![\"\"](\"http:\/\/japaninfoswap.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/two-year-old-cleans-the-floor-300x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
You may have noticed not needing to crank the heater up as much, or seeing a bit more light in the skies past 5pm because the days are slowly getting longer. Soon springtime will be here, along with a sudden urge to clean, organize and sort your entire abode. And for those of us from the West, this is a normal feeling, the Spring Cleaning ritual\u2026but here in Japan, you\u2019re about 2~3 months late.<\/p>\n
The yearly deep-cleaning ritual that Japanese do called Osouji (\u304a\u6383\u9664)<\/em>, usually happens during the waning days of Decemeber as many seek to get their living spaces and workplaces sorted for the upcoming new year. Even schoolkids must dedicate a half-day or more of school to scrub their schools (there\u2019s no janitorial staff at most public schools). It\u2019s OK, we\u2019ll let you off the hook this time; Instead we\u2019ll tell you some tips to get your place spic \u2018n span with little fuss, so you can have your abode ready to greet the spring flowers in a few weeks.<\/p>\n Of course you\u2019re going to need cleaning supplies and tools. While he temptation may be to just get whatever from the local grocery store, do yourself a favor and head to a \u00a5100 shop like Daiso<\/a>, Can-do <\/a>or Seria<\/a>. No need to go overboard on the price of your supplies! Things like dish detergent, glass and floor cleaner and the like can add up if you buy the brand name stuff after all.<\/p>\n Throwing stuff out is hard work in Japan. It\u2019s not that difficult to get rid of old magazines and books you may have had stacking up; just consult your neighborhood or building trash chart<\/a> so you can avoid the Ditching your old electronics like PCs, TVs, and such is really tough; in most of Tokyo, the regular garbage collection won\u2019t touch it and you\u2019ll need to pay for a third party to come and take it. But, if you\u2019re buying something new to replace the item in question, ask the shop clerk at the time of purchase if they<\/em> can take away the old item for you. Another way is to contact your nearest A good way of getting rid of still usable<\/em> stuff is to sell or give it away online. Craig\u2019s List<\/a> is the granddaddy of them all when it comes to posting your stuff, and it\u2019s pretty safe bet over here in Nippon; I\u2019ve had zero issues personally in the many years I\u2019ve used it to buy and sell, but obviously common sense applies here. Because social media is a thing now, there are many Facebook groups dedicated to If you By Jason L. Gatewood<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Images: \u304a\u305d\u3046\u3058<\/a>\u201c\u00a0(CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a>)\u00a0by\u00a0ahaseg<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" You may have noticed not needing to crank the heater up as much, or seeing a bit more light in the skies past […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":2793,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[54,59,85],"tags":[88,155],"class_list":["post-2792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japan","category-life-in-japan","category-miscellaneous","tag-april","tag-march"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2792"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50809,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792\/revisions\/50809"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\u00a5100 Shop Is Your Friend<\/h5>\n
Check Your Local Garbage Regulations<\/h5>\n
sticker of shame<\/q><\/a> on your trash. Also check out our article<\/a> on how to do this more in detail.<\/p>\n
Out With The Old, In With The New<\/h5>\n
recycle shop<\/q>second-hand store and see if they can take if off your hands. In many cases, there\u2019s a noisy truck that will cruise your neighborhood with a speaker loudly proclaiming they\u2019ll take your used stuff if you flag them down. (Just don\u2019t get that truck confused for the other loud trucks in Japan<\/a> unless you\u2019re the not-easily-embarrassed type.)<\/p>\n
The Art Of The Online Deal<\/h5>\n
Sayonara Sales<\/q> (like a garage sale to get rid of items before leaving the country) and even a few bartering and giveaway groups<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Leave It To The Professionals<\/h5>\n
don\u2019t do windows\u2026<\/q> floors, walls or ceilings for that matter, you can always call the professionals. Services like Merry Maids<\/a> and Casy<\/a> can help when you feel like you\u2019re short on time and patience for cleaning.<\/p>\n
\n
![trash chart<\/a> so you can avoid the](\"https:\/\/sociorocketnewsen.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/05\/nagoya068.jpg\"){kind=link}
![sticker of shame<\/q><\/a> on your trash. Also check out our article<\/a> on how to do this more in detail.<\/p>\nOut With The Old, In With The New<\/h5>\nDitching your old electronics like PCs, TVs, and such is really tough; in most of Tokyo, the regular garbage collection won\u2019t touch it and you\u2019ll need to pay for a third party to come and take it. But, if you\u2019re buying something new to replace the item in question, ask the shop clerk at the time of purchase if they<\/em> can take away the old item for you. Another way is to contact your nearest recycle shop<\/q>second-hand store and see if they can take if off your hands. In many cases, there\u2019s a noisy truck that will cruise your neighborhood with a speaker loudly proclaiming they\u2019ll take your used stuff if you flag them down. (Just don\u2019t get that truck confused for the other loud trucks in Japan<\/a> unless you\u2019re the not-easily-embarrassed type.)<\/p>\nThe Art Of The Online Deal<\/h5>\nA good way of getting rid of still usable<\/em> stuff is to sell or give it away online. Craig\u2019s List<\/a> is the granddaddy of them all when it comes to posting your stuff, and it\u2019s pretty safe bet over here in Nippon; I\u2019ve had zero issues personally in the many years I\u2019ve used it to buy and sell, but obviously common sense applies here. Because social media is a thing now, there are many Facebook groups dedicated to Sayonara Sales<\/q> (like a garage sale to get rid of items before leaving the country) and even a few bartering and giveaway groups<\/a>.<\/p>\nLeave It To The Professionals<\/h5>\nIf you don\u2019t do windows\u2026<\/q> floors, walls or ceilings for that matter, you can always call the professionals. Services like Merry Maids<\/a> and Casy<\/a> can help when you feel like you\u2019re short on time and patience for cleaning.<\/p>\n\nBy Jason L. Gatewood<\/a><\/em><\/p>\nImages: \u304a\u305d\u3046\u3058<\/a>\u201c\u00a0(CC BY-NC-ND 2.0<\/a>)\u00a0by\u00a0ahaseg<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"You may have noticed not needing to crank the heater up as much, or seeing a bit more light in the skies past […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":2793,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[54,59,85],"tags":[88,155],"class_list":["post-2792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-japan","category-life-in-japan","category-miscellaneous","tag-april","tag-march"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2792"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50809,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2792\/revisions\/50809"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hrcjapan.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}](\"https:\/\/sociorocketnewsen.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/05\/cimg15691.jpg\"){kind=link}