Walking through the 80s scifi tunnels below Shinjukus skyscraper district I discovered yet another little shopping mall tucked away around a corner – this one I suspect was linked to a hotel since it had plush carpets and was full of some of the tackiest shops you’ve ever seen. They were selling pure ugliness in a faux European style. Or maybe some bright spark back in the old continent exported all the ugly things they could find (well, apart from the ones hirez shot) to somewhere with more of a market for that sort of thing.
Onward, further through the tunnels, just as I was expecting to be assaulted by Tom Baker, I found a clock to rival the one in Bracknell, only this is underground so it is made with lights instead of fountains. On the ground there are twelve pedestals arranged in a circle, each an inch or two higher than the previous. Above the pedestals there is a circle of red strip lights playing out a timed pattern. A few yards toward a pair of tunnels leading back to the main tunnel back to the station there was a transporter unit. Just like in Star Trek, only I couldn’t get it to work, and neither could the Taiwanese family passing in the other direction wondering what I was up to. I managed to get the lights on the floor to change colour, so I figured I was doing something right, but the damned thing wouldn’t transport me anywhere.
Just as well really, ‘cos I needed to pop in to Tokyu Hands and buy some shelves. Steph was right about shelves – they transform your life. Everything is so much tidier now. No shopping trip would be complete without the discovery of some insane gadget, today was no exception – I found a motorised tie rack. I figure this counts as gratuitous technology[0] so I’ll be aiming to buy one once I’ve got some more money over here…
[0] Did I mention I’d updated my interest list and was surprised that noone else is interested in gratuitous technology (or that I can’t spell?)
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