Bi-Weekly Boss Premium Edition Questions Thread – 29 March 2023

As per usual, feel free to ask any silly stupid questions or not-so-silly stupid questions that you haven’t had a chance to ask here. Be kind to those that do and try to answer without downvoting. Please keep criticism and snide remarks out of the thread.

23 comments
  1. I feel uneasy throwing out documents with my private information printed on it.

    I wish I could go somewhere and borrow a shredder (my office doesn’t have any), just like I can go to a combini to scan/print stuff. Of course I could buy one, but I hate filling up my house with stuff I don’t use so much, that’s why I don’t have a scanner or printer either.

    I guess in the end I’ll have to buy all those things, any recommendations?

  2. I have been interviewing and am at the final stage with one company, except now I have the HR interview as final interview.

    I’m not too sure what to expect with the HR interview as final one – my work just has the recruiter phone screen, and Google doesn’t turn up too much. My wife says her work has HR interview as the final one and basically it is to check that you’re not crazy and to check the work conditions you want.

    What should I expect from this HR interview?

  3. Has anyone ever had a letter back for a refund on overpaid national health insurance? I can get 15,000 back which is nice, but the letter requires a hanko which I haven’t bothered setting up. Just wondering if anyone’s done it before and just signed in the hanko section instead.

    Failing that I can collect it from the kuyakusho directly but I can’t really be bothered as it’s in a super awkward location

  4. Do you guys drink tea after brushing your teeth at night? Something inoffensive like mugicha. I started doing it without thinking much but I wonder if it’s bad for your teeth.

  5. apologies for another babyprep101 questions lol

    what kind of flooring you would recommend for newborn to sleep on at the day in living room? I’m thinking of joint play mats (like puzzle) then spread a waterproof sheet/towel blanket before I finally put the futon. I have 低反発 carpet but realize its easily accumulating dust and ticks and I might need to vacuum a lot and it might hinder the baby’s sleep.

    Also would like to hear your suggestion on how to choose baby futon for crib. All I know is that the harder the better to prevent the baby rolling over, but I couldnt understand why they can set up some sets like 30k~ its even more expensive than my double bed.

  6. For Peach Airline, can i bring a backpack, fanny pack and a carry on as long as it is below 7kg? or will my backpack be considered a carry on as well?

  7. People with small decks/balconies, what do you do with it? Can’t find much use for ours besides hanging clothes. We have some plants, but nothing taller than the 4 foot barrier, so it can’t be seen from the outside. Would be nice to put some potted plants on the wall itself, but they’ll surely fall. If we put a chair out there, it’s too low to see over the barrier when sitting.

    Edit: Our neighbor just got some lattice fencing panels recently. They’ve not done anything with them but stand them up, but I thought this might be their idea: [https://amzn.asia/d/9FeVJhB](https://amzn.asia/d/9FeVJhB)

    Anyway, that idea is taken and I wouldn’t feel right copying them haha.

  8. Couple of curiosity questions.

    1 – was driving past some tea farms yesterday and saw a whole lotta fans around them. What are they for?

    2 – saw a crow’s nest on top of a power pole. Around the pole is some tape saying there’s a crow’s nest here. Any reason for having to tell people that?

  9. Hi everyone. I’m trying to figure out my US taxes.

    You know how japan reimburses you for transportation? It’s showing up as my total income in my 2022 statements. Do you just lump your total income + transportation reimbursements in the total income box for 1040? Thank you!

  10. Would real estate agents price a (new) asset based on prospective customers income?

    Just went to inquire on a new tawaman that will be finished in a year or so. We really liked it, but they wouldn’t share the price (while other agents would show you the base price of all available units).

    The sales was quite slippery on it, kept back and forthing just being vague. Saying we must come back the next day to know the price etc even tho they sold 50% of their units already.

    Then she left and came back and said it will be about X. X being 25% above the budget we shared, but being pretty much equal to the max the bank estimated for us…

    While it made sense for the price to be higher, I’m just wondering if it is a bit of a coincidence that it equalled the max loan a bank would give us, of whether we could somehow be getting priced based off that.

