Short and Pithy Cultural Observations, textually

Been back in Japan for just over a week, after a month at home chillin' with the fam.  Very little culture shock this time, and not even too much issue with jet lag.  But there are perhaps a handle of strange Japan'isms that stand out a little more in my state of not-really-culture-shock-but-still-a-little-new-after-being-away.  They are as follows:

~I had to get ID photos for part of my work visa application.  I went to a photo store and asked for the photo, and the nice clerk lady told me where to go to get that done for half as cheap as the service her store offered.  Thank you nice clerk lady.

~She directed me to a photo booths that specialize in just this kind of ID photo.  It has many features, including a "beautiful skin touch-up" (美肌コンシーラ）and will automatically detect the edges of your face to frame it properly.  The machine did not understand my beard, so it marked the bottom of my chin as above my mustache.  I can only assume this is because there are no beards in Japan.

~To the extent that I've watched Olympic coverage in Japan, the news networks unabashedly cover their own athletes more than anyone else.  This is true anywhere, I'm sure, but I feel like the NBC coverage in the US at least makes a pretense about being interested in other countries' athletes.  Japan only does this for Usain Bolt.  To that end...

~Not everything is about Michael Phelps!  Hooray!  I know he's a big deal and all, but I got kinda annoyed how everything on TV was swooning over one competitor.

~The other thing about Olympic coverage in Japan is how much coverage they give to their own TV personalities covering the events.  They do so in a way that's more obnoxious to me than anything about Ryan Seacrest or Katie Couric that Americans have been complaining about.  For example, they have long clips of some famous newscaster or TV personality in the stands watching.  As in, the cameraman sitting next to him at the event films him as he watches the event.  And they show all of his reactions.  And later one of the variety shows strings together all the moments of official event footage where you can see him in the crowd.  I'm sure a PhD could have a field day writing a thesis about the voyeurism inherent to turning the audience's gaze onto the gazer... but I just think its annoying.