Here we have another terribly done person shot. I always feel so uncomfortable taking pictures of people. So I just try to very sneakily take a picture which just makes it even the creepier. Although I'm happy to hear that a friend of mine who is a photographer, also is uncomfortable taking pictures of people. I figured that if you use a real camera like him than it's fine cause people will feel it's artistic, while if you use your phone like I do, people will just think i'm a pervert. Although I do seem to only take pictures of old men, because they are the only ones who actually dress uniquely in Taiwan. They can range from traditional 16th century chinese attire, to Harley Davidson biker gang look. I can't wait until I'm old enough and can rock my birthday suit style.
Anyway the picture above is of something that shows that some traditions in Taiwan are dying off. I often criticize Taiwan for holding on to traditions which do nothing buy harm many of it's people, so this it's glad to see that one tradition is going away, despite it not being one of the big important ones.
If you can't tell from the picture (and you probably can't because I was so ashamed while trying my best to take it unseen) the tradition I'm talking about is moles. Chinese culture has a longstanding tradition of making things that are bad luck, be perceived as good luck. For example if a bird poops on you, it's not a horrible thing that has ruined your suit, it's actually good luck. So in Chinese culture a mole on your face is good luck. A mole that sticks out of your face is great luck. A mole that has several hairs growing out of it is fantastic luck! You better not play the lottery because you will win every time! Let the rest of us have a chance!
Because of this you will often see older people who have a mole on their face with hairs coming out of it. And as ashamed as I am to admit it, it was unsettling at first. But I will chalk that up to my american upbringing conditioning me about what "is and isn't" attractive, rather than me just being an ass. Now a days though, i just find it utterly fascinating. Because of my cultural bias it is hard to imagine it as a good thing or a lucky thing, so i will often try to ponder what this person's life must have been life having the mole.
As alluded to, this tradition is not being continued. Young people are getting their moles removed. I have never met somebody under 40 who still has one, but I know a few who said they used to have one but had it removed. I do know one person who was in her 30s and had one and swore that she would keep it as a way to keep that part of Chinese culture going, but she ended up getting it removed last year. Sigh these kids today, caring more about vanity than old traditions. Oh wait, I forgot that I'm all for breaking old traditions. So...yay for vanity!? ugh.
