The Great Experiment In Comforting People/Making Them Uneasy
Blah blah blah work.
After work, I run by the little general store to buy something to seal envelopes with, seeing as how I picked the only envelopes that are not self adhesive. There, the clerk that I always get, strikes up an indepth conversation that went along the following lines:
Her: "Tape, huh? Didn't you buy paper and envelopes just the other day?"
Me: "Yep"
Her: "Mailing letters and need to close the envelopes?"
Me: "I don't understand"
Her: "To close the envelopes"
Me: "Sure...my Japanese is really bad"
Her: "See you next time!"
Me: "Yep"
Normally employees at stores go out of their way to avoid saying anything besides "Hello," and "Come again," especially to someone that doesn't look Japanese. So it caught me off guard. I'm proud to say that I've started confusing Japanese and English, and often times can't remember which language someone asked me something, nor which language I answered with. This makes me happy because I take it as a sign that I'm more thoroughly understanding the language. Of I've just become extremely absent minded. Most people have a stigma about languages, like feeling uncomfortable using a particular language outside of the environment they're used to using it. Like someone raised to speak Vietnamese around their family, but English everywhere else. There is often a barrier of extreme discomfort when using Vietnamese outside of their family, which they're most used to. Hopefully, this means any sort of barrier I have of using Japanese in a classroom setting is gone.
After this amazing revelation, I head over to the super market to pick up some peanut butter and trash bags. There, I find nirvana. I see a bag that says miniature donuts. Ok, I'll give it a try. I'm assuming some sort of mildly donut flavored discs. Like cookie crisp isn't really tiny cookies, it's discs that kind of taste like cookies. These tiny donuts are just that; tiny, individually wrapped, donuts. The novelty has yet to wear off.
Coming home from the high of finding tiny donuts (and eating one on the way home), I find another unique surprise that I can only hope is restricted to Japan. Porn in my mail box. No, I didn't sign up for anything. Actually, they can't deliver mail to my apartment that's addressed to me until I drop off this form (tomorrow, tomorrow, I'll do it tomorrow). Not used to naked people being freely exposed among my coupons, I quickly decided to mail the less racy of the two pamphlets to a good friend in the states. We can only hope she appreciates my discretion.
After a tiring day filled with porn and tiny donuts, I just don't feel like a) going out for all of 2 hours before I have to head back to my apartment or b) going out and staying out all night, then meeting people tomorrow at 1. So I opted for option c) finish writing letters and emails to people, then run in the rain until I feel like passing out. Sounds just fine to me.
But tomorrow should...hopefully...be an eventful day. A morning trip to the post office, followed by running around taking pictures around my apartment. Afterwards, a trip to the curry shop to flirt with cute curry girl some more and try to cajole a meeting for coffee or something tomorrow night. At 1, a trip to the aquarium is planned, which will inevitably lead to eating. So much eating. After that, depending on the coffee situation, a trip back to the apartment to nap. Now, I feel like I need something a bit more along the lines of a unique Japanese adventure. Last time I was here, I was attacked by a little girl on the train, locked out of my hotel, sang karaoke with an 85 year old man and his wife, among other, mildly interesting stories. So I've decided to sleep as much as I can tonight, and tomorrow after the aquarium, wake up in time to take the last bus to the station, and just hang around Sakae all night. The trains start running again around 5 or 6 am, so I should be back at the apartment around 7. Worse comes to worst, I'll be incredibly tired, probably wet from the rain, but atleast it will be another story to tell. Boy do I love stories.
And grand experiments. I've noticed that people on trains/buses/the street try, for the most part, to avoid eye contact with people passing by as much as possible. Being tall, and non-Japanese, I do catch a lot more looks before they have time to look away. So I plan to exploit this, and try an experiment. Every person I make eye contact with over the next few days, I will smile the biggest, cheesiest smile possible (or atleast a smile with teeth...I have a big mouth). I will then log their reaction. So far, the categories I've come up with have been:
Look away and not look again
Look away, but then quickly look back
Smile back
Continue to stare, but not smile
Look horribly uncomfortable and embarrassed
GASP, actually say something??
I will also try to categorize the people based on gender and an age estimate. I'm really curious what will happen when I try this in the States, too. We'll see. Oh yes we will.
EDIT: This guy I work with looks just like Open Face from Pete and Pete.
