10/18 (Sun) Listening to the stories of local people. Someone said in one sentence, 'It's a "haikara" bookstore.' I looked up the meaning of 'Haikara'. It refers to people who adopt Western dress or lifestyles, or who are fashionable and sophisticated. It comes from 'high collar' — the high, stiff collar. I see. Indeed, I have been to Europe before, and that Western style exists within me. Being called a 'Haikara-san' made me happy, but at the same time I wondered whether being 'haikara' makes the place feel unapproachable. I have mixed feelings. Old secondhand bookstores used to be the kind where you picked books out of piles — covered in dust, like digging up a find. For me, as a challenge shop, I haven't been able to put 100% of my own worldview into the interior design (of course I did what I could without spending a lot). I realized my values differ from others'. It's a natural difference, not a matter of right or wrong. When I imagine a 'community space where people can connect regardless of age, gender, or generation,' I began to question whether the current form is truly correct. If I don't create a place that is loved and needed by the local community, it has no meaning. I don't intend to do it as a lone wolf. I feel I need to listen more to the voices of the region and get to know Kesennuma. What was Kesennuma like before we were born? I want to delve into its history and culture and learn more. There is history behind creating something new; that history is what gives it a soul. I want to aim to be a 'Haikara-san' beloved by everyone in Kesennuma.

Now that it's October, I've been feeling that the inner-bay area of Kesennuma City, where our shop is located, is gradually seeing fewer people as it heads into winter. On weekdays, the flow of people is fewer than ten. On Mondays I keep the shop open but focus on work. On Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, the number of people slowly increases. Lately we've been seeing repeat customers and regulars. On weekends the parking lot fills up with people heading for the sightseeing boats, but most of them just pass by our shop. Today I set up a wooden box outside and tried displaying books outdoors. As of 3 p.m., there was one picture book and two paperback/standalone books. It was worth putting them out. I want to improve both the content and the appearance. I plan to offer more picture books aimed at families. The goal is to attract children to visit the shop. To draw people on weekdays, I'm thinking of holding daytime reading groups or tea gatherings. How can we get more local residents to come?

Today we had a variety of customers visit the shop. That said, the majority were visitors to Beniko's photo exhibition in the second-floor gallery. The first-floor Cafe River and the book section were quiet, a marked change from yesterday. Still, two people returning from a business trip who were about to board the Shinkansen bought three ZINEs and said, "I'll read them on the Shinkansen on the way home." A young woman in a kimono and zori, carrying a large suitcase, came to see Beniko's exhibition. When we took her suitcase at the register and talked, she turned out to be Kokeshi Tomita, who travels the country—visiting farming villages and hot-spring towns—playing a single shamisen. She's an itinerant performer. What a surprise. Meeting all kinds of people is one of the great things about Beniko's photo show; I'm very grateful. We were closed Monday and Tuesday, and over yesterday and today I've been preparing some new events; three of them are now public. I'll add links later. By the way, Aeza stopped by for the first time in a while—also to see Beniko's photo exhibition. Aeza once worked as a lighting assistant at a strip theater in Gifu; she wrote about that time in an essay and published the ZINE "Odoru Gekijō" ("Dancing Theater"). Her ZINE "Angura Tanbōki" (a survey of underground venues) is also popular. (Aeza's profile is here: https://zindies.co/aeza?locale=ja) Published events: Book release commemorative event for The Struggles of a Discarded Evening-paper Reporter: A Personal History of the "Nagoya Times" (Fubai-sha) — Crime and Society: A Reporter’s Recollections 2026-11-13 (Fri) 19:00–20:30 https://zindies.co/events/353?locale=ja Nagoya Station West Tanka Reading Group — Featured book: Haru Mizumachi, Second Poetry Collection "Only Those Who Cried Alone on the Way Home Feel the Warmth of the Moonlight" 2026-12-04 (Fri) 19:00–20:30 https://zindies.co/events/348?locale=ja Talk & Workshop: What Is a Third-party Response? — From the Perspective of "Yasashii Nihongo" (Easy Japanese) and the Idea of "Kindness" 2026-12-11 (Fri) 19:00–20:30 https://zindies.co/events/350?locale=ja We have one more event currently in planning. I'll let you know once it's confirmed. For other upcoming events, please see: https://zindies.co/fqpi/events?locale=ja

An exhibition and sales event for zines. Date & time: May 9, 2027, 11:00–16:00. Venue: New's Hall A & B on the 3rd floor of the Tōō Nippō Shinmachi Building in Aomori City. Admission: ¥300. Exhibitor spaces are booth-based (90 × 45 cm); there are exhibitor fee plans and rules requiring exhibitors to assist with event operations (setup, reception, takedown, etc.). Photos taken at the venue may be posted on social media.

