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Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Okay, so it's bad enough that I write like a girl. (And so does Betsy.) Now, Korby Parnell reported on a little get-together of some Microsoft bloggers, and in the photograph you can see that I'm doing the "peace" sign, just like young Japanese women do in photographs. Apparently, boys are supposed to strike a superhero pose, but the peace sign is so much more fun.

Published Tuesday, March 07, 2006 7:00 AM by oldnewthing
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Comments

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 10:15 AM by Tim Dawson
I'm glad to see your withered hand has recovered.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 10:15 AM by Aaron Margosis
Uh oh.  I didn't know this was turning into a series.  I'm afraid to ask what's next.
:-)

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 11:14 AM by BTX
is just like you are trying to tell us something...

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 11:43 AM by DanT
This actually came up in my Japanese class at SLA. I was put in my place when I suggested the phenomenon was limited to the Japanese female. Don't worry - Japanese guys to it too.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 1:47 PM by JenK
I agree that Japanese boys do it too. So I guess as long as it's not something mainland Chinese boys do...

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 2:26 PM by Jeff B
I have a theory. You were so bored from the lackluster food served at the restaurant you were eating, you spent too much time thinking about what pose you would make when someone took the picture. Now, if you were eating at Malkay Satay Hut, you wouldn't have had this problem since you'd be too involved with the food...

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 2:49 PM by Trey Van Riper
I suspect, as gaijin, Raymond need not concern himself about the masculinity of his pose overmuch.  I recall some incident where my choice of food apparently got some snickers from some Japanese folks (back when I lived in Japan) since only women ordered that particular food item (whatever it was).  However, as gaijin, nobody really held it against me as anything more than a bit of amusement.

Actually, as gaijin, you can get away with a lot of peculiar behavior in Japan, since by default, you're already too weird for Japan.  I don't think you can easily commit too deep a social faux-pas in Japan, if you're an outlander.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 3:12 PM by Eric Duran
Oh my Gosh... that is SO true... you kinda look like a (Japanese) girl... (not much, just a bit).
That oughta be the most ironic thing one could expect from a experienced, seasoned, hard-core Microsoft engineer. Not that there is something wrong with that (and please, don't get me started with the macho/feminist topic: I'm sure there are very good (female) Microsoft engineers, it's just that the (traditional) stereotype of a hard-core software engineer is, by default, male.
Besides, I alse have ended up looking not very masculine in a bunch of photos (or just plain awful, as I'm everything but fotogenic)  :(

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 4:47 PM by Robert W. Anderson
Nah -- even boys can show the peace sign.

Peace is, and always will be, cool.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 4:52 PM by Matt
I always associate the double-peace-symbol thing with Chun Li from Street Fighter II, ironically.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 10:22 PM by :: Wendy ::
What does a superhero pose look like(Martha Stewart)?  Does the term Hero subsume the term heroine.  Is heroine a drug or a female hero.  Gosh,  I get so confused so easily.  I'd rather just avoid the references to gender... and use concrete examples,  rather than super hero cite a specific one etc.  It makes the point without perpetuating stereotypes that in all likelihood do contain prejudices.

I'll go and put my pink fluffy slippers on now (note I didnt say 'girly' slippers,  I cited a specific).

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Tuesday, March 07, 2006 10:50 PM by Norman Diamond
I've seen peace symbols displayed by men and women in photos in lots of Asian countries.  And by Asian men and women in photos taken outside of Asia too.

Oh no, now it's starting to sound like peace is racist.  I'd better go read a newspaper (today's will probably do) and be reminded that it isn't.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 1:25 AM by Admin
It may stun all of you but I *AM* a Japanese girl (what kind of name do you think Aoki is, anyway?)

And what am I doing? the flat-palmed wave of British royalty. Just goes to show you. That's QUEEN Betsy to you, thanks!

B

PS and if anyone says I look masculine, I will femininely and daintily pop them in the proverbial snoot. Not the actual snoot. It hurts more in the proverbs.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 3:19 AM by abhinaba
Now everyone knows Betsy is the admin on blogs.msdn.com!!!!

# Traditional stereotype of MS developers...

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 6:07 AM by rb
I always thought all developers at Microsoft look like this:
http://blogs.msdn.com/larryosterman/archive/2005/12/08/501613.aspx

*scnr*

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 8:11 AM by Jim Dodd
I think Korby Parnell needs a new camera - or at least a new flash.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 5:52 PM by Aaron Margosis
Now that I think of it, I believe it was Richard Nixon who popularized the double peace sign.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Wednesday, March 08, 2006 8:49 PM by Norman Diamond
Wednesday, March 08, 2006 1:25 AM by admin
> It may stun all of you but I *AM* a Japanese
> girl (what kind of name do you think Aoki
> is, anyway?)

What kind of name is Betsy?  By itself it might be a foreign-sounding nickname, but in combination with the country where your office is located, it tends to look like you have Japanese ancestry but not Japanese citizenship yourself.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Saturday, March 11, 2006 9:30 AM by uniware
Google told me Aoki is 青木 in Chinese. It looks like a name for a male knight in Chinese chivalric fiction novels.

# re: Raymond, you even pose like a girl

Sunday, March 12, 2006 10:54 PM by Norman Diamond
It's a family name.  I don't quite see the connection to knights but families often include both males and females.

Also, although 青木 is two Chinese characters just as Aoki is four Italian characters, the language is Japanese.  If you speak English you'll say "blue tree".  If you speak Italian then you'll say two Italian words instead of "blue tree".  If you speak Chinese then you'll say two Chinese words instead of "blue tree".

# Raymond's excursions into East Asian pop music, episode 2: China Dolls (中國娃娃)

Tuesday, August 22, 2006 10:44 AM by The Old New Thing
A Thai duo that performs in Thai and Chinese.

# StatBot visits The Old New Thing » YuviSense: Kid in Tech

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