The Result of 20 Years.

Denmark’s little house spirits called “Nisse.”
They move into your home during winter.
If you treat them kindly, they protect the house.
If you treat them poorly, they play pranks all over the place.
They’re cute like that.
Kind of like Japan’s “Zashiki-warashi.”
One has already been adopted.
Put one at the entrance of an Evo home, and I think it becomes a guardian.

I was supposed to be “retired,” but for some reason I’m busy and grumpy (lol)
It’s heater season in the workshop.
If I run it too long, it eats about ¥5,000 a day.
Old men should be resting at home, really.

Since I’m busy, I’ll just share a recent heartwarming real story.
Here is the AI-transcribed summary:

About 20 years ago, when I was 43, I built a house for a man who was 63 at the time.
He had worked at a town office and apparently held a decent position, but he retired cleanly and built a home in Kitami.
The reason was simple: “I wanted to live near my grandchild.”
That’s all. A luxurious and heartwarming reason.

The one who introduced him to me was Kobayashi, the foundation contractor I was greatly indebted to back then. The homeowner was his younger brother.
At that time, the retired official acted a bit high and mighty, and I could tell he thought of me as just a kid.
And of course, I was thinking to myself, “When it comes to houses, I’m the professional here.”

20 years passed.
I repainted the roof, replaced the boiler, and responded many times to small problems.
I built that house, so of course I felt responsible. It was just part of my routine.

And this year, now 83, the couple decided to move into an assisted-living residence in the town they originally came from.
They decided while they were still healthy, to avoid troubling their children later.
They came to me and said, “Could you make a stand for our Buddhist altar?”
The facility didn’t provide one, so they needed it to bring their altar with them.

So, I made a proper, solid one and delivered it.

And then he said something that stayed with me:

“For 20 years, we really depended on you.
Whenever something happened, you came right away.
We truly loved this house. Warm, strong, and honestly… it’s a little sad to leave it.
We came to Kitami for our grandchild, and the grandchild grew up… but we never made any close friends here.
So in the end, we were always relying on you.”

I always assumed he didn’t care much about a house built by some young guy.
But I guess that wasn’t true.

I was just doing what I believed I should, as the builder.
Then I realized — now I’m 63.
And when I look at today’s 43-year-olds… they still look like they’re wearing a suit over diapers (lol)

And then, finally, he said:
“Thank you. Truly.”

I honestly would’ve preferred a big pile of money as a thank-you… But still.
That’s it. End.