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When I have a
When I have a problem getting an appliance or bit of equipment to work, I grab the manual and a translation dictionary and spend hours translating. When our friend John had some trouble with his security system yesterday, he grabbed the phone. A chat with a technician got the problem solved in a few minutes.…
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,Lever 2000, a brand
,Lever 2000, a brand of American “family body wash,” claims on its bottle that it has Over 70 Uses. Intrigued, I called the Lever Consumer Hotline (1-800-598-5005) to find out more. “Hello, Kathleen,” I began after the introductions. “I have a bottle of your body wash and it says there are over 70 uses. Do…
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“Um, I think we
“Um, I think we have a gas leak,” Tod called from the bedroom. Sure enough, the room was filled with the odor of natural gas. (Do you know that that stinky scent is added to the gas to make sure that when there is a problem, you can smell it?) Time to call the gas…
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We hosted a holiday
We hosted a holiday party for some of Tod’s coworkers. 17 guests represented 7 nationalities: Australian, Irish, British, Indian, Chinese, Japanese and American. Quite international. Yuki, a Japanese woman who works on the NT team, confided in me. “When I am married and have a house, I want to have a home party like this.”…
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On this crisp, sunny
On this crisp, sunny morning, the woman across the way is hanging out her laundry. Her first action is to wipe the city grime from the laundry poles. She lifts the pole down at one end and her hand sweeps along its length. This looks more like ballet than a household chore. In the laundry…
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When I was a
When I was a kid, I loved joke shops, the sort of places that sold fart cushions and plastic ice cubes with embedded bugs. One of the jokes I never tried was the toothpaste that makes the victim’s teeth turn black. Now that I live in Japan, I don’t have to be subvert. Binotomo “Nasu…
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The postman rings pretty
The postman rings pretty many times. Two days ago I found a notice from the postman in my mailbox. He had tried to deliver a package while I was out. The form gave me many options: specify a date and time for them to redeliver; have the package delivered to a different address (residence or…
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When I was a
When I was a kid, I sat on the floor a lot. Maybe I was preparing for life in Japan. In the traditional Japanese home, furniture is low to the ground. Windows are near the floor; everything is grounded. You’ve probably seen the classic, low dining table with cushions scattered around it. Maybe you’ve slept…
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From 1960 to today,
From 1960 to today, Japan’s population has increased 130%. Its energy consumption has increased 550%. Looking around my house, I can see how that happened a little bit at a time as each new convenience and luxury was introduced. In the kitchen, I have an electric water pot that is on 24 hours a day,…
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There is a restaurant
There is a restaurant chain here in Tokyo called Kushikyu (which is a wordplay too difficult to describe in English) that serves “foods without a country.” Their menu features fusion cuisine–rice ball croquettes, kim chee stew–that are ultimately uniquely Japanese. It’s always a treat to see what specials they are cooking up this week. Not…
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