# 【水谷加奈/いとうあさこ】2026年10月21日 大脇昆布・阿刀田高 ＋ 今日のニュース（トラック新法で本の価格2割UP／防衛省ファンド 大学の応募最多／米中ロ首脳会談／マスク氏 子供に1株ずつ）

- Show: オープニング - 大竹まことゴールデンラジオ！
- Published: 2026-10-21
- Canonical: https://podc.club/en/episode/265579439_377aea589441.html
- Audio: https://traffic.megaphone.fm/NCB2354274798.mp3
- Source: Edited from a machine transcript of the first 30 minutes of the episode. Not an official summary.

The October 21, 2026 broadcast of Otake Makoto Golden Radio! (大竹まことゴールデンラジオ！) was a special-week episode featuring guests Itou Asako (いとうあさこ) and Mizutani Kana (水谷加奈). Topics ranged from a Noto kombu product whose sales exploded after a simple name change, to novelist Atoda Takashi's (阿刀田高) quiet philosophy of life in his 90s, to news that book prices may rise 20% under incoming trucking regulations.

## What this episode answers

### Why did the Noto 'kombu for toast' start selling so well?

Renaming the product from 'kombu for rice' to 'kombu for toast' was enough to push sales to 200–300 jars at a time; the low-sodium, umami-forward spread pairs naturally with warm buttered toast, which compensates for the kombu's restrained saltiness.

### What kind of life does 90-something author Atoda Takashi lead, and what words left an impression on Otake?

Atoda Takashi lives alone in a two-story house in his 90s, eats simply (vegetables, a boiled egg, toast), and writes at his desk every day; the line that resonated most with Otake was 'Well, we're alive—what can you do?' (生きてんだからしょうがないよ), summing up a calm, unforced approach to daily life.

### How will book prices change when the new trucking law takes effect?

The new trucking act, enforced in stages through 2028, will roughly double book freight costs, and combined with rising paper and printing costs, book prices are projected to rise about 20%—a ¥1,500 book would become ¥1,800 and a ¥2,000 book would become ¥2,400.

### What grave-visiting stories did Itou Asako and Mizutani Kana share?

Itou Asako visited her father's grave in Kyoto for the first time in five or six years and couldn't recognize it due to overgrown grass and changed surroundings, finally identifying it by a neighboring nameplate; Mizutani Kana reported that her late father's dying wish—for her to return to Otake's show—had now been fulfilled.

### What is Otake Makoto's recent health condition and diet like?

Otake is recovering from surgery and has started eating one boiled egg every morning for his health; people around him have noticed his cheeks look smoother and rosier, and Itou Asako urged him to take in more fat by eating a monaka filled with sweet bean paste and butter.

## Article

## Noto's "Kombu for Toast"—A Name Change That Changed Everything

The conversation started with a souvenir: a jar of kombu brought back from Noto by the show's resident history writer. Made by Owaki Konbu (大脇昆布) in Noto, Ishikawa Prefecture, the product is called "Kombu to Put on Toast," and Otake Makoto has already gone through two jars. Low in salt and rich in kombu umami, the spread pairs perfectly with warm buttered toast, the butter compensating for the saltiness the kombu holds back.

The product's back story is almost more interesting than the product itself. It originally sold as "Kombu to Put on Rice"—and even when stocked at a well-known store, it barely moved. The makers reasoned that if it went with rice, it should go with bread, and simply changed the name. Sales jumped to 200–300 jars at a time. "Products are a mysterious thing," Otake remarked.

Owaki Konbu is run by a husband-and-wife team rebuilding after the Noto disaster, and the company is the only producer of oboro-kombu shavings in Ishikawa Prefecture. "People are strong," Otake said. Currently eating a boiled egg every morning as part of his post-surgery recovery, he mentioned wanting to try dipping one into the kombu.

## Author Atoda Takashi at 90-Something: "Well, We're Alive—What Can You Do?"

The night before, Otake had watched an NHK interview with novelist Atoda Takashi, who is somewhere in his early 90s. Atoda lives alone in a two-story house, his hearing still sharp, sitting at his desk to write every day. His meals are simple—vegetables, a boiled egg, toast—nearly identical to Otake's own diet, which drew laughs from the studio.

Atoda also spoke about the hardships of his youth. His father died when he was 15, and he himself spent roughly a year and a half hospitalized with something like pneumonia. While his peers graduated and moved on, he was left behind with nothing to do but read. Small magazine assignments eventually found him, and he went on to work at a library while making his way toward becoming a writer.

The line that stuck with Otake: "Well, we're alive—what can you do?" No forcing, no great striving—just a quiet daily habit of putting something on the page. "I wonder if I'll ever reach a place like that," Mizutani Kana said wistfully. She and Itou Asako laughed and admitted they were both far too fond of earthly desires to claim otherwise.

## Grave Visits and the Modern Automated Ossuary

Itou Asako shared that she had visited her father's grave in Kyoto for the first time in five or six years. The grass had grown wild—like a field of foxtail—and the orientation she remembered and the large trees around it were gone. "It was a grave I didn't know," she said, drawing laughter. She finally located her family's plot by spotting the nameplate "Itō" a few lots over.

Mizutani Kana revealed that her late father had said, just before he died, "I'd be happy if you came back to Otake-san's show." Today's appearance, she said, was that wish coming true.

The conversation then moved to a high-tech ossuary in Tokyo where a card key summons your loved one's remains on an automated system, and visitors can choose from five differently colored rooms. When the show's crew visited for a location shoot, they met a man who stopped in every evening on his way home from work to talk with his father. The hosts viewed it warmly as an accessible new form of memorial—though they also noted the rising trend of grave closures and dwindling membership at traditional temple parishes.

## News: Book Prices Expected to Rise 20% Under New Trucking Law

Drawing on a Tokyo Shimbun column by Saitō Minako (斉藤美奈子), the show examined the pressures bearing down on books during Reading Week, which runs through November 9.

At the center is the new trucking act passed in June 2023, to be enforced in stages through 2028. Until now, book freight costs have been kept low by piggybacking on the bulk shipment of magazines. Once the law takes effect, contracts below the government-set minimum freight rate will be banned. Shipping costs are expected to roughly double, and combined with already rising paper and printing costs, book prices are projected to climb about 20%: a ¥1,500 book would become ¥1,800; a ¥2,000 book, ¥2,400.

Seven newspaper and publishing organizations submitted a petition to the prime minister in September, but the column notes that from the trucking industry's perspective, fair rates are simply a reasonable demand—and this tide will not turn back. Saitō calls on publishing to find its own comeback move, the way music found streaming, and closes with: "If books die, culture dies."

Otake spoke of the pleasure of scanning a shelf of spines, or pulling out an old book on impulse—joys only physical books can offer. He voiced concern about bookstores surviving largely on manga sales and about the hard reality that prices, once raised, never come back down.

## Takeaways

- Owaki Konbu's product went from unsellable to moving 200–300 jars at a time simply by changing its name from 'kombu for rice' to 'kombu for toast.'
- Novelist Atoda Takashi continues writing alone in his 90s with the quiet philosophy 'Well, we're alive—what can you do?'—a phrase that resonated deeply with Otake Makoto.
- The new trucking law, enforced through 2028, will roughly double book freight costs and, combined with rising paper and printing prices, is projected to push book prices up by about 20%.