tokyo at 9.86: a street artist’s fever dream
so i woke up this morning and immediately forgot what the weather was like because honestly i was too busy staring at my coffee stain on the floor. turns out it’s 9.86 degrees outside which is like a fridge that forgot to stop being cold. i just checked and it’s...there right now, hope you like that kind of thing. the humidity’s cooking the air like a bruised peach and the pressure feels like someone’s sitting on your chest with a clipboard. real cozy.
neighbors? they’re out there doing whatever. one guy i saw yesterday was painting a dragon on a dumpster with spray cans that looked like they belonged in a mcdonald’s toy bin. i heard that if you get bored, tokyo’s just a short drive away but honestly i’d rather sketch a cat on a subway pole. it’s easier than__((https://www.tripadvisor.com/) figuring out where to eat).
i overheard a drunk guy at a yelp review booth saying the local sushi place serves fish that’s ‘too ambitious’ which is either genius or the most accurate thing i’ve heard all week. i saw a sign for ‘tokyo eco-lodge’ that promised ‘zero carbon footprint’ but the ac unit was clearly running off a single candle. trust the signs, i guess.
anyway, i’m here to paint. my canvas is a broken train platform at 3am. the sea level and groundwater numbers are silly but whatever. the real data is the vibe. like, boom-here’s a map of where i’m screwing up.
. the coordinates are wrong but the chaos is real.
i took some photos but they all looked like they were taken through a screen door. first image is a vending machine coughing up cheap tea. second is a cat bushwhacking a trash can. third is me pretending to be a tour guide for a raccoon.
someone told me the food here is ‘too expensive to justify’ but i paid 1000 yen for a bowl of ramen that looked like it cried. crying is free, right? i also heard that the neighbor cat steals umbrellas. maybe that’s why the weather’s so dramatic.
reviews are a mess. i saw a yelp from a kid who said the train was ‘too loud to think’ but also ‘too quiet to sleep.’ contradictory. i’m starting to think the locals are just messing with us. like, why would a budget student complain about the weather? it’s perfect for layering. or is it?
if you’re visiting, ignore the ‘disney’ vibe. this city doesn’t care about being pretty. it’s busy, wet, and full of people who say ‘excuse me’ while spitting on the sidewalk. classic tokyo.
i’m leaving tomorrow. probably before the rain starts. or maybe after. who knows. the ground level pressure is sneaky. it’s 1008 hpa which is like the city itself is holding its breath. or maybe it’s just tired of my nonsense.
p.s. check out this cool blog about tokyo’s secret markets: (((https://www.yelp.com/))). also, if you like coffee, you’re gonna need a new filter. mine’s basically a sieve.
anyway, peace out. tell the raccoon i said hi. it’s probably judging me right now.
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