10/16 (Fri) It feels like autumn has fully arrived in Kesennuma. The inner bay was being tossed about by sea and mountain winds, and the nobori (long banners) were flapping wildly like fish thrown out of the water. Today a teacher who coached me when I was in middle school came to visit. He also helped us during the ekiden. He was also my math teacher in my first year, the subject I was weak at. Bitter memories from those days came back. My memories of middle school aren't very good overall. Of course there were fun times, but I experienced a major setback. Looking back now, I can see it was a valuable experience. I thought the teacher might have changed after about fifteen or sixteen years, but he had hardly changed at all — I recognized him at a glance. He said he had been transferred not only within Kesennuma but also to island schools and schools near Sendai, giving him a variety of experiences. He told me that he hadn't used to read books, but on his commute he felt it was a waste to spend 30–40 minutes on his smartphone, so he started reading instead. When he said he used to commute by ferry to work at a school on an island, I was surprised — a ferry! — and thought that, although inconvenient, it's a nice way to make use of travel time. I kind of envy ferry commuting. I turned 30 this year, and there will be a middle school reunion at the beginning of the year. I'm really happy that people who have been involved with me up to now will learn that I'm active in Kesennuma and might come visit my shop. It was a day that gave me a push — a reminder that I still have to keep working hard from here on.

A reporter for the mass-circulation paper "Nagoya Times" will talk about a different side of Nagoya's back pages from the Showa and Heisei eras that he captured. Lecturer: Naoki Kito (former Editor-in-Chief, "Nagoya Times") Lecturer profile Naoki Kito Born November 1946 in Nagoya. Graduated from Waseda University, First Faculty of Law, in March 1969. He joined the Nagoya Times in February of the same year. Assigned to the news reporting division (social affairs), he covered police rounds around Nagoya, worked as a roving reporter, covered the courts, and reported on municipal administration. He served as Editor-in-Chief from 1998 to 2007. He retired in October 2008 when the paper suspended publication.

A ZINE event held in Miyazaki. Date and time: March 6, 2027, 12:00–17:00 at Miyazaki Art Center, 4th Floor, Art Space 1. Admission: ¥500. Exhibitor booths are 90 × 60 cm. Applications are accepted via STORES. There are rules including restrictions on display and delivery, and requests for operational cooperation (setup, reception, teardown).

ZINE market held in the free area inside the BARTHE OSAKA 2026 venue. ZINEs will be exhibited and sold across two zones: "HOT" (passion) and "COOL" (refresh). The event will take place at Creative Center Osaka (CCO) on October 31 and November 1, 2026, from 11:00–18:00 each day. Announcing the first lineup of exhibitors.

I took Tuesday and Wednesday off, and returned to work for the first time in a while. I was surprised to find that ZINEs and books were selling more on the days I was away than on a normal day. Yesterday a customer apparently bought a lot of poetry collections, songbooks, and literary doujinshi, and I was shocked when I checked the sales. I wish I had been there to greet them. Today there were also many visitors coming to Beniko's photo exhibition, and in the afternoon visitors kept coming almost without pause. It hardly felt like a weekday. I realized how many fans she really has. Among them are customers who come almost every day, and each time some of them buy books on the first floor; today when I recommended a book, they purchased it. I'm truly grateful. I myself rarely get to the exhibition space, but today I found time to go up to the second floor and tried a ¥1,000 gacha. I won a third‑prize noren! It featured a design of Kadoebi, a high‑class brothel that represents Yoshiwara. I'll hang it in my room. I was able to talk with Beniko a little in front of the gacha. She said she went to the famous Nagoya cabaret Hanazono yesterday and had a great time. While we were talking, a male customer nearby seemed to be a cabaret expert and gave us various tips. I've never been myself, so I didn't know anything. It was educational. Later, while I was talking about that at the downstairs sales area with a woman who was visiting Beniko's photo exhibition for the second time, she said she had never been either and suggested we go together, which surprised me. Since it's hard to go alone, it would be fun if it happens. A male customer who came after that also seemed like a cabaret expert and taught me a lot as well. It seems everyone goes. As it got dark, two young women came in wanting to look at free papers, so I showed them around. When they came back down later I spoke to them and they said they were art university students who had an assignment, perhaps for a seminar, to make a ZINE, so they had come for reference. I told them to look at our ZINE shelf before they left and introduced various ZINEs. I also mentioned the Endoji "Hon no Sanpo Michi" happening this month and a foreign ZINE specialty shop in Shinsakae, which made them happy. I waved them off saying, "If you make a ZINE, sell it here, okay?" I hope they do their best. Beniko's photo exhibition really draws many dedicated visitors, and many of them take an interest in the book section and buy books on the first floor. I've never seen a gallery exhibition like this before. I'm truly grateful. Most visitors are coming to our store for the first time, and many tell me they'll return to the bookstore, which makes me happy. I'm a bit sad that the exhibition ends on the 18th.

