Last night after work I was cooking dinner before Kuniko got home, and the doorbell rang several times. The first time was a package delivery, and the second was – the NHK man.

I’ve written before about the infrequent visits of the NHK man to try to collect cash for the TV shows you’ve been watching for free for years.

So I was not exactly happy to see him, and I shifted into my “only speak English” mode. As soon as he saw me open the door he had to stop his canned speech halfway and he stuttered a little before recovering nicely and speaking in English. He asked me if I lived in the house, and I said yes, and then he made his first mistake.

He asked if I spoke English in my household. Oops – that is a yes. At that point I could see he gave up on collecting money from me, but he decided to keep talking in English. And instead of being a miserable experience, I really enjoyed talking to him.

Maybe it is because I have been here a while, but I had kind of forgotten how excited some people get when they have a chance to speak to a foreigner. This guy was very friendly, and a little caught between his job and just chatting, but in the end we had a very nice conversation and it kind of reminded me that maybe I should stop and chat with some of the people around me instead of just walking by.

So it looks like we are in the clear and don’t have to pay NHK fees, but that is about right since we hardly ever watch NHK – at least, at lot less than the average family.

Also, interesting discovery last night while walking home – just about five minutes walk from our house they have been working on a new building, and yesterday I saw that it was in fact a McDonald’s. We don’t eat at McDonald’s that often, but it will be weird to live so close to one. Maybe I can get a part time job.