The person I met for a moment was Mr. Hayashi

I had planned to take my bicycle on the train and ride around Iwaki City on Sunday and Monday, but I had to cancel because something came up on Sunday.

On Sunday, I finished up some small errands, watched a T.M.Revolution live DVD, made stew, and drank sake, and then the day was over.

I slept well.

On Monday morning, I intended to spend the whole day riding my bicycle.

I wanted to head toward Yokohama.

I strapped a rinko bag—a lightweight bag for disassembling and packing a bicycle—to my bike and headed south.

I followed my usual route, passing through Ueno, Ginza, and Shinagawa.

I had started riding around 9:30 a.m. without eating anything, so by the time I reached Akihabara, I was getting hungry.

By the time I got down to Shinagawa, something felt wrong with my body.

It wasn't that my body was tired, and my mood was positive, but I couldn't put any strength into my leg muscles. The same went for the area around my right upper arm.

This has never happened before.

I wondered what to do, but decided to keep going since I could at least make it to Yokohama.

After passing Shinagawa Station, the old Tokaido road becomes a very long shopping street, and I rode along that path.

Because the tires are soft, they absorb the small bumps on the road, making it comfortable. It's like having a bit of suspension.

At this time, it was around 10:30 a.m.

I was quite hungry, but I didn't want to go to a convenience store.

At this time of day, my first meal of the day would likely be lunch in Kawasaki City.

I have passed through the old Tokaido road many times, both on foot and by bicycle, and there was a shop that always caught my eye because it was so crowded.

"Masudaya." A soba noodle shop.

It's a long-established shop, and you can tell even from the outside that it is deeply rooted in the local community.

I ran looking forward to it, thinking I would be able to get in if it was around 11 a.m. on a Monday.

I crossed the Tamagawa Bridge, entered the center via the old Tokaido road, and arrived at the shop. I was able to get in.

I should have ordered the tempura soba, but I gave in to my desires and had the katsu curry.

I love the taste of curry from a soba shop.

Even at this hour, the shop was swamped, and the elderly waitress was moving endlessly as if she were doing fitness, serving dishes, washing up, and handling payments.

That's amazing.

For some reason, chopsticks came with the katsu curry that was served.

I wondered why, but I understood once I started eating.

The cutlet was thick and hot, and it didn't feel like something I could just shovel into my mouth with a spoon.

You have to pick up the cutlet with chopsticks, bring it to your mouth, and carefully take a bite while blowing on it, or you'll be in trouble.

I enjoyed the entire culture of a long-established Showa-era Japanese soba shop and stepped outside.

The old Tokaido road remains from here as well, and you can ride quite leisurely.

Running along the old road through Tsurumi and Namamugi, when the Kirin factory comes into view on the left, the old Tokaido road ends for a moment.

I ride along the massive National Route 15.

From here, the national road also has a wide shoulder, making it easy for bicycles to ride.

However, even so, the fact that I can't put any strength into my leg muscles or my right upper arm remains unchanged.

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At first, I thought today's muscle trouble was because I had been drinking while cooking dinner the night before and went to sleep without enough carbohydrates, just eating edamame, but it didn't get better even after eating the katsu curry.

Because it was right after eating, it was even more painful and I couldn't put any strength into my muscles.

Anyway, I rode thinking that I had to make time for a break.

There were benches under large apartment buildings, and sometimes they were at the entrances of hospitals.

I passed Yokohama Station.

My muscles feel weak, but it's different from being tired.

I want to go further.

At the very least, Isogo.

My goal is Yokosuka.

I passed through Bashamichi and Chinatown, and entered the road to Isogo.

From Isogo, I headed to Kanazawa-hakkei along the Keikyu Line.

I had the impression that the road shoulder on this route was too narrow for bicycles to ride on the road, so I didn't like riding here. However, this time, I tried choosing the sidewalk when there were no pedestrians, such as on uphill slopes, and it was good.

