Nicholas Johnson
@niqj.bsky.social
Designer @ CFPB. Alum @ Grinnell & UNC. Fair weather fan @ Iowa.
Pinned
Nicholas Johnson
@niqj.bsky.social
· Jun 18
Back In Japan after 15 years, so this is all #japan all the time for now. Biggest change is being able to use credit cards at more places than “literally nowhere.” Also there’s WiFi now? What is this, America?! (jk, the security guy on the Shinkansen has a tea bottle in his holster instead of a gun)
For a place that was so proudly cash-only for so long, I feel like Japan has really gone overboard on the cashless options. Though I do think using Coke Bucks or whatever instead of Apple Pay would be more fun.
July 18, 2025 at 3:54 PM
For a place that was so proudly cash-only for so long, I feel like Japan has really gone overboard on the cashless options. Though I do think using Coke Bucks or whatever instead of Apple Pay would be more fun.
I know this isn’t the point of Murakami books, but the middle-aged male protagonists lazing around their Tokyo apartments listening to jazz records and eating spaghetti and sleeping 12 hours a night is kind of aspirational. Why do the haunted ghost cats or whatever always have to ruin it?
July 16, 2025 at 2:45 PM
I know this isn’t the point of Murakami books, but the middle-aged male protagonists lazing around their Tokyo apartments listening to jazz records and eating spaghetti and sleeping 12 hours a night is kind of aspirational. Why do the haunted ghost cats or whatever always have to ruin it?
This line from @craigmod.com's latest really explains a lot of what struck me during my two weeks back in Japan: "Japan now gets more visitors in a month than it got in a year twenty years ago." craigmod.com/ridgeline/210/
Overtourism in Japan, and How it Hurts Small Businesses
Why being popular is not the goal of most small businesses
craigmod.com
July 11, 2025 at 8:05 PM
This line from @craigmod.com's latest really explains a lot of what struck me during my two weeks back in Japan: "Japan now gets more visitors in a month than it got in a year twenty years ago." craigmod.com/ridgeline/210/
Surprised by how widespread WiFi is now in Japan. Also love how WiFi passwords at US coffee shops are like “LuvMyC0ff33” but in Japan they’re like “904829021”.
July 3, 2025 at 2:06 AM
Surprised by how widespread WiFi is now in Japan. Also love how WiFi passwords at US coffee shops are like “LuvMyC0ff33” but in Japan they’re like “904829021”.
Still awesome: baseball in Japan (my Hawks lost after a Carp grand slam)
June 22, 2025 at 11:38 PM
Still awesome: baseball in Japan (my Hawks lost after a Carp grand slam)
A lot fewer varieties of Kirin Fire than I remember (for the uninitiated, that’s the superior coffee in a can). Are there more varieties in the winter? More importantly, do I still have my collection of cans from 20 years ago?
June 18, 2025 at 1:27 AM
A lot fewer varieties of Kirin Fire than I remember (for the uninitiated, that’s the superior coffee in a can). Are there more varieties in the winter? More importantly, do I still have my collection of cans from 20 years ago?
I should probably have ethical qualms about a capybara cafe in Tokyo, but this may have been the highlight of my children’s lives so I will bury my guilt. Also, those things are huge!
June 18, 2025 at 1:20 AM
I should probably have ethical qualms about a capybara cafe in Tokyo, but this may have been the highlight of my children’s lives so I will bury my guilt. Also, those things are huge!
Back In Japan after 15 years, so this is all #japan all the time for now. Biggest change is being able to use credit cards at more places than “literally nowhere.” Also there’s WiFi now? What is this, America?! (jk, the security guy on the Shinkansen has a tea bottle in his holster instead of a gun)
June 18, 2025 at 1:16 AM
Back In Japan after 15 years, so this is all #japan all the time for now. Biggest change is being able to use credit cards at more places than “literally nowhere.” Also there’s WiFi now? What is this, America?! (jk, the security guy on the Shinkansen has a tea bottle in his holster instead of a gun)
Reposted by Nicholas Johnson
“Our job is pretty simple: We’re here to help everyday people when they’ve been cheated, defrauded, or stolen from by big banks and corporations.” - Illegally fired CFPB tech expert, Nick Hand
thephiladelphiacitizen-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/thephila...
thephiladelphiacitizen-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/thephila...
