It’s Monday. Well, we got our first snowfall of the season over the weekend. Things got pretty windy, the temperature fell, and before we knew it, there was the horrid white stuff falling from the sky. Thankfully it didn’t stick around long because the ground is still too warm. We’re in for more of it today, but that too should melt quickly.
I was out a few times over the weekend and couldn’t help notice all the Christmas decorations people have been putting up. It’s barely November and already half the neighborhood looks like Santa’s workshop exploded. People are out there stringing lights and inflating snowmen while the pumpkins are still rotting on their porches. I get it—you want some holiday cheer—but maybe we could finish digesting the Halloween candy before pretending it’s Christmas Eve? And what, no love for Thanksgiving?
It didn’t look good for the Bears yesterday. They struggled early against the Giants and by the third quarter, a loss seemed inevitable. But then, out of nowhere, they came alive in the fourth—clawing their way back from a deep hole to pull off another incredible comeback, stealing the win in the final minutes, 24–20.
A buddy and I caught the new Predator movie, Badlands. It was a wild, violent ride that reimagines the Predator narrative in a world where the line between hunter and hunted gets blurred. If you’re looking for a good action movie with teeth—I think you’ll definitely enjoy Badlands.
Okay, that’s it for me—time to get back to work.
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MACH 5
It’s Tuesday. When I was a kid, I’d rush home from school, plop down in front of the TV, and watch my favorite show—Speed Racer. I was fascinated by Speed’s car, the legendary Mach 5. It wasn’t just fast—it was a technological marvel packed with gadgets like auto jacks for jumping obstacles, rotary saws for cutting through hazards, and the ability to travel under water. It must have made quite an impression on me because I spent countless hours drawing the Mach 5, building models of it with LEGO, Tinker Toys, and even Play-Doh when I was a kid!
Fast forward to today, I have a collection of numerous 1/18 scale model cars that I’ve accumulated over the years. The majority of the models are Corvettes, but two of them are Speed Racer’s Mach 5. They’re nice models, but fairly basic. For those with deep pockets, Chogokin has released a Mach 5 of their own and it’s spectacular! For those of you interested in seeing it, check out the video featured above. You can also check out its listing on amazon here. It doesn’t have an equal.
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A “Chogokin car” refers to a die-cast metal model car made under the Chogokin brand name, a term that comes from Japanese and literally means “super alloy.”
Originally introduced by the Japanese toy company Popy (a division of Bandai) in the late 1970s, Chogokin toys were known for being high-quality, heavy, and intricately detailed because they were made with real metal parts rather than just plastic. The line began with figures based on popular anime robots like Mazinger Z, but it later expanded to include vehicles, including famous ones like Speed Racer’s Mach 5 and other pop-culture cars.
A Chogokin car is prized for its craftsmanship, weight, and collectible value—they’re often built for adult collectors, featuring moving parts, working mechanisms, and detailed interiors. In short, if you see “Chogokin” on the box, it means it’s a premium die-cast model made with care and meant to feel as solid as it looks.
The world’s most famous dream car, the “Mach5,” has been made into a Chogokin car!
This highly anticipated model, approximately 1/18 in scale (total length approx. 270mm), reproduces seven special functions and comes with figures of the main character, Go Mifune, and the heroine, Michi Shimura!