"John W." <worthj1970@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:<1113223646.866998.255070@z14g2000cwz.googlegroups.com>...
> tm wrote:
> > Worst job in Tokyo- bitter old lady who cleans the men's toilet in
> > Shinjuku station.
> 
> I'd vote for bitter old lady who has to give BJs to bitter old men in
> order to make ends meet (so to speak).

On TV I've seen homeless guys who collect up to 300 kg of used
cardboard and discarded boxes, back when it was still an
underexploited commodity (prior to being bought up like mad by
Chinese), being paid just three (cut to two) yen per kilogram by a
recycling company, some men spending much of the entire amount on rent
to be allowed to sleep indoors at the recycling company. Despite being
so poor (one relatively young man was shown taking heels of bread from
outside a bakery after hours), one man was compassionate enough to
collect cardboard on behalf of a disabled elderly woman who slept in a
box on the side of the street, and dropped off "her share" of the
money. Also, they spent on sake and cigarettes.

On a more recent show comparing the lifestyles and income of Shinjuku
homeless, I've seen how some selected homeless were allowed by gangs
enter train stations to collect discarded magazines for sale, netting
them about 4,000 yen in a four hour period, comparable to the earnings
of an entire part time workday minus the tax. On the other hand, some
unfortunate older man was shown roaming the streets collecting cans
(not permitted from trash collection sites, but litter) for up to 14
hours per day and getting hardly enough for a single bento.

I keep such people (and my ancestors whose labor of three generations
allowed their grandchildren comfortable lives) in mind instead of
complaining about my own job or paying much mind to other people who
demand any job they take on (when they do bother themselves to work
for any period of time) be interesting, easy, well paid, or their
dream (probably some combination of all of the above), while blithely
leeching off their families or deliberately abusing the unemployment
insurance system for up to 330 days at a stretch or three months out
of the year (and complaining about how politicians waste "their" tax
money).