Hannah Miranda and Kung Fu Tyler. Word.

A brief history of Halloween:

• Roman Catholics: honor all saints, known or unknown.
• Episcopalians and Lutherans: sacrifies made in honor of the dead
• Druids: fire festival
• Unites States: superheroes and princesses trick or treat
• Jet Set Zero Thailand: All bets off.

Nonetheless, Tokyo continues to offer its unique brand of the quirky and random, and I thought we’d share some of the wisdom this city so far has given us.  Most of this wisdom has come in the form of signs and advertisements, giving us guidance, helpful advice, and food for thought. 

This message is clearly intended to preserve the peace and cleanliness of the subways.  No warning that such excessive drunkenness – a spilled beer, a stray shoe, a leg hanging awkwardly over the armrest – is self-destructive and detrimental health.  The briefcase, unceremoniously serving as a pillow, also suggests that the passed-out gentleman went straight from work to the bars.  Clearly, he should have thought of the other passengers, especially the poor man turned away in empathetic shame, and gone straight home to drink himself into oblivion.  Usually we say “When in Rome…” but I think in this case we should exercise a little more judgment before obeying the subway sign…

This one is more or less agreeable – who shouldn’t…do! more safety…?!?  The message sounds great – perhaps a candidate motto for 2009 for some people – but what on earth does it mean?  And what kind of safety should we do?  The young smiling girl certainly doesn’t offer any clues, nor does the disorienting corridor of insistent messages.  Are those lockers?  It’s quite mysterious, but we think this is a message we should all heed…

And finally, one of my personal favorites, overlooking a main strip in Shibuya, an imposing reminder to us all…

Once again, this is a message we can all get on board with.  But why is there a massive picture of a gorgeous woman?  She doesn’t quite seem sad or stern, and at first, we’re not really sure what she has to do with stopping STD’s.  Also, there’s no direct mention of a *method* for stopping STD’s – birth control, condoms, abstinence, regular testing?  Then, at the bottom, we find the sponsoring company, Soft On Demand.  As it turns out, it’s a pornography company, and you can scan the QR code on the bottom left to visit their website and order yourself some DVD’s.  Absolutely brilliant – once I pieced the implied message together, I found myself astounded that I haven’t seen this argument before.  So you rambunctious young adults, next time you feel like putting public health at risk by giving into your sexual urges, do the right thing – order pornography.  You and your partner, should s/he actually exist, will benefit from reduced exposure to dangerous STD’s.  [Soft On Demand is a staunch supporter of safe, do-it-yourself methods of dealing with your desires.  Note: clearly, no STD’s were possibly transmitted in the production of these films.] 

Well Tokyo, thanks for these helpful pieces of advice.  We’ll be sure to share some more precious wisdom from the strange signs all around Tokyo.

We can’t deny it – we miss our families terribly. I miss the rich smells of Thanksgiving cooking, the silky drowsiness of wine and turkey, the bite of cold on a post-dinner walk. One consequence of our travels is that we experience these moments in abstentia.

I’d like to dedicate this post to the family that I’m missing.

My Mom and my “little brother” James, relaxing in Tahoe during my last days in California.

In order from left to right: my handsome “little brother” James, my energetic step-brother Jonathan, some stray moron, my witty step-mother Carrie, and my space-cadet Dad.

Here’s some Thanksgiving wishes, from Vietnam…

-Matt

A drive through the New Mexico desert.

This year, of all years, I’ll be going home for Christmas. Despite the circumstances that draw me home, I count myself immensely lucky to have this privilege. Lucky to have such a warm and inviting home and family waiting for me at the end of this. Lucky to be able to see good friends.

Most of all though– and I try to talk about this as little as possible around the guys– I’m lucky that in a week, I’ll be eating a double quarter-pounder with cheese in my perfectly air conditioned car, and obeying traffic laws for the first time in months. I’ve never looked forward to driving through Nebraska so much.

-Rob