So todayโs a holiday called โSetsubunโ and itโs one of my favorite Japanese holidays. It celebrates the coming of spring and itโs mostly about bringing in fortune into the house and driving bad spirits out.
But what I like about it is the traditional food during this day. Itโs called, โEhou-makiโ and itโs this gigantic foot-long wrist-thick sushi roll that you have to eat continuously in silence. You have to face the lucky direction of the year (which is south south-east in 2021) and eat the sushi roll while thinking of your wish.
I find it funny how you must not slice the sushi roll and eat it in one sitting, no talking, most of the times just facing the wall, and concentrating on your wish while you avoid choking.
My wife and I usually end up laughing midway. But I love the flavors they sell at the supermarkets. I would usually get a crisp pork cutlet sushi roll, while she would get an avocado salmon omelette sushi roll. Itโs like a Japanese burrito made of rice and nori seaweed.
And the best part? Those sushi rolls sold at the supermarket go on 50% off sale by night. I think weโd be having sushi rolls for dinner every day this week!
This happened before COVID. I worked downtown in my city and it's a pretty big tourist area with some really high end retails and restaurants. I worked luxury optical retail so I'm dressed in a black top and black skirt with dark pantyhose. I could definitely be mistaken for a hostess or a waiter, so you can guess where this is headed.
I went to get sushi from a Japanese restaurant near work (I go there all the time) and I was waiting for my order near the front till which is right by the entrance. I'm not standing behind the till or in front of the computer (you know how restaurants have a touch screen computer to enter orders and it faces outwards) so I don't think I looked like I was working there. I'm on my phone while waiting. Two white women walk in. They're probably around my age (around late 20s to early 30s). I glance up, see them, then look back at my phone. I mind my own business.
One of them walks up to me a bit and waves in my face (edit: in front of my head, not in between my face and my phone). "Hellooooo?" she says. I look at her. She gives me this angry look and gestures to her and her friend. "Hello can we please get some help or what?" she says. I look at her again and say, "Uh, try asking one of the waiters" (two waitresses on shift, one was serving a table and the other went to the kitchen) but I was cut off before I could even finish. She huffs and says, "Okay you continue being useless." She then walks past me and at this point the waitress comes out of the kitchen with my order. She smiles and greets the women and says "just a moment" and gives me my food.
The two women looked so angry. I don't even know why. The one who spoke to me said loudly, "Well if you weren't a waitress you should have said something" but I did kind of try to tell her to get another waiter before she cut me off. It's not my problem that you decided to assume I'm a waitress.
I'd like to believe that this wasn't a racial thing but... At a sushi place, with me being Asian... it probably was... ๐
At least the food was good and I had a good laugh when I got back to work and told my coworkers lol