"Third-party response" refers to when someone speaks to a person, but, based on appearance or impression, you avoid replying to that person and instead respond to another person who is with them. Have you ever experienced that? This time we invite Akira Yoshikai, author of "What Is Third-Party Response?", to lead a workshop where participants share their experiences of third-party responses and consider approaches to communication.

To celebrate the release of the latest tanka collection "Only the Moonlight Warms Those Who Cried Alone on the Way Home" by rising tanka poet Haru Mizumachi, who debuted with her first collection "Bitansan Tanka" (微炭酸短歌), we will hold a reading group. The host will be the familiar tanka poet Satsuki Suzuki. Haru Mizumachi will also appear as a guest. There will, of course, be a signing session. Please feel free to join us — we look forward to seeing you.

Since opening the shop in June, thankfully the number of repeat customers has been increasing. Today a man wearing a maple-colored corduroy shirt came in. He always buys five or six suspense novels at a time. When he's finished the books he bought last time, he comes back to return them. I handed him the book he said "Ah!" to when he finished reading it. Besides the books he bought before, he probably has books at home. He donated about ten books. Today again he was picking up suspense novels. As he chose books, he talked about his past exploits, his family, and how he retired and came to Kesennuma... The man, speaking with a Kesennuma accent, laughed wahaha and launched into a rapid-fire monologue. He seems to be overwhelmed by elder-to-elder caregiving. I felt like I had never heard the term "elder-to-elder caregiving" before. I looked it up and apparently there is even "super elder-to-elder caregiving," meaning both caregiver and care recipient are 75 or older. The man said he had returned to Kesennuma to care for his sibling. Once his sibling's situation calmed down, he wants to go back to work in Koriyama, Fukushima. Tokyo is close, he has many friends there, and since he used to live there he has drinking buddies and can go out and have fun. He said that with a laugh. Watching the man in the maple-colored corduroy shirt walk away, I thought that maybe he wasn't buying the books for himself but for the sibling he is caring for.

Today I visited Iruka Shorin and Yume Tsuna Base, both of which are registered with Zindies. Iruka Shorin is the kind of shop that’s hard to picture in a city center: it’s difficult to reach by public transport, but it has a large parking lot and people basically come by car. I happen to live nearby, so I walked there, which at first surprised the staff. Suburban-style facilities often bring to mind large chain stores, but this place operates more like an independent business, using nimble, local moves — a really interesting spot. After that I went to Nagoya to visit Yume Tsuna Base. I was partly visiting to thank them because Iruka Shorin had introduced them to Zindies. I hadn’t been able to reach the owner beforehand, so I worried they might be away, but that turned out to be unfounded. I heard about the reasons and thoughts behind opening the space, and learned they’re actually around the same generation as me. Their desire to cherish paper as a physical medium rather than an online one resonated strongly with Zindies as well. The shop carries not only ZINEs but also sundries and stationery, and it has space for workshops. It has the feel of a good old record shop, yet it’s not so niche that only aficionados would enjoy it — I thought it’s the kind of place where anyone can find something they like. I found and secured several interesting ZINEs. Encounters with ZINEs are once-in-a-lifetime; there may not be another chance. Among them I picked up a ZINE I feel a particular fondness for, #nannohanashidesuka. Although they joined Zindies only recently, I heard they’ve already started interacting with creators, so I told them to ask anything if they had questions and then left the shop. I’ve been part of the ZINE scene for about a year now, and many people here have an open, creative attitude — just talking with various people is energizing. I visited two places today, so I’m physically tired, but it was a fulfilling day. I’m grateful to the two owners who took the time to talk with me.

✼”┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈"✼ Hello. We are currently holding the "6th Animal Exhibition". Today customers kept arriving from the opening without much of a break. Since around the three-day holiday many visitors were coming for the first time; when I asked why they said, "I saw it on Instagram," and when I asked further they told me that the post for the 'Neko-ten' had appeared in Instagram's recommendations. (I originally wanted the title to be all hiragana as "ねこてん", but I didn't notice the image used kanji and posted it that way; since it luckily got featured in recommendations (many likes, shares, and saves) I can no longer remove it, so I'll continue using 'ねこ展'.) During the weekend some families with children visited, and customers who live with cats also came to the Animal Exhibition. We heard people say, "I'll come again next week," and learning that they're looking forward to the show starting on the 20th (Tue) made me very happy. We will be closed tomorrow. The 6th Animal Exhibition runs until Saturday the 17th — two days remaining. 16th (Fri) 13:00–17:00 17th (Sat) 9:00–14:00 The "1st Neko-ten" opens on Tue the 20th from 13:00. Thank you very much. Please feel free to drop by 🐈🐾 ✼”┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈"✼ Iruka Shorin / gallery24/7 80-1 Higashiwakaguri, Dainichibino, Asai-cho, Ichinomiya, Aichi, Japan

A ZINE event held in Tochigi (Utsunomiya). May 8, 2027, 11:00–16:00. Admission: ¥500. A participatory festival for exhibitors with information on booth sizes, participation rules, and requests for cooperation in social media promotion (SNS).