  11. I stupidly left two cans of corn, that I had cleaned out and was gonna let dry, standing in my kitchen sink and now they’ve left two big old brown ring stains. I tried lightly scrubbing with what I have here but didn’t really seem to have much of an effect. Anyone know what helps clear that out easily? Might be simple but I couldn’t even find anything searching for this problem.

  12. Trying to figure out what I need to provide to renew my marriage visa.

    Regarding proof of tax payment:

    I moved here in October of 2021 and worked November & December. I moved from Tokyo (Ota ward) to another city in December of 2022, Therefore, I don’t believe I paid any 住民税 to Ota in 2022 and I haven’t yet received my notice for 2022 payments.

    Would it be possible to go to the city hall in my new city and request tax documents, or am I going to have to apply by mail to Ota city? Seems like a big pain in the ass.

    Maybe best just list my wife as my ‘Method of Support’ and have her submit her documents?

    Sorry if this makes little sense, I’m struggling to understand it myself.

    Thanks in advance!

  13. A friend invited us to his wedding. It’s not at a wedding venue, just at a restaurant where everyone is paying for their own course. He said we don’t need to pay the 30,000/50,000 that people usually give at weddings. Is he just being polite or are we actually ok with not paying?

  14. Do shipping companies deliver multiple items separately?

    I bought a computer case and a monitor from the same store, during the same visit. They charged me 2x shipping fee, but it was still a good deal so whatever. Casing arrived three hours ago, no sign of the monitor.

  15. What’s going on with all the guys taking model-like pictures of girls? You see it sometimes, but it’s especially noticeable during hanami. Looks like a model shoot, but more amateur, and I have the suspicion that the guys somehow scout the girls and pay them, so it’s borderline pervy.

  16. What visa do Japanese people apply for when they go to live in, say, France or the US? I’m not talking about marriage or for study. For example, An (Ken Watanabe’s daughter) currently lives in France. But she isn’t married to a French person and, as far as I know, has no previous ties to the country. Same goes for Shujo Ayabe, a Japanese comedian who has been living in the US since last year.

  17. Trying to buy something on mercari for the first time, but somehow there’s a 10k yen limit on my account. Is there a way to increase this limit?

    EDIT: Never mind that, it just straight up prevents me from buying or do anything without a reason. It told me to check the notice board for a reason but I couldn’t see anything relevant there.

    EDIT2: Talked to customer support and got it sorted out

  18. Millions of cherry blossoms everywhere but I’ve never seen any of those trees producing a single cherry.

    How do they reproduce if they don’t make fruits? Are they all clones?

  19. Do you still wear a mask when you go out?

    If so, why? When do/will you feel comfortable going without a mask?

    If you wear a mask some places but not others, where? Why?

    If you don’t wear a mask anywhere, when did you stop? Has anyone turned you away from their business or bothered you for being maskless?

  20. Anyone know of any horse trails anywhere from Tokyo to Mt. Fuji area? People coming to visit, will be 3 adults total. We’d like to ride on a preferably scenic route with three horses and a guide. We all have experience riding horses (me not so much but I’ve been a few times), so also something that doesn’t require some training course if possible. Thank you.

  21. Anyone with experience as a haken employee help me out?

    Background: non english teacher, non IT.

    Haven’t signed anything yet, but i got a description of working conditions.

    1. what are some red flags i should be looking for? Initial contract is 2 months and it says it is extendable for up to 3 years with no possibility of a raise. The employing company is pretty big with pretty good reviews.

    2. If i need to take the day off for ward office procedures or personal stuff, what should i do? Can they refuse me the day off? I assume they have no reason to deny me the day off if i’m paid hourly, right? Where i’m from they can’t deny an unpaid day off, not sure how it works here.

    3. Stupid question, but i won’t be paid during national holidays right? So does every hourly haken employee just get 3 weeks of pay in May?

    4. Not really a haken question, but can i get in trouble for working outside of my home if the job is wfh?

    All really stupid questions, i’m sorry! I am just really nervous about signing a contract in a non native language.

  22. Quick question:
    If I have Permanent Residency, do I still need to inform immigration if I quit/change jobs?
    I quit and will take a couple of months off, just wondering if I still need to report that.

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