LOL Am I that superficial.... orz
But just like Keroro Gunso I can not resist the thrown down banana peel!
I will attempt to keep this under 2% geek content. Ok so you can read all sorts of stories about how the maneki neko, or "Beckoning Cat" came about. This one is so basic it has the most credibility in my book. Ymmv.
First off, in the west, someone will call you over to them by placing thier hand out, palm up, and curling the fingers up "come over here".
To call someone over in Japan, one extends the hand, palm down, and 'pats', bending the hand at the wrist "come over here". Much like a cat does.
In Old Japan there was a traveling official (or prince or whoever of some importance) who stopped along the road, and it began to rain. There was a cat at the side of the road who beckoned the person over, and when they approached, lightning stuck the place they had been standing.
So the maneki neko is calling you over to good luck. With the right arm raised (a new twist) it is beckoning for love, not luck. And the newest cats with both arms raised, is the perfect bet, love and luck. ;3
Merchants will keep maneki neko to beckon customers (left) or money (right).
I totally messed up and don't have the stalks I need to make my kadomatsu ; ;
I hear you about lights and photos and how to get what you actually see 'on paper'. Some pictures I'd taken for my scrog write up I did ps. Oddly that was closer to what I was seeing, but yeah. :/ The whole plant color I'm starting to see in my girls I think, and I'm glad it's not just my imagination. That's one of the things I'm trying to concentrate on learning before I toss too many phsyical changes into the mix.
