Konome-ame

今日も出先で本屋に寄って池澤夏樹の新刊『一九四五年に生まれて』を探したのだが置いてなかった。これで3軒回って空振り。ここのところはつねに連れ添っている観念のパートナーが「取り寄せればよいのでは？　問屋から在庫がなくなったら事ですよ。だって私淑する作家の自伝ですよ？」と言う。まあ、取り寄せるか、もっと大きい書店に行くか、だな。

仕事のついでに代々木競技場の周りを散歩すると、世界陸上の出場選手がそこらへんを歩いている。隣接する代々木公園の織田フィールド（NHKの横のところ）が国立競技場のサブ・トラックとして使われているのだ。選手はここからバスで千駄ヶ谷まで運ばれる。ジャマイカの黒人選手なんかには見惚れた。残念ながらサブ・トラックの間近には近寄れず。見学はできないようだ。

自宅に帰ってからテレビで競技を観る。自分自身が競技を始めてから観る陸上競技はとても楽しい。織田裕二の興奮が過不足なく伝わってくる。それにトップ・アスリートのフォームを脳裏に焼き付けるのは市民ランナーにとって必要不可欠なのだ。

走らず。

Once again today, I stopped by a bookstore while I was out, hoping to find Natsuki Ikezawa’s new book, Born in 1945, but no luck. That makes three stores I’ve tried—with nothing to show for it. My ideal partner, the one always walking alongside my thoughts these days, suggested,

“Why not place an order? What if it sells out at the distributor? It’s the autobiography of an author you revere, after all.”

She has a point. I suppose I’ll either place an order or try a larger bookstore.

While out for work, I took a walk around the Yoyogi National Gymnasium and saw athletes from the World Athletics Championships walking around the area. Makes sense—Oda Field, located in Yoyogi Park next to NHK, is being used as a sub-track for the main stadium. The athletes are shuttled by bus from there to Sendagaya. I was completely captivated by some of the Jamaican athletes. Unfortunately, the sub-track itself is closed off, so I couldn’t get close or watch them train.

Back home, I watched the championships on TV. Ever since I started competing myself, watching track and field has become much more enjoyable. Yūji Oda’s excited commentary comes through just right—not too much, not too little. And for amateur runners like me, imprinting the top athletes’ form into memory is absolutely essential.

Didn’t run today.