<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:googleplay="http://www.google.com/schemas/play-podcasts/1.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Hiroki’s: Visual Notes]]></title><description><![CDATA[Small fragments of Tokyo life, everyday observations, and visual notes.]]></description><link>https://ashandcotokyo.substack.com/s/visual-notes</link><image><url>https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!lSD6!,w_256,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8dfc9d70-296e-458e-ba6c-800af97a3165_640x640.png</url><title>Hiroki’s: Visual Notes</title><link>https://ashandcotokyo.substack.com/s/visual-notes</link></image><generator>Substack</generator><lastBuildDate>Thu, 11 Jun 2026 23:27:44 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://ashandcotokyo.substack.com/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><copyright><![CDATA[Hiroki Tsukamoto / Ash & Co.]]></copyright><language><![CDATA[en]]></language><webMaster><![CDATA[ashandcotokyo@substack.com]]></webMaster><itunes:owner><itunes:email><![CDATA[ashandcotokyo@substack.com]]></itunes:email><itunes:name><![CDATA[Hiroki]]></itunes:name></itunes:owner><itunes:author><![CDATA[Hiroki]]></itunes:author><googleplay:owner><![CDATA[ashandcotokyo@substack.com]]></googleplay:owner><googleplay:email><![CDATA[ashandcotokyo@substack.com]]></googleplay:email><googleplay:author><![CDATA[Hiroki]]></googleplay:author><itunes:block><![CDATA[Yes]]></itunes:block><item><title><![CDATA[The Plum Season]]></title><description><![CDATA[A quiet note on the fleeting flavors of early summer.]]></description><link>https://ashandcotokyo.substack.com/p/the-plum-season</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://ashandcotokyo.substack.com/p/the-plum-season</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Hiroki]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Tue, 09 Jun 2026 21:46:05 GMT</pubDate><enclosure url="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png" length="0" type="image/jpeg"/><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The rich, sweet aroma of plums ripening on our dining table has filled the entire room, bringing a beautiful sense of freshness to the air.</p><div class="captioned-image-container"><figure><a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" target="_blank" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png" data-component-name="Image2ToDOM"><div class="image2-inset"><picture><source type="image/webp" srcset="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,w_424,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png 424w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,w_848,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png 848w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,w_1272,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png 1272w, https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!bcFY!,w_1456,c_limit,f_webp,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Ff3adbe2f-2be4-413d-bf74-9fe8c15ad567_1200x630.png 1456w" sizes="100vw"><img 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class="pencraft pc-display-flex pc-gap-8 pc-reset"><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container restack-image"><svg role="img" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20" fill="none" stroke-width="1.5" stroke="var(--color-fg-primary)" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><g><title></title><path d="M2.53001 7.81595C3.49179 4.73911 6.43281 2.5 9.91173 2.5C13.1684 2.5 15.9537 4.46214 17.0852 7.23684L17.6179 8.67647M17.6179 8.67647L18.5002 4.26471M17.6179 8.67647L13.6473 6.91176M17.4995 12.1841C16.5378 15.2609 13.5967 17.5 10.1178 17.5C6.86118 17.5 4.07589 15.5379 2.94432 12.7632L2.41165 11.3235M2.41165 11.3235L1.5293 15.7353M2.41165 11.3235L6.38224 13.0882"></path></g></svg></button><button tabindex="0" type="button" class="pencraft pc-reset pencraft icon-container view-image"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 24 24" fill="none" stroke="currentColor" 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It is a traditional time when households across Japan start crafting their own <em>umeshu</em> (plum liqueur), jams, and <em>umeboshi</em> (pickled plums).</p><p>My wife&#8217;s homemade <em>umeboshi</em> (pickled plums) always turn out incredibly fruity and absolutely delicious. I&#8217;m already looking forward to this year&#8217;s batch.</p><div><hr></div><p>If you enjoyed the quiet cadence of this story, consider pouring a small glass of support. You can buy me a glass of sake on Ko-fi.</p><p class="button-wrapper" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://ko-fi.com/ashandcotokyo&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Buy Me a Glass of Sake&quot;,&quot;action&quot;:null,&quot;class&quot;:null}" data-component-name="ButtonCreateButton"><a class="button primary" href="https://ko-fi.com/ashandcotokyo"><span>Buy Me a Glass of Sake</span></a></p>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>