嵐: I'm A Fan And Damn Proud Of It!

I regret that past eight years of my life with regard to not getting to know these "adorkable" five. Arashi (嵐), the five talented, cute, adorable, crazy, and funny boys. They have been nothing but a ray of light ever since I stumbled upon them this summer (April 2007).

I was Jun baited (for those outside the fandom, it's what they say when fans of Jun Matsumoto get lured into loving or becoming fans of the entire group) through Hana Yori Dango 1 & 2. Now I'm an even bigger fan of Nino. HAHA

After finding my way into this fandom, I started to watch videos of them. They're performances, music videos, shows, movies, and variety shows. Everything from D No Arashi, Yamada Tarou Monogatari, Mago Mago Arashi, performances in Music Station, Shounen Club, etc.

Now I'm collecting everything I can get my hands on. It has turned into an integral part of my day. Collecting pictures, magazine scans, wallpapers, icons... it's a thing that I can't see myself expelling any time in the future.

All the songs, the moments I get to watch, all of those things bring a smile to my face. So if ever you see me smiling by myself and sometimes uttering weird phrases or words or singing some lyrics that you can't understand because it's in Nihonggo, that would mean that I have Arashi on my mind.

Arashi fans... we're an interesting bunch. Quirky and crazy at times but it's a good fandom to be in. I have nothing but gratitude for aibakaland.forumup.org, ninoland.forumup.org, and Arashi communities at livejournal for continually feeding me with Arashi trivia, subbed videos, interesting conversations with people who actually get what I'm talking about... I have so much to catch up on and it's daunting but I don't mind it one bit. For the mods and the fans I get to talk to (I cannot mention all of you), you people are heaven sent!

You can stop reading here if you're no longer interested... LOL

I found this on arashi.vox.com and I just wanted to share it with you because this is what I've been reduced to these past three months... I only put up those that applied to me. It is said that if you agree with any of these statements then you are an Arashi fan.

