I Don’t Wanna Get Out of My Futon
I just came across this song, and it felt uncomfortably accurate, like the singer had read my mind.
I hope you got a chuckle at that.
A quick culture note for context:
Most Japanese houses aren’t heated the way American houses are. There’s no central system warming every room. Instead, heating is usually room-by-room, if that room even has a heater at all. Space heaters are still common and may even be more common depending on the area. In either case, the heating system is rarely left on overnight.
Which means mornings are cold. Really cold. Bitter bitter cold!
That’s where the futon comes in. A good futon traps air incredibly well. Even when the room temperature drops below freezing, you’re warm and comfortable once you’re tucked in. Inside the futon, everything is fine. Outside it? A harsh, unforgiving winter world.
And therein lies the problem.
Getting out of the futon means instant exposure. The body rebels. The mind negotiates. Five more minutes becomes a philosophy. You think you have it hard in the West, not wanting to get out of bed into your comfortably heated 72-degree Fahrenheit room (that’s 22℃ to more sensible folk). Oh please. You know nothing of the struggle!
It’s still better than it used to be. When I first came to Japan, kerosene heaters were everywhere, and the kerosene was stored outside. That meant someone (usually the father) had to wake up in a freezing house, go out into even colder air, and haul fuel back inside just to get the heat started.
Yicks!
Electric heaters may not have the same brute force, but they warm up fast, and best of all they can be switched on from inside the futon. Civilization advances in small but meaningful ways.
Anyway, enjoy the song. And if you know the feeling, you know the feeling.
❦
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David is an American teacher and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org. Write him on Bluesky. |
Nice song! I like it. It reminds me of the reggae song played by the Yaki-imo trucks 😁
https://www.instagram.com/p/DUBwsWEEXWD/?img_index=1&igsh=MW5kN2IydW90M3hrbg==
Anyway, last year I was in the Makuhari area in Chiba. Surprisingly, it wasn't that cold for my tropical skin, I rarely turned on the heater.
Global warming is hitting Japan hard so winters are much more mild than they used to be. This winter is colder than it's been for a few years. I haven't looked into why, but maybe the same polar vortex that is making it so cold in north america right now is also affecting things here.
We never had to deal with the cold much down in Okinawa. It was always nice and tropical. Summers were humid as heck though. I can't imagine each room having its own heat. That would be a bear to deal with. A polar bear. LOL
I know what you mean about the comfort of a futon though. Had one in the barracks for a while. It was so comfortable.
That humidity is all over Japan. It gets as high as 90% in places. Ugh. I'll take a cold winter over that brutal humidity any day.
Futon are so nice. Glad to hear you could experience one!
What a great video, there was twice when I thought it had ended, then it picks up again, and I enjoyed it to the end. It resonates perfectly with me. Luckily our house isn't too cold even when the heating is off in the morning. The worse is when I need to go to the loo in the middle of the night. That's why having an en suite room was a must for me when buying this place. Now the toilet is just 5 steps away from my bed
haha I know the feeling. Ours isn't just 5 steps away, but it's not that far. Still — even one step is too much when my warm cozy futon is telling me to stay!
Yikes! I can't even imagine! The new heaters are pretty cool. Plus those new infrared ones are a lot safer than the old ones used to be and don't pose as much of a fire hazard. We keep our house at 68 in the Winter. My wife hates it :)
Ahhh, so you win the battle of the thermostat in your house!