Golden Week rant

So Golden Week just finished yesterday and it started out hectic, but I decided I wanted to relax for most of the end of it before coming back to work. Today is my first day back and, luckily, I only have two classes as one was cancelled and the other is only every other week.

For those of you who don't know, Golden Week is kind of like Spring break, but without any religious holiday like Easter- or at least there isn't a holiday that my students or coworkers have mentioned. It makes going out of your apartment somewhat unbearable as people flood into every nook and cranny during this time. It also makes travel within and out of Japan terrible. But travelling TO Japan is pretty awesome. If I'd known and planned better I could have had someone come visit me for ridiculously cheap, but maybe next year?

This time alone did help me think about what kind of life I want while here and what kind of life I DON'T like while I'm here. Basically, I don't want to be a drunk idiot gaijin (foreigner) like some other people I saw at the beginning of this vacation. One in particular rubbed me the wrong way and I feel that eliminating toxic, energy-sucking d-bags like him will make my stay here much better because he's that guy who never got over being in college and tries to re-live it every weekend. I'm all for going out, but not if it's the same routine of getting wasted and being a loud jackass. He does other stuff besides drinking too, but he's that guy who shouts in a silent room, always hoping for even more attention. So even if he's doing something interesting that doesn't include getting shitfaced (rarely) his mere presence makes it not as enjoyable for me. The big problem: I work with him. So I have to see him two days a week and when I see him tomorrow I can only imagine what kind of BS will spout forth from his lips.

One more rant, but this time on being a foreigner in Japan: the racial profiling. Obviously I'm not black and don't know what it's like to be black, but living here and trying to quietly shop in Japan is crazy because you're treated like a circus freak. I feel like it MIGHT be as close as I'll ever come to being racially profiled like many of my black friends back home have told me in story after story. I mean, I do stand out a lot. I DO have blond hair now and I am sometimes a good foot taller than a lot of people here, but for fuck's sake, people! Do you have to be so obvious about it? They try so hard to be subtle, too, but it just makes them stand out to me even more. Usually they're just curious, though, and will casually walk and stand next to me like they're interested in the item two feel away. Now at first I didn't realize what was happening, because I usually make a list of stuff I need then just go to that section and grab, so I can get the Hell outta there ASAP. So I just thought it was a Japanese culture thing when people would browse the shelves next to me, but not actually pick up anything to put in their baskets. But then I'd realize they were then in the next aisle with me- huh? I just picked up laundry detergent and now I'm buying cashews seven aisles away and yet here you are! Coincidence? So I developed a little game where I leave an area as soon as a Japanese person appears and then see what happens. Usually almost immediately they walk away from the area, but all the while keeping their eyes on me until I turn around and I look straight at them- then they fucking bolt. The other game I've played (mostly with older Japanese guys) is staying in the same place for as long as possible to see how long they'll hang out before getting bored and leaving. Let me tell you: older Japanese guys are very patient. I hung out at one of those bargain bins for about 5-7 minutes with this old Japanese guy where we would take turns picking something up and returning it to the bin. Finally I put something in my basket and walked away, and he immediately followed. Hilarious!

The good thing is because everyone's always looking at you, it's pretty easy to ask people questions- when my Japanese doesn't totally suck anyway. It's also really easy to make friends with people because they're interested in you and want to ask you a million questions- usually starting with "Why did you come to Japan?" It's a valid question, but one that's not easy to answer because there are a tons reasons why I came here: my break up with Scott, I wanted to live abroad, I'm trying to further my career, it seemed like an easy way to break into teaching internationally, etc. etc. But it's pretty hard to answer any of that when they speak cavemen English and I speak about 20 words of Japanese. So usually I stick to "I'm interested in Japanese culture." It's a true statement, but I could easily add another 100 countries to the list of places where I'm interested in the culture, language, etc.

Hopefully, I can add some more later that's not so ranty.