Oishii strawberries

[voyager]

9 minutes ago, Anthony Bonner said:

But the buyers are ordinarily gifting the fruit, not eating it.

Also enlightening.   

[splinky]

3 hours ago, Chambolle said:

Not sure if the point is that these berries are cheap or expensive, seriously ...

cuz here's a handful of green grapes for way over a hundred US$ greenbacks ...

 

And heck, let's play some poker while we're all here ...

I see those strawberries, Splink, and I raise you my top shelf Musk Melons for $110 ...

no make that $120 ... no make that $150 ... nope, final top right raise for $200 for one measly melon ... you in or out, Splink ? 

 

 

i don't got no money

[Orik]

Right, and chambo is missing that fact. The recipient knows how much $$$ was wasted on them, and that is all that matters. Nobody is buying this for their own consumption. 

The positive aspect is this supports highly specialized agriculture, packaging and delivery systems that might not survive on commodity business alone. 

[Chambolle]

 

11 hours ago, voyager said:

This is one of your most reasonable posts

Most reasonable to YOU !

And why is that ?

Because Chambo purposely and specifically opted to respond to you using YOUR frames of reference, which is not my preferred posting process … think about that !

And note that Chambo can turn to true form on a dime (or a nickel or a penny if pushed) … so stay tuned

 

12 hours ago, Orik said:

The merit is the price.

We are largely in agreement on the price part ... but it more complicated than just that

 

10 hours ago, Anthony Bonner said:

But the buyers are ordinarily gifting the fruit, not eating it.

Indeed ! Of course they are often gifting it !

As I said, it’s about psychic pleasure

Do I really need to spell out psychic pleasure in order for you fine folks to understand ?

Of course I do … cuz, at minimum, Orik seems to be oblivious to what I’m saying !

From personal experience and from observing this world, humans derive a lot of psychic pleasure by giving pleasure and being generous to others. It’s surely not the only way … but it’s a way … and it builds bonds back better (think jewelry, guys ! think vacations, Bonner ! ) … sadly but realistically, that’s the world we humans created and inhabit … now if you turn towards the birds, for example, their psychic (leading to reproductive) pleasure is often stimulated simply by their body’s beautiful, extravagant and natural colors ... we humans are much more complicated

In my $.02 story above, when grandma might be convinced to shell out a whopping two bucks for an overpriced bazooka that caught her fancy, the psychic pleasure that was being evoked was NOT related to HER chewing … it was related to her envisioning and enjoying the excitement in the eyes of her grandkids that would receive such awesomely-wrapped and fabulously-colored chewing gum gifts. That’s psychic pleasure derived from gift giving and it's a powerful force within families (and beyond) and, very importantly, pleasure is transferrable and shareable through the act of giving and it can even grow within the giver when the giver gives the gift away

 

8 hours ago, Orik said:

Right, and chambo is missing that fact

Chambo is missing what ?      cuz it surely has nothing to do with Chambo and gifting

Is it the fact that Splink is broke ?

I knew that !

But did you know that Splink was just playing hard to get with me ? or do I really need to spell this out for you ?

Of course I do … cuz it seems to me that you’re still in the dark on this fact, dude … and sorry for letting the cat out of the bag, Splink, but he was going to find out sooner or later … everyone else seems to know

So here’s some fun facts for you, Orik … Splink and I are a thing. We’ve been dating virtually for years now and you were probably also oblivious to the fact that I was just flirting with her and asking her out in public using poker (and some amazing melons that could have been hers, if she was willing to play along) as props. She knew what was going on instantly. I was asking her, as clear as day, if she was willing to see me … and she, in her own cute way, effectively said no, she didn’t want to see me, pleading poverty … and I love her even more when she plays hard to get like that … and she knows that’s how I react to her playing hard to get and so she sticks with that excellent strategy and hence my love keeps growing and growing and we pretty much never see each other … it’s a vicious cycle that keeps repeating and repeating … and I don’t want to speak for you, Splink, but I do think we have a great relationship that works for both of us

If you go re-read everything, Orik, it was all pretty obvious and out in the open

 

8 hours ago, Orik said:

Nobody is buying this for their own consumption. 

