So, what is your relationship with those old men, young lady??
Iyamori (Snack Bar)
---Inside a certain snack bar in Yokohama that is always empty---
Hehe, uh... can I ask you one question?
Before you ask that, we have a question for you, Tisa.
Hehehe, eh? What is it?
Wait, so what does that mean? Are you and those old men from earlier complete strangers who just met?
That's right. Isn't that what I just said?
What! So you were eating yakitori and drinking all by yourself at that yakitori place?
That's right.
Oh, (can I ask too?)... that yakitori place is a bit intimidating for a young girl to go into alone, isn't it? The clientele is mostly elderly (and it's quite high-end)... are you friends or family with someone there?
Well... I started going there occasionally and became friends with the couple who own it.
So today you just went to that yakitori place as usual, and while you were eating and drinking alone, you became friends with that group of old men and decided to come to this bar together?
That's right. They said they wanted to sing karaoke.
The old men did?
Yeah. They said they weren't done drinking and wanted to sing, and I remembered that I'd always been curious about this snack bar whenever I walked by, so I thought I'd like to try going in.
(Interrupting eagerly) With the old men?
Bursts out laughing. Hahaha (yamo). It's unclear whether she specifically wanted to go into this snack bar with those old men in particular. Lol. Obviously. Lol.
***
It was past 9:00 PM when a petite woman who gave the impression of being young and cute opened the door and asked for permission to enter, saying, "Is there room for four more people?"
The shop was unusually crowded that day, and all 10 counter seats were already full.
However, taking the arrival of that young female customer as a cue, some regular customers started getting ready to leave, saying, "Well, I guess we'll be going..." They were all gentlemen in their 70s.
Well, they were people who had been drinking since 5:00 PM.
I suppose you could say they'd had enough...
...or so yamo thinks.
While saying things like, "Th-thank you very much, sorry about that," to the regulars, I signaled to the cute new female customer with my eyes and hands to wait a moment, and she gave me her consent.
I quickly tidied up the counter, called out to the cute new female customer, "Thank you for waiting, please come in," and gestured for her to sit on a stool. Following her, a group of three well-groomed elderly gentlemen shuffled in.
The oldest one was probably the leader, the organizer of the dinner and drinking party. He was about 85 to 88 years old.
He was quite spry.
The other two were probably in their mid-60s to 70s.
They were all a bit wrinkled and thinning on top, but they gave a neat impression.
Everyone was wearing a brightly colored dress shirt that had been ironed, and a knit vest with a well-known brand logo on it.
I don't know the brand name.
But it's one you see often.
An established brand.
The one not wearing a vest had a cardigan on.
A deep navy blue.
They were all wearing clothes that fit them well.
Their shoes weren't leather, but they weren't old either.
Their socks matched the color of their shoes and trousers.
When the oldest man coughed as soon as he entered the shop, he covered his mouth with a handkerchief he took from his trouser pocket.
The handkerchief was Roberta. I saw the logo.
In any case, they didn't give the impression of being worn out at all.
yamo thinks once again that appearance is important even as you get older.
They ordered a bottle of whiskey (Royal). 15,000 yen per bottle.
Everyone, including the woman who called herself Tisa, drank it with water.
The cover charge is 4,000 yen per person (all-you-can-sing), so that's already 31,000 yen in sales.
As far as the shop is concerned, as long as they behave themselves and leave afterwards, they are what you call "good customers."
For the next two hours, the young woman who called herself Tisa sang "Akai Sweet Pea" so poorly that I wanted to doubt if she really knew it. Singing off-key was a given, and it was as if there was no melody at all. She sang "Tsugaru Kaikyo Fuyugeshiki"—which I thought, 'No way, she definitely can't sing that'—as if she were singing it with great passion. While I, yamo, was wondering why she chose that song, the young and cute-looking woman was being fawned over by the old gentlemen to their heart's content.
Even though she was definitely bad, they kept saying, "You're good!" and "You're cute!" It was a scene that perfectly illustrated the phrase "being fawned over."
That said, those three old gentlemen were very well-behaved. They fawned over her, but there was no sticky touching or anything like that. They were considerate of the other customers already there, chatted with each other, took turns at karaoke, and praised each other's singing ability.
Asking where they were born, where they lived, how they ended up coming here for a gathering today, saying this shop is nice, saying yes it is, they all seemed to be enjoying explaining things and chatting with one another.
With "Yeah, yeah, yeah," all the old gentlemen were beaming with smiles, saying tonight was so much fun.
"Hey, excuse me," the oldest man called out, and yamo went over to his side.
He said, "Check," and I replied, "Thank you," and relayed it to the mama.
I looked at the clock and it was 11:00 PM.
