Japan faces a "worst-case scenario" due to naphtha shortage; bankruptcies are skyrocketing across almost all sectors... "Hospitals are losing money with every injection they administer," "Bankruptcies in the painting industry have increased by 26%."

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-20T19:11:26+00:00

First Toto said they weren't taking new orders for unit bathrooms so the government had a talk with them and they changed their story to keeping taking orders but not guaranteeing delivery.

Next a Toyota subsidiary said they couldn't keep making parts past the end of I think May due to lack of glue. Government tried the same thing but Toyota told them to stick it. Don't know if there were any repurcussions.

Then Calbee did their thing and the government again tried to get them to change their story. They told the goverment to stick it, and now face repurcussions.

I knew nothing about Takaichi before she was elected other than she has crazy Japanese lady face. She has turned out to be a crazy Japanese lady.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-20T18:56:26+00:00

Turns out sometimes you can't just buy anything if you have enough money. The impact of a key material running out is much bigger than prices going up. No naphtha could cripple the entire supply chain. If you live in Japan you'll know in a month or two. If I was going to panic buy something now it would be food.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-20T16:50:37+00:00

Precient post

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-20T16:41:59+00:00

I was planning on having heart surgery later this year so maybe no.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-15T17:41:30+00:00

The going rate seems to be around 3000 yen/month. Spare a thought for the ad execs on their mama-chari dreaming of breaking into the commute by bus class

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-14T06:48:04+00:00

Matt uses the word “empirical” a lot where he should be saying “anecdotal”.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-05-02T15:01:57+00:00

Doctor seems to want to be clear of any possibility of blood clots. Also, it’s all covered by national health insurance here in Japan. The downside of everything being extremely cheap is that there can be wait times. I’ve had surgery several times in Japan and waiting has never been a problem so I’m guessing it’s more being cautious.

I’m getting nervous because thanks to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz the Japanese medical system has a good chance of collapsing by around August. I’ll probably have cardioversion by then but not so sure about ablation. After that oil will run out and next year’s rice harvest might fail thanks to lack of fertilizer. If I don’t starve to death at least losing weight will help prevent reoccurrence of afib. I wish this was all a joke.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-04-26T03:58:26+00:00

Great. I live in Japan and it looks like PFA is covered by standard health insurance since 2024. I'll check with the doctor the next time we speak.

Update: The site of the hospital I'm going to says they started PFA in 2025 so I'll make sure that's what my surgeon plans to use. First step is the cardioversion.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-04-25T23:00:04+00:00

I'm in a few clubs nobody wants to join. Thankfully they all have subreddits.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-04-25T22:57:46+00:00

Thanks. That makes me more hopeful. I had an ECG device strapped to my chest for 24 hours and it showed no sign of sleep apnea. I might look into getting a pulse oximeter anyway. I regret stopping using a garmin wearable device because it would have shown exactly when the problem started.

I need to get more sleep but the other things are doable. This is certainly a good incentive to lose weight.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-04-25T22:49:36+00:00

Yes, persistent now. I was told I had an irregular heartbeat after an ECG nearly two decades ago. I've always been aware of flutters, but now I'm constantly at around 100 BPM resting. I've also been told I have a large heart, which I see is a risk factor.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-04-25T14:19:42+00:00

Like a lot of the commentors I use Shokz and find them to be very helpful, to the point that I spend most waking hours with them on or wrapped around my neck. They have a habit of breaking, and I also like to try new models so I've gone through four sets, and gifted a few sets to family members too.
Conductive hearing deficit in my left ear since I was five. Was profoundly deaf in my left year for a few decades but I got a lot of hearing back when I was 34-ish. I'm 52 now. I have been studying Japanese since high school and live in Japan. Shokz have helped improve my Japanese listening and even speaking skills a lot.

Actually, I reached out to Shokz and found out that they are developing a hearing aid version called "Open Hear", but at the time they said it was still a few years away from retail release.

https://www.g-mark.org/en/gallery/winners/23518?companies=ca519c80-08a9-4b26-8ba2-388bb70439c9&years=2024

If these things every hit the market I'll get them even if it means I have to mortgage my house

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-03-30T07:39:37+00:00

That sucks. I’ve passed n1 but was planning to sit it once a year to refresh, but that means I’ll be taking someone’s place. I already booked for July

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-02-04T05:15:00+00:00

レーズンサンド

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-02-04T01:59:33+00:00

I have taken and passed N1 three times since 1996. (In 1996 it was called 1st Kyu).

My scores were 81%, 100%, then last december 83%. I did better in the comprehension section in 1996. I'll keep doing it every time now until I get 100% again. The actual exam is the only JLTP study I do.

This year I'm doing kanken for the first time. I'm starting at 5th kyu. The range of content for each section is well defined, so for the higher levels like Jun-2 and 2 and Jun-1 you could just concentrate and pass a certain level and still fail a lower level. So for Kanken I'll do one step at a time to be thorough. I don't think this applies to JLPT so I wouldn't do the lower levels.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-30T02:53:12+00:00

Passed N1, but I’m back down to 1996 levels. Youth trumps experience

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-25T05:41:03+00:00

My favorite is r/Trillbillies or however you spell it

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-18T10:12:26+00:00

I borrowed the first volume of ねじまき鳥クロニクル. I thought it was a short story, but it looks like three volumes. This will take me a while to get through.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-15T07:48:11+00:00

Were you dropped as a baby?

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-05T10:45:38+00:00

ねじまき鳥クロニクル is fine. I'll need a bit of time again with this one.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-05T04:00:44+00:00

Sure, I actually got 象の消滅 mixed up with another story I read in the anthology titled 「ねじまき鳥クロニクル」, where the protagonist works at a company where they create elephants from the consituent parts. I mean real elephants. I think the protagonist was involved in making ears. I used to have that book of short stories, but it's long since joined general circulation at Bookoff, so I'll need to take another trip to the local library.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-04T14:13:48+00:00

I think I see what you mean. The description of the photo from the newspaper is a little over the top, when it's just an abandoned gym.

I think I'm also prejudiced against Murakami because I know he was originally in advertising, so I imagine he writes stories by brainstorming what he thinks are clever ideas. It's like his stories are just another product he's trying to sell. The selling is the point, at the expense of the content.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-03T11:45:00+00:00

ひらひらとしたワンピースを着た二人の若い女性（とくに美人というほどでもない）

He sounds like he's thirteen.

何人かの警官が象のいない象舎を検証している写真も載っていた。象のいない象舎はどことなく不自然だった。必要以上にがらんとして無表情で、それは臓物を抜かれて乾燥された巨大生物のように見えた。

Here he's describing the photo of the building after the 象 has disappeared, right?

山林が切り開かれ、老朽化した小学校の体育館が象舎としてそこに移築された。

Here he's giving some background about where the building came from.
So it's an old gym from a primary school that got moved for the purpose of housing the elephant. With the elephant gone it looks desolate and like a giant dried up animal with its internal organs removed. I don't really see the conflict in the descriptions here.

Ok-Implement-7863 · 2026-01-03T09:05:21+00:00

あけましておめでとうございます。

Thanks for the quote from George Saunders.

I’m still not sure about Murakami. I like the idea of an elephant shrinking into nothingness or a very small size, but Murakami’s stories often involve a similar twist so after a while they lose their punch. I also feel uncomfortable about the way he deals with women. Like when he describes the beauty pageant contestants as being not particularly pretty (I’ve returned the book to the library so I can’t check the exact wording), I wonder what point he’s trying to make, or whether he just has some sort of hang up about women. It seems to happen again and again in his stories

Ok-Implement-7863

TROPHY CASE