This is so wrong it’s almost funny

There are plenty of people buying this sort of stuff for their own consumption

I'm not saying it's the majority (and I'm not going to make believe that I know the %) but there's plenty of them

You may not know them but they are out there, trust me

Remember those millions of folks who don’t really sweat the difference between 2, 20 and 200. Note that there’s also a good-sized subset of them who don’t sweat the difference between $200, $2,000 and $20,000 … it’s just noise to them ... I'm not saying that they're pissing away 20k every day but I am saying that they won't even bat an eyelash at stuff under a thousand bucks ... that said, very few like to be totally ripped off ...

Why does this matter ?

Because, for these folks, their most valuable asset is their time … and they want to use it efficiently and wisely and they aren't going to waste it researching the best gustatory bang for the buck on a $200 item ... they buy it and try it and if they like it better than their prior favorite then they'll likely be a longterm, repeat customer … they reasonably want the “best” experiences / services / products that money can buy … and when all these products, no matter their price, cost DIDDLEY to them, they are willing to pay up for the best, assuming they actually like it. The measly amount of a lousy $200 doesn’t even enter the equation if the melon is "better" to THEM. If it’s “better”, they want it

And although far from an absolute et chacun à son goût, very often, extremely expensive things are very, very good

[Orik]

Chambo dear, we are not discussing generic luxury goods here, of course you are right about those. Japanese vanity fruit (esp. packaged as you've included in your post) exists exclusively for gifting purposes. It offers the recipient perfect knowledge of how much was spent / wasted on them, which is very important for some Japanese reason. It is also inherently perishable which is also very important for some Japanese reason. 

This does not mean there isn't expensive fruit meant for consumption with price (supposedly) based on quality or demand, but it's just not that fruit. 

For reference, the fantastic strawberries sometimes served in jelly at the end of a meal at Mat$$$ukawa are only $25 per tray (of 6 or 8, I forget), which Matsukawa-san finds murderously expensive for fruit - so there you have what the top chef in Japan believes you need to spend to get the best strawberries grown in his country. 

[Chambolle]

And before you tell me that most gift giving is corporate and not grannies in Japan, I grok that

But psychic pleasure is the motivating factor here too, just in a slightly different form … it’s the psychic pleasure of picturing yourself pampering / pleasing your customer, leading to increased (or maybe just maintained, considering it's no-growth Japan) business with them and visualizing your big bonus down the line … or not-so-big, considering it’s no-wage-inflation Japan

eta - shit, your post beat mine by 5 seconds 

[splinky]

4 hours ago, Chambolle said:

Is it the fact that Splink is broke ?

I knew that !

But did you know that Splink was just playing hard to get with me ? or do I really need to spell this out for you ?

Of course I do … cuz it seems to me that you’re still in the dark on this fact, dude … and sorry for letting the cat out of the bag, Splink, but he was going to find out sooner or later … everyone else seems to know

So here’s some fun facts for you, Orik … Splink and I are a thing. We’ve been dating virtually for years now and you were probably also oblivious to the fact that I was just flirting with her and asking her out in public using poker (and some amazing melons that could have been hers, if she was willing to play along) as props. She knew what was going on instantly. I was asking her, as clear as day, if she was willing to see me … and she, in her own cute way, effectively said no, she didn’t want to see me, pleading poverty … and I love her even more when she plays hard to get like that … and she knows that’s how I react to her playing hard to get and so she sticks with that excellent strategy and hence my love keeps growing and growing and we pretty much never see each other … it’s a vicious cycle that keeps repeating and repeating … and I don’t want to speak for you, Splink, but I do think we have a great relationship that works for both of us

 

bless your sweet heart, you really get me. 

do you venmo?

[Chambolle]

8 minutes ago, splinky said:

bless your sweet heart, you really get me. 

do you venmo?

Still waiting on the floor plan, honey bunch !

