Snow in Tokyo

Today it snowed all day. Tokyo is similar to Portland in that it doesn't snow much or often. So, today was a great day for the boys. We had fun playing in the snow and making a snowman. It was just above freezing and the snow was pretty wet, so it was good for making snow balls.

Putting on Makeup on the Way to Work

Most in the US have seen women putting makeup on while driving. With the hectic lives most families live these days, I can understand the need for multi-tasking. Most people are doing multiple things at the same time in order to get everything done. This need for multi-tasking seems to be pretty true in Japan as well.

Many times while riding the train I have witnessed one or two women putting their makeup on. I have seen women of almost all ages applying their makeup while riding the train. After all, most commutes seem to be 20 minutes or so per train, and most people I know ride 2-3 trains per commute, so there is a lot of free time on the trains. Most women prefer to sit down while applying makeup, but I have seen a few of the younger ones put makeup on while standing on the train. Standing up while putting makeup on requires a good sense of balance as most women use one hand to hold a compact mirror and the other hand to apply their makeup, so they have no free hands to hold on with. I especially notice the makeup applying during the evening commute as most people that head out for the evening do so directly from work rather than going home first.

This week I witnessed the most interesting occurrence of makeup applying while on the walk from the train station to my office. Twice this week while waiting for the crosswalk at the intersection nearest my work, I noticed the same lady pull up on her bicycle to wait for the crosswalk, reach into the basket on the front of her bicycle, unzip her makeup bag, and begin applying her makeup. This morning she was using her eyelash curler to make sure her eyelashes were curled just right. As soon as the crosswalk was clear for us, she quickly tossed her supplies in her bag, zipped it up, and took off across the street. At the other side she needed to wait for the crosswalk in the other direction. While waiting, I noticed that again she pulled out her makeup and began applying it until it was clear to cross the street. I guess it’s not too different from women in the US applying makeup at each traffic light, I just thought it was amusing to see it done on a bicycle. But now that I think more about it, it makes perfect sense as people here use trains and bicycles rather than cars.

The Soundest Train Sleeper

One thing that has always amazed me when riding trains here is how some people can completely pass out and sleep so sound that they actually snore. This is especially interesting to watch on the short run commuter trains. When I lived in Japan before, I had many discussions with friends about train sleeping. People would explain to me that because trains are quiet, warm in the winter, safe, fairly comfortable, and have a certain hum to them, they are conducive to sleeping. The Japanese also love to sleep on buses, planes, cars, ferries, and basically anything that moves.

One observation I have made is that while some people seem to sleep through every train stop, they somehow suddenly wake up and bolt for the door when their stop is reached. It is like an instinct. Their timing seems to be analogous to migratory birds knowing just when to move on when the season turns. I have often wondered if people missed stops or not. I have not found very many folks who would confess to missing their stop. Most people tell me that after riding the same train for so many days, weeks, months, years, they become very accustomed to the feel of the route. They know the bumps, turns, jolts, and screeches made at specific spots along the route and also have become accustomed to the amount of time it takes to get from one place to another. Their body learns the route. I can understand this. From my home station, whenever I get on the train at track 4, there is always a jarring when the train merges from track 4 to the main track. I always lean into the jar in advance so when it happens I am not thrown off balance. I often witness a lot of people that don’t anticipate the jarring and get thrown around.

Last Saturday I witnessed my first oblivious train sleeper. It was about 1:30 in the afternoon and I was heading home from a business trip. I was at my main transfer station waiting on the platform for the train to arrive. This train line ends at this station, so when the train arrives, everyone shuffles off, new people get on, and the train heads back in the direction it just came from. When I got on the train, I noticed a man in his 30’s sitting in the section normally reserved for passengers who are elderly, sick, handicapped, pregnant, or otherwise needing a guaranteed place to sit. He was holding what looked like an overnight bag and looked as if he were heading out on a trip or coming back from one. This guy was snoring soundly and completely unaware of the train’s arrival at the end of the line. A couple of elderly ladies boarded the train and were heading to that section and were discussing whether or not they should wake the guy up. One lady decided to give it a try. She gently tapped the guy on the shoulder with no result. She tapped him again, harder, but still with no result, so she gave up and sat down. Another elderly lady boarded the train and upon noticing the guy sleeping, was told by the previous ladies that he wouldn’t wake up. So, she decided to gently shake the guy. On the 2nd time, he mumbled something, but kept sleeping. She shook the guy again, harder, and he kind of woke up. She told him a couple of times it was the end of the line. He didn’t care. He said he wanted to keep sleeping. So, respecting his wishes, she left him alone and sat down.
After a few minutes, the train was full, the doors closed, and we left the station, headed in the direction the train (and the oblivious sleeper) just came from. I rode the train for about 12 minutes before getting off. The guy snored the whole time, completely unaware of his situation. Apparently he really needed the sleep. In all the years I have ridden on trains and buses in Japan, I have never seen anyone quite this tired. I have no idea what eventually happened to that guy, but at least he got his sleep.