Your life still lacks "pigeons". From a new perspective, gaze upon the "world", decipher the "words", and move closer to the "truth" that lies beneath. Through the lens of "pigeons", this book helps you realize the essence of the world that you could not see before. Now, open the page. Something you need in your life might be there___________

Today is the last day of the long holiday. The weather is clear and sunny. Even so, I spent the day at my computer, looking at the blue sky outside the window, and felt good. Today's theme was "coordination". A little while ago I launched a service called refeel.day with the tagline "Write a diary and turn it into a ZINE." At the time, I had only implemented generating PDFs that can be printed at convenience stores. I built the part that connects that to a real printing shop so you can get an actual ZINE produced. Because this involves another party, we need to verify that the PDFs we produce print correctly, so the release will happen after that validation. It will probably take a little time. As for Zindies, yesterday I made a store-facing update following a request from Fujisaka at NAgoya BOOK CENTER. I simplified the process for linking creators' registered works to stores, which had been complicated. There are likely other parts that I haven't noticed myself but that are difficult for users. It's a bit embarrassing to realize things only when users point them out, but when issues are raised I'll make sure to fix them properly.

Today was a public holiday, and NAgoyaBOOKCENTER opened in conjunction with Beniko's photo exhibition. We opened at 11:00. The exhibition was on its third day, and the gallery doors opened at 12:00 as usual. I thought there might be no one waiting before the doors opened since it was the last day of a long holiday, but from the moment we opened visitors kept arriving one after another without a break. It only calmed down around the evening. I don't know the exact number of visitors to the second-floor gallery yet, but bookstore sales were better than yesterday and about the same as the opening day, so I assume the gallery was busy too. There are people who come every day and some who come every other day, so we're starting to recognize faces. Many of our customers are women; the gender split feels about even or with slightly more men. I had to open the building's shutter myself today, so I arrived at work at 11:00. For the first time in a long while I made a bento (in a soup jar) from yesterday's leftover dinner. I hadn't made a bento for about two years since my librarian days, so taking the soup jar down from the shelf felt nostalgic. Around 3 p.m., the poet Haru Mizumachi visited the store! She kindly signed her recently released second poetry collection, "The Moonlight Warms Only Those Who Cried Alone on the Way Home." When I invited her to do some kind of book-release event, she accepted right away! I'd like to hold it before the end of the year — I'll announce the details once they're decided. Please look forward to it! A woman at the register asked if I was Mr. Fujisaka, which surprised me. She said she was friends with those people from Iwakura — I was shocked. She is also a fan of Beniko, and when she told her friends that Beniko's photo exhibition was in Nagoya they said, "That shop is an interesting place — you should definitely go," lol. With about 30 minutes left until closing, a young woman came in carrying two thick books to the register. When I greeted her, it turned out she was one of the authors of the recently published "Gifu: Walking the Textile Town." We had a nice conversation about Kyoto bookstores, her research, and her own book. Since her book wasn't distributed through the usual channels, I'll contact the publisher on my next workday. Near closing time, a stylish middle-aged man was browsing the face-out table and shelves. I paused my closing tasks to wait on him, and he bought my zine "This Isn't Just a Library for Borrowing Books," plus another zine about the red-light district. When we spoke I learned he'd visited a year ago and is a school librarian who has since changed jobs and now works in social welfare in Moriyama Ward. He said he'll read the zine because it describes initiatives at two libraries in Moriyama Ward — I'm really grateful. In the end, the purchases by those last two customers made this the second-best sales day of the month. Since I worked on Sunday and Monday (the holiday), I'll take the next two days off. It was a very intense and very enjoyable three-day holiday. It's all thanks to Beniko, the photographer of red-light district photos. Thanks also to Mr. Watanabe of Kastori Shobo. Beniko will be in attendance through the final day on the 18th, so if you have time please come by.

This is the author's first book. As a physician and as a mother, the author discovered in the exam room, in community settings, and in parenting the power of words that support people. Rather than relying solely on medical care, these words gently accompany anxiety and loneliness and help draw out each person's innate capacity to recover. Quietly warming the reader's world, this is a book to return to even on days when you don't feel okay.