I’m going to tell you a dirty little secret:
I used my five-year-old niece as an excuse to do something I wanted to anyway. I’m sure you have ever committed such a heinous crime before... My dad and I went to the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo (少東京), Los Angeles, and learned about history of Japanese immigrants and their less-than-warm welcome into the United States. However, we skipped the expensive Hello Kitty exhibit that I was secretly-drooling-over-but-didn’t-want-to-admit-it.
So I dragged my unsuspecting (but willing) niece along the next day just for the Hello Kitty area.
I used my five-year-old niece as an excuse to do something I wanted to anyway. I’m sure you have ever committed such a heinous crime before... My dad and I went to the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo (少東京), Los Angeles, and learned about history of Japanese immigrants and their less-than-warm welcome into the United States. However, we skipped the expensive Hello Kitty exhibit that I was secretly-drooling-over-but-didn’t-want-to-admit-it.
So I dragged my unsuspecting (but willing) niece along the next day just for the Hello Kitty area.
Yes, I paid twenty bucks to get an intense overdose of SUPERCUTE!!!!! But my niece got in free, and that’s something, right? Right?!? We both loved the exhibit. The pink did get nauseating after a while, but little girls go for cute like sharks go for blood, so I suppose the pink overload is mandatory.
The interweaving of Japanese kawaii (可愛い！！) culture and American capitalism does make for a fascinating exhibit and history. They certainly had everything you could possibly imagine in this museum exhibit. And many things I never could have come up with in my own brain.
Before going to Japan, it seemed unimaginably strange to me that adult females would go bonkers over one particular brand of supercute, such as Hello Kitty. However, a number of my friends in Japan were hardcore fans, and would have Hello Kitty folders, car ornaments, watches, backpack pins, bracelets, books, movies, dolls, phone cases, clothing, sheets, blinds, laptop cases, backpacks, luggage, writing utensils, erasers, glasses cases and much, much more.
After living in Japan, it seems normal to me, though I did notice that the tendency to “supercute-ify your life” tended to fade after marriage, and especially after having kids. However, women in Japan tend marry and have children late in life, and can often continue to pursue fandom with preteen enthusiasm well into their thirties.
The interweaving of Japanese kawaii (可愛い！！) culture and American capitalism does make for a fascinating exhibit and history. They certainly had everything you could possibly imagine in this museum exhibit. And many things I never could have come up with in my own brain.
Before going to Japan, it seemed unimaginably strange to me that adult females would go bonkers over one particular brand of supercute, such as Hello Kitty. However, a number of my friends in Japan were hardcore fans, and would have Hello Kitty folders, car ornaments, watches, backpack pins, bracelets, books, movies, dolls, phone cases, clothing, sheets, blinds, laptop cases, backpacks, luggage, writing utensils, erasers, glasses cases and much, much more.
After living in Japan, it seems normal to me, though I did notice that the tendency to “supercute-ify your life” tended to fade after marriage, and especially after having kids. However, women in Japan tend marry and have children late in life, and can often continue to pursue fandom with preteen enthusiasm well into their thirties.
This is all a painting – yup, the person looking at the painting was part of the painting, too, not just my photograph.
Abraham Lincoln, Supercute!!! I truly have no idea what to say.
What acid metal thrasher could leave home without their Hello Kitty rock guitar?
The two most impressive exhibits were also the largest. Giant Robo Kitty (top of post) and Giant Pharoah Kitty (above), for example, were each at least 12 feet (4 m) tall, and lovingly crafted with careful attention to detail.
Kanji Power (漢字の力)
They told me I was wasting my time, but I didn’t listen. And I’m certainly not going to start listening to the naysayers now… I picked Japanese to study, and especially the Kanji, because it calls to me, and holds my interest, and is simply fun.
I continue to study Japanese Kanji every day – it’s the first thing I do in the morning, before I even get out of bed. When my alarm goes off, I reach for my iPad, crack it open and review strange squiggly confusingly wonderful characters via a flashcard program called Anki for 30-45 minutes before I do anything else. I stretch as I look at them, and by the time I am done I feel ready to take on the day.
I got excited about the above original Hello Kitty magazine because I could actually read the cover – it says "いちご新聞 [Ichigo Shinbun]," which means “The Strawberry Newspaper.” It’s moments like these that spur me to keep wasting my time and making myself happy.
I continue to study Japanese Kanji every day – it’s the first thing I do in the morning, before I even get out of bed. When my alarm goes off, I reach for my iPad, crack it open and review strange squiggly confusingly wonderful characters via a flashcard program called Anki for 30-45 minutes before I do anything else. I stretch as I look at them, and by the time I am done I feel ready to take on the day.
I got excited about the above original Hello Kitty magazine because I could actually read the cover – it says "いちご新聞 [Ichigo Shinbun]," which means “The Strawberry Newspaper.” It’s moments like these that spur me to keep wasting my time and making myself happy.
Parenting: Fake It 'til You Make It
Another facet of this experience was getting to fake being a mom for an hour. It was just me and the little one, so everyone naturally assumed I was her mom. I adore kids, and get along spectacularly well with them, especially imaginative ones like my niece.
However, I rarely get the opportunity to do those little things that parents do - share knowing looks with other parents when your kiddo does something silly, or the exact same thing their kiddo just did. It’s fun to pretend for now, but I know my time will come, too.
Have a great week everyone!
However, I rarely get the opportunity to do those little things that parents do - share knowing looks with other parents when your kiddo does something silly, or the exact same thing their kiddo just did. It’s fun to pretend for now, but I know my time will come, too.
Have a great week everyone!
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