Some fun culture in Japan : )

What ever happened during the winter before Martin Luther King Jr. Day, The Super Bowl and Valentine's Day were invented? You have heard of people getting out their Christmas lights even before Thanksgiving is over. Some people just do not want to give up their American privilege of having 2 full months of Christmas! I thought I had seen the worst of commercialized America when I moved to Japan. Sorry to say, we have been outdone! It started about January 15 when I noticed the Christmas lights at our apartment complex and neighboring houses STILL had not been taken down. When Jan. 20 came I realized that the 2 month mark had indeed been broken for the first time! (Is there any Guiness book records for this?) Did someone forget to tell these people that Christmas was over or was it just a neighborly prank? I made a friendly wager with Maki that all the lights would come down on the 24th or before. (The weekend had to spell the end of this, right? - Wrong!) Maki won the bet and I can finally, as of yesterday, say goodbye to my holiday season. Sad to see the holiday spirit finally go, but no worries, I will see them in another 9 months, right?! I think we may need to move.

Have you ever been told you have a big/long nose? It doesn't feel good does it! It took me awhile to figure out, until Maki explained this to me, that this is actually a compliment in Japan. It makes me feel good to know that not everyone really thinks my nose is tall, the majority of it may have just been flattery.