Whipsaw

Now, when this word is used, what is most likely to come to mind is the type of saw used by loggers to cooperatively cut down a tree. The definition that I am seeing whipsaw as is this definition from Dictionary.com: to subject to two opposing forces at the same time.

I can think of many examples in which two opposing forces have pulled on me in one way or another, but in regards to Japanese, there is one particular force which affected me and caused me to have multiple debates with myself throughout my time there. That force... is fashion. Yes, fashion.

Before going to Japan, I had already planned on purchasing some Japanese clothing, so I packed relatively little; just three tees, two pairs of jeans, one pair of shorts, and the smaller garments. Oh, and I also brought only one pair of shoes with me, which were running shoes. I have what I consider to be a very simple and basic style of dress. I don't really like to wear anything too fancy or flashy. It would just be too gaudy for my tastes, at the moment.

Anyway, while this style would be seen as being quite normal, and appealing to some, here in the U.S., it didn't work too well in Japan for me. It was fine with my friends and the students who were our guides, but that was because they knew that I was an exchange student. At the beginning, my line of thought was that if they were fine with it, I was fine. It wasn't until I started trying to make more friends that I noticed the subtle influence of dress in Japan. Most people just assumed that I was Japanese, which wasn't too difficult of an assumption to make since I also assumed that most Asian people I met there were also Japanese. Because of the assumption that I was Japanese, I was also judged by the standards of the Japanese when it came to dress and style. For example, from wearing just a plain t-shirt, jeans, running shoes, and carrying a big bookbag, some kids, who were annoyed that I wouldn't step out into traffic to let them pass me on the narrow sidewalk because they were riding bikes, made comments about me that were equivalent to calling someone "a weirdo that lives in his mother's basement". Now, this annoyed me, but it wasn't the wake-up call that got me perusing the racks.

What really got me thinking about the differences and importance of clothing in Japan was when I went out with someone to see a movie. I dressed in a t-shirt, shorts, and running shoes, while she dressed in a blouse, a wool-like jacket-thing, a skirt, panty hose, lace ankle socks, some cute shoes, and topped it off with a beret and a light scarf. Okay. It was just a bit of a contrast, but nothing that really bothered me or made me feel too uneasy for being under-dressed, since guys can get away with just wearing a t-shirt and jeans when going out casually, right? Well, that's what I thought up until after the movie, when I asked to see if she wanted to get something to eat, but... she responded that she had plans for dinner with a friend... so that left me with nothing else to do besides finding my way back to my dorm.

I thought about the possibilities as to why things turned out like they did, and although it wasn't the ultimate reason behind it, I figured that my limited selection of clothing that I brought with me was not going to be enough to successfully get me through the Japanese relationship game. When I compared my style of dress with other Japanese guys, I noticed that I was missing a lot. Not only in terms of flashy styled clothing, but also accessories. I'm not a guy who accessorizes very much if at all, and that didn't change, but I did look into the different types of Japanese styles.

One thing that most people do not know is that in Japan, the styles of clothing routinely change with each season. So for example, during the Summer, people are wearing summer-themed clothing, but when Fall comes around, people readily switch over to their Autumn gear, and the same is true for Winter and Spring. It also goes by dates rather than how the actual weather is. So when Winter is officially there, even if it's not cold yet, people will switch over to their winter attire. Since I knew, and still know, nothing about the details, my style of dress would stand out in some way most of the time. Also, I would occasionally get comments about how out-of-season some of my clothing for the day may be.

With my personal style and taste on one side and the Japanese preference for the stylish on the other, my desire to take part in and experience Japanese social life while still maintaining my sense of individuality was caught in the middle.

I considered a lot of the styles that I saw to be a bit too gaudy or flashy for my tastes. Rather than being the focal point of attention through style of dress, I prefer to garner that attention through action, such as randomly introducing myself and starting a conversation. Although that works somewhat well in Japan, it works a whole lot better if your style of dress conveys the idea that you are "in the know" when it comes to clothing and how others will perceive you due to your style of dress. It took a bit of time and observation, but I managed to go about and purchase clothing that would make me seem at least average in terms of dress during classes, while also purchasing clothing that would allow me to fit in more so with the nightgoers. Nothing too crazy, but just bits here and there that would allow me to maneuver about while blending in with the backdrop of other stylishly-dressed Japanese men. It would also be less embarrassing for any lady friends who decided to hang out with me.

Here are some photos that I am hot-linking to from japanesestreets.com. They seem to be relatively good examples of what you'll typically see people wearing when roaming about in the cities.