Staying in the Company Dorms

My 2nd day back to work this year consisted of a trip south to visit my boss in his office. My boss works in an office located at one of our factories outside of Nagoya. It is about 250 miles from Tokyo and takes a little over 2 hours to get there. To get there I rode a Bullet Train for 1 hour and 43 minutes, than took 4 local trains for about 1 hour. It was interesting as I had never been there by myself and had never ridden on those local trains before. To be honest, I was worried about making all the connections on my own and getting there on time, especially when local trains outside the cities rarely have much English. All went smooth and I made it.

After meeting with my boss and meeting the other members of my team for the first time, we had the usual business review meetings. After that was done, we ventured out for dinner. Japanese love to have dinner and drinks and relax. We enjoyed a great time of getting to know each other, and of course, it was just another opportunity to practice my Japanese as none of these people were experienced at English conversation.

After a night out, it was time to turn in for some sleep. Since we have a factory in that city, we also have a company dorm. To save money, employees visiting that city often stay in the company dorm. It was very much like the dorm I lived in at the Univ. of Oregon with almost the same furnishings and style, which gave me a strong sense of deja vu. The one exception was that the dorm had a huge, traditional Japanese style bathing area. I found this to be perfect after a night out; sitting in the bath warming up and sweating a little before turning in.

The next morning I found myself on my own, out in a light snow, in a place I had never been before, with a cold and a slight headache, looking for a train station. This was not the area that I had arrived at the previous day, so I set out on an adventure trying to figure out where the train station was. Luckily I found someone opening a shop nearby and they sort of steered me in the right direction. Eventually I found the station and made my way back home. It was a good adventure, but once again, it reminded me how much I enjoy being in a new place with no knowledge of what I’m doing and trying to figure out how to get somewhere. It’s a fun challenge, especially when you don’t have any specific deadline for getting somewhere.

Visiting With Richmond People in Japan

During the holiday break we got to visit with Jumpei’s family. Jumpei is one of Michael’s good buddies from the Japanese Magnet Program that Michael attended at Richmond Elementary in Portland. Jumpei’s dad came back to Japan early last year. Jumpei and his mother just returned in December 2005. While at Jumpei’s house we got to visit with Mogi-sensei, their 2nd grade teacher at Richmond. Mogi-sensei was in Japan for the holidays visiting her family nearby. We had a great time talking, laughing and enjoying great Japanese food. The boys had a super time playing Gameboy and enjoying a sleepover at our place one night and then one at Jumpei’s the next night. What a great time seeing Richmond people in Japan.

New Years Day

We started 2006 off with traditional Japanese food consisting of chestnuts in sweet potato paste; sweet black beans; sweetened, dried fish; seaweed rolls stuffed with fish; shredded carrots/daikon radish in vinegar sauce; cured fish; fish paste; and other assorted foods. It was delicious and Tommy loved it the most. It's always a great treat to have the special New Year's day foods.

After breakfast we went around to Mio’s dad’s house and to the neighbors’ houses and wished them a Happy New Year. Following that, we went to the local shrine to wish for a healthy, happy New Year. You can see Mio surveying her options for buying New Year’s wishes at the shrine.

Last Office Day of 05, First Office Day of 06

The last working day of the 2005 was a busy one. Everyone rushed to finish cleaning, re-arranging and thanking each other for their help and efforts during the year. KIt was a record sales year. There was a lot of bowing going on all around. We also had a visit by the President of the company and by the Senior VP of our division. It sure made for a busy day. At 3:30 pm a last meeting of the year was called for our entire floor (around 90 people). The meeting consisted of thank-yous from the Senior VP and division managers. Then they broke out the beer, wine, whiskey, Japanese shochu, and snacks. It was time for everyone to toast each other, relax a little, and then head home for the break. The office was officially closed for 6 days.

The first day back in the office was also quite busy. People ran around all morning saying their New Year’s greetings to each other. It’s kind of complex. People say them to managers, managers say them to their troops and other managers, and people visit other divisions that they work with, and so on. Then the top bosses come around and say them to the managers and workers. All these greetings include a lot of bowing. In our group we must have stood up, bowed, muttered our responses, and sat down at least 20 times during the first 30 minutes of work. It was good exercise. Once everyone finished running around and greeting each other, it was time to sit down and get to work until lunch time.

At lunch time, all employees from the Tokyo office headed over to a nearby hotel for speeches by the company President, Senior VP of our division, and some others. After standing for about 1 hour, the speeches were done and we were asked to step out of the banquet room while they readied it for lunch. Once we re-entered the banquet room, we were treated to beer, whiskey, lots of sushi, and other foods. The lunch started with the compulsory ‘kanpai’ toast. After standing around for about 1 1/2 hours eating, continuing New Year’s greetings and bowing, we were free to go home. The New Year has now officially started.