One thing that you love about Japan is the service you get here. If you tip your glass of water in your lap at a restaurant you can bet on that your waiter will rush to you saying “sumimasen” (I am sorry) as if it was his fault you are clumsy 🙂

Another example was at Konami Sports Club quite a while back. I was using a cable machine to do abs crunches as in the picture below. When I was at the point where you have to use your abs the most the cable broke and I went head first into the floor. I swear to you that before I could get up on me feet again everyone working at the gym was there checking how I was. 5 seconds after that someone was at the phone calling the company doing service on the machines.

So that was background on the positive side of the service. Now, at some times, the service can get a bit annoying too. Monday I went with my company’s shuttle bus from our office in Shinagawa to our office in Haneda, a 30 minutes or so ride. I was reading a book but forgot the book on the bus.

On the way back home in the same shuttle bus I realized I forgot the book so when we arrived in Shinagawa I asked the driver. And he had found the book and left it at the guards in Haneda. Lucky me, I was going to the Haneda office on Tuesday as well so I could pick up the book I thought.

Tuesday came and I was knocking on the door to the guards hut. Sure they had the book… I could see it on one of their desks. “Just wait a moment while I make a call” the guard said. After the call, “Sorry you have to wait because the one I need to speak to was not there” the guard said. Just give me the book on the g*d d**n table, I thought but acted very Japanese and only bowed slightly and said “thank you.”

An hour later I went to the guards hut again. Another guard. The same procedure. Only this time someone at the other end of the phone call was actually picking up. 5 minutes later a second guy showed up with a paper that I had to sign. On the book there was a sticky note that I also had to sign. Then, finally, I could get my book.

The service point here is that if you loose some valuables then this procedure is to protect you from anyone in the guard staff to steal from you. But oh my *** is it a waste of energy and time for a book 🙂 Counting theirs and my hourly rates I guess it must have been cheaper for the company to just buy me a new book 😉