lil fatty.

before I graduated from GSU, I was beginning to get back into my routine at the university's gym. I was getting back into shape after my stress lull leading up to competition. Once I graduated, it was no more free gym. I wasn't too stressed about it. I considered myself a pretty healthy eater for a vegeterian, and three months (including Japan time) away from the gym shouldn't be a problem. But there was something in this seemingly balanced equation that I forgot to account for.

Japanese sweets. Everyday. And I can't say no.

It's something different every day. Usually omiyage from a customer or close friend of the shop's, or something Yuko saw at the bakery on her way to the shop.. it's all delicious, and they're all full of sugar.

FUTORU is the word for "fat."　It comes up in conversation often as we all comment on our own (over)eating habits. Maybe it's the good cooking, or we could just feel over stuffed considering none of us are active during the day because we work for 9 or 10 hours, and then eat a large meal very late in the evening.

So it was strange, yet seemingly in context, for my host family to hear me refer to my boyfriend as "Dave" for the first time tonight (instead of "David"). If "Dave" is pronounced w/ a Japanese accent, it sounds like "DEBU" which means "fatty" in Japanese. Not fatty like "This steak is fatty," but more like "You're turning into a little fatty."

Mistranslation also occured when a young Japanese man walked into the shop tonight asking me if I knew a "Ben" from LaGrange, GA. OK, thats weird in itself. Yes, I know this Ben. Motorcycle kid that loves an Octane cappuccino. Awesome. The world is small yet again. What Izaki had problems with was explaining to his wife who Ben was. In Japanese, "BEN" is something like "pooping."

Both translations are quite unfortunate considering their regularity in American culture. Something I found quite interesting though was the brand name "Little Debby." Notorious for their fattening little cake snacks, the brand's name itself can easily warn you of your life ahead if you indulge too much. Perhaps I will remember Little Fatty next time I pass the bakery window. Just because you are far away from America does not mean youre immune to its faults. Damn.