#somewhat controversial

[0rph3u5]

Baby it's cold outside

Neptune's Daughter is a 1949 musical romantic comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer starring Esther Williams, Red Skelton, Ricardo Montalbán, Betty Garrett, Keenan Wynn, Xavier Cugat and Mel Blanc. It was directed by Edward Buzzell, and features the Academy Award winning song Baby, It's Cold Outside by Frank Loesser.

choreograph | ˈkôrēəˌɡraf | verb [with object] compose the sequence of steps and moves for (a performance of dance or ice skating)

[astreamofconsciousness]

throwaway account for all of my nonsense thoughts

[beingahumanbeing-blog]

japan - abstract thoughts

One of my favourite quotes is Hayao Miyazaki's (maker of Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro, etc.). 

"We have a word for that in Japanese" he said. "It's called 'ma'. Emptiness. It's there intentionally." He clapped his hands three or four times. "The time in between my clapping is 'ma'. If you have non-stop action with no breathing space at all, it's just busyness" 

This was what I was looking forward to on my trip to Japan. Quiet, pensive walks, taking time to look up at the temple outlined against the sky, or the birds sitting on the telegraph pole. 

When I was younger (i.e. on my previous trips to Japan), I would find it all very tiresome - I would find the temples boring (preferring the bright lights of the city) and green tea bland and tasteless. I am starting to appreciate these things now. 

This is a strange thing to say, as I am no native of Japan, only a tourist, but from the time that I have last been there (in 2007) to this time, I found that in the time I've been away, I've somehow unknowingly aligned myself more and more with their culture and mannerisms - so that, when I went this time, I found that many aspects of their culture somehow rang with what I've been tending towards these past few years....

...the tendency to be easily embarrassed, covering a hand over the mouth when laughing, the wish to be well-dressed - wishing that items like waistcoats, hats and gloves were considered once again part of the regular outfit, speaking in low voices... 

One particular funny example is a how I've always been embarrassed in a public toilet because of the tinkling sound that comes from the cubicle hailing the start and end of your urination. In Japan I found that a hilarious noise of rushing water plays from the moment you enter the toilet, masking any personal sounds of your own. 

I also love the formality of dress of its citizens. Where I am from, once you reach a certain age (~around 40/50) you tend to go either one of two ways - a) Add an extra layer onto your makeup, get a facelift, and walk around in posh areas, your ensemble screaming "expensive" and "I'm going to complain to your manager" or b) Forgo all attempts at looking good, get a perm (and a lot of extra weight), ditch your contacts, and spend the rest of your days wearing track pants and stretchy shirts with sequins saying "elegant inspiring time" and shouting in an annoying voice. However, Japanese ladies present a much more appealing third option - c) Throw away the makeup you had when you were young, keep undyed hair and the heels that aren't too high, buy a few nice yet understated coats (no fur please - that is reserved for cat. a)), and spend the rest of your days looking elegant, graceful and kind. 

However, as I was looking at the rows of small, intricate, impeccable crafts in a souvenir shop, I felt constrained (you know the feeling you would get in a glassware or ceramic shop when you're carrying a bulky rucksack and you can't really move without carefully assessing whether you would break anything if you did?). Like any move that you make out of line - and the threshold that is set in Japan is a lot lower than most anywhere else in the world - would be frowned upon by society? Even I felt the slight tuggings of constraint - and my soul has already been considerably quietened. How would a young male feel growing up in this kind of society? The meditative quiet of country walks, of tea drinking and of graceful mannerisms are cannot be immediately appreciated - they make you bored and restless initially. You have to come to appreciate them after experiencing the noise, the haze, the ruckus outside and start to long to want to look inwards - that is when the time is right for 'ma', as Miyazaki puts it. How on earth are Japanese boys, or young people in general, supposed to appreciate this immediately? Perhaps I am oversimplifying things in order to make a sweeping statement, or I am using a lot of words to describe a problem that can be summarised in far less, but - hence this youthful restlessness and energy has no outlet but to pour into this so-called subculture of gaming, anime - otaku, cosplay and all that other strange connotations that come with these words. 

Another thing which I've found is that I am turning further and further away from mainstream American culture. Having been long under the hegemony of American entertainment, the things I've seen recently have become less and less palatable. 21 Jump Street. The Book of Mormon. Even Four Christmasses. I probably sound like a stuffy old grandma when I say this, but I was shocked, repulsed at their vulgarity. How can these people - educated, knowledgeable - be amused by humour that would amuse neanderthals? I don't understand. 

I don't get them. I'm going to buy a traditional house in a small village in Japan next to a temple and spend my retirement there sweeping the garden, taking care of my labrador, and taking daily walks around the temple with my Korean husband, thank you very much. 

[tsunadee-blog]

With only one color will I paint the world All in blue shades All in creem white. Because we are all one united and equal No differances to tell us apart The dream of us all being all as one United and strong What would it be if there where more colors to be? A world in a mess Not one alike the other if yellow and green and not red and red went hand in hand what would happen to the perfect clan? We should all be alike A copy of one and another Not painted differently alien to one and other We should be made the same alltogether Not formed by strangers

Tsunadee