>>> Item number 16745 from WRITERS LOG9309B --- (94 records) ----- <<< Date: Thu, 9 Sep 1993 18:00:04 JST Reply-To: WRITERS Sender: WRITERS From: Mike Barker Subject: BACKGROUND: A Japanese Workman At lunch, walking along the road, and many other places, you'll see a different outfit if you watch. This is the daikusan (pronounced dike san) - carpenter. (Note: while some of the people wearing this outfit seem to do different things, such as painting, handyman, etc., my wife insists that this is a daikusan's outfit, worn by a daikusan, and that is a carpenter! Being intelligent, I do not question the slight drift between linguistic fashion ideals and the real world...) The essential outfit usually has a long-sleeved t-shirt or long-sleeved open-neck shirt. In cooler weather (sometimes even now), a loose vest is worn over the shirt; sleeveless, normally open in front, and fairly long (tips at mid-thigh, roughly). But the daikusan pants are the specialty to watch for. Imagine a hip-hugging fit, with legs that bell outward to form a large puff at the knee, with extra fabric falling down over the skintight leggings. Somewhat like old-fashioned riding pants, if the bottom wide part extended down past the tight leg section instead of smoothly tapering into it. At least sometimes the hip-hugging fit comes from a panel like old naval pants, an underpanel fastened with hooks and eyes along one side, covered by a matching panel with hook and eye fastenings on the other side. Almost a built-in belly support. The tight leggings on the shin and calf normally are hidden by high-top black moccasin-like footwear. Soft, flexible tops with hook and eye fastenings hidden under one side run from just under the knee down to a slightly stiffer sole, with a split between the big toe and other toes. These look very comfortable. Oh, I've skipped a part. Wrapped around his neck and tucked into his shirt collar, sometimes tied in a loose overhand knot at his neck, or sometimes tied around a sweating forehead, the daikusan is likely to have a fuzzy small towel. I think the fashion statement of these is less important than the ability to mop up sweat. During sunny days, the daikusan may also have a straw hat, or maybe a baseball cap. Older members often have a military style buzzcut, although younger members seem to be more likely to have longer hair (similar to the rest of the population, although the military buzzes are getting rarer). So, picture this t-shirt, vest, puffy pants, and boots. Now, to get it right, imagine .. oh, say a canary yellow t-shirt, with soft purple vest and pants. Or maybe a crimson red t-shirt, with vibrant green vest and pants. The vests and pants tend to blues, purples, greens, in bright tones, while the shirts are the lighter yellows and reds. Some younger daikusan seem to prefer brilliant tie-dye t-shirts. Frankly, I like the colors and combinations they wear quite a bit more than I like the drab salaryman outfits - winter grey suit, summer blue suit, blah! Of course, as a professional, there is no possibility for me to wear daikusan clothes. My wife jokes with me occasionally about letting me buy one set to wear in America, but I'm not sure whether she will ever actually let me or not. Incidentally, until you've seen these bright colored workers scrambling up a bamboo framework or strolling at ease on a single bamboo pole several floors up, the soft boots may seem poor footwear. But when he climbs that pole, that split beside his big toe gives him a sure footed grip that makes it look easy. By the way, these are the independent daikusan I'm describing. The company workers normally have a uniform, fairly simple shirt and ordinary trousers. I'm not sure how big a percentage of the population fits into this, but ordinarily simply walking to work or at lunch, I'll see several people in this distinctive outfit. It may upset some people, but I often say hello or talk to them, and they are usually friendly, seemingly happy, although a bit surprised to have a foreigner talking to them (I've never seen a Japanese salaryman "break ranks" enough to do this, so I'm not sure how much of the surprise is due to my being foreign and how much due to my being a salaryman). I wonder how upset my co-workers would be to find out that I can do carpentry, and might even enjoy learning the trade here? Ah, well, I don't think I shall upset my wife and friends that much this year... Colorful craftsmen, still working in time-honored ways, throughout Japan. If you visit, watch for them. I even take pictures of them - they are certainly more visually interesting than the scurrying salarymen. tink