"Once upon a time, there was a woman who discovered she had turned into the wrong person."

I'm often frustrated by how little food comes in Japanese packages. If I buy a bag of carrots, I want a bag that will last me at least a week - not three plastic-wrapped carrots that will be gone in two days. I miss Costco-sized. But then there's times I come across something like this:

That, my friends, is a 1000 grams bag of sliced lotus roots. I am quite pleased with this purchase. They are my new favorite vegetable, as they are crisp and mild, like carrots they are delicious both raw and cooked.

 

The other day the KFC next door was closed, and the plants were dug up. I thought it was some pretty heavy-duty landscaping, but the day after they started tearing it down:

I feel a bit sentimental - I never even ate there, and now I won't have a distinctive landmark to tell people how to find my apartment. Mostly I'm curious what will be there next. I've heard that a lot of Japanese houses aren't designed to last more than a generation, and rather than be sold as a "used" house they'll be torn down and the empty land sold. I wonder if it's the same for restaurants.