[Chambolle]

On 1/18/2022 at 4:34 PM, Orik said:

1. Chambo dear, we are not discussing generic luxury goods here, of course you are right about those. Japanese vanity fruit (esp. packaged as you've included in your post) exists exclusively for gifting purposes. 2. It offers the recipient perfect knowledge of how much was spent / wasted on them, which is very important for some Japanese reason

I agree without hesitation re the multi-fruit packages ... those are gifts for formal occasions ... but I was discussing a bunch of grapes and individual melons. Wealthy husband buys expensive melon for his wife ... maybe it's her birthday, maybe he was a bad boy, maybe she's a witch from hell unless she gets expensive things frequently. They are going to wind up eating it together. Is that a gift or consumption ? Wealthy couple is invited over to their wealthy friend's place for dinner and need to bring the dessert, but a dessert worthy of their hosts. Is that a gift or consumption ? I consider these consumption but your mileage may vary. I was in that store a number of times and the customers weren't only buying wedding gifts etc 

2. Maybe not with perfect knowledge, but Tiffany's little blue box is playing a similar signifying role ... I don't think it's just a Japanese thing

But if you have ever listened to Dan Carlin* talk about Japanese culture, he'll repeat over and over "The Japanese are just like everyone else ... only more so." This may be missing some context here but the general idea is that Japanese culture takes whatever concept or whatever profession and cranks it up to the next level of excellence / perfection / fanaticism ... and maybe not always in healthy ways

 

* The guy is pretty frickin' awesome and engaging. He's Mr. Hardcore History. I didn't really have a deep understanding of the Pacific War in WWII and I decided that it was required knowledge prior to going to Japan. Instead of listening to NPR while going to and from the gym etc, Carlin was my man with his Supernova in the East series. He has hours upon hours of podcasts (twenty-ish hours ? more ? I'm not sure) that sets the historical / political / societal landscape in 1920s / 1930s Japan and takes you through the Japanese invasion of China in the late 1930s and onwards and upwards until what goes up must come down. And it came down, hard. And Carlin gives it to you straight and with gusto. Recommended ! He's not a real credentialed historian (and he totally up front about that) nor does he need to be as far as I'm concerned

 

On 1/18/2022 at 4:34 PM, Orik said:

the fantastic strawberries sometimes served in jelly at the end of a meal at Mat$$$ukawa are only $25 per tray (of 6 or 8, I forget)

These ?

[Anthony Bonner]

My understanding is that they are gifts for very formal occasions or corporate.  Like Melon's have a specific traditional  connotation.

[Chambolle]

Everyone agrees that these are gifts for formal occasions and corporate … and that they are packaged beautifully as gifts … and that Japan has a very disciplined and specialized gift giving culture

I’ve just been saying that, in addition to that, these “trophy fruits” have also permeated a bit further into the realm of the wealthy when they want to treat themselves to the “finest of things” 

The history of musk melons was that they were exclusively reserved for Japan’s imperial family ... or so says this article that seems reasonable to me ... the article also says that musk melons have become “popular upmarket gift items” … that sounds like more than just formal occasions and corporate to me

I'm not saying that this article that I randomly googled is the end all about musk melons ... but it seems directionally correct ... and yes, my pictures were from Sembikiya ...

Quote

One gift peculiar to Japan that has received broad attention is the gourmet musk melon. The melons sold by 180-year-old gourmet fruit vendor Sembikiya are specially cultivated, with only one fruit being produced per plant. Once reserved for the imperial household, they have now become popular upmarket gift items. Despite the exorbitant price of ¥10,000 to ¥20,000 per fruit, the melons remain much sought-after items, accounting for fully 20% of the company’s yearly sales

 

[Anthony Bonner]

We aren't really arguing about much here, but what's ever stopped us before. I think I'm just saying the "treat my SO to the best" crowd isn't buying these.  In that sense it isn't like TIFF

[Chambolle]

On 1/18/2022 at 5:38 PM, splinky said:

bless your sweet heart, you really get me. 

do you venmo?

Do I venmo ? 😟 

Do I venmo !! 🤦‍♂️

My ❤️ … my sweetest 🍓 … why don’t you swing by Chateau Chambo 🏰 for a swig of champagne 🍾 and let me explain

I’d never lie to you … so please note that I’m working through some legal issues with the legal authorities but just come right in … 

DOES CHAMBO VENMO !!! 😡

I’d do ANYTHING … but …