I wrote a whole long interesting post. It was eaten by something. I am mad.

I shall summarize.

- When I was at the sauna in Korea, the middle aged nude men would never ask me where I was from in Korean, but merely shouted country names at me.

-All of these countries were South Asian or South East Asian, and they would continue to do so until I finally corrected them, in Korean, and told them I was from New York, and taught at the nearby high school.

-I understand that many of the migrant workers were from the countries they were guessing.

-I was struck by the fact that, in South Korea, I was sort of a double-other. Other by not being Korean, and doubly so by not being the kind of person they expected to be traveling and teaching.

-This was not my first time being double-othered, and it won't be the last.

-A few times in my two years in Korea I wondered how different the plot of "Lost In Translation" would be if the protagonists were people of color.

-But anyway, I was reminded, each of these times in the sauna, that I was an ambassador for a. the groups to which I feel I belong and b. the groups into which I was being placed.

-This can happen in foreign countries, of course, but also any time we enter a different environment where the people and customs are less than familiar to us. Even in multicultural Brooklyn, a place like Brighton Beach is such a strikingly Russian enclave that producers are trying to make a Russian-American "Jersey Shore" there. I don't feel uncomfortable there, but I'm certainly somewhat other.

-I've wondered how much I force myself to behave differently when placed in the ambassador role. I'm more polite and probably somewhat quieter, but not all that different, at least in my conscious behavior. But I also wonder if, by being double-other in some cases, I do have to think about these things more often than I would if I resembled a more typical western traveler. Well, no, I don't really wonder that: I'm pretty well convinced it's true.

-So, I leave the floor to you. How much do you feel you consciously alter your behavior when you are an ambassador? What do you bother to change and what do you leave alone?

-Is it just me, or is "Jersey Shore" only able to exist because the participants are considered quasi-other? White but semi-ethnic. Clearly it would be offensive if they tried to pull off "Harlem" with black people, but for some reason this is considered cool. Hmm...

-And, for those of you who have personally (I said, personally... like, you yourself... don't speculate here) experienced it (and seen the movie, I guess), how do you feel "Lost In Translation" would be different were the main characters people of color?

Have a grand weekend, folks. I know I plan to.

Peace and love,
Justin PBG