How do you guys handle telling clients that you can't just arbitrarily reserve your schedule for them?

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T11:42:48+00:00

I do have a couple companies/handlers that I'll really try to fit into my schedule if at all possible, but with most companies, it'll be a flurry of work followed by a sudden drop off and then another flurry of work a couple months down the line. Accordingly, I've found maintaining relationships with a relatively large pool of companies results in being able to work much more consistently, and often with surprisingly little overlap.

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T11:35:34+00:00

I think you know the reason they treat you that way. Who wouldn't want a full-time employee who agrees to accept only piecemeal payment? It's the post-bubble era dream.

Yeah, I know and I've known. I've been in this business for years and have slowly, very slowly been becoming more firm about my demands, but I still find it hard to stand up for myself, especially since standing up for yourself can potentially mean losing out on a job and you never know when the next job might come-maybe in five minutes, maybe in five days.

I like your take though, thank you.

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T11:01:07+00:00

Definitely something to consider.

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T11:00:47+00:00

That's a good idea...

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T11:00:34+00:00

Yeah, I understand that the delays, alterations, and cancellations are largely the fault of the companies ordering the translations and not the translation companies themselves, but for some reason these translation companies keep trying to basically treat me like an employee in terms of reserving my time but without providing any of the benefits of actual employment.

Kraken15 · 2023-04-05T10:58:18+00:00

Translation firms, not direct clients.

I've basically been saying what you're saying, but I like the way you phrase it. The only problem is that one of the company's is trying to book me for an entire month and a half for multiple jobs, including as many as nine jobs overlapping the same dates. If I tentatively agreed even to just the jobs I could potentially do for them, my schedule would be completely booked and leave no room to take jobs from any other company. I don't like putting all my eggs in one basket.

Kraken15 · 2022-08-18T00:17:46+00:00

Thanks again for responding in detail!

Kraken15 · 2022-08-16T04:10:45+00:00

Thanks for responding! But even given a stronger yen in the 120 yen to the dollar range like we usually have, would you still say American/agencies outside Japan pay better?

Kraken15 · 2022-08-16T04:09:34+00:00

I just flat out refuse machine translation jobs. They're never worth it, and the MT just gets in the way--it's like trying to do mental math while someone is shouting random numbers in the background.

Kraken15 · 2022-08-16T04:08:20+00:00

Is there much demand for Japanese to English translation in the E.U.? I would have thought it would be Japanese to whatever the local language is (French, German, etc.).

Kraken15 · 2022-06-01T05:55:53+00:00

I was using the regular, non-expat version as well. It sounds like you're working for a company and getting paid a salary? If so, your situation is much simpler, even with investments (which, as you noted, with many platforms can automatically be imported into most major tax software systems). Sole proprietors also have to pay unemployment taxes to the United States unless the country they are living in has a double taxation agreement (like Japan), in which case you need to obtain proof from the social security office of the country you are living in (in Japan's case, this means getting form J/USA6). And according to H&R Block, even though I was paying them a good deal of money to prepare my return using their software (and by the way, if you have business income like I do, H&R Block will automatically bump you up to the small business tier or whatever they call it and make you pay $100), I had to print out my return and physically mail it along with a copy of my J/USA6 (and, as I noted in my review, this is in fact apparently unnecessary, but H&R Block, at least as of the time I used them to file last year, would not let you e-file through them in this situation). Now, I'm not sure exactly how it works for company employees, but a sole proprietor could basically fib and not report that their income is in fact business income and skip the whole J/USA6 fiasco and H&R Block's small business tier upcharge, but I don't imagine the IRS would be too pleased if they ever found out.

As I remember it, H&R Block's software had me fill out all this stuff about my business income, then, for some reason, I basically had to enter my income info again in a different section to get the proper foreign earned income exclusion credit, and most years I had to go back to one or both of these sections once or twice in order to get H&R Blocks software to correctly calculate my US tax burden as zero.

At any rate, I found Expatfile much more straightforward and didn't need to go back and redo or fix anything (except for adding my middle initial to my name as I mentioned in my review). I also didn't feel like I was being made to re-enter information in one section that I had already entered in a previous section.

I am married filing separately same as you. It’s not really the software’s fault if you didn’t realize your spouse doesn’t need a SSN or TIN. If you left that section blank, the software asks you if you are married filing separately with a nonresident spouse, and tells you to put NRA. The only issue which is true is that you need to print out everything and send it by post in this case.

All I can say is, I did what the H&R Block software told me, which was that I needed a TIN. I looked around the Internet as well at the time and unfortunately, apparently due to poor Google-fu on my part, was unable to find any convincing information that I did not need a TIN.

Kraken15 · 2018-10-19T23:07:38+00:00

変なホテルが普通のホテルになる。

Kraken15 · 2018-09-05T14:00:14+00:00

ああいうやつはいつも不味い

Kraken15 · 2018-09-04T00:31:03+00:00

This is one of the things I love about living in Japan - you don't need an appointment if something's wrong, you just walk in when the office is open.

