Use of ただいま to others who are not physically present Imagine that I live alone. Occasionally when I get home, I still want to announce that I'm home (such as with a text message) because perhaps my parents are making sure I got home safely or perhaps an online friend wants to do stuff together. Would still be an appropriate announcement here? Or is there some other way to announce that I'm home to someone who is not physically present in the house?

I would use or something along those lines.

You do occasionally see (for example, in novels), a person say to an empty room to emphasize the speaker's lonesome state, such as if he's lost a loved one, or that he's simply feeling lonely, etc. but you won't be saying to someone who you're in conversation with.

A more modern youngster might well prefer something like though... or is that already too old?