Oh, man: omen.

The instructions are clear.  After you get your fortune, you are to TAKE IT HOME.  Why they tell you this, I don't know, because there are racks all over that people tie their fortunes to.  The instructions also tell you it costs 100 Yen (about a buck) to get a fortune, but I didn't see anyone but me following that instruction either.

Here's how it works.  You "politely shake" the container to jostle the sticks inside, and then let one stick come through the hole.  Each stick has a number, and you match it to a drawer.  (This is much simpler to do if you know Japanese, because the numbers are in Japanese characters.)  Inside the drawer is your fortune.

They are not fooling around here.  I got a terrible fortune!  Not "life is full of challenges" or any of the vaguely bad news you might imagine.  Request not granted, won't get better, bad for marriage, trips, job--a total sad sack life, not one ray of hope here.

Not on my birthday, you don't.  I opened another box at random and pulled out a second fortune.  Mostly for comparison--I couldn't believe how harsh #70 Bad fortune was--but also because I believe you can choose to change your life, so why not your fortune?

I like this one a lot better, happier like a ship sails before the wind.

I also find the parallels interesting.  Do they all talk about getting well and tearing down houses?  And waiting for people?

I also see it as significant that the good fortune is more nuanced.  Still won't find the lost or heal the sick, still waiting for that person.

Now I want to go back and get a few more, just to see what variety there is.  But that might be pushing it.  Rules are rules.