I don't know how much the mama charged them.
It shouldn't have been 31,000 yen.
Something was added on.
The elderly male customer, who was here for the first time, pleasantly handed several 10,000 yen bills to the mama and said, "Two taxis, please."
Of course, the bill for Tisa was included in that.
When I asked, the female customer who called herself Tisa was 28 and single.
Apparently, she was eating and drinking alone at a yakitori place she often goes to, became friends with the three old gentlemen, and they decided to go somewhere where they could drink and sing, so they came along with a "✌️Yay✌️" vibe.
Her occupation and real name are unknown, but it seems she works in some kind of sales.
She also hinted that she works for a rather solid company.
yamo thought later that the old gentleman might have intended for one of the two taxis to be for Tisa. Like, "Take this home," and "Driver, keep the change," handing over a 10,000 yen bill no matter how close the destination is—that kind of gentlemanly manner. The kind of thing you see in old TV dramas.
However, Tisa didn't leave. Lol
Huh? She's staying? I, yamo, was surprised.
“Can I have a little more to drink~~? Hehehe”
“? ...Go right ahead.” (Master)
“Wait, you don't have to go with them?” (Male customer Y, 40s)
“It's fine, it's fine. I only just met them a little while ago~”
I think everyone in the shop at that moment was thinking the exact same thing.
“Huh? What is the relationship between this young lady and those old men?”
***
The 40-something male customers Y and K, who stayed until the end, are relatively new customers who have started coming by once a month recently.
They like shochu mixed with oolong tea.
They always come in as a pair, order a bottle, drink, chat, and then leave together.
It seemed they had just come from watching a soccer match that day, as they were both wearing matching uniforms. They arrived in high spirits.
They are two men who give the impression of being cheerful, polite, and 'good guys'.
The sequence of events is that Tisa then started drinking the liquor from Y and K's bottle.
“Can I join you guys~~?? 🎶”
“Ohhh 🎶 sure, sure. Go ahead.”
“Waaaah~~! Cheers ❤️”
“Cheeeers 🎵”
Are you serious?
The men are in a great mood.
This is amazing.
What is going on?
Well, whatever. lol
And then, Tisa, despite not being able to sing, pretends to belt out EXILE songs, saying she loves them and can sing them. 🎤
I can only say that her gibberish is truly impressive. 👍
The male customer Y, who is being made to sing along, has a smile on his face while striking a 'I give up 🤷' pose.
To be young and able to drink... hmmm... 🤔🤭 It really looks like she's having a blast. 👍
This girl's world must be a fantasy... I'm envious.
***
In the end, Tisa managed to finish another bottle belonging to the 40-something male customers Y and K over the next two hours, clinging to Y while laughing 'kyahaha' during a Sukima Switch song, and linking arms with K to perform another round of gibberish during a KinKi Kids song.
By now, even Mama, Master, and even yamo could only think of 'leaving her be' as the only option.
This is a realm where we don't know how to intervene.
When male customers Y and K, feeling bad for Mama and Master because they were having too much fun on their own, tried to leave their seats, Tisa would follow them, hug the men, cling to their necks, and beg them to sing more.
Despite Tisa's over-the-top behavior, Y and K, being 'good guys,' didn't treat her harshly.
As it was about to turn 1:00 AM, Mama, not knowing what else to do, asked them to 'close up'.
Of course, Tisa's share of the bill was covered by Y and K.
The total came to 15,000 yen, including the extra bottle of shochu and the cover charge.
They happily split the cost, paying a few thousand yen each.
Yay! Awesome! Thank you for the treat~~❤️
As Tisa acted all giddy and delighted, the master quietly handed her a 2,000 yen bill, folded in two.
Saying, "Thank you very much for tonight."
Huh?? What, what? Was Tisa a plant by the master? Lol. What kind of plant? (yamo)
No way that's true lol.
Is this also just 'etiquette' and 'normal' in this industry?
Whether or not one could like her as a person or as a woman aside, no matter what kind of person Tisa is or what type of character she may be, there is no doubt that she made a significant contribution to the shop's sales that day.
As a result, Tisa didn't pay a single cent herself (likely including the food and drinks at the yakitori place she went to beforehand), ate what she wanted, drank as much as she liked, sang nonsense, made noise, had fun, livened up the place, and even got pocket money for her achievement of making the men pay tens of thousands of yen in one night.
According to her, it was just the result of "doing it because I wanted to~~."
She just did it.
What is the world coming to?
Right? Lol
Everyday life is full of drama.
🥂Inside a quiet snack bar in Yokohama🚬🍺
#SnackBar
#YokohamaCity
#WorkingPartTimeAtASnackBarEvenThoughICantDrink
#CollapseOfValues