Japan: monthly for most salaried jobs, anywhere from the same day to monthly (longest by law) for other jobs.

This is not true everywhere as you say. I live in the countryside and we have no buses, a train that takes 50 minutes to walk to is cancelled a lot of the time in some seasons, and roads with no shoulder nor sidewalk where cars fly down at 20 over the posted speed limit.

Japanese moped laws cap them at 30 kph even. All ebikes must be peddle assist, may not have a throttle, and the assist will turn off at a designated speed (17kph I think?) as a point of reference.

Yeah, Japan is similar to this as well. I've had positive experiences all around, but I know some who have not (especially with corona which really worried me for how prepared we are).

Hrm. I have a specific email address for udemy and it doesn't show up on haveibeenpwned so far.

The good:

• not always being reachable. Less immediacy. More self discipline without instant answers
• 3rd spaces caused people to mix who wouldn't otherwise. There are fewer these days. It also kept people more civil (in one way or another). Likewise, it provided a buffer against disinfo in some senses since people would call BS on something that was wrong. Contrast this to life today on the internet with weird bubbles and conspiracy theories spread like crazy
• more togetherness and hopefulness. Some of this is probably because I was younger, but even in my really rural, conservative US town, no one was against conservation, not wasting water, being more eco-friendly, and trying to help stop the acid rain and ozone hole. That somehow became very politicized and hopelessness has taken over
• people were in the moment, not filming the moment. This especially sucks at live shows compared to the past. Also people doing dumb shit in public for an internet audience didn't exist for obvious reasons.
• the entertainment was what was on or what you made. No endless distraction or scrolling. More imagination, more involvement in things rather than just posting about it online.
• More privacy, fewer devices constantly sending any telemetry or personal data

The bad:

• not being reachable has consequences in terms of emergencies
• it was easier to get stranded in the past
• things that were missed by forgetting a schedule at home or not knowing it and not being able to look it up
• learning languages was worse IMO. Certainly less variety where I was
• much more casual sexism, homophobia, racism, etc.
• navigation was sometimes harder since maps needed to be updated and one needed to know and to buy the new one. Not a big deal, though, in most areas
• obvious things like medical and other sciences being much more behind. More death.
• HIV/AIDS scare and its consequences on people

I'm sure there's more that will come to me later.

Who steals a porch? Seriously, the nerve!

Joke answer: whomever my wife would let us.

Actual answer: I don't know. I'm in my mid 40s. If I had to start over for some reason and was looking for a serious relationship, at least 30s as the minimum. Max would be low 50s, probably, though I've not thought a ton about it.

Actualer answer: if I ever lost my wife, I doubt I could/would pursue a serious relationship again or at least for a long enough time to make my answer above probably innacurate.

Countries need to get balls to hold these companies to account and protect their workers. Even in Japan, layoffs can trigger all sorts of consequences for the company and our rights here are very hit or miss.

The bar staff had skip buttons on these things when I first saw them over a decade ago. I don't imagine that's changed.

My pepper grinder is clear (except for the actual grinding mechanism, of course)

In the early 2000s, then-girlfriend and I were at a goth club we went to every weekend. Just had a weird feeling that night and decided to leave early. Someone fatally shot a guy we knew not long after we left. I don't know if they ever found the shooter or the motive. In years of going there, I saw I think two fights ever and it was university fratboys who came to look at the freaks. All in all, we were quite a peaceful crowd (mosh pit nonwithstanding).