Ads for who?

When we moved here Alex was (and still is) mesmerized with this ad.

And this.

And this.

You'd think it's an ad for an amusement park or something.

Wrong.

First one is for a driving school.

Next is for a bank.

The last is for a gambling arcade.


NY moms might be outraged.
"They are targeting children as young as 4?"

I don't think the marketing department had that in mind.
The arcades don't admit children and they are pretty strict about it.
No, they were targeting adults.
Bona fide adults.
And adults in this country fall for this kind of advertisement, it seems.
It's amazing
My child wants to join.

I tell him it's for grown ups.
He is incredulous.
"no it's not. It has cartoons! It's for kids"
I guess not in this country but Alex is not convinced.

On the other hand, the trains have magazine ads hanging from the ceiling that cater to the horny set.
It seems to talk a lot about how promiscuous celebrities are.
And to drive home the point, the 3 alphabets, "S" "E" and "X" are splashed across the ad.
Don't know why that part needs to be in English but it serves to be the perfect opportunity for Alex to brush up on his reading.
"Mommy, that says 'sex'! I can read it! What does it mean?"

Urgh, this is NOT a city to raise kids!

Plastic Wraps that are Better than Sex

I have issues with plastic wraps.

They are an annoying piece of work yet essential to my life.

I have dealt with this thing for my entire life, yet have not come to peace with it.

Why can't I, for once, get a clear, sharp cut in the size I want?

Why is it so difficult for Reynolds to make a contraption that will allow the plastic wrap to slide out and slice off without effort, without the roll coming out of the box?

I cannot count the times my fish or chicken or pork or beef has been the victim of kitchen rage due to plastic wraps.

Working in a Tokyo kitchen a third of the size of that in New York (not that NYC ones are large!) forces me into combat mode.

I see the unopened box of plastic wrap that Ken has bought right next to Alex's leftovers that are going in his lunch box the next day. I can feel the rage coming even before I touch anything.

I pick up the plastic wrap box that is half the length of any American one I have seen.

I open the box, take the tape off and slice.

 

And it slices. like. butter.

Perfect shape, perfect size, perfect cut, perfectly fast.

I am amazed.

I cut more than I need to.

I am covered in plastic wrap.

I am feeling something I haven't felt for decades.
I am in heaven.
Sooooooooo satisfied.

I go out to the supermarket to buy more.

They come in short, medium and long sizes.

I GET TO CHOOSE THE SIZE!

I buy all.

This is way better than sex.

Conflict Resolution

I went to a conflict resolution workshop.
One of the speakers start off with "Welcome to Japan. The land of assumptions".
He is an Asian American, probably 4th or 5th generation, sent to Japan because he was good at what he was doing and because the Tokyo branch wanted him desperately.

So he was facing the same thing I was facing.
Within his company, feared by his Japanese staff because he must be an "aggressive insensitive American". Outside his company, considered by Japanese as a little mentally challenged because he doesn't get the fast language.
I'm just assuming here, but I guess that is where the opening comment came from.

I was so looking forward to overcoming the assumption but that wasn't laid out for me.
The "assumption" issue was just one example of how it could lead to conflict.
And the theme was about resolving that.

So what did I take home from this workshop?
A print out of recommended books.
I had no idea that a lecturer could get away with not offering anything but a list of books.
The speakers must not have been experienced in talking about conflict resolution since at the end I had no idea what the gist of their philosophies were.
But the books, ordered via Amazon as soon as I was home, sounded promising.

I take "Getting Past No - Negotiating in Difficult Situations" to my office since commute is an hour by train. I chose this book simply because it was the smallest and lightest.
I read on.
And then my mind wanders off to other tiny conflicts in my life such as struggling to have Alex change himself first thing in the morning.
I go back to reading, failing to remember that this book was intended for business people.

It's a dead ringer to "How to talk to kids so kids will listen and listen so kids will talk".
So in essence, regardless of age, the key is to listen to your counterpart first, then validate the other's feeling by repeating (or rephrasing) what he/she says. Then find a middle ground where it's a win-win situation.

It's an eye opener that I can treat my son and my business partner (a CEO of a company) the same way while getting positive results. Who knew life would turn out to be so easy?