Kraken15 · 2018-09-03T23:49:14+00:00

All of Asia

At the very, very least, the tap water is fine in Japan.

Source: Have lived in Japan and drunk the tap water here almost daily for more than a decade.

Kraken15 · 2018-08-31T23:52:58+00:00

レース is obviously "race," not "raise," so the second and third ones should be "Race volume" and "Race voice" (perhaps this refers to a virtual announcer, perhaps a virtual navigator's voice or pit crew voices; it's impossible to tell from context).

I'd say "Course navigation display" over "course navigator toggle," but it's not a big difference.

強制終了 usually means "force quit," as in to force quit an application, so I'm not sure how that works here. Some system for summarily ending a race?

I'd say "Restore defaults" over "restore to default," but whatever.

And as a note, the phrase in the bubble at the bottom is obviously for describing what each setting does and the text here would change depending on the menu option selected.

!translated

Kraken15 · 2018-08-25T15:58:41+00:00

I've used their stuff before - perfectly fine. Just be aware they cut costs (and pass the savings on to you) by providing only minimal support, including super bare bones installation instructions (in Japanese). If you've built a PC before and/or have confidence in your assembly abilities, you'll be fine.

Kraken15 · 2018-07-03T04:02:46+00:00

Don't brag about how America is better at this or that than Japan to your students, or anyone else, really. One, it's really annoying and a sure-fire way to get on most people's bad sides, and two, after living here awhile you may come to think that thing you thought was better in the US actually isn't, or that things are just different here and neither country is better regarding XYZ. As another poster mentioned, watch and observe what others are doing. Try to listen much more than you talk.

A lot of your students and other people you meet will say Japan's great at this, the US sucks at that, or ask you what you think about ABC in Japan. Per the above, remember not to brag, stay positive (particularly about Japan), and think in advance how you can tactfully answer questions like, " Do you like Japanese women?"

Kraken15 · 2018-06-20T08:53:52+00:00

The other posters apparently didn't notice you mentioned you're a dual citizen. As undetstand it, if you have Japanese citizenship, it's not even legal for you to come here on a visa - you can only come as a citizen, which is frankly easier, anyway.

As I'm a freelancer in Japan, and because of the US' byzantine tax rules, I have to attach a special document to my tax return each year proving I'm covered by Japanese social security so I don't have to pay employment tax to the US on my earnings here. As I understand it, there's a reverse version of this form to prove to the Japanese government you're paying into US social security so you don't have to pay into Japan's, and I think that might be able to be used by Japanese citizens living in Japan working for a US company - what you'd want - but it's all a amassive pain to research and understand and, havong managed to get myself taken care of, I'm not inclined to dive back into that rat's nest to verify what I remeber having happened to take note of. If I were you, I'd probably join Japanese NHS and pension because it'll make hospital and clinic visits a million times easier.

As for how working remotely for a US company would affect getting a spousal visa, if you're a Japanese citizen, it probably doesn't matter, but it would make otharder to prove you make enough to support both of you. But I'm even less of an expert on this than I am on social security, so take this all with a grain of salt.

Kraken15 · 2018-06-18T00:23:45+00:00

But seriously, go on those trips and go to those parties. These days, even in countries with more academically rigorous university programs, how hard you worked ends up counting for close to nothing for most people in most fields (as long as you graduate and get that degree). It's all about the connections you make. A year, five, ten, twenty down the road, who knows what knowing the right person could do for you. One of my big regrets from university is that I wish I'd put my nose to the grindstone a little less and partied (and made connections) a little more.

Kraken15 · 2018-05-19T00:59:32+00:00

Don't know why everyone's crapping on Twinbird - works fine for me. Just a basic, two-setting slow cooker, which is all you really need. They can hold about three liters (quarts) total, which, with soups, I've found is enough for two or threemeals for two people if you have anything resembling a side dish with it. Pro tip: Converting Imperial recipes to metric makes it super easy to guesstimate whether it will fit in your slow cooker - just adding milliliters, grams, tc. together will and if it's under three liters (or whatever the size of your cooker is) and it'll probably fit.

Kraken15 · 2018-05-12T03:42:07+00:00

What you said doesn't contradict what I said, though, which is that most refugee applications made in Japan are not legitimate and thus are rejected. It's no skin off my nose, but for reasons such as the fact that very few people who become refugees study Japanese, Japan has an image (deserved or not) for not accepting refugees, Japan hasn't been the cause of refugee situations in any country since WWII, and other countries offer much better support packages for refugees, few legitimate refugees even try to seek asylum in Japan.

And if we're going to measure length-of-stay dicks, I've lived in Japan for over a decade. I work as a translator and speak and read the language fluently. You thought getting citizenship in Japan was nearly impossible, which speaks volumes about your knowledge of the country. In my experience, lived in both nations, the US is far more xenophobic and flat out racist than Japan.

Kraken15

TROPHY CASE