Local celebrity
Have a load of this:
New hairstyle = standing ovations?
So I cut my hair some time ago. This is what I look like now (or like, two weeks ago, anyway):
Judging from people’s reactions, I guess no-one in Japan has seen a mohawk before. Of course, I had expected the occasional double-take, and customary compliments - if you cut or dye your hair, wear new clothes, or, well, do anything to look different, it’s ????? (kakkoii, “cool”). However nothing could prepare me for the reactions that I would get - as I walked into the cafeteria, people… applauded. Like, seriously, shouting and wooing, and applauding. It was quite surreal. I mean, I like to think I’ve done a few applause-worthy things in my life but somehow this doesn’t seem like it’d be one of them. Apart from feeling somewhat awkard I sure didn’t mind it though… the whole thing just seemed pretty funny.
I like my new hairstyle though, and seemingly, so does other people. For what it’s worth, I suppose if being a freakishly tall foreigner didn’t make me stand out in a crowd, this at least will. Granted, Akita probably isn’t at the cutting edge as far as subcultures (or simply weird looking people) go, but I’m still amazed at how big a deal it seems to be. Whenever I meet someone for the first time, I’d say probably a good 70% start off with “so what’s up with the hair?” or some variant thereof (the other 30% being mostly even split up between “Why did you come to Japan” and “How tall are you” (185cm, for the record), and with a dash of “What kind of woman do you like”).
That last one might sound like a joke, but seemingly it’s considered perfectly normal introductory chit-chat in Japan; or at least when talking to foreigners. I really don’t know if they ask expecting to hear something absolutely outrageous, or if it’s just considered one of those things you have to know about someone before you know where you have them. Either way the question has a tendency to always just leave me completely stumped… And when asked by a group of Jr. high school girls (like it was today), the reply is gonna be awkward no matter what it is.
Lack of updates
Just wanted to say I’m sorry for the recent lack of updates. I’m alive and well, I’ve just been pretty busy, as well as not being in the mood for writing much. I’ve got a bunch of posts lined up in my head though - hopefully I’ll find the time and energy to actually write them down sooner rather than later.