A phenomenon that falls under the word "stupidity." The trend.

People are already captivated by celebrities. If those people have something or are doing something, the public feels they must have it and do it too. If the rich are doing it, people will go into debt to do it themselves. If the person living next door has something, I must have it too. To use an old expression, it’s like getting a stomachache from envy when your cousin buys a house [Translator's Note: A variation of a Korean proverb meaning one feels jealous of another's success].

It is a phenomenon we have been conditioned to accept.

My wife says that edible albumin is popular in Korea these days. At one time, noni was the fad, and here in Laos, agarwood sells at high prices. A friend who used to sell agarwood told me, "It's all fake. If you just spin a good yarn, people will buy anything!" My wife tells me that her older sister felt better after taking that agarwood. Why would someone claim an ineffective substance is good for them? My sister-in-law is a woman who is particularly sensitive to trends. Her mindset is that of an average citizen. An averageness that has reached the level of a grandmaster.

Looking at an article in this morning's newspaper, they now say that edible albumin is harmful. I guess its time has passed. The tail end of a trend. I can't help but wonder what the next hit product will be. It will spring from someone's mind... get some airtime on broadcast, and hit the jackpot... Since it's a way to make money, who wouldn't focus on it?

A long time ago—well, maybe the 80s or 90s???—I visited Korea in the winter and was swept away by a black wave. Absolutely everyone was wearing a black winter coat. Coming from LA, which lacks weather like a Korean winter, it was incredibly bizarre to me. Back then, if I walked down the back alleys behind the Plaza Hotel, merchants would greet me with "Irasshaimase" or "Ni hao." It was a time when a foreigner's attire stood out, especially mine.

It is rare to find a people as sensitive to trends as Koreans. They adopt things quickly and discard them even faster. Without any lingering attachment. Their adaptation to the modern era is exceptionally faster than others. Perhaps that is why they developed so rapidly.

On an individual level, there are many exceptional Koreans. In the history of art, there was no one quite as remarkable as Nam June Paik. He is the artist recognized as the father of video art. In those days, he dragged a violin around on a string like a dog—is that an easy thing to do??? In modern times, there is J-Black, who dances with more style and power than Michael Jackson, and Blackpink, who are turning the whole world upside down. They are stars who have become enterprises themselves, following in the footsteps of Psy's fame.

In the trot singing competitions that bring a massive smile to my wife's face, men and women who sing frighteningly well belt out songs with all their might to score a hit against one another.

When punk music was just starting in the US, I remember visiting Korea and listening to traditional Korean music (Gugak); the rhythms were so similar that I danced along to it. I think I had a good head on my shoulders when I was young. It's just that I didn't know how to put it to good use...

A trend, much like world history, is formed through the sheer will inside a single person's mind. Yet, that trend dictates the fate of an era. What is considered good changes to bad, and what is considered bad changes to good...

To use the word "trend" metaphorically here, we are living in a domesticated state. It is a kind of virus. A virus that will never disappear.

Living in Laos, where there aren't many such viruses, seems to be my share of happiness.