After that, the blog had not been updated since September 17, 2023.
The other day, when I drove past the Uenohara interchange on the Chuo Expressway, this blog suddenly came back to mind. I checked it again, but it was still dormant. I remembered there had once been a YouTube video featuring an interview with the author, so I went there to have a look. In the comments section, I found the following post: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKK0m974FlA&t=36s
“Kobajii had been recuperating due to illness, but passed away peacefully at the end of June, 2025. To everyone he met in Yaeyama, to all who came to visit him, and to those who supported him in daily life, thank you so much! —From his daughter”
Since he had moved from my hometown, Sangenjaya, to Uenohara, I had felt a kind of one-sided closeness to him. Yet I never had the chance to actually say hello. Looking back, I wish I had at least left a comment on his blog.