Will Miss #282 - arm stockings

I have been asked on occasion to speculate about the motivations behind certain cultural differences between Japan and other countries. One of the questions I've been asked is why the Japanese value white skin so much. The usual answer I get from Japanese people is that they think it is more beautiful than darker skin tones. They say no more than that. I've heard many foreign people speculate

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Won't Miss #282 - "the stare and swerve"

Somewhere in the cobwebbed areas of my deeper memory, I recall seeing a comedic scene in a movie or T.V. show where a person is riding a bike and is so distracted by an attractive women, that he doesn't look where he is going and crashes into something. Seems rather silly, eh? Well, there is a situation in Japan that happens to me which makes it seem much more plausible. When I'm riding my bike,

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Will Miss #281 - cooking terms without pretense

I like to cook, and I follow several cooking blogs and a few forums. There is something that drives me crazy and that is people who use Japanese words instead of perfectly reasonable English equivalents because they're trying to sound like they know something other people don't. They're the types who like to toss around words like "umami" when they could say "savory" or "meaty" or who say even

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Won't Miss #281 - hanging

Poor Anpanman. He's had better days. 
The Japanese overwhelmingly support capital punishment. Latest statistics put it at 85.6% support, and my personal experiences speaking to Japanese people about this issue completely fall in line with these numbers. You can compare this to the United States, one of the other few developed countries that allows for the death penalty (albeit on a

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Will Miss #280 - typhoons in Tokyo

A tree top bends in the wind and the sky has darkened as a typhoon approaches.
I'm a big fan of dramatic weather. I love the sound of thunder and hard rain, and the charged feeling in the air before they come. There's something invigorating to me about nature proving who is boss as it bends tree tops, knocks over rows of bikes, and spits all over the windows. To that end, I like the atmosphere

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Won't Miss #280 - cultural enforcers

One of my earliest experiences in Japan occurred when I came here for a vacation in 1988. My then boyfriend, now husband, and I were riding on a train and standing next to each other. Because it was crowded, I leaned into him and against him with my hand resting on his chest. Of course, we were relatively affectionate, but not doing anything grostesque or over the top. A man came over and

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Will Miss #279 - taiko

Taiko is Japanese drumming. You sometimes see people playing at festivals and it's always an invigorating experience. People play in a high energy fashion and show great strength and stamina. You can't help but be affected by both the sound and the motion that is involved in the playing.

I'll miss seeing live performances with taiko.

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Won't Miss #279 - personal space differences

I didn't have a picture of someone invading a private part or orifice, but that kokeshi doll on the right looks annoyed at the proximity of the kokeshi doll on the left to her posterior, doesn't she?
The Japanese have very different ideas about personal space. They don't like to hug and feel very uncomfortable about it, but they have some habits which are far more invasive and offensive than hugs

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Will Miss #278 - bowing

This covers three strong aspects of Japanese culture - bowing, cleaning up after others and saying "welcome". 
Do you know what's great about the way Japanese greet one another? You don't have to touch anybody. If that sounds squeamish to a paranoid extent, go back and read my post here. I've seen enough public peeing, nasal excavation, and women walking out of toilets without washing their hands

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Won't Miss #278 - shufflers

One of the things which seems to occur with far greater frequency in Japan than back home is people who walk and shuffle their feet. It's a rare day that goes by that I don't hear someone dragging their feet as they walk around the local shopping areas. I have pondered about why this is so, and have some theories, but will never know for sure. Part of me thinks it has to do with Japan being a

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Will Miss #277 - Japanese psychological concepts

My university degree is in psychology, so my interest in Japan is squarely rooted in the complexities of behavior in this country. One of the most fascinating things is how a particular culture views mental health problems. There are concepts and problems in Japan which have terms which we would not consider serious issues in the United States. These differences reflect cultural priorities. A

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Won't Miss #277 - bribing/paying back victims

In Japan, there is a curious habit of allowing criminals to bribe or pay back the victim so as not to be charged with a crime. My first experience with this came via the news that my successor at my former job, a Welshman, was arrested in a post-soccer game brawl and held in prison (without charges or bail) for 21 days. At the end of his stint, the instigators (who were Japanese) paid him

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Will Miss #276 - Asagaya Tanabata Festival

Every year, the Asagaya Tanabata festival takes place in my neighborhood and I complain about it. I complain because the crowds are annoying and get in my way when I need to do my regular grocery shopping or get to the local JR station. It always takes place when it's insanely hot. It is crass and merely a way for merchants to draw in a ton of people and make more money. I complain, but then I

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Won't Miss #276 - lowball (medical) weight estimates

Okay, this guy probably has a weight problem by any country's standards. 




In Asian countries, the "ideal weight" for people on the doctor's charts tends to be 10-20 lbs. lower than the ones you'll get in your home country. I once read about a woman who was 5' 7" (170 cm.) tall and weighed 125 lbs. (56.7 kg.) and the doctor told her she was too fat and needed to lose 10 lbs. Note that the "

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Will Miss #275 - seeing your culture through new eyes

Uncle Sam may appear to be hung and slumped dead over that sign, but he's really hawking tacos and American beer.
There was a series of books published by Tuttle which is no longer in print called "The Adventures of Max Danger." In the second book of the series, the introduction talks about the perspective of an old Japanese woman who said that Americans are "big people...who believe their

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Won't Miss #275 - New Year's postcards

Every year, my students, foreign and Japanese acquaintances, and blog buddies complain about having to write New Year's postcards... well, "write" isn't really correct. Most of them just print a sheaf of them en masse from their color printers. I have never met one person who likes sending them out, and few who care much about even receiving them. It's a tradition which is even worse than

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Will Miss #274 - the SK Japan "metabo" kitty

I have to confess that I am not entirely immune to the "kawaii" (cute) aspects of Japanese pop culture. My head is duly hung in shame at being in my mid 40's and still being lured by the occasional cute thing. One of those things is the SK Japan mascot (called "debuneko"／でぶねこ or "fatty cat") which is sometimes marketed as a "metabo" cat. "Metabo" is the Japanese-English term for "metabolic

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Won't Miss #274 - psycho over scratches

I know that many men all over the world treat their cars with the same or better regard than their genitalia, and that they can get a bit nutty if someone dings or touches their cars. In Japan though, that level of investment seems to be turned up to "11". I have witnessed and heard about a lot of cases where Japanese men went absolutely bonkers over the slightest touch of their vehicle by a

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Will Miss #273 - "White Day"

A culture is not only revealed in the greatness of its practices, but in its lame ones as well. Too many people think about Japan only in terms of its best points and its quirky aspects. "White Day" reveals just how uncreative and pathetic the marketers in Japan can be when setting themselves to the task of creating their own non-traditional consumer-minded holiday rather than usurping that of

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Won't Miss #273 - inconsistent labeling information

For reasons I'm sure have nothing to do with serving consumer interests, products in Japan are labeled in a highly inconsistent manner. If you look at the picture of a bin of carrots above, they are priced at 25 yen per 100 grams (3.5 oz.). Next to them are bags of potatoes which are 180 yen per bag. This shop is one that I shop at often, and usually carrots are priced per bag as well, but they

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Will Miss #272 - design going the extra mile

A container of gum has a separate pocket with slips of paper so that the chewer can wrap the gum in paper when finished. This means they don't have to worry about gum sticking to the trash bin liner when they throw it away.
If there is one thing you can say about manufacturers in Japan, it is that they are detail-oriented when it comes to considering consumer needs. One of the reasons that U.S.

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