More Tomatoes: A kind gesture or a lifestyle hint?

In response to yet another gift of tomatoes today and upon discovering this Japan Times blog article, I wonder if there is more to my receipt of vegetable than meets the eye...

"Back in February, a seemingly unstoppable river of tomato juice was flowing out of supermarket doors up and down the country as Japanese shoppers jumped on the latest food fad to hit the nation. The frenzy had been sparked by a report written by researchers at Kyoto University that seemed to indicate that consuming large amounts of tomatoes was effective in alleviating “metabolic syndrome” (read: getting rid of your gut)."

Much of what happens in the Japanese workplace focuses on subtle cues. When, on my first day at school, I wore a suit (trying to dress smartly to make a good first impression), and all the other teachers were in t-shirts, teachers continuously commented, "You must be hot," or, "I like that jacket." I have been told that in the Japanese workplace, if you receive too many compliments, you might just be committing a cultural faux pas.

I may be over thinking this, but I feel the need to think critically about the intentions and preferences of my colleagues in Japan. Perhaps the tomatoes were just a kind gesture. And perhaps someone has noticed my visits to buy sweets, chips, and little pizzas from the 7-11 and word is getting around...

Which brings up another thing:

Today I taught at school #4 for the first time. A man came up to me and commented that he saw me at Homac, the local home furnishing store, with my husband. Yesterday, the BOE member who sits next to me said that he saw me at the grocery store. Turns out he was standing next to his wife, who was talking to me because she works at junior high #1, and I didn't notice it was him. Gah!

I feel like whenever I leave the house, I will have to be presentable and on my best behavior. No more running to the grocery store in my pajamas, or doing whatever else scummy lazy people do sometimes when they think no one is watching. Anonymity is not an option. Maybe I could craft a disguise!?

 Has anyone else had a similar experience or found a good solution to this? --> I have been introduced to probably 150 people working in public sector jobs in my community. Even if I was good with names, which I'm not, and even if I understood their names while they quickly rattled them off, and if I had a better grasp of which Japanese names were last names and first names and what to call people, I couldn't possibly remember everyone's names.