She was perty.
Random Observation/Comment #69: Japanese people pride themselves in having crazy hair. They always have long hair in the back so they can use a million hair products to make it stick up like anime characters. You may try to have blonde hair, but the bleach will only make it a weird brown. You’re not from California – deal with it.
After the a-bomb museum, half of the tour group went to Glover Garden to look at some old western-style houses on top of a small hill. The garden didn’t have the beautiful blooming flowers I expected, but the overall design was incredible. The city fit into the palm of my hand on that house’s porch. Some people with money to waste on house decorations would buy a fountain for the front yard. This house had a private pond that sat higher than the bridges.
Needless to say, the houses were quite nice. I could definitely retire here with the beautiful view overlooking the harbor and the city. The houses had all been converted to hold plastic food and model ships instead of furniture and family portraits. It was a tourist attraction and, of course, a great dating scene.
Returning from the garden, RJ and I went to get crazy Japanese haircuts because I was looking like a bum, and RJ just wanted Japanese hair. I really liked my hair in the front because I could do the swoosh hair pullback and pretend to be cool (the key word is pretend). It reminded me of that high school look I had with the typical Asian split in the middle with lobster claws that clamped nicely on either side of my cheeks. Back in the day, my hair was just too modern for its times.
Anyway, given the Japanese fluency of me and RJ combined, we would have probably left the salon with our heads shaved. Fortunately, Yuka helped us translate. It led to one of my favorite haircuts of all times. Although, the normal haircut phases of looking terrible the first two weeks and then improving significantly for one week before the next haircut cycle begins did not apply for this cut. It looked good for the first two weeks and then I already felt my hair needed a minor trim to add the Japanese-style back to it.
RJ’s hair became huge. It looked like he was wearing a helmet. My hair was long in the back, but short on one side with bangs and a weird spiking centroid. It felt like the entire haircut was shifted 30 degrees to the right so the center is along the right-side parting line. The bangs were also cut for the hair to droop over my forehead and a little over my eyes. Overall, I was more than satisfied. We tipped generously in a place that usually doesn’t accept tips. In return, the hair stylists gave us an entire box of shampoo and conditioner samples.
Tipping has been embedded into my common courtesy, but a cheaper way of living without tipping is easily adaptable. Plus, it’s so much nicer when the service actually takes it as a huge compliment instead of a mandatory addition. You really don’t need to bow that low. I bowed to meet their humbleness, but they bowed lower to form some odd war of politeness. I let him win.
~See Lemons enjoy his haircut
A view from the house. Screw Fountains.
