Weekend Stupid Questions Thread – 16 July 2022

41 comments

1. Few dumb questions

   1. What online grocery shopping service delivers all over the country including tiny cities? And do they accept debit cards for payment? Amazon delivers here but it’s overpriced.

   2. When you change job but with same title and designation in a different company is there a significant salary raise or they will keep the same numbers?

2. Any recommendations for movers who will work with IKEA furniture, that won’t break the bank?

3. Where can I buy an at home Covid test kit? Like the rapid antigen ones you can buy at Walgreens in the states

4. How many non Japanese IT engineers are there in Tokyo compared to HR consultants. My LinkedIn feed is full of these consultants looking for IT engineers. Japan could easily solve the labour shortage if these consultants switch from sells job to software development.

5. Any parents to (young) kids with peanut and/or sesame allergy here?
   How have you managed it? Testing, medications, building tolerance…?

   Our 1.5 year old got a mild reaction when I introduced peanut butter (we stopped giving any peanut for now), and recently also from sesame. I called her doctor right away but he wasn’t concerned, didn’t recommend an allergy test “because the results will change when she grows so it’s not important” and basically gave zero advise. They agreed to do an allergy test “if I insist”. (I’ve been wanting to switch clinics for other reasons before this but haven’t found anywhere better yet. Another doctor gave us the outdated instruction of introducing peanut after she’s 3 years or older)

   Googling English sources it seems an allergy test and even prescribing epipen or other medication is common. But is the attitude more lax here…?

6. Any recommendation of which used car to buy for long commutes, maybe 3000km per month?

   I’m undecided between a Diesel (which leaves not a lot of choices, maybe Nissan CX-3 or Volvo V40) or Hybrid (Nissan Note e-power, Honda Fit, Toyota Prius)

   We only need a small car and for fuel efficiency I would probably buy the Note, but I hate the cheap looking plastic instruments.

   The CX-3 and Volvo are bigger and I would love to buy one of them for comfort on long rides.

   I was also thinking of buying a full electric car (Nissan Leaf 2017- version) because we have solar panels on our roof, but we don’t have any storage battery yet. I need to get a quote for that. I fear that the costs would be too high to install everything.

7. Any idea how to check Costco crowd level in certain area, especially around Osaka? Planning to go and stock up lots of things sometime between this sanrenkyuu but afraid if it will be like a battlefield lol

8. Only been here two weeks want to make it’s ok to just bring a laptop into a cage buy a drink and sit and do some work for a few hours? It’s taking up a seat for a while so wanted to make sure it’s ok or if it’s frowned on? Is there anywhere better for this maybe anywhere with free refills? Else I was thinking that working opposite the crossing in Starbucks would be a lovely start. Thanks!

9. how does buying smth tax free work at yodobashi camera? i’ve never done this before but it’d save me about €60 compared to what i’d pay back home so i might give it a try

10. I’ve got one of those panels in front of my shower room now. After a bath/shower, do you just seal the door and set the air ventilation on high for a couple hours?

11. Is there any possible way for me to visit home for 3.5 months and keep my visa? I have 10 months left on my residence card. I kindve just want to drop my job and apartment, see my family and friends for a season and then come back and find a new job.

12. What’s the solution for wanting to hang paintings etc but the walls are textured so 3M tape barely lasts a week. The walls are concrete and drilling is out.

13. If I give one month’s notice to quit my job, do I have to give notice by the 1st of the month with my last official day of work falling on the last day of the month (for simplicity’s sake, assume I’ve used all my paid time off)? Or, if I wanted my last official day of work to fall in the middle of the month, could I give my notice in the middle of the previous month? For example, could I give notice on Sept. 16 with my last official working day falling on Oct. 15?

14. Perfect! I need this for tomorrow, and hope someone who does it frequently has an answer! I’m going on a drive into the countryside, and there will be a few narrow passes to get through (but mostly 2 lane roads). I looked up in the old driving school manual and it only had where the person going downhilll should stop for the person going uphill, but what if it’s just a regular narrow road through the woods, not going up or down hill? What do you do when a car approaches you head on and it’s a super narrow road? No particular rules, just both cars get as far to the edge of the road as possible and squeeze on by each other slowly if there’s no turnout? Regular drivers who encounter this a lot, what do you usually prefer to do, and thanks in advance!

15. Has anyone ever done the shipping on things from a costco in store? I was looking at getting one of those big 8m ladders (literally half the price of same on on komeri). It would be pretty sketchy to drive it on a kei truck 400km. Do they ship large items outside of the prefecture etc?

