A Friend of 30 Years

On note, we are collaborating with author Kamo Aso and NHK on a submission project called "#OnTheNightOfAugust31st".

It is said that the night of August 31st is the time when child suicides are at their highest.

Please take a look at the detailed purpose of the project here

and I will also write about my own "August 31st".

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When I was in elementary school, I just absolutely hated school.

I just couldn't stand the petty rules. I couldn't put into words why I hated them so much back then, but I can now. It's because I felt that many of the rules existed not for the children, but for the teachers (regardless of the reality, that's how I felt at the time).

And I also hated that everyone else was following them quite obediently. I felt like I was always being looked at coldly by everyone because I was always getting scolded for not following the teachers (again, regardless of the reality, that's how I felt).

And so, I ended up isolated at school.

The only times I felt happy might have been when I was reading books or manga after getting home, or when I was tinkering with the 8-bit computer I bought by saving up my New Year's money.

My favorite magazine at the time was called "Micom BASIC Magazine" (or "Beep-Mag" for short). I would dash to the bookstore on the release date every month to buy it, and computer-loving kids all over Japan would buy this magazine to type in programs or submit the programs they had created to play with.

However, back then, owning a computer was something to be ashamed of. It meant you were nerdy, creepy, and a weirdo, so you couldn't tell anyone. It might be hard to believe today, but in a book I read recently called "How to Create the Future", written by GOROman, it said "it was like being a Hidden Christian," so I think it was pretty much like that all over Japan.

I am in the IT industry now, but I occasionally meet people who were readers of Beep-Mag. GOROman is one, Horiemon said he was a reader, and although I've never asked, I think Dwango's Mr. Kawakami read it too. Whenever I meet someone I can talk about Beep-Mag with, I feel like I've met a comrade and it gets really exciting.

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Beep-Mag ceased publication a long time ago, but last year, an event like a gathering for Beep-Mag readers was held. I signed up online immediately and went to the event.

The venue was the Yomiuri Hall in Yurakucho, and I was shocked when I arrived at the venue.

Old computers were running old games!!
Lots of old Beep-Mags were lined up!!

That was something I was happy about, but above all,

it was nothing but middle-aged men!!!!!!!!!

Of course, I'm one of them, but middle-aged men with a nerdy vibe in their 40s and 50s were swarming the lobby and the hall. Everyone's clothes were super drab, too!!! Since almost everyone came alone, they were all silent and expressionless, but they were wandering around looking somehow happy.

Of course, I was there at the venue by myself, but I was a little moved. These were the people who, as children, were using computers across the country as "hidden Christians." And they are still doing well today. Having passed 40, I finally felt like I had met the friends I couldn't meet back then.

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I think the biggest difference between then and now is the existence of the internet. Nowadays, no matter how niche your hobby is, there is a way to find fellow enthusiasts. In our day, magazines played that role, but the internet does that job much better. It is important that there is a society outside of school where you can find friends.

If I were an elementary or junior high school student now, what would I do? No matter how I think about it, I feel like I would only be doing three things: the internet, programming, and games. I think there is a high possibility that I would stop going to school, and I think that would be perfectly fine. I believe the role of school is twofold—making friends and learning something—but those can both be accomplished on the internet.

Right now, I work on connecting content and people on the internet. What I was doing back then and my current job are quite connected, aren't they?