Guest Commentary: Without the CFPB, Who Will Protect You Now?
Laying off workers from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is a win for scammers and price-gougers — and President Trump
thephiladelphiacitizen-org.cdn.ampproject.org
February 25, 2025 at 9:42 PM
“Our job is pretty simple: We’re here to help everyday people when they’ve been cheated, defrauded, or stolen from by big banks and corporations.” - Illegally fired CFPB tech expert, Nick Hand
thephiladelphiacitizen-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/thephila...
thephiladelphiacitizen-org.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/thephila...
#CFPBoost 4: Open source. The CFPB's entire website is open source and on GitHub. Anyone can use the code or even submit pull requests for us to review. How's that for transparency? github.com/cfpb/consume...
GitHub - cfpb/consumerfinance.gov: Django project protecting American consumers
Django project protecting American consumers. Contribute to cfpb/consumerfinance.gov development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
February 21, 2025 at 4:08 PM
#CFPBoost 4: Open source. The CFPB's entire website is open source and on GitHub. Anyone can use the code or even submit pull requests for us to review. How's that for transparency? github.com/cfpb/consume...
#CFPBoost 3: Credit card explorer. The CFPB gathers data on around 500 credit cards every six months, so we made a tool last year to make it easy to browse and find cards you've probably never heard of, all ad free. www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-too...
Explore Credit Cards For Your Situation | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Search our database of credit cards to find ones that are best for you.
www.consumerfinance.gov
February 20, 2025 at 4:44 PM
#CFPBoost 3: Credit card explorer. The CFPB gathers data on around 500 credit cards every six months, so we made a tool last year to make it easy to browse and find cards you've probably never heard of, all ad free. www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-too...
#CFPBoosts 2: Submitting a complaint. You may know that you can send a complaint to your bank/lender/etc via CFPB, but you may not know the form is a form masterpiece that should be hanging in the form Louvre. So much good research and design work has gone into it. www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/
Submit a complaint | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Find information and tools to submit a consumer complaint to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
www.consumerfinance.gov
February 19, 2025 at 9:15 PM
#CFPBoosts 2: Submitting a complaint. You may know that you can send a complaint to your bank/lender/etc via CFPB, but you may not know the form is a form masterpiece that should be hanging in the form Louvre. So much good research and design work has gone into it. www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/
#CFPBoosts 1: Ask CFPB. We have answers to hundreds of tough financial questions, all written by experts and all totally free, like this one about dealing with debt collectors that has helped thousands of people send the right kind of letter to collectors: www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/wha...
What should I do when a debt collector contacts me? | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
First, determine important information about your debt—including if it’s legitimate and if you really owe it—and then use our sample letters to respond appropriately to the debt collector.
www.consumerfinance.gov
February 18, 2025 at 7:55 PM
#CFPBoosts 1: Ask CFPB. We have answers to hundreds of tough financial questions, all written by experts and all totally free, like this one about dealing with debt collectors that has helped thousands of people send the right kind of letter to collectors: www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/wha...
I've been a designer at the CFPB for 10 years. I've seen—and done—a lot of incredible work that deserves way better than tombstone emojis. For the next week, I want to highlight some of the best stuff that maybe you haven't heard about in the news. Let's call it #CFPBoosts.
February 18, 2025 at 7:45 PM
I've been a designer at the CFPB for 10 years. I've seen—and done—a lot of incredible work that deserves way better than tombstone emojis. For the next week, I want to highlight some of the best stuff that maybe you haven't heard about in the news. Let's call it #CFPBoosts.
If Tootsie Pop’s ad agency isn’t already pitching them a Super Bowl LIX ad this morning, they should be ashamed of themselves.
February 12, 2024 at 5:57 PM
If Tootsie Pop’s ad agency isn’t already pitching them a Super Bowl LIX ad this morning, they should be ashamed of themselves.