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May 15, 2024
 

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Masako Tsubuku
For Masako Tsubuku's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 12, 2014
Regional bank hits on novel way to attract business
Chiba resident wins big on year-end lottery thanks to local bank.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Feb 4, 2014
When will they learn: Old folks still falling for swindlers
Telephone swindlers are finding new, inventive ways to cheat old people.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Feb 3, 2014
The housing conundrum: To own or not to own
The population is not increasing and there's a shrinking pool of potential buyers for the home you bought 20 years ago, or 10 years ago, or even yesterday.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 26, 2014
Special K: Mini-cars come of age in a maxi-world
Japanese mini-cars are becoming the norm rather than the exception.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 20, 2014
Use it or lose it: Workers want companies to pay for paid vacations
Getting workers in Japan to take paid holidays is difficult, but that doesn't mean they don't want them.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 12, 2014
Deflation Watch: New Year's scorecard
It seems likely that the consumption tax increase will derail the government's economic boom train.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Jan 6, 2014
Retirement homes come of age in booming market
In order to address its rapidly aging society, the Japanese government has enacted a variety of measures since the start of the millennium, mostly related to the health care system. A more pressing matter is housing, since so many elderly people will be living on their own compared to the past when extended families more commonly lived together. In this regard, the authorities have lagged behind their counterparts in other developed countries, where the idea of nursing homes and other specialized residences for seniors have been available for decades.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 2, 2014
Part-timers skewing employment statistics
More restaurants and retailers are hiring short-hour employees to save money.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 27, 2013
McDonald's smells the coffee: Limited expectations are here to stay
Some think that McDonald's is finished in Japan
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 22, 2013
Rental video stores ponder their reason for existing
DVDs still may be the cheapest, and easiest, way to watch videos at home.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 16, 2013
Don't throw those boring New Years cards away!
Starting this year Japan Post is offering cash prizes for its New Years lottery.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 10, 2013
For customers of Japan's biggest bank, it's about to become harder to avoid fees
Banking at convenience stores will soon be more expensive.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Dec 5, 2013
Postal employees carry extra burden during the holiday season
Sales quotas make postal employees' lives miserable at the end of the year.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Dec 2, 2013
Water, water, it's not everywhere
There are aspects of everyday life that renters take for granted, such as access to utilities. Of course, renters pay for their own electricity and gas, and, depending on where they live, they may be billed for water and sewerage. Homeowners pay for these services, too, but there are extra financial burdens involved that people who have yet to buy a house or condominium may not know about. More significantly, some of these services are not available everywhere in Japan.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 27, 2013
Government tries to jolt EV sales with charging station subsidies
Sluggish electric car sales blamed on lack of recharging infrastructure.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 21, 2013
Supermarkets finally get serious about shopping bags
Japan's plastic bag problem is different from Europe's.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 13, 2013
Where's the beef? Japanese taste buds dictate processing methods
Is that steak you're eating technically a steak?
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Nov 7, 2013
Collecting organizations try to give credit where it's due, don't always succeed
It's not uncommon for companies to incorrectly report credit information.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / HOME TRUTHS
Nov 4, 2013
Warming up for the winter chill
In 2000 we moved into an apartment in Tokyo run by the semi-public housing corporation UR. It was new and had a natural-gas heating system. Unlike other gas systems we'd used in the past, however, this one heated water that was then circulated to outlets in different rooms in the apartment. Direct gas ignition devices we'd bought for previous apartments were useless in our new one so we had to get rid of them and buy special stand-alone devices from Tokyo Gas that connected to these outlets. When we moved out of the UR apartment several years ago we also had to throw those away because our new apartment, also run by UR, had a different heating system and Tokyo Gas has no buy-back program.
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Oct 30, 2013
Net scalpers set off discussion of true fandom in terms of economics
If you can't afford u00a5400,000 for a ticket, can you call yourself a fan?
Japanese stripper bids to have her porn movies taken off internet
Plaintiff Miyuki Ariga (left) speaks at a news conference along with her lawyer, Yoshitomo Morohashi, after filing a lawsuit at the Tokyo District Court on Monday.
Yen’s fragility raises specter of a new currency war in Asia
Suspected intervention to drag the yen off a 34-year low against the dollar is already seen as unlikely to have a lasting effect if Japan continues alone.
Ishin struggles to set itself apart from other parties
Nippon Ishin no Kai Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita (right) speaks beside Yui Kanazawa, the party's candidate in the Tokyo 15th district by-election on April 28. Nippon Ishin lost in this by-election as well as another in Nagasaki held on the same day.
Online booking for Mount Fuji climb to open on May 20
Visitors climb the slopes of Mount Fuji, Japan's highest peak at 3,776 meters. From May 20, climbers will have access to a new online booking system for Mount Fuji's most popular Yoshida trail in Yamanashi Prefecture.
In Japan, 68,000 people over 65 projected to die alone at home this year
As Japan grapples with its population's rapid aging, supporting people who live and age alone is looming larger on the policy agenda.
New Taiwan president to set tone for ties with China at inauguration
Taiwan President-elect Lai Ching-te arrives at the CyberSec 2024 Exhibition in Taipei on Wednesday.
Ishin struggles to set itself apart from other parties
Nippon Ishin no Kai Secretary-General Fumitake Fujita (right) speaks beside Yui Kanazawa, the party's candidate in the Tokyo 15th district by-election on April 28. Nippon Ishin lost in this by-election as well as another in Nagasaki held on the same day.
In Japan, 68,000 people over 65 projected to die alone at home this year
As Japan grapples with its population's rapid aging, supporting people who live and age alone is looming larger on the policy agenda.
In a rare event, the Northern Lights show up in Hokkaido
The Northern Lights in Nayoro, Hokkaido, on Saturday
Is black the new green for Japan’s flagging tea farmers?
George Guttridge-Smith brews tea at Kyoto Obubu Tea Farm in Wazuka, Kyoto Prefecture, where he serves as head of international development.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan
By Mai Yoshikawa

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