locker room

after going swimming tonight, i was brought back to a very strange place in my head--the chinese locker room. i don't think i will go into details, but it is the complete opposite of an american locker room. i always felt like i was at a spa** when i was in the chinese locker room because you can bring and do whatever you want in there. while people would often annoy the crap out of me in the pool trying to chat or get free swimming lessons, everyone pretty much ignored me in the locker room, like i was a chinese person. it is one of my happy places.

**disclaimer, i have never been to a spa before, and my idea of what one is is probably strange and not very accurate. :)

tonight, while a line of sixteen year old girls waited to use the public showers, a small (presumably) chinese woman came in with her toothbrush and spent like 10 minutes brushing her teeth in the shower. i was about to die. imagine all the positions you could put yourself and your toothbrush in while showering and this is what she was doing. at one point she completely outstretched her arm so she could hold her toothbrush very close to the shower head and rinsed it off for probably over a minute, did something else, and then did it again. i also looked over one time and she was facing the shower, gritting her teeth, and the letting the water pour all over her face.  she was trying to rinse the toothpaste off her teeth and clean her mouth, but i think the water was too hot and she had a maniacal look on her face.

i would have thought nothing of this in china, but seeing that in america is hilarious. if i had been one of those 16 year old girls i probably would have been dying of laughter. get your clean on chinese shower lady!