I have a feeling that the days are numbered for our neighborhood public bath, Honjōyu , now that Tsuruta Ballet next door has performed its last grand jeté. The two plots of land are prime real estate just begging to be developed. I picture a 20-story condominium in the not-so distant future. Tick, tick, tick. At least it won’t block our sunlight.

The more I look at Honjo-yu, the more jerrybuilt the whole structure looks. How it managed to survive the earthquake of 2005, is anyone's guess. I give it five years tops and then it's going to be bulldozed just like Tsuruta was. I wouldn’t be surprised if Shiraishi-san next door also sells off his plot of land, giving developers 1000 square meters to build on. Tick, tick, tick.