Smile, for the camera.

Now it all makes sense.

When I was in Japan, I was so excited. I was excited to see new places, meet new people, try new food. My excitement was difficult to contain. I found myself in restaurants limited to native Japanese patrons with no written or spoken English in sight. I was often snubbed by Japanese on the streets who are no used to, or simply don't care for, having foreigners randomly saying "Konichiwaaaaa" on the streets, but hey, that's me, and that's how I roll. But was it really me? Did they hate me? Was I too much? Psshh, no, it couldn't be the last one.

Then I saw this Associated Press clip: Japanese are paid to smile. So wait, that man who gave me crazy eyes when I said 'Konichiwa', that wasn't because he was miserable or thought I was evil, it was because he WASN'T clocked in. Geesh, thank goodness!

According to AP, one subway company monitors the smiles of their workers. At a given station there are about 100 employees, and their smiles are measured and analyzed. It's not a routine process, but they noticed that smiling station agents provide an easier riding experience for the patrons.


And now, for our feature presentation: