hear the army

(sample petition letters for download at the bottom of this post)

“I’d really appreciate your help. The Osaka City government is currently debating whether to burn radioactive Tohoku debris in Osaka in return for cash from the National government. Even several of the Tohoku government officials have stated they don’t want to ship the debris.

This is not only absolutely unnecessary, but will also have long-term consequences in a region that has been largely unscathed by the ongoing crisis in Fukushima….and where I live now. It will disproportionately affect children living in Kansai as proven by multiple scientific studies.

Most of the city assembly is against this proposition, but the mayor is staunchly supporting it while refusing to look at the scientific evidence showing the negative health repercussions. The final decision should take place at the end of this month, so I am working to support one of the assembly members to help gather official petition letters to protest against this policy.

They specifically requested letters from foreigners living both in and outside Osaka to show it is not just a local issue. Therefore I am kindly asking you to write a quick, one-page letter that would have an impact. The letter can be written in Japanese or English (as we have translators that can help). The Japanese letter deadline is March 14.

Japanese before he deadline of March 14, so we ask to have it arrive by March 7 if possible.

I know you are busy, but your help would be sincerely appreciated. If you can take 20 – 30 minutes…..

Attached is both the Japanese and English letter format which follows the legal requirements. . Please sign/hanko where it says signature.

For English, send by March 7 to:
Ms. Kinuko Motoshige
21-1107 Shinmachi
Daitou-shi, Osaka-fu JAPAN 574-0037
Tel: +81-80-4111-6608

For Japanese, please send direct to the city office:
〒530-8201 大阪市北区中之島1丁目3番20号
大阪市役所
市会事務局宛て

〒530-8201
Oosakashi Kitaku Nakanoshima 1-3-20
OosakaShiyakusho
ShikaiZimukyoku　Ate”

Petition Letter Format and Sample Petition Letters

• Required format for Petition Letter (everything must be included) WORD DOC
• Sample petition letter 1 (with hanko) WORD DOC
• Sample letter #2 WORD DOC
• English format WORD DOC

Another excerpt from an email to a friend regarding how we’ve handled childcare here so far:

Gosh, i’m trying to think when i started [using daycare]…it was when Bijou could finally go for about 4 hours between feedings because she refused to take a bottle so maybe when she was about 5-6 months? I would use the hourly day care place near my house JR Kids Room Rokkomichi if i needed some time.

Then I used a lady who posted her name on a board saying she would do housework or sitting for a few times but after a weird experience with her and when Bijou got a lot more mobile and a danger to herself i started using a licensed sitter from a service (Mary Poppins) – more expensive but worth it.

So now if it’s daytime I use the day care and if it’s night time (she’ll be asleep before i return), i hire a sitter. I think having someone to help clean and come around is a great idea. I never had the cleaning help but have definitely dreamed of it! I think most of the sitter services also offer that. I’ve never used it but also heard of a “Silver Service” or something where retired people who want to spend time with babies or help out volunteer through the city and it’s super cheap. Check the above link (Japanese only) or at your city/ward office.

The two services I know of: I use Mary Poppins.
Another friend also recommends this service (Japanese only).

I was recently asked by someone who is about to do her first international flight with her 18mth-old for tips and since I’ve now made the roughly 19-hour trip alone with a lap child 5 times total, I figured I am qualified to blog about it. The first 3 times Bijou was breastfeeding so honestly, there was no problem – when she got fussy, bust out the boob! 😉

Here’s what I wrote to her and hope will help some of you too:

Things I do (some i came up with but a lot i found on forums of other mom’s who have been there, done that): (more…)

Making sure your child is thriving is going to preoccupy all of your braincells for at least the first few months of you child’s life (if not forever) and while you’ll have no shortage of books and websites to help you along – things are done a little different here (well, I’ve never raised a child anywhere else, but I know at least the vaccine schedule is different than in the US), so here’s a preview of how things go: (more…)

I once blogged about what purchases really helped me while pregnant and have been meaning to tell you the same about the baby stuff for some time now, but I guess having a little over a year under my belt with said baby and stuff, I’m better prepared now anyway.

There are oodles of lists out there for you to google and find, but here is what worked for us. Mostly, it is based on what we lucked into as hand-me-downs or gifts, but some if it was really great stuff!

TIP: Get anything and everything you can used (except for breast milk related stuff and the carseat) – it was only used for a few months and sometimes not even that long and you will save SO MUCH MONEY. Put the word out to all you know, with apartment sizes as they are here you are sure to come across a friend of a friend who is dying to get rid of all the baby stuff they’re no longer using. Use things like Tell & Sell Japan and Free Stuff Japan and if your Japanese is up to it Yahoo Auction for deals. There are also used baby goods shops in Japan (like B・KIDS / BOOK OFF) along with local used clothing stores – check around your neighborhood!

Also – many things you can get at home you can get here also, you just have to know what they’re called. I tried to link to sites in Japan when possible to show you the Japanese terms and prices for things, but if there’s something you’re looking for and can’t find, let me know and I’ll give it a whirl.

Hope this helps and happy shopping!! (more…)