I've been robbed!

The thief:  Japanese cell phone company, Softbank.

I'd like to take this opportunity to talk about cell phones in Japan.  They are far superior to any other pocket-box in the world.  Besides having the standard "boring" features of internet and mobile-to-mobile email, you can also watch all of your favorite t.v. stations on them, store all of your national identity cards on them (which can be scanned), download coupons for stores on them (also scanned), and take high-resolution photos.  They also serve as electronic movie and airline tickets (no joke), electronic membership cards, and there are even cell phones that fold out into robots!!

You can imagine what shopping for one of these puppies is like..

And if the phone-bling isn't up to your fancy, well there are two isles of stickers, decals, and charms to make the cell phone of all your Hello Kitty fantasies come true!

Now the fun part.  Trying to decipher the Escher-like brochure of cell phone plans, rates, talk-times, phone charges, phone insurance charges, features, Japanglish, yen, more yen, and Disney (it's everywhere with these cell phone things...).  Thankfully, I had Eri there to ease the blow a bit.  Total time for plan explanation:  one and a half hours.

Time for my certificate of residency, passport, and residence to be verified:  one hour.

Time for my debit card to be processed and then rejected because my middle name initial did not match my written out middle name on my passport:  one hour

Time for my credit card to be denied due to a Softbank internal error:  30 minutes

Time robbed from us with nothing to show for it:  four hours.  The following portrait, however, was taken when we were only robbed of two hours.  We didn't look so approachable at the end of the whole ordeal.

On a positive end, though, I did manage to leave Bic Camera with the means to internet in my casa so I am now thoroughly connected!  Also, I had two fabulous deliveries to my home tonight!  Mariko-san made me a bento dinner with a side of salmon fried rice:

And my cute little neighbor girls, Nagi and Moe, brought me a bag of their homemade chocolate-almond cookies:

I'd like to think that the corporate tyrants at Softbank are working long hours tonight, instead of eating bento and cookies.