- Baited by Jun
- Day dreaming, imagining...there is no end, ever.
- I'm envious of the Arashi FC members
- I'm envious of anyone that lives in Japan (okay so true!)
- First kanji memorized is "Arashi"
- Then all the members' names (haven't done this yet but I might in the future...)
- When speaking Japanese I only know "male" dominate words such as "omae" "umai" "kuse" (okay "sugoi" is part of my English vocabulary now, Mae thinks its dangerous how we (my Japanese and her Mandarin) "accidentally" slip into these foreign languages at times. LOL)
- When someone mentions Bambi, it's Sho or Jun that you think of not the Disney movie
- No matter how many times, you always cry when watching Aiba read his letter on 24hrTV (okay don't make me think of that again! My eyes are welling up!)
- You want a pet and his name is MOMO
- The best university in all of Japan is Keio, period.
- Sho is unreachable
- You've bought a baby blue DS (I WANT ONE!)
- You didn't know Jun was the youngest
- You didn't know Ohno was the oldest
- One of the main reasons for your computer is to download Arashi stuff (Had to highlight this because this is so true!)
- You've cried after your hard drive crashed (I have no intention of letting it get this far... I mean letting my hard drive crash...)
- No matter how many times you burn things off, your hard drive is always full (Okay... how did you know?! ROFL)
- You've sat your friends down and began the history on Arashi (I've tried but to no avail... HAHA)
- Your friends can put names to faces (they recognize Jun because of his dramas)
- When asked if you have a boyfriend you have casually said "yes" and pictured one of the members (LOL)
- You've come to like Japanese artists that the members like
- Wished that Johnny's wouldn't be so expensive (and that they would sell stuff in my country!)
- There is an Arashi photo that you see everyday EG: car, pencil case, wallet, planner (my Lit notebook!)
- Your cell phone wallpaper is Arashi (does computer wallpaper count?)
- Aiba has the best English in all of Japan (LMAO... remembering Aiba and Oh-chan on the boat with the English quiz... HAHA)
- December 24 is not Christmas eve, it is "Aiba's birthday" (Tanjoubi Omedetou! My Christmas will be like this from now on... HAHA)
- You've been jealous of animals (HAHA)
- THE BEST ACTOR IN JAPAN IS NINO, PERIOD. (I'm 100% biased... I SO AGREE!)
- Short guys are DEFINITELY okay (for them I have made an exception...)
- Guys with bad skin are okay too
- Guys skinnier than me, that's okay too
- Arashi is the best group, ever, period.
- When someone says "captain" or "leader" the first person you think of is Ohno
- Sometimes you hear "Nino" instead of "nemo"
- Therefore you buy nemo things thinking of Nino (okay I thought this was cute... Finding Nemo has a different meaning for me now!)
- Ohno should be a world renowned artist
- You've come to tolerate/love other Johnny's artists because of Arashi (I actually really like Kame and Yamapi... as actors and singers. NWP is love! HAHA)
- You've pulled all nighters to wait for videos, scans, reports (haven't really done that but I toss and turn in my sleep thinking about the downloads I've been downloading that night... LOL)
- Sometimes you wonder if Arashi are idols or comedians (they're baka and I love them for that. MMA talks are the best... perfect for those slump days... okay now I remember the air guitar episode of D No Arashi... Pia would agree with me that it was the best. Still laugh when I think of that. Okay, you people must really think I'm crazy now.)
- You start off with a favorite, but slowly you can't decide (I was Jun baited and now my fixation is on Nino but I love them all the same... they have their own individual points that I can't help but love!)
- You study Japanese because of Arashi (100% guilty)
- You plan on going to Japan because of Arashi (yes that is a personal goal... I will see them live!)
- Giggling to yourself after finding something "Japanese" (just did that yesterday! LOL)
- when you meet someone Japanese the first thing you want to do is ask if they know Arashi (I SO WANTED TO DO THAT! I met the boss of my tita at their Nokia opening in the Fort but timidity got the best of me and he doesn't speak English that well... HAHA and he's like so old! LOL)
- Aiba is a prodigy
- Nino should be a professional song writer (Amen to that!)
- The only man that can pull off a belly button ring is Sho (how he makes it work is beyond my comprehension...)
- Neon colored suits are completely acceptable for any occasion
- When someone says "tension" you think "Aiba" (I still don't know what this means. Is it because of Tensai?)
- Gotten into a fight with siblings about Arashi (not really because I'm surprised that my older brother watches YTM with me!)
- When people mispronounce Nino's name it annoys you.
- Like to yell out "YEAH!" at the end of things (HAHA)
- Fancams are heaven sent
- You buys CDs but listen to downloaded versions because you don't want to open your CD. (if ever I get my hands on an Arashi CD this is what I'd probably do. LOL)
- Wished you could befriend Ohno's mom
- You are envious of people like Inoue Mao, Suzuki Ann, Ayoi Yu (hmm... so true...)
- Have gone down the list of "requirements for Arashi's girlfriend/wife" and started to change certain aspects of yourself so you have more points (okay, this I have not done... but I believe I'm most compatible with Nino... although I scored high on Jun's list... HAHA)

Here are a few more comments on that post:
- Bennifer, brangelina? All I've heard of is Ohmiya SK.
- Guys who paint their nails are okay (or is it only Jun that can actually pull it off? Sexy jeez... o.O)
- Don't mind the fact that the guy owns 100000X more clothes than you (Jun is that you?! LOL)
- Watching several Japanese shows a week without understanding any Japanese, just to watch their faces is absolutely normal
(HAHA so true...)
- You tried to do a back flip at least once (okay I have no intention of getting myself hurt... but I just liked this.)
- You don't listen to English songs anymore because you listen to Arashi all the time (okay I still love English songs but my mp3 has to have at least one Arashi album on it and the TIME album)
- You get to have a new set of friends (online) because of Arashi (I love the people on Aibakaland and Ninoland! Hi guys!)
- Every time you open internet explorer you never fail to check if there is any new info on Arashi
- The songs you played over and over again in your mp3 is Arashi's.
- Ordered Skinny Latte coffee takeout from Starbucks so that they can write "SK" on the cup and told them your name's "Ohmiya". ( I just thought this was hilarious)
- Guys who can cross their legs are totally acceptable
- You watched Gokusen / Kimi Wa Petto / Bambino / Tokyo Tower / Hana Yori Dango 1&2 / etc. just for Matsujun (AMEN to that! HAHA Although I haven't seen Bambino yet... will see that in the near future)
- Rabu Rabu rocks \m/
- Guys kissing / hugging each other is no problem now (HAHAHA)
- You ask every Taiwanese / Korean / Thai / Japanese person if they know Arashi

I have to add two more and these are my own:
- Arashi brings families closer (I enjoy watching YTM with my older brother...)
- A pen that has a label of SK reminds you of Ohmiya SK and you start giggling about it.