Sleep.

Those to whom it comes effortlessly can't imagine the yearning it inspires. The more you yearn for it, the further it recedes. The further it recedes, the more you yearn for it. It becomes everything in life. All other goals pale beside it. Oh, for a few hours' sleep!

Japan is a sleep-deprived superpower. Statistics compiled by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show Japanese people sleeping on average 442 minutes a night — as against 528 minutes in the United States, 542 in China, 513 in France and 508 in Britain. One Japanese in 5 sleeps badly, says the health ministry — 1 in 3 among those 60 and older.