Lean In, Licca-chan

I spend my fair share of time in Babies/Toys R' Us these days.  It was there that I ran across Licca-chan, aka Japanese Barbie. (Because of the way "L" is pronounced here her name can sometimes sound like "Rika".  I tell you this only because it can cause confusion---it did for me.)  Actual American Barbie is available here too, although I don't think she is as popular as Licca-chan.

Licca-chan was introduced in 1967 and at first glance she's a lot like Barbie.  She has a back story, family, a personality, careers etc.  One thing I thought was funny is that Licca-chan is described as a "fan" of the Anne of Green Gables books.  I read those books for the first time just before we moved here---imagine my surprise when I learned that they are super popular in Japan.  Japanese kids read them in school.  You can visit Green Gables Farm on Prince Edward Island (the Canadian setting for the novels) and I gather that it's a popular tourist destination for Japanese people and some even get married there.  Go figure.

Anyway, so now on to my personal experience with Licca-chan. After I decided to do a blog about her I went and really examined the merchandise available and took photos.  I was a little appalled by what I found.  The only career options available to Licca-chan in my local toy store are food service, pet shop employee, childcare and beautician.  And one lone nurse Licca-chan stuck in a corner.  Don't get me wrong (or flame me), these are all very noble and important professions.  But come on....

nurse and pet shop

Pizza-La employee and cafe worker.  or parent with two suspiciously
red-haired children straight out of The Shining

beautician Licca

donut store employee is surprisingly popular?

Japanese restaurant worker (lots of tiny sushi)

teenage babysitter, judging by the looks of her

and to top it off, she apparently has a French boyfriend
(on second glance, he is labeled "papa" and the doll next to him is "mama"
--I think they are Licca-chan's very young parents?)

I wanted to get a Licca-chan for Cora, in the spirit of having some neat souvenirs of her early childhood in Japan.  But now I'm not so sure.  I did some additional research on Licca-chan, just to make sure that it wasn't a case of the store only carrying certain models.  As far as I can tell this is the height of Licca-chan's career aspirations.

I also did some research on what Barbie is up to these days, just to make sure that this wasn't an overall doll trend.  I am pleased to report that I was easily able to locate astronaut Barbie on the American Toys R' Us website as well as some other choices that were at least more interesting like singer/songwriter and ice skater.  The full list of Barbie's careers astonished even me.  Computer Engineer Barbie is pretty awesome.

Some of you may be thinking well, duh....feminism isn't as prevalent in Japan so why is this surprising?  I suppose I was just taken aback to see it displayed so blatantly in the doll section of the toy store.  But it is what it is, right?  I guess I'll just let Cora pick what Licca-chan she wants and then get her a US President Barbie when we get home.  Maybe Barbie will be a good influence on Licca-chan.  ;D

So Ugly It's...Cute?

Many months ago I was walking through the kiddie arcade at the mall and happened to glance over at a small toy dispenser.  I did a double take at what was inside.  It was this guy:

yikes

Now, honestly, what does that look like to you?  Am I the only one who thinks it looks obscene?  I took some pictures, mostly just to prove to myself later that I hadn't imagined it.

A few weeks later I ran across an article that explained who and what this.....thing.....is.  I am relieved to inform you that he is a mushroom and his name is Nameko.  He's part of the Japanese trend of popular characters who are supposed to be gross....but in a cute way.  The trend is called "kimo-kawaii" which translates to "gross-cute".  No, I'm not kidding.  You probably already know that anything cutesy is prized in Japan....think Hello Kitty.  I guess they got tired of actual cute things and had to branch out.

Nameko is just the tip of the iceberg, there are tons of these characters (go read the linked article for a comprehensive list) but he is the one I see most often.  I did lose my original pictures and had to go all over the place hunting this weird thing so I could take some new ones and share him with you all.  Because without pictures would you have really believed me? And I don't like to think of how I would've tried to describe him.

lewd fungus arcade game prizes

lewd fungus cell phone charms

I will say that I think America totally has its own version of this stuff, mostly the cartoons you find on Nickelodeon and the Cartoon Network (think Spongebob) so it's really not that particular to Japan.  Nor is the concept of "so ugly it's cute" although I think Americans usually stick to dogs and babies.  I have a feeling if Nameko made it to the States he would get a completely different reaction. :D

Life-Altering

I recently found myself in need of having some clothing alterations done.  Namely, I needed a bunch of jeans and pants hemmed.  This might not sound like a big deal to you, but when you're as short as I am it's extremely important to have a good tailor on deck.

I determined that I had three choices: 1) ship my pants back to the US to be altered 2) get a Japanese friend to locate and accompany me to a local tailor or 3) go alone to the cubbyhole in the mall with a sewing machine on the sign and see what happened.

You're probably thinking "She was going to ship her jeans halfway around the world to be hemmed?!?  That's nuts."  So I should note that two pairs of these jeans had cost me a pretty penny.  That's a long story about growing older and not being able to wear the cute, cheap jeans in the teenager stores yet refusing to wear mom jeans.  We'll skip it, it's depressing.   I'm also particular about having jeans hemmed in that I want them to look like they still have the original hem and have never been touched.

Anyway, I decided to throw caution to the wind and take my fancy jeans to the sewing machine-sign place in the mall.  Lo and behold, it was a place to have clothes altered and they would take anything (I had been concerned that you might have to have a receipt to prove it had been purchased in the department store to which it was adjacent).

I took my pants with pins in them and basically used gestures because I have no idea how to say "hem" or "alter" in Japanese.  I could look it up but I would get 50 results with only one being the actual, common, everyday usage version and no way to know which one it was.  And I could ask someone, but I'm lazy.  That's the way that goes.

But in a miraculous turn of events, the nice lady at the alterations counter totally just understood that a pair of jeans with pins at the bottom need to be hemmed.  It was like it happened to her every day. ;)  She measured the inseam (in centimeters) and gave me my pins back.  I had to fill out my name, phone number and go ahead and pay.  I got a receipt and was informed that they could be done in two hours!  Two hours! And it only cost about $7! At this point I was ecstatic.  And two hours later when I received a beautifully hemmed pair of jeans I was even more ecstatic!

my beloved cubbyhole, the sign actually has a
sewing machine and a.....squirrel.  don't ask me.

 If there's anyone out there in Japan trying to find an alterations place and wondering where this is, it's in an Aeon.  I think the alterations place itself is called "Fashion Reform".  I'm assuming they are always located with Aeon but I'm not sure.  I took a picture of their services sign but I can't help ya out on reading it.  Except that the first two items listed are "jeans" and hemming, based on the prices.  I really want to know what $84 will get me at the bottom right.  A custom suit?

And I have since taken about 7 more pairs of pants to this place and have had lovely results and service every time.  Classic Japanese service.  Here's wishing you all good service, well-hemmed pants and a happy spring!