While on the subject of hot %$@ weather
I always thought this was a little strange. Japanese women don't wear shorts in the summer no matter how hot and sticky it gets. In fact they wear their jeans to the beach. Friday morning on my way to work I noticed the temperature was little cooler. It was still hot as hell at 0630, but there was a nice cool breeze. Half way to work I saw this Jp lady walking down the street in jeans and a full-on sweatshirt looking as cool as can be. Keep in mind it was already in the mid 80s. Scenes like that still surprise me although I've been in Japan so long that I've actually become acclimatized to the summers no matter how much I bitch about them. I haven't worn shorts outside of the house, except of course on the way to my lap pool, in 3 years. I'm too self-conscious of my whiteness and (God forbid...I know...)of not fitting into Jp culture. I'm a redhead so I'm especially white and when I go out in town showing a little skin I get occasional snickers and "whitey" comments from Japanese guys passing by, thinking that I can't understand them. I've developed a cute little sneer for moments like that and I love the surprised look on their faces. heh.
Soap box warning:
Okay. Speaking of paleness. I'm also tired of MFERS (U.S. folk) coming up to me and being all like, "DAAAAaaaammm girl! You should get a tan!" My response?, "Uhh...I'm part Irish!?" and leave it at that. In this day and age of skin cancer you'd think people would be a little more sensitive about paleness and whatnot. Even though I'm see-through pale I can tan quite easily, though slowly at first, and I used to rock a kick-ass tan every year...until about 1999 that is when I had to get a mole removed. Was it benign? I have no idea because the GD Naval hospital misplaced my biopsy. The doc had taken the whole thing out so there was nothing left to scrape out. They weren't gonna tell me either. I had to finally call in to get my results although they were supposed to contact me. Too bad too. It took a lot of work and inner creativity to make that thing. It was shaped like a halo with a dark outside ring and a yellowish center. Anyhoo, since I don't know for sure I always assumed it was malignant just to be safe. I stopped tanning and started sporting SPF gazillion in the pool every day. Last week I noticed a new crazy-looking mole close to my left shoulder. Though not as pretty as the one I had taken out it's pretty irregular shaped so I'm gonna get it checked out.
Moral of this story - be nice to those of us who are super pale. We have been pale all our lives and have probably had access to a mirror at one time or another and are fully aware of our ability to blind others at will. Those of us who choose to shy away from the sun probably have a good reason for doing so. That and it's not like Mystic Tan has made its way to Japan yet. :P
Soap box warning:
Okay. Speaking of paleness. I'm also tired of MFERS (U.S. folk) coming up to me and being all like, "DAAAAaaaammm girl! You should get a tan!" My response?, "Uhh...I'm part Irish!?" and leave it at that. In this day and age of skin cancer you'd think people would be a little more sensitive about paleness and whatnot. Even though I'm see-through pale I can tan quite easily, though slowly at first, and I used to rock a kick-ass tan every year...until about 1999 that is when I had to get a mole removed. Was it benign? I have no idea because the GD Naval hospital misplaced my biopsy. The doc had taken the whole thing out so there was nothing left to scrape out. They weren't gonna tell me either. I had to finally call in to get my results although they were supposed to contact me. Too bad too. It took a lot of work and inner creativity to make that thing. It was shaped like a halo with a dark outside ring and a yellowish center. Anyhoo, since I don't know for sure I always assumed it was malignant just to be safe. I stopped tanning and started sporting SPF gazillion in the pool every day. Last week I noticed a new crazy-looking mole close to my left shoulder. Though not as pretty as the one I had taken out it's pretty irregular shaped so I'm gonna get it checked out.
Moral of this story - be nice to those of us who are super pale. We have been pale all our lives and have probably had access to a mirror at one time or another and are fully aware of our ability to blind others at will. Those of us who choose to shy away from the sun probably have a good reason for doing so. That and it's not like Mystic Tan has made its way to Japan yet. :P
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