Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Shocking!
Brooke just about had a heart attack when I told her I was listening to Pink Floyd. Apparently, this is amazing. Does this surprise you? What other things about me surprise you? I'm intrigued by this, because I don't really find myself all that fascinating. (Okay, fine, I do find myself fascinating, but I don't see how I am all that fascinating to others.)
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5 comments:
Sometimes I read things on your blog that shock me in a general sense (i.e. group bathing). I usually don't have the guts to prod though (is it a Japanese thing, a sex thing). Then I think, it's Heather. Not so shocking after all. ;D
Then I wonder, she has like, every episode of friends, hasn't she heard Chandler's take on bathing? How can she even get past single bathing after that?
Well, don't be afraid to ask me anything. I'm honest to a fault, and I love talking about myself. No worries there whatsoever.
It's not a sexual thing, the group bathing. The first time I did it was in Tokyo, at the youth hostel in Iidabashi. My co-bathers were an elderly woman from Virginia or someplace, and a 20-something British girl. (I have not, to this day, participated in a co-ed public bath. I'm not really interested in that.) I started off in the bath alone, but the elderly woman came in just as I finished my shower.
"What do we do?" she asked (or something to that extent). She was completely naked, and completely comfortable. I thought this was the epitome of coolness, and strove to emulate her.
I explained that soap and shampoo were available at the showers, and that she was to wash off before getting into the bath. She did so, and soon joined me in the hot water.
Japanese baths are the epitome of luxury. I absolutely love them. They are so soothing. After awhile you can get dizzy, and there is even a danger of passing out--it's that hot. But when you get out, your skin tingles, and you feel supremely relaxed. Relaxed, and refreshed, like you could take on the world, but really all you want is to sip a nice beer (I don't drink, so for me it'd be a soda or a cold can of milk tea) and hunker down in the futon to sleep.
The communal bathing is like how I imagine a nudist colony. You're just there, and you just do your thing. It's normal. For me, it's extremely liberating. For the Japanese, I'm sure it's not particularly amazing (though we are agreed that it is very, very nice).
I think my favorite group bathing experience was at an onsen in Kumamoto prefecture. The bath was huge, like a swimming pool. It was U-shaped with one leg inside and one leg outside, and the wall was mainly windows. There was a great view of the countryside. It was thrilling at the same time as it was relaxing, because the road was just a little ways down the hill, so someone might see you through the brush!
So that's the group bathing thing. I'm not sure what to make of "Then I think, it's Heather. Not so shocking after all. ;D". I mean, that kind of inexplicable comment is why I made this post in the first place!
As far as Chandler's take on bathing...I actually don't remember that. I have seen every episode of Friends (I think), but I only actually own seasons 1 through 5. I've seen the first three seasons repeatedly in syndication and on my DVDs, but the later seasons I may have only seen one time. Care to refresh my memory?
Sounds fun. I've heard of Turkish baths before. It sounds similar except I think you might get extreme exfoliation and massage done to you.
Monica couldn't figure out why Chandler wasn't into baths. Then he said something to the effect, "you are sitting in your own dirty water." To which Monica flinched and one could tell she would never bathe again, being who she was.
I don't get your comment about not getting mine. I, anonymous, just meant that you're pretty open to things like that. Which is obvious from your blog. I was attempting to good naturedly tease you. Of course, I was assuming the group bath thing was sexual. Given the fact that I have indeed been exposed as unsophisticated, I will remain,
anonymous truly.
Oh, I remember that episode now! The look on Monica's face was priceless :D
But yes...this is yet another reason why Japanese baths are superior ;D You shower off all the grime first!
As far as the teasing, oh, okay. I'm good at doling out teasing, but I'm still learning how to take it. I seem to take it really seriously, and think hard about what it means about my personality. So even offhanded comments like "it's Heather" make me wonder "why would someone say that? What is it about me that brings forth such a comment?" It's not that I think whatever is said is automatically bad. It's more that I want to know the reasoning behind it. I'm intrigued by how I'm perceived by other people.
As far as the assumption of sexuality, well, I am a pretty sexual person, so that assumption is understandable. And I think taking a Japanese-style bath with Sean would be very nice :)
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