It’s a long story as to why, but I recently watched the bizarre fairytale Princess Racoon. Along with being visually strange and an odd experiment of theater-on-film, there was a congratulatory scene that sticks with me, when the people are congratulating each other by shouting “Banzai Banzai!” It makes me wonder if cheers like “Hip hip hooray” are culturally universal (although I have maybe seen such a cheer happen at most twice in my life.)
Banzai is an art form that can be practiced on nearly any leafy plant, and not just on little bushes. I have recently and quite accidentally rendered my basil a banzai plant by clumsily splitting stems. It does make me curious as to what kind of crazy, Edward-scissorhand things I might do with an indoor herb garden, especially if I indulge my desire for a multicolored basil garden.
