You paint Tokyo well. These lines:
"the smoke curls around the mouths of red-faced salary men
rolling out of miso bowls and into alleyways
from laughter turned insanity"
And these:
"obaasans travel on trains
school girl cliques painted grey
tartan blazers,
bell-sleeved blouses,
always taupe pantyhose
unabashedly removed at sento"
Where, though, are the ubiquitous smartphones with the never ending LINE games on trains?
Haha, games on trains would work perfectly except you are not allowed to have your cellphone out on Japan's transit system :-) Thank you for sharing the lines that stood out to you. I really appreciate you taking the time to read my words
I'm sorry to disagree, but 98% of the people on trains, subways and buses have their smartphones in their hands at all times. You aren't allowed to talk on your phone, but you can play games, access websites, etc. as long as it is in silent mode.
About 10 years or more ago, they tried to keep people from using their phones since some people were talking noisily on them. They loosened up the rules as long as people don't jabber on the phone. It used to be you'd see a lot of people reading newspapers and "paper" books; now the vast majority use their phones to do the same things, plus games. Since 2012, the SNS site LINE has become huge since they offer free games. TsumuTsumu (one of them) has been very popular with older women for the past three years. I don't know why, but ...
Ah, thx for clarifying! <3