Another Life at 40s    by Sio In my 20s, I never managed money. I spent what I had, then started over. No savings, no insurance, no worries. In my 30s, I still lived in the moment. I planned to stay 6 mths in Brazil but ended up drifting the world for 3 yrs, believing money would always return. Then illness hit me on the road. Half my body froze, I couldn’t work or speak the language, suddenly I had no value.   I once thought freedom was a choice, until I learned it’s only

Into The Japanese Mind   by Sio Everyone knows: no phone calls on Japanese trains. No YouTube blasting, no gossip, no scolding kids. Only the steady rhythm of wheels — silence wrapping me with safety. After getting used to quiet, noise feels unbearable. Once in a Thai restaurant, the crowd shouted over pounding disco beats. My ears hurt, my taste disappeared, my private space felt invaded. The Japanese do love noise, but only at specific place: loud toasts in izakaya, drums a

Every Japanese procedure feels like defusing a bomb. A mistake on my residence card can block the bank, delay autopay, and cut utilities. Each step is a fuse, one slip, and everything blows up. Gas autopay dragged on: site rejected my name, I waited for codes, my card was refused. At last one paper form came. I stared at the boxes, sweating—one chance, no mistakes. My bank’s daily limit was 50,000 yen—absurd. The app failed, the site demanded approval, so I went in person, ha