Little surprises.
28.12.2024
Mami had a few chores she had to do today, so after breakfast we went out the front door to jump into Nana’s car and found it was no longer there. There is room for three cars in the drive and as Nana’s was last in the driveway yesterday, Yoshi had taken it to work. This left Mami and I with Yoshi’s Mercedes! Mami very, very cautiously drove it out not wanting to hit Youko’s car or our neighbours wall as she navigated her way out. That was the end of Mami’s efforts with the Mercedes, and I had to take over for the short drive to Yoshi’s work.
I parked at Yoshi’s office, which in itself is not an easy task. His office is directly opposite a T-intersection with traffic lights, and traffic is usually quite busy. I parked the Merc easily enough but was dreading having to reverse Nana’s car out of the car park, after we’d popped in to say hi to Yoshi.
Yoshi’s office is a full on Shrine to the Hiroshima Carp baseball team.There are red and white colours everywhere. I cannot begin to describe his office so have a look at the video and you will have a better understanding of what his office looks like. There are, most likely, several thousands of dollars in memorabilia and Mami has told me he wants to sell most of it when he retires. I hope there are some equally passionate Carp supporters out there who will give some of this memorabilia a new home.
We drove to another mall called You Me Town, (pronounced You Meh Town). You Me means dream in Japanese but it also has the English component as well, so it works for everybody. I was still looking for a replacement man bag and found one at You Me Town. However, Mami said it was a bit takai (expensive) but she liked it. So she is going to hunt for a cheaper price online.
Our next stop was about 1.5km from You Me Town. It is a stationary store with everything! I lost my favourite pen (and yes I still use pens and love doing so) a few weeks before we came to Japan. I wanted to replace it in the same store where I bought it a few years ago. I find it relaxing just wandering around this shop, which is so neat, tidy and well set out. The staff are also very helpful, as was Mami, who found the identical pen to the one I lost.
After our shopping trip, Mami called Youko to let her know that we would be having lunch at Zona, a nearby Italian restaurant. To both Mami and I it was a surprise when Youko said she would walk to the restaurant, which was about 1.2 km away.
Later, she told us that walking had become easier for her after we had walked a few kilometers together over the past two weeks. She also mentioned that Rob’s massage had made her legs feel lighter. We’re so happy to see Youko getting fitter, walking more, and even doing some yoga with us.
It’s well known that Japan ranks second in the world for life expectancy, with an average of around 85 years. While good genes and a diet rich in soybeans, fish, green tea, and rice play a big role, for a quality of life, regular exercise is extremely important. You lose what you don’t use, right? We are happy to keep exercising with Youko and hopefully we will get Yoshi to join us, as he has finished his work for the year, and is having a 2 weeks winter break. I’m sure by supporting each other in our efforts to stay fit and healthy, we will all reap the benefits.