From Kanazawa-hakkei, I took a different route that a junior colleague who had worked for the Maritime Self-Defense Force for many years taught me.

What surprised me was that the driving of cars became aggressive from around here.

Until now, it was Sunday, so those trucks weren't running, but since it was a weekday, I was tailgated by many trailers and large trucks.

But I was impressed by their 'side-swiping' technique (intimidatingly pulling the car as close as possible to a bicycle while passing). What kind of sense of vehicle width do they have? How many centimeters were between us?

It was too professional.

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Between Kanazawa-hakkei and Yokosuka, there is an area called Oppama, where a Nissan factory is located.

According to my memory, this Nissan factory is supposed to be closing.

It seemed to be just the time when the staff's shift ended, and young people were heading home while still wearing their work clothes.

The fact that the factory is disappearing directly affects their employment, and it also has a complex impact on people working at convenience stores that they stop by on their way to and from work.

Since we are entering an era of labor shortages, I hope they find better jobs, and I hope new business entities that have demand specific to this area will move in.

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My physical condition hadn't worsened, so I decided to head to Yokosuka.

At a convenience store along the way, I was so hungry that I bought an incredibly sweet bread roll and a coffee milk, and devoured them both in one go.

It might be a coincidence, but after this, I finally felt like my usual self again. Was it low blood sugar?

Yokosuka was now right in front of me.

I knew I could definitely finish the run.

After finishing the run, I drank a beer at the food court I always stop by when I come to Yokosuka.

This was the furthest goal.

I started thinking about the trip home. Today is a weekday.

The evening is definitely going to be rush hour.

If I drink in Yokosuka, things might get complicated.

I decided to head home without drinking at an izakaya.

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One of the reasons I felt like coming to Yokosuka might have been that Minister Koizumi, whose constituency is Yokosuka, had been appearing in the media a lot.

Maybe I'd run into him by mistake?

Without any such excitement in the area at all, I disassembled my bicycle and boarded a train at Yokosuka Station.

The train I boarded in Yokosuka was headed toward Chiba from Tokyo Station.

If I were to transfer to another train at Tokyo Station to get near my house, whether it was the Tohoku Line or the Yamanote Line, it would be during the evening rush hour.

I decided to get out at Tokyo Station and run home from there.

I exited the north gate of Tokyo Station, carried my bag containing the disassembled bicycle to the guardrail by the road, took it out, and began assembling the bike.

On that road, a black car that had been idling for a while in a spot where parking was barely permitted suddenly turned on its headlights.

I, too, looked over reflexively, wondering what was happening.

A black car. People in black.

Most of them didn't get into the car, but some did.

It seemed the person who most needed to be in that car had gotten in, and was greeting the people seeing them off.

Wait, I've seen this person before—or rather, isn't this the current Chief Cabinet Secretary who, when asked by a famous YouTuber to 'explain in English in one minute what Japan should be like in the future,' spoke eloquently and fluently?

He greeted each of the people who had likely been providing security, and as he began to roll up the rear window, the car started to move.

Right in front of him was me, in the middle of assembling my bicycle.

I bowed to Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi as he was rolling up the window. I feel like he made eye contact with me and gave a slight nod in return.

Actually, while riding my bike today, I had been thinking that it might be best if Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi became Prime Minister and formed a cabinet of young, capable men and women.

(Postscript: Thinking back the next day, maybe that person wasn't Chief Cabinet Secretary Hayashi, but Mr. Onodera...)

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This has become a long piece of writing.

Even if it's just a day trip, this might be the end of my long-distance bicycle travels for this year.

Today, I also say goodbye to the thick, Aloha-style Uniqlo pants I've worn every time I've ridden my bike in shorts for over five years.

The part that rubs against the saddle has become completely patternless and skin-colored, like a monkey's backside. Have I really been wearing these for so long? At least before they tore...

Today, I leave you with this song.