Dear Readers,

During my abandonment, Ron-san found several interesting pen. One of these pens that I found curious is the Maruzen Albion.

Maruzen is a famous book and stationary store in Japan. In Japan it is customary for people to browse in book stores. We call it Tachiyomi, which means Standing Reading. If you can stand in one place long, you can read whole books and no one would try to make you leave. Maruzen has a huge selection of magazines and I often go there when I am in Yokohama. It is one of the things I miss the most while living in Okinawa

Maruzen has also offered many pens over the years. The Albion is one of these pens. It is made of transparent bakelite. Parker made similar pens. Ron-san had showed me a catalog page that featured this pen when I first joined Kamakura pens. He said he had been looking for this pen for several years, and he was very proud to find an example now. I just wish that I had been here when he found it.

My poor plants are all dead. I had called me friend Junko to care for them, and she promised that she would. However she forgot them and the poor things dried up and died. My apartment now looks like a B horror movie set. Today I will go to buy all new plants, and I will not invite Junko over any more. (this is a joke, Junko)

I received phone call from my father. He is doing much better, but I worry about him. The doctors told him that he can not going running for a while, but I fear that father will not listen to this. For him running is the same as tobacco and it will be very difficult for him to cut back.

It is still April, but the Okinawa sun feels like July in Yokohama.

Sincerely,

Meg.