3 days of coughing and counting

today marks my 3rd week since arriving in Japan. all was going well until a few days ago when a little cough kept getting bigger. fortunately it was raining these past couple of days which made staying inside easier but i did want to get out to take photos of the cherry blossoms falling like snow...the impermance of beauty/life...

hopefully tomorrow i will get out and into town. there is a music and flower festival at a beautiful shopping area called Namba Parks in Osaka. a Tom Waits-like singer named Tozy will be playing a set sometime between 2p and 530p. i saw him last year in a small venue and he was wonderful. he sings and plays the guitar, tell stories and before you knew it, over 3 hours had passed. i am nowhere near fluent in Japanese but just the way he tells a story is entertaining.
Noriko`s Mother is still in the hospital. Noriko`s Father is sitting beside me singing his songs from the 40`s. i have become very good at turning the tape over for him. Noriko says i will miss this music when i go home (possibly on the 16th) but i have taped him singing on cassette and video. Noriko`s Aunt Akiko was here helping out for a couple of days as Noriko started back to work (teaching English) this past wednesday. we are not sure what to do with her Father next week since she will be working from tuesday and i will be leaving on wednesday. it is sad to see one lose one`s memory. i have so many wonderful memories of my travels, photos, and friends that is hard to think about losing these memories as i get older but it happens...and i have seen it happen first hand to this kind hearted 80 year old man sitting beside me singing his favorite old songs, over and over and over again. later he may ask where his wife of over 50 years is. and then after returning from seeing her at the hospital he may ask
again where she is.