Based on the date that the site had these photos filed under, these photos are styles that people wore during October:




This is from November:


This is from September:


These are from December:



This is just a small selection of examples of Japanese style, and I'm fairly certain that you can see how the dress of the average American guy may not quite cut it in terms of fashion. I certainly felt that way. Anyway, faced with this sort of situation, a person can either say, "Hey man, I'm American, and this is just how I'm going to dress," or instead they can jump in and try to fully embrace the difference in fashion. Me, I just did my best to try and create a style that I felt matched my personal fashion sense. Also, I made sure to buy clothing that I would feel comfortable wearing in the U.S. as well.

Girandole

A girandole is a very seldom-used word in the English language, being derived from the latin word 'gyre', which means a circling or rotating motion. The word girandole has three different meanings, but the meaning which I am focusing upon is its meaning of "a showy or flashy display, such as that of a fireworks display".

Fireworks are quite popular in Japan. They range from the large and professional displays to small sets of fireworks that groups of friends may set off on a beach. Fireworks are easily available and can be purchased by kids to have firecracker fights on the beach. Quite amusing to watch, although it is dangerous, but that in itself is probably a draw for the exchange of flying sparks and flares in the din of night. Although... with such easy access to firecrackers, mischievous children seem to have quite a bit of fun with them. For example, those children, after being yelled at for making a ruckus by a homeless man living in an outdoor restroom, took their remaining firecrackers and... set them off at the restroom door just to send the poor guy into an even greater tantrum.

While in Japan, I wasn't able to experience a large fireworks display to signify certain holidays or events, so I had to settle for the beachside view of friends playing with fireworks. *Click here for link to some of that night's firework pics and video*

The next time I go to Japan though, I'd like to see more festivals and their girandolic firework displays. The festivals that I did go to did not have fireworks, unfortunately. Summer seems to be the prime season for that.

Reconcile

Reconcile. Reconciliating differences. Reconciliating past wrongs. When I think of reconcile, many things come to mind, but when I think of it in the context of Japan and the U.S., the differences and the wrongs of the past come to mind.

In the minds of those on both sides, there were right actions and there were wrong actions, but up until even now there is still no reconciliation in the minds of some. In the U.S., there is Pearl Harbor, and in Japan, there are the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The war may be over, but the living veterans on both sides still hold their memories and feelings of that time. While some of the veterans of Japan may now feel regret over that war, the two large craters that still scar the land and the memorials that now adorn them are constant reminders to not only those veterans, but also to current and future generations of what transpired in those two places on that day. The pain, death, and suffering from that time incite the strongest of feelings within various Japanese, running the gamut from sadness and regret to a cold and seething anger. The passage of time may have allowed the rebuilding of severed ties between the U.S. and Japan, but for many of the veterans, it seems to be more of a facade that they put on so they can continue about their life as normally as they can. For when confronted with those memories of the past again, that pent up emotion once again reignites. That is the same for the Japanese veterans as it is for the American veterans.

When in Japan, I managed to catch a television program in which the U.S. pilot who dropped the bomb on Hiroshima returned to Japan. He seemed to have mixed emotions as he walked about from place to place. He spoke of current places as he remembered them when he was in Japan during the war. Also, he was taken to see the memorials of the aftermath of the bombings. While he seemed bothered by the situation, I couldn't tell if he was bothered by the pictures and memories of dead and scarred bomb victims or if he was bothered by being placed in that situation. There was a glimmer of remorse, but that was all behind the stoicism of stating that war is war. During the last portion of the show, he and a Japanese veteran and the veteran's wife sat together to speak of that time. It was then that the emotions on both sides flared. I believe the Japanese veteran wanted to know if the American veteran felt regret or if he would apologize for those acts. The American veteran vehemently stated that he would not apologize for it. He then went on to say that he remembers Pearl Harbor too well and that he would not forgive that attack in which many of his friends died. The Japanese veteran's wife began to weep at that harsh reply, but the Japanese veteran could only contain what seemed to be his anguish and anger behind a stoic facade. After that exchange, the discussion ended and the American veteran took his leave.

That is all that I can clearly recall from the program, but what I remember more clearly is one of the questions that was asked to me by my friend's father after the program ended. He asked me if I thought that it would be better if atrocities such as the nuclear bombings and Pearl Harbor were forgotten. My reply was that, although it is good to remember history and the pain and suffering that came from certain acts, it is also good if the feelings behind those acts were forgotten, or rather, not passed on to further generations. My reasoning is that as long as a wound is allowed to fester, it will not heal. The best way for healing to occur is to clean out and disinfect the wound. Wounds can heal with time, but if infection is allowed to linger, it may never be cleansed, and hence, healing may never occur. Never is a strong word, but I use it relatively rather than absolutely.

Time has passed between those two acts, horrific on both ends, and the wounds seem to have healed somewhat. Some infection still lingers, but for better or worse, it will subside. With new cells to replace the old cells, the healing is occurring and the rift will close. Unfortunately, that is but one of many rifts that exists, and many have existed longer than this one. Whether these rifts will heal or not will depend upon how the infection is dealt with and, of course, time.