Posted: Apr 30, 2020 12:54 am
Reading about people's reading styles and proceedures is very entertaining.
I don't have access to large English language bookshops. Some of the bigger bookshops downtown have an English language section, but they are usually not that extensive. Consequently, I have to rely on on-line shopping for most of my purchases.
As part of my job I am given a research budget which can be used for a variety of purposes, including book buying.
The procedure, as with many things in Japan, is complex and bureaucratic.
Here is what I have to do if i want to buy a book using the research funds:
Go to Amazon and look for the book.
Once I have found the book I want, I have to check that I can pay using the 'Convenience Store Payment' method.
No credit card payment is allowed. (!) Only this method is acceptable to the uni.
I then order the book.
I receive a mail from Amazon telling me the payment code.
I go to the local convenience store (Only Lawason will do. Not 7/11, Family Mart of any of the other major convenience store chains, even though the Amazon payment system allows payment at all of these...No, only Lawson will do according to the uni.)
I go to the payment point (looks like an ATM, but isn't.)
Navigate a few screens in Japanese (No English option available).
When I get to the correct screen I scan a bar code from the mail on my phone. The machine then spits out an invoice.
I take this to the counter and present it to the staff. They scan it and tell me how much to pay. I pay. (Must be cash.)
Once I have paid they enter 'paid' into their cash register. This prompts a printer behind the counter to print out a receipt.
The staff then has to stamp this with the official shop stamp. (Don't forget the stamp! Nothing in Japan works without the stamp.)
I then take this receipt to the university. But before I hand this in, I have to go to the Amazon site again.
Go to the 'My orders' page and navigate to the order status. It has all the details of the book, and the status of the order as 'paid'.
I print this page out, and highlight the paid section and write 'paid' in Japanese next to it, just for the staff who don't read English, or something.
I then take the two documents, the store print-out and the Amazon print-out and hand them in to the department office.
Oh, I forgot to mention- the book MUST be delivered to the university address. I am NOT allowed to have it delivered to my home.
Then I just wait for the book to show up in my department staff room pigeonhole.
Simples !
Oh, one more thing, if the book is less than 10,000 yen it is mine to keep. If it is over 10,000 yen it is the property of the university and will have to go in the library collection when I leave/retire. So when an expensive books arrives, I have to take it to the department office. They send it to the library who stamp it and put the reference info on the spine. Then it comes back to me.
It makes me laugh when I hear foreigners who are under the impression that Japan is some futuristic, high-tech, super efficient place. Nah. Kafka would find plenty of material for his next novel here. Don't forget the stamp. For god's sake.
One good thing about the present situation. Because a lot of conferences have been cancelled, the money that I would have used for going to them can be re-directed to books. Looks like a big order spree is upcoming!
I find it hard to read a lot at home. Basically, I have to wait until the kids have gone to bed, or face repeated interruptions. My commute in to uni is quite long so I get a lot of reading done on the train.
The house is pretty full of books and don't get her started has ordered a 'one in - one out' policy. So, all books that I buy now end up in my office...typical professor's office with wall to wall bookshelves. A fair bit of space there for new purchases. I love to keep a neat bookshelf and I make sure I keep some kind of order so i can quickly locate books I need to reference.
(I also read a lot of journal articles connected to linguistics...I print them out as I don't like reading on a screen. The system breaks down here and that part of the office is a mess!)
Sorry for the long rambling post. (maybe better suited to the Rant thread...)
I don't have access to large English language bookshops. Some of the bigger bookshops downtown have an English language section, but they are usually not that extensive. Consequently, I have to rely on on-line shopping for most of my purchases.
As part of my job I am given a research budget which can be used for a variety of purposes, including book buying.
The procedure, as with many things in Japan, is complex and bureaucratic.
Here is what I have to do if i want to buy a book using the research funds:
Go to Amazon and look for the book.
Once I have found the book I want, I have to check that I can pay using the 'Convenience Store Payment' method.
No credit card payment is allowed. (!) Only this method is acceptable to the uni.
I then order the book.
I receive a mail from Amazon telling me the payment code.
I go to the local convenience store (Only Lawason will do. Not 7/11, Family Mart of any of the other major convenience store chains, even though the Amazon payment system allows payment at all of these...No, only Lawson will do according to the uni.)
I go to the payment point (looks like an ATM, but isn't.)
Navigate a few screens in Japanese (No English option available).
When I get to the correct screen I scan a bar code from the mail on my phone. The machine then spits out an invoice.
I take this to the counter and present it to the staff. They scan it and tell me how much to pay. I pay. (Must be cash.)
Once I have paid they enter 'paid' into their cash register. This prompts a printer behind the counter to print out a receipt.
The staff then has to stamp this with the official shop stamp. (Don't forget the stamp! Nothing in Japan works without the stamp.)
I then take this receipt to the university. But before I hand this in, I have to go to the Amazon site again.
Go to the 'My orders' page and navigate to the order status. It has all the details of the book, and the status of the order as 'paid'.
I print this page out, and highlight the paid section and write 'paid' in Japanese next to it, just for the staff who don't read English, or something.
I then take the two documents, the store print-out and the Amazon print-out and hand them in to the department office.
Oh, I forgot to mention- the book MUST be delivered to the university address. I am NOT allowed to have it delivered to my home.
Then I just wait for the book to show up in my department staff room pigeonhole.
Simples !
Oh, one more thing, if the book is less than 10,000 yen it is mine to keep. If it is over 10,000 yen it is the property of the university and will have to go in the library collection when I leave/retire. So when an expensive books arrives, I have to take it to the department office. They send it to the library who stamp it and put the reference info on the spine. Then it comes back to me.
It makes me laugh when I hear foreigners who are under the impression that Japan is some futuristic, high-tech, super efficient place. Nah. Kafka would find plenty of material for his next novel here. Don't forget the stamp. For god's sake.
One good thing about the present situation. Because a lot of conferences have been cancelled, the money that I would have used for going to them can be re-directed to books. Looks like a big order spree is upcoming!
I find it hard to read a lot at home. Basically, I have to wait until the kids have gone to bed, or face repeated interruptions. My commute in to uni is quite long so I get a lot of reading done on the train.
The house is pretty full of books and don't get her started has ordered a 'one in - one out' policy. So, all books that I buy now end up in my office...typical professor's office with wall to wall bookshelves. A fair bit of space there for new purchases. I love to keep a neat bookshelf and I make sure I keep some kind of order so i can quickly locate books I need to reference.
(I also read a lot of journal articles connected to linguistics...I print them out as I don't like reading on a screen. The system breaks down here and that part of the office is a mess!)
Sorry for the long rambling post. (maybe better suited to the Rant thread...)