Pic 43: 日本橋 - Nihonbashi, Tokyo

Pic 42: 梅島 - Umejima, Tokyo

Pic 41: 新宿 - Shinjuku, Tokyo

Let me be grumpy

I don’t mean any harm when I complain

even though I say it again and again

just want to release a bit of extra steam

I’m much much nicer than I may seem

(Chorus)

Oh, let me be grumpy in my old age

let me be grumpy in my old age

Not young any more, not got long to go

let me be grumpy till the day I die

I tolerated foolishness all my life

listened to horror tales of war and strife

took it on the chin, turned the other cheek

always cheered for the downtrodden meek

I may give the image of angry discontent

but please believe me that’s not what I meant

my opinion is mine and if you disagree

you’re more than welcome to be grumpy back to me

(Chorus)

I reserve the right to rant and rave

won’t have a chance when I’m in my grave

I won’t shut up just to try to be polite

I’ll moan and groan from morning till night

(Chorus)

Pic 40: 新宿 - Shinjuku, Tokyo

Pic 39: 目黒 - Meguro, Tokyo

Pic 38: 五反田 - Gotanda, Tokyo

Here isn't the news

Headline news shows the sporting personality

bidding for national glory,

but no reports of the hate-speech practitioners

crawling across Ginza, protected by the boys in blue

Closeups of marble-skinned models

with faces created skillfully and chemically,

but the faces of children scorched beyond recognition

are too gruesome for delicate sensibilities

The nation is upliftingly charmed by the footage

of a kitten rescued from the smelly drain,

but the visual stench of shattered human remains

does not qualify for peak-time viewing

Mediocre pop singers crooning with correctness

their sounds without soul or spirit

their base message nothing more than “don’t give up”

while those with more relevance stay

in the basement bars and clubs

never exposed to a wider range of ears

We are shown success stories of those

who have made it, which means money,

and how virtuous they are painted

designed for envy and emulation by those

who need another life, because they are

already dead.

Pic 37: 五反田 - Gotanda, Tokyo

Pic 36: 代々木 - Yoyogi, Tokyo