I'm an Incomplete Package: Being a Japanese-American in Japan

This article is all about me, people like me, people, and er, culture.

Yup.

If you've read any of my previous articles, I probably mentioned I live in Japan. I also probably mentioned that my Mom's American and my Dad's Japanese. Maybe I haven't but now I have.

While I have lived in Japan since I was two-and-a-half years old, I'm not completely utterly Japanese...as you can tell. I write in English, perfectly and I speak English, obviously. Well, if you've seen Galligator's vids er, my vids, er, well, anyway.

I'm also not completely utterly Japanese because I was exposed to a lot of American culture through videos taped by my grandmother (who I call Nana). So I've watched Arthur, Magic School Bus, Pink Panther, Cartoon Network, Hamtaro (in English),

movies in English, Disney, Pixar, Teletubbies,

Yup, that weird as ish show with the baby sun thing.

Lizzie McGuire Show,

oh my gosh, the memories...
The TV show that had a very
intimate kissing scene.
oh my gosh.

Hannah Montana, Tom and Jerry, Bugs Bunny, etc., etc., etc.

I knew what the American culture was like. I knew that. BUT, I also didn't know it. Let me explain.

10 No-nos in Japan

I'm half-Japanese and I've lived in Japan basically my whole life so I think I'm qualified to tell you some no-nos in Japan. These aren't in any particular order.

1. Trying your Japanese on a Japanese person and they might try their English on you.

Japanese want to please. They want to please you English-speaking foreigners. They might try to speak to you in English even if you insist that you want to speak Japanese. Just suck it up, is all I can say.



2. Can't get

I'm a Child of U.S-Japan Reconciliation

Well, obviously the title is click-bait...or is it? If you already know me, N.J., I'm half Japanese and half American. When you think about it, it's not unusual but it is kinda interesting considering during World War II, Japan and the US were enemies.

It's a touchy subject, the War Era, but these days when you talk about controversial things people say "GIMME MORE!" so, here it is:

The mindset (some) teachers in Japan said the US military had when they dropped the bomb on Hiroshima.

Hiroshima is up in Debateland, guys. The recent news of President Obama visiting Hiroshima and stuff...you know, that stuff.

Have you wondered how Japan reasons the bombing? Let me tell you about one incident I had with this topic in elementary school...

Does anime...? ABCDEFGoogle Search!

ABCEDFGoogle Search! How to:

Type in "YOUR QUESTION" in Google Search and then enter every letter of the alphabet and then answer them.

Since I live in Japan and have for the bulk of my life, I think I am safe to say that I know a lot about anime.

So, here goes! :D



Does anime...
affect your personality?

Well, I'll have to say it does make certain people extremely obsessed with it and then those people may become hostile to others who don't think the same way as them. Idk. But I think it affects you a bit. If you choose to let it affect you.




Does anime...
brainwash you?

Top 10 Things You Didn't Know About Japanese Schools: TRUTH

WATCH this video AND THEN read the post SO you can understand my frustration.
The reason I didn't embed the video is because the thumbnail suggested things.

So this video had me screaming cuz lots of stuff are wrong so I would like to correct it.

I am half Japanese and I have spent ALL my school years in Japan.

Number 10

Hair styles.

If you go to a public junior high or high school chances are things are really strict and the video is telling the truth. But

Is Japan...? ABCDEFGoogle Search!: Answering your questions about Japan

When you do ABCDEFGoogle Search! you at least have to be somewhat knowledgeable about the thing you are about to search.

Since I live in Japan and have lived for the majority of my life, I decided to answer all the questions that you guys frequently ask Google and clear everything up.

Let's get started! :D



Is Japan...

Hey, let's get rid of money!

"Oooo don't need that cha ching cha ching... ba bling ba bling..." Oh, hi. Sorry I was humming "Price Tag" and... I don't know the lyrics very well.

Sooooo, I don't know if any of you guys overseas know but in Japan, it's been rumored that we're gonna go into Depression. Not physically or mentally but financially.

I wonder what Prime Minister made THAT happen. I mean, we've had over ninety. It's simply ridiculous.

Personally, I don't like this Depression idea for a very personal reason. I'm about to finish college and I'm about to start my own life (FINALLY!) and I want to have fun with my friends before we go our separate ways.

But the problem is,

everything

is

going

to

be

EXPENSIVE!!!!

Oh mah gawd...

It's not easy to have fun any more. And I even hear that next year the tax will go up EVEN MORE.

I feel like cursing and smashing the walls and hitting people. But I won't.

