
1. Project Plan
2. Sign-up Sheet
3. Project Roll-out

And that's it for the first update. Remember to watch out for the next one! The next update will be on May 20.

- jr Storm

Arashi Around America Tour Project

2007-05-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

Fellow Arashi Fans, Welcome!
We're delighted you stopped by...

Find more information about the Arashi Around America Tour Project right here.
Read on, learn more and feel free to ask us any questions!

You can help make this happen! Everybody, stand up!

About the Arashi Around America Tour Project

So what is the Arashi Around America Tour Project?

Very simple...The Arashi Around America Tour Project is a bold endeavor by 2 sisters - both Arashi fans - to bring together Arashi fans all across America. By uniting the Arashi fans scattered around America, the project aims to send a clear and united message to Arashi: Your American fans love you!!

Eventually, we hope that in realizing they have a huge fanbase here, we can convince Arashi to have a concert here too!

How do we hope to accomplish this?

Glad you asked!

In two ways:

1. Jigsaw postcard initiative
2. Arashi Around America (AAA) Tour video

Jigsaw postcard initiative

Let us explain... a jigsaw postcard is one big postcard that will be cut up into many interlocking pieces - like a jigsaw puzzle. Each piece will be signed by an Arashi fan on one side. Afterwards, they will be sent to Japan to the Arashi Fan Mail address. Once each piece is put in place, it will reveal that all the little postcards combine to form one big postcard with a united message from Arashi's American fans. But how will Arashi know that they should piece together our jigsaw postcard? That's where the AAA Tour video comes in...

AAA Tour video

The AAA Tour video will be the culmination of the whole project. It will document us travelling from city to city, from Arashi fan to Arashi fan, from the East Coast to the West. Part of this video is showing each fan from different reaches of America holding their own piece of the jigsaw postcard and in the end, the video will show the puzzle being put together and what it will look like when it's complete. Also in this video is our request to Arashi for a concert here in America.

Seems like a daunting task? Sure does... but with your help we can make it happen.

Now the question is...America, how much do you love Arashi? We'd love to hear from you!!!

More details will be posted in the blog soon so stop by often!

About jr Storm productions

jr Storm productions is a collaborative effort of 2 sisters. The name jr Storm came from not only combining the initals of their names but also a play on 'J-Storm' - Arashi's prodcution company. By a happy coincedence, it formed 'jr Storm' which also could also mean 'junior' Storm - a miniature J-Storm.