Bus Drivers are Nice

Saturday I had to take the bus to a friends. I got on the wrong bus and ended up at the square at the end of the line. I asked the bus driver if she knew of any other CVS stores on the way since I knew that is where I was supposed to get off. She pointed to one in the square and said this is the only one. I described the store I was looking for and she asked me if I knew the street. Of course I didn't know the street as I do everything by instinct. I am like a finely tuned instrument that can intuit it's way threw the most treacherous of mazes. "Ummm ..." she said, "do you know the street." On the way back she drove slow and looked at all of the street signs I think she hoped that I would recognize the one I was looking for. Finally she said there was a CVS on the other line and she dropped me off. The next day I was waiting for the same bus and she came by driving another line. She stopped and stuck her head out the window and said, "On Sunday the 73 picks up upstairs". I said "Thanks, your the same one who helped me yesterday." Then she said, "Really? I'm usually not that nice."

Peace

The other day someone mentioned to me that Japanese people in Florida are always flashing peace signs when ever their photo is taken. I was at work and I was asking people why this is the case and before I could even get the question out one of my American Chinese co-workers said and I paraphrase "You mean the ubiquitous Asian peace sign. We all do it." My Indian co-worker then said ... hey wait Indians are Asian too and we don't do it. Which was funny since she is always feigning offense when we forget that India is part of Asia. Any way I decided to do a little research and here is what I found.

The V sign might have arisen from inspirational and unflappable ice skater who performed in the 1972 Olympics at Sapporo. It indeed is not just Japanese (Asian peace sign Flickr set). I guess there is also the side ways gangster peace sign. Nuff said.

Japanese Fairy Tales By Lafcadio Hearn, Grace James, Basil Hall Chamberlain

Japanese Fairy Tales By Lafcadio Hearn, Grace James, Basil Hall Chamberlain: "CHIN CHIN KOBAKAMA THE floor of a Japanese room is covered with beautiful thick soft mats of woven reeds They fit very closely together so that you can just slip a knife blade between them They are changed once every year and are kept very clean The Japanese never wear shoes in the house and do not use chairs or furniture such as English people use They sit sleep eat and sometimes even write upon the floor So the mats must be kept very clean indeed and Japanese children are taught just as soon as they can speak never to spoil or dirty the mats"