I've been meaning to talk about this for a long time and now the timing seems right. For no particular reason.
Pinterest is extremely popular in America. It's got something for everyone. If you find someone online that tickles one of your fancies be it culinary, pop culture, home decor, crafting, etc., you share it on Pinterest and others can ooh and aah over your amazing discovery and incorporate it into their own lives. If you're just a social leech and you don't contribute, hey that's cool too. Just browse through the millions of pinned items and find what you're looking for. Having a bad day? There's a category of humor just bursting with side-splitters. Need a new workout? Everything from cardio to yoga to pilates is at your fingertips. Or what about beauty and personal upkeep?
Here my friends, is the mother load of all things hair, skin, teeth, eye, nail, cellulite and other. And the do it yourself side of personal care is a huge sub-part of this category. I've always been fascinated with home remedies. My mother certainly gave me a few pointers. If you have a head cold, boil some water, drop in some scented oils or nothing at all and lean over the bowl with a towel tented around your head and the bowl. Steam your face until you resemble a prune. Good for a simple steam facial to open your pores.
Of course, that whole "opening your pores" thing is sort of a myth, but hey, I did it. Everyone's family and culture has these odd little tricks and secrets that everyone swears by. It's been that way for centuries! And some tricks are a bit more lethal than others. In Elizabethan England, face powder was laced with lead to give you that glowing pallid pallor. Arsenic was also popular for eye drops!
We've wisened up in recent decades and graduated out of the apothecary's store and moved on. If you're curious, just go to Pinterest and find a "remedy" or "cure" for whatever plagues you. Interestingly enough, particularly in America, beauty isn't so much in the eye of the beholder, but in the produce section of your local supermarket.
All over the world, things like honey, olive oil and tea have been the harbingers of good looks for centuries. But it never ceases to amaze me the foods America turns to for a quick beauty fix. Apple cider vinegar is like a cure all for everything: use it as a rinse for stronger hair, drink it to prevent weight gain and to give you better skin and nails. That's not such a surprise: ACV has been a popular cure all for ages. Eggs are also popular. My mom taught me that egg is good getting rid of zits if you put the beaten white on your face. Egg washes are common on your hair because the protein in the yolk helps strengthen your hair. Again, old hat.
How about chocolate? No, not in your tummy. On your face!
What about oatmeal? With mashed banana and honey? Yum, right? Try it on your face to soften skin and exfoliate! Not so yum.
Here's where it gets weird. I've found people claim you'll get softer skin or stronger, longer hair from applying the following:
Olive oil
Coconut oil
Avocado
Coconut milk
Mustard powder
and Potato juice
I'll admit to having done the mustard powder treatment. I was trying to get my hair to grow faster before I came to Japan. I found this on Pinterest and it actually did help my hair feel stronger and grow a little faster. The whole idea is stimulating the scalp with massage and the chemicals in mustard. You mix egg yolk, water and mustard powder into a paste. You massage that into your roots. It burns a little, but that means it's working. After about 10 or 15 minutes, wash your hair. And you'll smell zesty all day! Just kidding!
So where is all this coming from? Well, last weekend, I went to a consultation with my friend and hair stylist, Izu-san. She noticed my hair is a bit brittle and she told me to start a "treatment." She was nice enough to rub my hair with a nice rosy oil, but I don't really know much about Japanese products to find something that isn't just 70% water.
And so I turned to Pinterest for a thrifty alternative. And the grocery lists that accompanied most of those remedies made me think about America's approach to beauty regimens. I have to find out what Japanese women do at home with what they have on hand because I'm almost positive it's very different from America.
It's a little unnerving, actually. What I love about Japanese markets is the freshness and locality of most of the produce. That also means fruit and veggies are a bit pricey. In America, food is definitely cheaper (except the good sushi! Japanese sushi is never not good no matter if it's a 100 yen plate or a 3,000 yen bento)...so I suppose it's a lot easier to get creative with putting your food on your face instead of in it.
But Japan aside, when I look at women who are rubbing their leftover oatmeal on their faces and would-be guacamole in their hair, I can't help but feel bad about those who don't have that luxury. It's not even a matter of third world countries where starvation is still rampant. If every bottle of "homemade hair formula" went to starving families in Africa, I wonder how long it would be until world hunger was a distant memory? What about the people in the United States? Children go without dinner every day in America. Homeless people flock to understocked soup kitchens for a bowl of soup and a sandwich. What if every "oatmeal banana" face mask was donated instead?
It's all a matter of perspective. And while it's not exactly realistic, this produce donation system, I hope it's enough to make people think of how lucky they are to have this exorbitant excess.
An alternative is thinking about putting that extra money you'd spend buying food you're not even going to eat, but instead donating to a cause. And instead, you might consider skipping the hair mask and try the "shampoo free" routine.
Seriously, there is a system where you shower without putting shampoo or conditioner in your hair. At first, your hair gets greasy and feels god awful. But after a little while, your body adjusts and your hair actually looks and feels really great!
And yes. I speak from experience.
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