日本での発見 / Discoveries in Japan #7: 身長 / Height

On Monday we had a little get-together among the Chinese lit people. When I saw a photo yesterday that was taken after we'd finished eating our delicious hot pot meal, I said to myself..."Wait, since when was I so tall?"

I always thought that I was fairly average in terms of height (or even on the shorter side), since among my freshman roommates in college I was the shortest one. But apparently the average height for women in Japan is 158.8 cm (171.2 cm for men), while the average height for women in the U.S. (not controlled for race) is 164.1 cm. (For men it's 178.2 cm.) So, being 165 cm, I am pretty average...just not in Japan.

I think I remember talking with my college roommate about an article that talked about the four things you're not supposed to make fun of about a guy: his height, his salary, his mother, and his penis size. I wonder if there really was such an article, or if I just imagined it. I wouldn't be surprised if I had.