William “May you be born in interesting times,” the purported Chinese curse has it. As the tragedy in Ukraine continues to unfold, Russia has severely limited its natural gas exports to Europe, which has responded both by limiting consumption and sourcing gas from other locations. Notoriously resource-poor (except for water) Japan ranks 73rd globally for gas reserves, 59th for gas production, and 5th for gas consumption. (That does not mean Japan is energy prolific: its GDP is 3rd and its population 11th.) Several simple steps can and should be taken now to help conserve gas, such as taking cold or lukewarm showers (easy in summer!), line-drying laundry, washing dishes in cold water, and going easy on the aircon. Remember, most electricity is generated by gas. Not only will a few moments consideration about gas economy save you money, it will help Japan build its reserves for the coming winter. True facts about natural gas and Japan can be found in this very readable article: https://www.worldometers.info/gas/japan-natural-gas/ Interestingly, the stats show that, while gas consumption has quadrupled since 1980, it has plateaued and even dropped slightly over the last decade.