16. Do I need to buy a round-trip ticket if I only plan to leave Japan temporarily?

    I remember the last time I left Japan, the customs officer asked about my return date. (My company bought my round-trip ticket last time.)

17. Are there any festivals in Japan even more boring than the Gion matsuri?

18. For people familiar with Fukuoka/Hakata area, I have one free day at Fukuoka on a business trip, where should I visit? First time here, more of a outdoor guy. Thanks.

19. むぎ茶 question! Recently started brewing roasted barley tea at home. We have a 1kg bag from 妙湖園 and throughout the week, we’re making tea on the stovetop. The tea is delicious, but I’m wondering if it’s possible to compost the seeds once they’ve been boiled. Any advice for this tiny bit of reducing home waste is welcome.

20. Does one have to submit a resignation letter when they are a part-timer with no contract and still on a probationary period?

21. Does Japan have any culture of freeze distillation? I suppose it would technically be illegal now. But back in the old days you’d think people in the north would want to bump up the strength of their sake.

22. Can anybody recommend an exercise bike (spinning bike) brands? Budget is ¥30,000 or lower

23. Is it acceptable to hang things on apartment walls with thumbtacks (you know that soft wall I’m talking about), or is this just done because it’s not too noticeable?

24. Saw a few occasions of people (this is in Tokyo) crouching down next to sewage drains and burning things today. Is this related to Obon? What is it exactly?

25. I need a drill, but I won’t be using it much, I think around once every 5 years. I was thinking about buying a corded one because the battery probably become bad between uses. But 90% of drills are battery based, which makes me think maybe I’m wrong about wanting to buy a corded one? I noticed modern drills are also electric screwdrivers, so maybe that’s the reason, and I will end up giving it more use than I think? Any recommendations?

    Also, the prices of used drills in Yahoo auctions is the same or even more than new ones in Amazon, what are they thinking?

26. Do you think I should cancel my vacation to Okinawa at the end of this month due to the current wave of COVID19?

27. I’m trying to go watch the new Minions movie but it seems like all the theaters near me only have the Japanese dub. Are there any in the Tokyo/Kanagawa region that have it in English with Japanese subs?

28. After losing my job and company health insurance last month, I had to enroll in NHI. I just got my monthly payment slips in the mail, and the premiums seem incredibly high, about 30,000 a month. From what I’ve read, it should be around 15,000. Or is this normal now?

29. I am trying out a recipe for braised chicken breasts that needs “Mexican lager such as Tecate or Modelo” but I know nothing about alcohol. Is there a common drink here that would be a good enough substitute?

30. Whats the gay equivalent of akihabara? Im aware of ikebukuro. Anywhere else?

31. Hi guys! I have a question about internet in Japan:

    My father in law gave me an GE ONU NTT modem to use at home and he told me to connect it to my Buffalo router.

    Back home in England, we don’t need to connect a modem to use a router.

    Do I actually need to use the GE ONU NTT modem with my router to get wifi? Or can I just directly plug in my router to the internet socket?

32. Is mini golf and laser tag not a popular activity for kids? We are in Chiba, near kashiwa if anyone has any recommendations. We can also travel around a bit.

33. If I have an international driving license but no Japanese credit card or bank account is there any where that will rent me a car? I have a resident card if that matters.

34. is satori reader subscription available in japan? tried to subscribe to it but it said not available in your country..

35. I moved here 1week ago. Any suggestion regarding point cards? It feels like every shopping mall and every chain has a different one

36. Does anyone know where to get large N95 masks? I have a largish head and none seems to fit. I’m around Roppongi but would prefer to order online. Thanks!

37. Are protein snacks a populair thing in japan? And how good are they(like price/amount of protein)?

38. Going to be moving back to my home country in mid August but i’ll be terminating my apartment contract on the 30th of July.I’ll be staying with my boyfriend (who is also going home at the same time) till the flight day and I was wondering if I should change the address in my residential card or anything else?

    Edit: I don’t know if this is relevant but my visa is under 特定活動 for finding employment after graduating senmon gakkou

39. I recently installed a new update on my US-bought, unlocked Pixel 5, and I can no longer turn off the camera shutter sound. I know that with phones purchased in Japan it’s something like a hardware thing and cannot be disabled, but that’s clearly not the case here. It’s not a huge deal, but it’s pretty annoying, and I’m just mostly looking for any official info regarding the change

40. Does anyone know how to send a dropped camera lens to Nikon for repair?

41. Can pregnancy kits be bought at drugstores?