HAPPY HALLOWEEN

The Japanese welcome any excuse to dress up in costumes, which makes Halloween perhaps the greatest cultural import since baseball.  This year I journeyed to Osaka to partake in my first Japanese Halloween.  Our plan was to meet up with some other people and then hang out at a bar until the first train out at 5:15 am.  Other than making the train, nothing else seemed to go to plan, and the night had elements of a classic buddy movie: strange characters, brushes with gangsters, crazy coincidences, and a trip to a fast food joint.

After a quick dinner, we went in search of the JETs at a bar.  One drink turned into many, and in that time period, most of the JETs had wandered off, and we found ourselves talking to a Japanese man and his two kids, ages 5 and 7 (yes, he had brought his children to a bar).  Also present was an expat from Louisiana, who immediately cottoned to me as a fellow southerner.  As we chatted, it came to light that he used to date my 7th grade English teacher.  Just another day in Japan.

The bar was eventually abandoned as we moved out to wander the trendy areas of Osaka in search of some people watching.  Oh, what a spectacle!  I regret I did not take more pictures.  Vegetables, boxers, bananas in pajamas, Muammar Gaddafi, Ronald McDonald, sexy cops, sexy flight attendants, men in drag, anime characters, and all sorts of gore-encrusted creatures roamed the streets.  Traffic was tight with the tricked-out Cadillacs of the yakuza (Japanese gangsters) cruising by.  People caroused, staggered drunkenly, and stopped every 5-10 ft. to take photos with strangers.  However, as the night wore on, the revelers started to flag, falling asleep in cafes, and sitting in exhausted huddles on the pavement and in the parks.  The witching hour had passed, and we were now all sitting pumpkins.

Yakuza hanging out

The evening culminated in a visit to a purgatorial McDonalds, where we waited with the dregs of Halloween humanity from 3:30 am until the subway opened at 5 am.  Luckily, the time passed quickly, thanks to a JET whose company we had acquired at the bar earlier in the evening.  The individual in question knows how to have a good time, and not wanting to abandon him in his state, we led him by the hand through Osaka, trying to keep him awake and vertical.  The effort was well worth it, as he greatly entertained us, zoning in and out of the conversation with every passing scantily clad Japanese girl, a look of joy and wonderment lighting up his face each time.  

The McDonald's crew was an interesting cross-section, from the homeless, to numerous elderly people, to gaijin like us, to Japanese youths. Makeup was starting to run, and wigs were askew. Some people were dead asleep among their hamburger wrappers and empty cups, while others clearly had no intention of purchasing anything, but were determined to camp out anyway.  A few patrons were carried in, completely passed out.  But at 4:45 am, everyone was galvanized into action and made a break for the train station, and eventually, our beds.   Happy Halloween, all.

Everyone is welcome at the Golden Arches

GIVE ME A BREAK

My third years are starting on their big project of the trimester, making their own advertisement and presenting it in front of the class.  As an example, I brought in a KitKat bar and did the old jingle, "Give me a break, give me a break...break me off a piece of that KitKat bar!"  Later, the JTE told me, "Did you know that in Japan, students consider KitKats lucky?"  "KitKat," it turns out, is remarkably similar to a Japanese saying, Kitto-katsu, or "I know you will win!"  During exam time, students squirrel away packages of KitKats as brain food and good luck charms.  We're still awaiting the results of the research trials to confirm this theory.

Cookies and cream

Back in the olden days, the only KitKat flavor that existed was milk chocolate.  Now the brand has gotten fancy, and introduced a whole host of flavors, which seemed to be geared mainly towards the Japanese market, with flavors like green tea, cherry blossom, wasabi and soy sauce.  Since learning of this flavor diversification, I've found an additional purpose in Japan: to try as many varieties of KitKats as possible.  

"Dark cookies"

IT'S IN THE BLOOD

One of my third years ran up to me after class last week and asked what my blood type is. I asked the JTE about it later.

JTE: Oh, they saw your drawings on the board [which were horrifically terrible]. In Japan we think that people who have type O blood are [?]
Me: What is [?]
JTE: Oh, it means...not nervous. Big heart.

Unfortunately, I think I might have type A blood. So I guess this means I’m just a bad artist.

This encounter got me thinking.  On Facebook, many Japanese people have their blood type listed, which seemed quirky, but I assumed had some practical purpose.  So I turned to that incontrovertible source, the Internet.  It yielded the following information: geneticists of the Third Reich examined blood type as a possible indicator of personality.  Somehow this caught on in Japan, and it has become a huge fad, like horoscopes were in the 70s.  Politicians and celebrities list blood type among their stats, along with birth date and hometown.  Blood type is also used in matchmaking services and job applications, and TV programs provide a daily blood horoscope.  On the downside, this pseudo-scientific classification of people has led to instances of discrimination, not to mention bullying at school (which is called bura-hara when related to blood type). Should you desire more insight into your own personality, I provide below a chart for your reference.  

Type A
Best traits	Earnest, creative, sensible, reserved, patient, responsible
Worst traits	Fastidious, overearnest, stubborn, tense
Type B
Best traits	Wild, active, doer, creative, passionate, strong
Worst traits	Selfish, irresponsible, unforgiving, unpredictable
Type AB
Best traits	Cool, controlled, rational, sociable, adaptable
Worst traits	Critical, indecisive, forgetful, irresponsible, "split personality"
Type O
Best traits	Agreeable, sociable, optimistic
Worst traits	Vain, rude, jealous, arrogant