Some Items
A factory where I worked recently had a lovely guest lavatory. I sure like those—the privacy and the peace and clean make me feel very welcomed.
The factory is near a community with a ceramic tradition of note, called Akazu ware. To honor this, the builders of the factory spent the money to install a sink in the guest lavatory that was crafted by a master of Akazu ware, one Kato Tozaburo. It was one hell of a of a nice sink. I used it with the utmost joy and respect.
Anytime the phrase “major earthquake” gets bandied about, I think of this guy. Sadly, his jolly request to stay off major roads when a major earthquake occurs did not have its intended effect on March 11, 2011. Things got very congested. Oh well.
***
Nagoya City has really gone all-in on selling naming rights to public facilities. The Nagoya Dome is now the Vantelin Dome. There is a Paloma Mizuho Sports Park. And there are many more examples, including a great many pedestrian bridges over major thoroughfares. The bridges are certainly well painted, so I imagine it’s an okay thing for the city coffers.
***
There should be a symbol for shop windows that communicates acceptance of Pretty Much All The Payment Methods. It should be recognizable but unobtrusive. That is what I felt when this morning I saw this lovely coffee shop, whose feel I felt was impacted by all the stickers. Sure, there might be a payment type or two that won’t work. The sign could mean “if you need to know, ask, but we probably take it.” I would not befoul my theoretical shop’s look with such clutter.
***
The JR Chuo Line now has Green Car service between Tokyo and Takao stations. This is a game-changer. I believe in spending (my company’s) money on small comforts and efficiency gains. This will be both. I rode it the other day to catch the best Shinkansen for my schedule from Tokyo, and back today. It’s currently free to use as they prepare for fee-based operations. The upper deck feels like a palanquin carried swiftly along above the fray of the many Tama roofs along the tracks.
Over several years JR constructed extensions of the sidings at Takao Station to accomodate the longer trains when they are maneuvered between different platforms. I don't use trains for many trips to and from central Tokyo for work, because packed trains tire me out before the work even begins. Oh yes, I am aware that many, many people go through this, and I choose not to live that life. With Green Cars I can actually do work on a laptop on the train, rather than just theoretically-but-actually-not be able to, which is the reality of normal Chuo Line commuter train bench seating.
This development also changes the Shinkansen use case: Having Green Cars on the Chuo Line raises its value proposition well above that of the Yokohama Line, even though changing trains at Shin-Yokohama makes trips to and from the west of Japan a few minutes faster. Now I will change at Tokyo and have a work-able seat on all portions of the trip.
The morning sky over a gritty bit of Sakae gave me joy.