So I came to this question: Why the HECK is life so EXPENSIVE? I mean, wild animals don't need to pay for anything. It's all there. Essentially, we are wild, too. I mean, we don't live in cages. Our houses are our territory just like an animal has territory.

The Truth About Japan

I surely do hope someone comments on my posts.






It's 1:02 in the morning so don't jump on me if... I go a little nuts on this, okay?

Some people think that they know Japan really really really REALLY well... just because they watched one YouTube video or heard about one thing in the news or something.

Uh, uh, do you expect all of Japan to be like that?

For example, there is this YouTube video I watched about a Japanese Pet store.  Now, even I haven't seen meerkats and flying squirrels in a petshop in Japan and I have lived in Japan for... well, since I was three.  That's a long time.  And, uh, uh, not all pet stores are like that okay?  So... don't get your hopes up you YouTube commenters.

Another thing; a lot of people seem to think TOKYO when they hear Japan.  Uh, not everywhere is like that and please, TOKYO is CRAZY.  I lived there for only two years and I know, okay?  My advice to those who want to visit, I know TOKYO is glamour Japan but... no, it's just like the Japanese version of New York City.  I've never been to NYC but if you have, then don't go to TOKYO.  Go to the countryside where you get to experience the REAL Japan.  Sorry if my CAPS are annoying.  I'm just trying to make a point without having to go out of my way and make the letters "bold".

Okay... so... and... not everyone is superly superly interested in JAPANESE traditional festival thingies and stuff soooo... don't ask so many TRADITIONAL questions, okay?  I... don't know.  Sorry!

And... you can eat or drink in the bus in Japan.  Some YouTuber said you can't but it was probably just in that certain region.  Everyone does it.  The trains, duh, everyone does it even more there.  Relax, it's Japan.

Another thing, just because we are ASIAN doesn't mean we are super smart.  I'm dumb... er, maybe not dumb but I know I'm not smart.  And just because one smart chinese boy did an awesome thing on YouTube, doesn't mean we ASIANS can all do that.  Don't get your hopes up you YouTube commenters.

And um... oh yeah, we have McDonalds, Denny's, Seven Eleven, Mister Donut... so relax.

And... just be polite, don't talk on the phone in the train, don't be loud in public, stick to the status quo... and you're good to go to Japan.

If I think of any more stuff I heard that annoys me that people say and they think they know Japan inside and out, I'll update this post.  But for now, goodnight folks!

The World of Japanese TV

So, I was watching TV...actually just a few moments ago and the television was showing some show of Japanese singers and their past hit songs.  Now I thought, "Oh, this is interesting," and kept watching it.  But soon I noticed how Japanese TV is all like this.  Every channel you go to is always in some form of ridiculous entertainment.  Yes, I know it is fun to see the famous old singers when they were young, but come on, what's the point?

Now, I'm not saying we should all stop entertaining ourselves with the pointless shows on TV.  I'm just saying that, "Why are we bothering to do this?"  I'm not really sure if I'm making any sense to you so I'll change the subject.

I once saw a TV show that was of some guys doing some strange bowling where you have to roll the ball up a hill and the hill gets higher after one or two guys for some reason.  One of the guys had to roll it up a very steep hill.  Yes, they are all people from TV comedy shows.  The really really popular successful guys don't participate in such elementary activities.

Anyway, this guy couldn't get the ball up and it just rolled back down.  Now after him is one more guy.  I had no idea at first but they seemed to be in two teams, each with three guys.  The second guy had glasses on and was very young and sort of delicate to the other's harsh words.  The other guys of his team were saying, "If you don't win for us we're all done!"  And well there were a few more harsh words, in Japanese called, "tsukkomi", until the second guy finally said, "Don't worry.  I got this one!"

But he didn't.  After the ball sadly rolled back down the hill, the poor guy was showered with a load of harsh tsukkomi's until he cried.  Now this, I thought as I watched, was way too much over the bar. 

In another different show, one guy got a question wrong and was kicked and punched by these two comedy woman who were supposedly bees.

People say, "No violence!"  However, what do we see them doing on TV?  Throwing harsh words that are "supposedly" meant for comedy reasons and kicking and punching (not fake).  What are they doing????

TV is, just like the internet is, or maybe the whole of media or technology is, a dangerous place.  Thus we venture into such a place in pursue of personal entertainment or personal relaxation.  Even if that means we might be harming other people in the process.  Techonology has changed who we really truely are.  Don't you think so?

So the world of Japanese TV shows that we will do almost anything to get entertained.  It is a sad world but hopefully there will be a change in the thinking of Mr. Television Shows.