Sumo Emperor's Cup

The tournament ended a few minutes ago, the champion a first-year student (18 or 19) at 日本大 university. A future professional wrestler, no doubt. https://www.youtube.com/live/Y0QIwtDg5r4?si=PW-IARYuqagiYPmv

Touching Story, Sexy Car

https://youtu.be/UiYliMxhuXE?si=kJCNUh_iWiMcgS7Y Makes one want to drive a Nissan.

Yuki Onna: 雪女

Yuki Onna is a Japanese tale of the supernatural first introduced to Western readers by Lafcadio Hearn, or 小泉 八雲 as he is known in Japan. My copy is a graded reader level 4 in the series, or N2 on the Japanese language proficiency test. The kanji are accompanied by furigana readings for ease of understanding.

Sample page:

Crow Boy: からす たろう

Excellent 絵本 by やしま たろう。First published in English by Viking. I strongly recommend this book. It could change your perspective on a lot of things. Do read.

Smorgasbord

Photos

Lower photo: ザクロ、or pomegranate

Monumental Cleaning

Vending Machines

The vending machine, or 自動販売機、shortened form 自販機。This week's Vox Populi column in the Asahi celebrates vending machines stocked with hot canned drinks to warm the hands and soul on cool autumn days. From Ozaki Yutaka's song "15の夜" (1983): “Warmth you can buy with a hundred-yen coin, gripping a can of hot coffee tight.” Live version: Check out this video from this search, 尾崎豊 15の夜 https://share.google/utiJQ6gDkniymGElJ VOX POPULI: The charms of a vending machine with hot drinks on colder days | The Asahi Shimbun: https://share.google/VdwtvNkJLujs7FW4X