I’m 100% smitten with gachapon. These things have been in high circulation in Japan since the 70s (at least, that’s what I’m told by this guy I always see at the internet cafe). They come in these plastic capsules that you get from vending machines, and you never know what’s going to be inside until you open the capsule.
I know it’s kind of childish, but there’s just something so enchanting about cracking open a mystery egg to unveil a cubic pug, or a beautifully designed wizard figurine with jointed arms, or a weird koala with an oversized chin. I’ve already amassed about 100 of them. I wish I was writing my PhD on this instead of traditional dyeing techniques, honestly.
Emmaline, as usual, feigns disinterest, but I’ve caught her sneaking peeks at my collection when she thinks I’m not watching (she’ll be sucked in soon enough… just watch). Cathy, bless her, keeps buying me more of the bloody things.
– Brentley
Brentley is the king of double standards. He flat-out refuses to enter a convenience store (making him even more stubborn than Emmaline on that front, if that’s humanly possible) yet he’s obsessed with those rubbish capsule toys. I’m finding it a kind of hilarious contrast to his usual elitist attitude and endless pontification on silk dyeing. It’s almost like he’s addicted. I’ve been buying them for him because I get a kick out of seeing him drop his purist facade.
Alright, so I’m an enabler. But there’s worse things to be addicted to than capsule toys, right? Take those Strong Zero cans, for instance. Emmaline’s been going pretty hard on those, I’ve gotta say. Maybe she ought to get into these toys.
– Cathy
I’ve got nothing much to say on this subject. I just can’t get excited about them one way or the other. Brentley is completely infatuated, and Cathy is being uncharacteristically scathing about that – behind his back, no less. She thinks it’s funny to buy him more and more of the danged things, but what she doesn’t seem to get is that Brentley is 100% in on the joke. If anything, Cathy’s the one who’s missing something.
I get the appeal of the toys; I really do. I just don’t have space for them in my life, and I guess I have a bit more self-control than Brentley.
– Emmaline