Serializing my posts

I'm going to try to do something different here by serializing some of my posts on specific topics since I realize that people don't always have the time or attention span to read long blog posts.

Su Beng at his noodle shop in Tokyo

Today I called Su Beng who is currently in Tokyo at his noodle shop in Ikebukuro. Though he needs to use a wheelchair to get around, he still manages to swim every day. He's been back there since late June, trying to reestablish his noodle shop's business. It's been tough. Business is just not the same.

After recently completing a draft of a sample chapter for his biography, I felt that I needed to talk to him to clarify a few things pertaining to the chapter. As always, he welcomed my call. His seemed to be in good spirits and his voice sounded strong.

He told me that it's pretty hot there in in Tokyo where the temperature is around 36-37 degrees Celsius, but he has no air conditioning there, just an electric fan. Being able to swim every day makes the heat a bit more bearable for him.

Sounds like he is planning to stay in Tokyo until November or December in order to try to get things up and running again at his noodle shop.

I am concerned about him being over there in the heat in his advanced age, but there is someone there looking after him. I also wonder how he can turn things around and what could possibly be done to improve the noodle shop's business.

In the coming months, I plan on having more telephone conversations with Su Beng, as I work through writing each chapter for the biography.