welcome to the frat house (kyochi pachinko)

the last time i was in japan i bought the original nintendo gameboy before it had been released in the US. and the same family that took was most hospitable to us then somehow became even more hospitable this time around. making it ridiculously hard for me to leave, extending my stay in osaka by one night which meant more food, more sushi, more anago, more ramen, more takoyaki, more waistline and one more night at this place. back then, i was still a good boy, obediently listening to parental guidance sporting a bowl cut, tucking in my shirts and quietly sitting at the dinner table. since then, i've obviously plummeted closer to the depths of disowned child and in essence become tighter with my japanese counterparts. the masuda boys. and fittingly...we spent a bunch of time downstairs their pachinko parlor. aka. the frat house.

Pachinko (パチンコ ?) is a Japanese gaming device used for amusement and prizes. Although pachinko machines were originally strictly mechanical, modern pachinko machines are a cross between a pinball machine and a video slot machine. (wikipedia). The pachinko parlors are rooms lined with these machines where players pay money to control the airflow direction to push the metal balls through the pinball labyrinth into the right hole below. It's FRIGGIN LOUD IN THERE. It's ridiculous to win. and even if i liked the game, the decibel and second hand smoke level is enough to kick me out the door. As evident with me, Pachinko is dying with the younger generations but the masuda's say this cultural phenomenon is safe with the remaining shrunken/loyal addicts.

i spent 10 minutes and 1000 YEN upstairs before retreating to the basement that used to be a video game arcade converted to an office that just became a dirty frat house. 2 space heaters in the middle of the room, one rickity table. 2 leftover couches from 1980 ripped and U shaped seating. a huge bowl of water and cigarette butts. floors the color of high traffic metro bathrooms. ceilings the color of a smoke stained yellow. street fighter ps3 never off. dart boards. 2 imacs. 3 pc's. 8 terrabytes of external hard drive. of which 5 are filled with porn. 2 dogs. and...anything else u think im missing, trust me, it's there.







truly a family ordeal....momma masuda, hiroyaki, and pooch on the 3rd floor....



so we caught up. we talked about work. we talked about family business. we talked about parents. we talked about jail and we talked about japan, having kids, gangsters, taiwan, china, politics, money laundering, girls, and of course brothels (which i'll get to later).