'Rent-a-person who does nothing' in Tokyo receives endless requests, gratitude

Post by klmadfejno » Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 9:36 PM UTC

xyzelement wrote: post #101

I can't quite put my finger on how to define "this" but it seems like stories like "this" have been replacing stories of drive and grit in our cultural lore. It's en vogue now to talk about "doing nothing" or making it sound normal that you need to hire someone you don't know to accompany you to visit the hospital, etc. I am sure this is a part of the human experience but is it really a part we need to normalize, ver…

Post by glandium » Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 9:38 PM UTC

Blikkentrekker wrote: post #187

glandium wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Note: for many of the "weird" things you list, there's _one_ place doing it, not several, like the use of plural may suggest (AFAIK).

Such as which example? I have knowledge of the existence of multiple in almost all of what I listed.

Post by glandium » Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 9:40 PM UTC

miles wrote: post #185

Karuma wrote: post #18

A friendly reminder that Japan's rent-a-family industry was completely fake: https://newrepublic.com/article/160595/new-yorker-japan-rent... Everyone loves stories about how weird Japan is (especially the Japanese), so these stories should be taken with a grain of salt.

> Japan's rent-a-family industry was completely fake It is very real: ファミリーロマンス社【家族レンタル】家族代行・代理ならファミリーレンタル専門 https://family-romance.com/family.html 「他人になりきる」代行サービスが人気博す「叱ってほしい」という依頼も https://news.livedoor.com/article/detail/19410877/

Post by Blikkentrekker » Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 9:44 PM UTC

zanny wrote: post #183

Blikkentrekker wrote: post #47

The title reminds me of the Japanese strip Rent-a-Girlfriend , and how much it, and several similar ideas coming from Japan seem to express how lonely many of it's citizens might be feeling. Japanese commerce seems to have found a rather big market into treating loneliness. From the existence of Host Clubs, bars where the menu is not only food, but a good conversation with one's designated “host” as well, to cafés w…

I eat this stuff up as a constantly lonely person, not in the "I wish I had a boyfriend" sense, in the "theres nobody to talk to, ever" sense. Like you get up, you work, you consume entertainment, maybe you go on HN or Reddit or Twitter or whatever and you throw words out that other people filter through like junk food, maybe you even go so far to join a fan community for something for a week or two and talk about it…

Post by Blikkentrekker » Thu, Jan 14, 2021, 9:55 PM UTC

glandium wrote: post #193

Blikkentrekker wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Such as which example? I have knowledge of the existence of multiple in almost all of what I listed.

Used underwear vending machine, last I heard, there's only one. Yaoi cafe, AFAIK, there's only one. And I would be surprised if there's more than one cafe with the glass floor and no underwear.