General Living In Japan | The Japan Guy

General Living in Japan

Moving To Tokyo?

December 13, 2012
By
Moving To Tokyo?

Hey gang, I wanna say thank you guys for checking on me as of late. I appreciate the emails and comments asking how I’ve been, and everybody making sure that all is well. You guys are the best! I hope you guys are all good, too. Truthfully, I’ve run into my snags here and there chasing after this dream of living life on my terms. I have been lucky enough to land some gigs to help me get by, but I have been scraping. I’m sure I probably mentioned it, but I have been teaching part-time at Google to help balance things out, but it’s still not enough. I have a had a small...

Read more »

Spring Time, Kafunshou Time

April 25, 2012
By
Spring Time, Kafunshou Time

Do you know what the Japanese term kafunshou (かふんしょう or 花粉症) means? Well, this is pretty neat opportunity for a small Japanese vocab lesson I just learned. The term kafun (かふん or 花粉) means pollen. The term sho (しょう or 症) means symptoms or illness. When you put the two together, kafunshou, it means allergies. Cool right? Much like springtime in the U.S., every year, brilliantly-colored, blossoming buds release copious amounts of their flower love powder into Japan’s air. The resulting effect is allergies a plenty. Allergies give people the sneezes, runny noses, itchy eyes, and a small dose yearly hell for those who are really pollen sensitive. I used to feel quite lucky...

Read more »

How to Stay Warm During a Japanese Winter (Part 1): Enter the Kairo

February 20, 2012
By
How to Stay Warm During a Japanese Winter (Part 1): Enter the Kairo

I don’t hate winter, but let’s just say it’s my least favorite of the four seasons. Even during Japan’s summer heat and extreme humidity, I would always say “Yeah, it’s really hot out here, but at least being too hot, isn’t as bad as being too cold.” To me, being the Georgia boy that I am, walking around in the cold is about as much fun as having a monkey double fisting handfuls of feces at my head. Not cool…not cool at all. So today, let’s take a brief look at a cool, inexpensive, Japanese item to keep you warm this winter season: enter the kairo!! What is a kairo? A kairo is essentially...

Read more »

My Five Biggest Japan Gripes

February 16, 2012
By
My Five Biggest Japan Gripes

Ah Japan…the Land of the Rising Sun, home of some of the most beautiful temples & shrines you will ever see, and a hot spot for all things tech. So, I’ll admit. I love living in Japan. I could probably write a mile-long list of the reasons I think it’s so wonderful, but today, I don’t want to focus on that. Let’s look at the flip-side of that. Here are three of my biggest gripes about living and teaching in Japan: 1. Japanese Apartments & Elementary School Doors are not Tall-People Friendly GADONG!! “Sh*t!” That’s the sound of me hitting my head against the fume hood of my stove for the umpteenth time, and...

Read more »

Things to Keep in Mind Before Choosing Your Japanese Apartment

February 10, 2012
By
Things to Keep in Mind Before Choosing Your Japanese Apartment

This is my first full winter in my second Japanese apartment and I must say I am a little disappointed. Since moving in, I’ve noticed several things that make me believe that my previous apartment was the better place to live overall: insulation, heating and air-conditioning, circuitry, and repair response times. When I moved into my new apartment, winter was already well underway. I had a chance to do the walk-through but I didn’t notice any real issues. I went into the apartment with my jacket on so, things seemed to be okay. The things that struck me most, were the things I wanted: more space, and bigger windows. This apartment had just those...

Read more »

The Mystery of Japanese Integrity

September 23, 2011
By
The Mystery of Japanese Integrity

If you’re a foreigner and you’ve been here longer than a few months, I’m pretty sure you’ve experienced this. You’ve been on a train, at a restaurant, out with your friends, or somewhere in Japan, and forgotten an item that’s valuable enough to make your heart sink a little. Now, I can’t say everybody has been so lucky, but have you ever gone back to that place and found the item exactly where it was? Or, gone to the lost and found to find that nothing has been stolen??? It’s so fascinating to me. What makes this country so different? Let me start off by saying I’m not complaining at all. I think it’s...

Read more »

The Tsukuba Public Library

September 10, 2011
By
A nice, relaxing day at the public library.

It I am at the library right now. Just a short while ago I was sitting here reading and doing some weekend brainstorming, when I heard an announcement over the library speakers that there was going to be story time at three-o’clock. I looked down at my watch…”2:50.” I started packing my things away because I figured “What the hey.” I walked over to the 話し室 (hanashi shitsu or story room) and decided to take a seat outside so all of the kids and their parents could get closer to the storyteller. Though it really was just some simple, short stories…I really enjoyed what I saw. Several kids were really in a hurry to...

Read more »

Can Embracing Japanese Culture Make You Forget Your Own? (Part 1)

September 6, 2011
By
Can Embracing Japanese Culture Make You Forget Your Own? (Part 1)

Being transplanted into Japanese society, adhering to Japanese customs and being able to hold your own, thousands of miles away from family and hometown friends is sometimes no small feat. My sincerest kudos to all of those teachers, businessmen, entertainers, and other expats who do it everyday. When I talk about those times that aren’t easy, you know what I mean, right? There are those days when you step on the train, or walk into a room, and feel like the freak show division of the Japanese culture circus…all eyes are on you. Or maybe there are those days you feel like a mute, because you literally just can’t get the Japanese words out...

Read more »

What Happens if You Miss A Rent Payment in Japan?

July 27, 2011
By
What Happens if You Miss A Rent Payment in Japan?

I’m usually quite conscientious about making sure all of my bills get paid on time, even if it means I don’t have a lot of funds leftover. I just hate having debt burdens on my shoulders (DAMN YOU STUDENT LOANS!). There is one instance in recent memory where a silly, unintentional mistake ended up leaving my account just under what I needed to pay my rent. Whenever I get paid, the first things I set aside are my payments for my two student loans and my rent payment, which is 55,000 yen. I actually have set this money into a separate account to keep me from even being tempted to use it for any...

Read more »

The Four Most Important Documents You Need If You’re A Foreigner Living In Japan

July 10, 2011
By
The Four Most Important Documents You Need If You’re A Foreigner Living In Japan

Living abroad is a thrilling experience, it’s one of those things I will forever look back on as something that truly changed my life for the better. Getting here initially can be quite daunting for some, I know it was for me. Sometimes just not being able to make heads or tails of things can be pretty hard. So in today’s brief article, I wanted to mention the four most important documents you will have, as a foreigner, while living in Japan. I highly recommend making copies of these things just in case and being ABSOLUTELY sure you know where these documents are at all times. These four may seem like common sense to...

Read more »