Most know by now that generally speaking I grow a beard every year in November. Sometimes longer, sometimes shorter but every year for awhile now. Today it is December 1st and after a months and some of my beard I decided it was a good time to shave, but I thought perhaps I might have some fun at the expense of the teaching staff at school.
These next two days are the finals test for this trimester. So today every hour I made the 3 minute bike home and cut a bit more off then came back to school as normal to see if anyone would have anything to say. Strangely enough, but hardly surprising not a soul said a thing until the day was finished and I was facially-bald again suffering from razor burn for not shaving for a month.
I marked the times on each picture for easier chronology. While sporting a beard I was actually advanced to my real age when the Japanese estimated how old I was. Instead of the airy 23 that I was used to people started saying I was 35! the shock of it... While sporting a beard I got a lot of cute comments from my students, ranging from: "I want to touch it but I'm afraid you'll bite.." to "are there weeds growing in there?"
By far my favorite comment was the, "GOD!, Derek sensei is manly." The photo at 0940 (for mom: that means 9:40 am) I think the sideburns look rather stunning, can I be so bold as to say lavish? Definitely had a wolverine feel to my head at that time.
My Col. Sander impression, always
wanted to do a ye'olde English-y
type rig but never had the stones
to pull it off.
Clean shaven and razor burned
I have been swimming in Q10
lotions trying to get my face
back down to earth.
Not long ago I was taken to a small park in the city where officials had re-located some ancient houses to display to people. Maybe with the idea to showcase how little the technology of house building has advanced since the Edo period, I can't be sure. I know after seeing a few other teacher's houses these "primative" dwelling would be improvements.
Starting with the oldest and reasonably speaking most modest house-
The top righ-most image is a picture of the roof. The roof on this pit-style house is over 3 feet thick! and made out of the stalks of rice from the fall harvest. I was with a karate sensei the first time I was shown this park and he said that almost every year the roof was re-created. It was just thick with moss, but it looked really cozy. Unfortunately, Japan with it's 100+ degree days and 1000% humidity, cozy is NEVER needed. Talk about a BO factory.
The picture to the left is the interior of the place. Hard-packed dirt floor, looked draftier than the house I grew up in as a kid and that's saying something.
Next the Merchant's House-
This modest affair was easily as big as a modern house when you take all of the garden into account. The cool part is the opening part of the house was the store that the merchant worked out of. Then as you went farther into the house you eventually saw the kitchen and various sleeping quarters for the whole family. This is a composite picture from both sides of the garden towards the back of the house.
equivilant to "shithouse" in English
Sorry it's crude, but that's the best I can do.
Ben= poop Jo=a place (?)
The hole on the left is for daiben (big poop)
the hole on the right is shoben (little poop or urine actually)
Kinda makes that clock in England seem a little strange.
don't jump Mr. Bill
Thanks for stopping by, if I'm feeling better (I have a cold) tomorrow I have another mess of pictures to post.
出
said...
DUDE!!!!!!!!!!!
The Col. Sanders look ruled! You shouda kept that for this weekend, man. I would bought you a drink just on the principal. Funny story, good idea!
How's the weather down there?
said...
That's a wicked idea - the beard being shaved bit by bit every hour. Very funny.lol
I heard that shaving cream is much more expensive than in the states. Is that true? The person who said that always bring back lots of cans everytime he goes there.
said...
woops! *much more expensive "in Japan" than in US*
EvilDrGrignard said...
Hey Annonymous:
Man your English is just going to crap.. good thing you can go back to speaking your native language after this sunday.
Masa: Don't remember about shaving cream, I do know that Japanese deoderant isn't good and always brought back enough to use for a year or more. Japanese don't sweat like us hair foreigners do.. lucky you.
said...
Sweet Jesus! Well, that's what happens when you drink 5 cups of coffee, don't sleep, watch alot of porn, and just eat hard boiled eggs for 3 days....
Will see you, uh, today.
said...
You dork! ...I did the same thing when I shaved my beard. Damn it! Now I'm considered unoriginal cause I didn't publish my pictures first.
The other pictures were good. I liked the shots. It felt as though I walked through myself.