Mt. Takao is known for tengu worship. Yakuoin Temple, located in the mountain, is dedicated to tengu statues and single-toothed geta worn by tengu.

While resting on a park bench, an elderly man called out to me.
"A circle with several centers"
The old man said abruptly.
"A circle with many centers, or sometimes countless centers, but without a circumference. Can you think of such a circle?"

At the end of the cape, on a cliff overlooking the rough sea, stands a lighthouse.

The white paint is peeling off in the sea breeze.

No one visits, only time has fallen.

But the light is still the same.

It is the compass of silence.

It is the North Star shining on the earth.

One day, as the traffic light at an intersection turned green, a crow slowly swooped down.

Flapping his wings just in front of people's feet, he deftly snatched away a piece of bread that had fallen.

No one is surprised. The crow is so familiar as a resident of the city, as a shadow.

The results of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly election are coming in. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) is struggling due to a political fund scandal. Amid the multipolar dispersion trend, the “Tomin First no Kai,” a political group led by well-known Governor Koike, has the upper hand.

Kobe is my hometown. I love the atmosphere where port town and downtown coexist.

Tengu have the spiritual power to move at a moment's notice, fly in the sky, and read minds. On the other hand, "tengu ni naru" in Japanese is a negative proverb meaning to be arrogant. Tengu have a curious duality.

Tengu is a type of yokai in Japanese folklore that flies freely in the sky and possesses divine powers. They are characterized by their long noses, red faces, and feather fans. While walking in the mountains of Tokyo, I came across a statue of a tengu.

3月末で休館するDIC川村記念美術館(千葉県佐倉市)を訪れました。マーク・ロスコの七つの壁画に囲まれたロスコルームをどうしても体験したかったからです。都心から離れた非日常空間で、ロスコ以外にもフランク・ステラやモーリス・ルイスなどの抽象絵画、ウォーホルやリキテンスタインなどのポップアート、さらにはレンブラントやピカソ、モネなど幅広い作品を常設する貴重な美術館だけに移転・縮小は残念です。4分の3を売却するとのことで、どのように展示作品を絞り込むのか注目したいです。

Gacha-gacha, a machine to buy small toys in capsules. Insert a coin, turn the handle, and a capsule comes out. You don't know what's inside until you open it. Miniature food samples, character goods, joke goods.... Adults and children alike are fascinated by this machine.

A wave of redevelopment is sweeping through Yanaka, Tokyo, a district that still retains a downtown atmosphere. The photo shows a famous sunset spot in Yanaka called "Yuyake Dandan".

I met Doraemon at the headquarters of TV Asahi.

中学生の頃、祖母に初めてもらった本が谷川俊太郎さんの『世間知ラズ』という詩集だった。「夜のラジオ」という詩の中にある「生きることを物語に要約してしまうことに逆らって」というくだりが心に引っかかり、要約できない生ってなんだろうと考えたりした。同じ詩集のなかで、谷川さんは詩を「夜の稲光」にたとえ、「ほんの一瞬ぼくは見て聞いて嗅ぐ／意識のほころびを通してその向こうにひろがる世界を」と書いている。谷川さんの詩は飾らない平易な言葉で、いつも生の真実のようなものを教えてくれる。合掌。

ポール・オースター死去。本棚にあったのは、この2冊。他にもムーン・パレスや最後の物たちの国で、孤独の発明などを30代の頃、夢中で読んだ。柴田元幸さんの訳が良い。