I took a road trip skiing with some Japanese friends to Nagano Prefecture for the weekend, a 10-hour drive by behemoth four-wheel drive. No problem though, there would be six of us. That averages out to 1.7 hours of driving per person. Wrong! In Japanese math, that adds up to 3.3 hours per person, because only the three men would drive, while we three women would be able to get our beauty rest. We women would also be given the only reclining seats in the car.

At the first service area, I woke up and went in to get some hot tea. "Oh, Amy, there is juice in the car," said the driver. There is juice in the car. There is juice in the car. Can someone deconstruct this sentence for me? I am a Westerner, you need to tell me exactly what this means! Whose juice? YOU have juice in the car? WE have juice in the car? Who cares anyway, I don't want juice! I want hot tea.

This was one of those Japanese moments when you're supposed to understand implicitly that "There is juice in the car" means the leader of the group has bought drinks and snacks in advance for everyone and that this expense would be split between everyone at the end of the trip, along with gasoline costs. The Japanese people know this because it is written in the Japanese "Wa Handbook." If, however, you are a Westerner who hasn't read these ancient scriptures, you will politely refuse the juice, not wanting to sponge off others.