After work, I run by the little general store to buy something to seal envelopes with, seeing as how I picked the only envelopes that are not self adhesive. There, the clerk that I always get, strikes up an indepth conversation that went along the following lines:
Her: "Tape, huh? Didn't you buy paper and envelopes just the other day?"
Me: "Yep"
Her: "Mailing letters and need to close the envelopes?"
Me: "I don't understand"
Her: "To close the envelopes"
Me: "Sure...my Japanese is really bad"
Her: "See you next time!"
Me: "Yep"
Normally employees at stores go out of their way to avoid saying anything besides "Hello," and "Come again," especially to someone that doesn't look Japanese. So it caught me off guard. I'm proud to say that I've started confusing Japanese and English, and often times can't remember which language someone asked me something, nor which language I answered with. This makes me happy because I take it as a sign that I'm more thoroughly understanding the language. Of I've just become extremely absent minded. Most people have a stigma about languages, like feeling uncomfortable using a particular language outside of the environment they're used to using it. Like someone raised to speak Vietnamese around their family, but English everywhere else. There is often a barrier of extreme discomfort when using Vietnamese outside of their family, which they're most used to. Hopefully, this means any sort of barrier I have of using Japanese in a classroom setting is gone.
After this amazing revelation, I head over to the super market to pick up some peanut butter and trash bags. There, I find nirvana. I see a bag that says miniature donuts. Ok, I'll give it a try. I'm assuming some sort of mildly donut flavored discs. Like cookie crisp isn't really tiny cookies, it's discs that kind of taste like cookies. These tiny donuts are just that; tiny, individually wrapped, donuts. The novelty has yet to wear off.
Coming home from the high of finding tiny donuts (and eating one on the way home), I find another unique surprise that I can only hope is restricted to Japan. Porn in my mail box. No, I didn't sign up for anything. Actually, they can't deliver mail to my apartment that's addressed to me until I drop off this form (tomorrow, tomorrow, I'll do it tomorrow). Not used to naked people being freely exposed among my coupons, I quickly decided to mail the less racy of the two pamphlets to a good friend in the states. We can only hope she appreciates my discretion.
After a tiring day filled with porn and tiny donuts, I just don't feel like a) going out for all of 2 hours before I have to head back to my apartment or b) going out and staying out all night, then meeting people tomorrow at 1. So I opted for option c) finish writing letters and emails to people, then run in the rain until I feel like passing out. Sounds just fine to me.
But tomorrow should...hopefully...be an eventful day. A morning trip to the post office, followed by running around taking pictures around my apartment. Afterwards, a trip to the curry shop to flirt with cute curry girl some more and try to cajole a meeting for coffee or something tomorrow night. At 1, a trip to the aquarium is planned, which will inevitably lead to eating. So much eating. After that, depending on the coffee situation, a trip back to the apartment to nap. Now, I feel like I need something a bit more along the lines of a unique Japanese adventure. Last time I was here, I was attacked by a little girl on the train, locked out of my hotel, sang karaoke with an 85 year old man and his wife, among other, mildly interesting stories. So I've decided to sleep as much as I can tonight, and tomorrow after the aquarium, wake up in time to take the last bus to the station, and just hang around Sakae all night. The trains start running again around 5 or 6 am, so I should be back at the apartment around 7. Worse comes to worst, I'll be incredibly tired, probably wet from the rain, but atleast it will be another story to tell. Boy do I love stories.
And grand experiments. I've noticed that people on trains/buses/the street try, for the most part, to avoid eye contact with people passing by as much as possible. Being tall, and non-Japanese, I do catch a lot more looks before they have time to look away. So I plan to exploit this, and try an experiment. Every person I make eye contact with over the next few days, I will smile the biggest, cheesiest smile possible (or atleast a smile with teeth...I have a big mouth). I will then log their reaction. So far, the categories I've come up with have been:
Look away and not look again
Look away, but then quickly look back
Smile back
Continue to stare, but not smile
Look horribly uncomfortable and embarrassed
GASP, actually say something??
I will also try to categorize the people based on gender and an age estimate. I'm really curious what will happen when I try this in the States, too. We'll see. Oh yes we will.
EDIT: This guy I work with looks just like Open Face from Pete and Pete.
posted by Onwi at
9:33 PM
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