Last Sunday I was reminded of a universe of Japanese gestures that I'd forgotten to put into my last post. Got all wrapped up in unsconscious bows and squatting postures. In anycase, spent last Sunday at a country barbecue. Picked up by a friend of mine, this country boy with a scruffly face whose main past times are fishing and making techo-pop on his laptop. Spent the afternoon pulling cold beers out of the river and grilling salmon steaks and mushrooms in tin foil wraps over the grill. Mostly new to me, country boys and girls. In anycase, they reminded me of a lot of the hand motions I'd forgotten about.
Extended arm, index finger hooking as if pulling a trigger: Purloining, pinching, nicking, pilfering. (Cued by Tori trying to make off with one of the expensive beers Kaneko had brought.)
Index and thumb curled in an upside-down "OK" sign: Cash, bread, wampum, yen.
Raised eyebrows plus an extended pinky: "Single?"
Thumb tucked between your index and middle finger: Getting it on.
Tapping your left shoulder with your right hand then your right with your left: Swings both ways, bi.
Extended middle finger: Absolutely nothing. Friends will scratch their nose with it while they talk to you, old men point the way to the nearest train station with it, and motorists will use it to wave you into a lane.
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