12:41pm

Updates from last night:
Rainy day, along with an unusual cold front. My super-ghetto folding umbrella finally broke on the way to class. Luckily, my friend Erika gave me her umbrella to keep, which it turns out, was given to her for free from a random guy. The umbrella, a full-length kind, had a heavy bottom grip, but the balance wasn't too bad. It's not too top heavy, where the umbrella threatens to lean forward, and its not too bottom heavy, where the umbrella threatens to tip backwards. Just right. Anyways, I digress. It also snowed in the evening. Slushy clumped snowflakes hung onto my jacket and left huge droplets on my newly procured umbrella. For some reason, I actually preferred last night's snowfall as opposed to normal rain. Snow is much more peaceful - a quieter force of nature. Thankfully, the clumps of snow fell harmlessly to the ground, only to melt instantly and create a reflective medium for the storefront lights lining the streets. A mix of blue, white, and orange reflections with the occasional shadow of umbrellas led the way home.
[Today]

Before I took a nap in the library today, I asked myself this question: do most people here in Tokyo dress well because they want to stand out and look fashionable, OR do people dress well because they don't want to stand out? I can recall a certain Japanese idiom that says, "the nail that sticks out always gets hammered down." It seems that every woman here has a standard set of shiny black high heels, pencil skirts, and a designer bag. Louis Vuitton's presence here cannot be underestimated. There's a reason why the Louis Vuitton flagship store here in Tokyo is the larger than the one in Paris...Even the fringe edges of fashion, Tokyo's "Harajuku Girls," Cos players, and the "Lolitas" all place an exquisite amount of detail into whatever they wear. Considering the strong mentailty of maintaining harmony within a group and society as a whole, does dressing well equate with the fear of public criticism and the stigma of being different? Does "fashion" in Tokyo take on a different subconscious meaning? These are questions I don't have answers to.

I can attempt to offer one explanation for everyone's impeccable dresscode here. The notion of waga and mama, which literally translate as the untrained self/selfishness, is frowned upon in Japanese culture. Individualism is not a concept that is highly regarded in Japan. Rather, a larger emphasis is placed on maintaining group harmony. Deviation from one's social groups leads to scorn and being labeled as "different" - not something one takes pride in. Back at UIC, I had a long conversation with a Japanese foreign exchange student. He offered a metaphor to explain this Japanese mentality. He said to imagine everyone facing north, but you were the only one facing south. The pressure to face north, like everyone else, can be overbearing and extremely uncomfortable. So, place yourself into a Japanese girl's shoes. If your friends encourage you to get a new purse or a new pair of shoes that they really like, what would you, as a Japanese girl, do? The temptation to conform is stronger than what you would expect...

Or maybe, people just like to look good. I dunno.