Go Japan!

Very happy to see this article on "Abenomics" Japan has had so many set backs yet they are so innovative and resilient. Hopefully Prime Minister Abe second term can bring back Japan's economy after it's 20 year slump. I'm always on team Japan. Jump

China's very very audacious questioning of Okinawa's ownership is outrageous! I have to say that my favorite Prime Minister will always be Koizumi.

Japan's Youth

I've obviously got very strong ties to Japan. We've only been out for 6 months so I'm still closely drawn to Japan's economic situation.

When we left things were looking dire. All the close friends we keep in contact with say they are getting worse. It looks like the Japan's economy is stuttering and may not ever start again.

The power is shifting to China and many young Japanese people will have to change drastically how the are educated and expect to live. The current economic structure is so archaic and aged heavy that young people must wait years to advance.

Here is a really interesting story of the power of choice in Japan.

Japan's Silverweek- spend money and relax.

This year is the first year that a group of holidays in September is being called "Silver Week". We have always had Golden Week in April but this is the first time we've have 5 days off in a row in September. It's not a common holiday and the next time the dates fall in a row like this will be 2015 then 2026 so we better relax while we can.

Some believe it is the Democratic Party's attempt to jump start the economy with more spending and workers using up more of their paid holiday leave.

“Promoting longer paid holidays is an effective way to expand domestic demand, not only in the travel industry but in retail as well, said Yoshiki Shinke, senior economist at Dai- Ichi Life Research Institute. “Legislation and an awareness campaign for companies are necessary” to get people to take all their holidays."

We're doing our usual trip to the cabin to relax amongst the wild monkeys in Kirifuri, Nikko. I'm on a cooking and baking spree with banana chocolate chip bread, home-made pizza and curried lentils and rotis to be some of the highlights of our week away.

Have a great weekend!

Work life balance - Is it possible?

Many of my corporate friends are bemoaning the fact that their overtime is now unpaid or "volunteer" in Japanese companies. By volunteer I mean they can stay if they want but if they leave it doesn't look good.

When I came to Japan 10 years ago people were working crazy hours. Generally from about 9 to 9 or longer. One man I know commuted from Yokohama to Utsunomiya 2 hours each way every day. The other alternative being to live in a separate house in Utsunomiya during the week only seeing his family on the weekends.

The extra income that overtime generated really helped fuel the economy but people really had no life. I wonder with all the free time entering people's lives if we will see some niche market opening. I've seen a lot of adult classes springing up perhaps to improve employ ability in this economy.

Here is a fantastically funny and relate-able audio file from the BBC

It's About Time - Comedian and writer Dave Cohen seeks help from experts in trying to achieve a 'work-life balance'. He hardly sees his family - during any 'downtime' he is actually looking for more work. Years of freelancing and the current economic climate make it hard to say no to any offer.