The Hut

            
             Anyone who has been on the metro in central Tokyo has probably experienced the Japanese extraordinary ability to sleep standing or sitting. At the same time, many of those who have worked in Japan, have a favorite story about Japanese colleges who have fallen asleep at the strangest times - during a meeting or in the middle of lunch.
             A new great investigation made by the Japanese health department, which has been published recently, explains this phenomenon. It shows that a stunning 36 per cent of the population suffers from chronic exhaustion.
             Already in March last year a committee was established to investigate which elements in the Japanese lifestyle led to tiredness, exhaustion and in the worst cases, what in Japan is known as karoshi, death as the result of working to hard.
             Karoshi has been a sensitive subject in the Japanese debate for a long time, but a shocking increase in the number of deaths, especially among young men in internet related companies, is the reason why the government is now trying to investigate the problem fully.
             A) Summary.
             The text is about two young people, who both are members of the Good Neighbours" Club, which is an organisation that helps old people in their homes. Sandra and Kerry are going to help Mrs Rutter, and in means of getting there, they go round the forest, Packer's End. Sandra is a bit afraid of the forest, partially because there could be muggers, but also because of a ghost story about a German plane that went down there during the war.
             Mrs Rutter is a sweet old lady, and when they arrive she offers them some tea. She tells them what work that needs doing and they do it. While doing the floors, Sandra talks to Mrs Rutter, and finds out that her husband died during the war.
             When Sandra and Kerry are done Mrs Rutter offers them a sweet, and tells them a story. She tells them about the time when the plane came in the forest, during the war. How she and sister found the plane, and how they waited for two days for the survivor to die, before they reported it.