DAILY LIFE
Take a look at how kids spend their time when not under the limelight.		  
           
           
        16-Year-Old Takuma Yokouchi
        Takuma lives in a town next to Hirosaki and is a tenth grader at a technical high school, where he is studying interior design. It takes him about 25 minutes to commute to school on his bicycle.

Takuma has always been a big boxing fan and joined the boxing club right away after entering high school. "It's something I've wanted to do since middle school, but there wasn't a boxing club there, so I chose a high school that had a boxing club.

Takuma is a big sports fan and spent a lot of time playing baseball in middle school. He usually pitched, he says proudly, and had a lot of stories to share. The thing he remembers most about his middle-school years was staying in a small American town in Oregon for around two weeks when he was in seventh grade. "I wasn't sure if I'd be able to communicate in English," Takuma recalls. "But I managed to understand most of what people said, and I think I usually got my point across."

 
       
 
        "On the way home from America," he added, "I visited Tijuana in Mexico. I also went to Los Angeles; I was surprised to see so many Japanese people there. I definitely want to go back to America again, hopefully for a little longer."

Besides the shamisen, Takuma is fond of playing video games, and he owns both a Nintendo 64 and a Sony PlayStation. "I sometimes play with my 12-year-old brother Tatsuro, but I don't get to do it that much since I've got boxing practice and also because I have to rehearse the shamisen."

 
         
 
          "He seems to like listening to music and owns a lot of CDs," his mother comments. "When he finds something he enjoys, he's the type who really immerses himself in it. He's studying to become an interior designer at school, but I think he's more interested in other things."

"I really want to become a boxer. I want to be a champion. My dream is to become a boxer who can play the shamisen. I bet there aren't too many people who can do both." The boxing club at his school has close to 15 members. Training with them has helped him become a tougher fighter.

 
   

Photos (from top left): Takuma with his family in front of their house; He practises hard in order to become a better player; Takuma plays a tune, watched by his mother and younger brother.