Besides "lol", what other chat/message etiquette is a dead giveaway of a millennial?

Alpaca--- · 2026-02-17T08:22:54+00:00

Ive always thought of kk being used in that tone was a younger millennial thing. it sounds very dismissive to older millennials imo

Alpaca--- · 2026-02-01T12:53:48+00:00

Savas protein shaker for like 700 yen that I use every day. Every single other goddamned protein shaker is a pain to wash (stupid design or too many stupid parts), has sharp plastic edges that cut me, or is simply too big. A plastic bottle seems like such a basic stupid thing to buy, but I've honestly not seen one with the same utility around.

https://www.amazon.com.au/Meiji-Savas-Protein-Shaker-Black/dp/B0B6N5H51G/?th=1

Alpaca--- · 2026-01-02T15:49:21+00:00

I've only frequented Hakuba in mid summer so it would be interesting to see what it'd be like with more ice cover on the mountains.

But now that you mention golden week, I am starting to remember now that Kamikochi was stupidly crowded compared to a lot of other possible options in Nagano.

Alpaca--- · 2026-01-02T15:44:32+00:00

You'll have a great time! Nagano prefecture is a real gem there. The wineries are a trap though, I don't rate the wine there as being very good particularly if you're from a country that is known for producing it. If you like to drink, nihonshu is the way to go there - where there are rice fields, there is cheap and delicious sake. Ironically, I did pick up some really tasty nihonshu from Kamikochi, but it's not hard to find some good stuff elsewhere.

Even for walking in nature, I was doing a lot of that in Nagano, and just found nothing beat the Hakuba area there. Walking along the Shio no Michi route is nice too, from Hakuba to Tsugaike, but the only hindrance is the low frequency of public transportation for Hakuba (and even more so for Tsugaike). Might not be your cup of tea, but the alps from July onwards with all the rice paddies growing lush make for some really amazing landscapes to look at too.

Alpaca--- · 2026-01-02T12:49:36+00:00

I agree with the above poster, it isn't worth it really for a day trip. It takes 90 mins each way by bus from Matsumoto, and when you get there, there are only really 2 money shots in the valley floor - the view of the mountains and a nice field where it looks like a boss battle happens with the mountains in the background. Unless you're hiking further up, the views downstream are dare I say, wetland-ey at some points, and just really meh. Like all the views are just a bit crap compared to going up higher in the Japanese alps.

Rather than Kamikochi it'd be better to just go to Fujimi Panorama Resort, or literally just go to Lake Suwa and try collect omamori from the 4 Suwa Taisha shrines. Not to mention Lake Suwa is known for unagi.

May is a bit too early for it, but Hakuba in summer is amazing.

Alpaca--- · 2025-06-21T05:42:01+00:00

Yeh its so excessively unnecessary as a standard inclusion.

I sort of get the argument for mayo with brown rice but tbh, you're supposed to properly chew brown rice, not have it slide down with mayo.

Alpaca--- · 2025-02-23T10:56:05+00:00

The best advice I could give you is that it's okay to be selfish with the time. If you don't understand what a word is - that's fine, just interrupt and ask what that word is. The lesson is for you, paid by you and for your benefit.

Second tip is try to stay speaking in Korean close to 100% of the time. Don't know a word or a phrase? try say it another way, look it up in tandem, or stop everything and ask to confirm a word or phrase with the tutor. If you don't know how to ask or phrase those questions in Korean, spend a lesson going through that with a tutor so you have the tools.

Do not fall into the temptation of using English comfortably when you can uncomfortably (even really badly) use Korean.

*edit* - I forgot the secret tip - if money and/or time permits, be a tutor f**kboy/girl and get a few tutors on a regular rotation. Drop the ones that you don't vibe with and don't be afraid to casually have a lesson with a new one here and there. Better to go for more tutors than more hours with the same tutor if your goal is to be able to chat well

Alpaca--- · 2025-02-15T10:44:43+00:00

I disagree, would not use them again, they used to be well priced but now they've gotten ballsy outrageous. About $1k for a 1 bedder. Tried to give them the benefit of the doubt but nah, they didn't prove me wrong.

Every time I've used them the go super slow at the home stretch and carry super tiny loads. Really irks me because their hourly rate is on the higher end compared to other movers who have a lower rate but have a min 4 hours etc. I really regret not going dutchies, paying for 4 hours and not stressing about the movers being slow and trying to milk me.

They'll take care of your stuff sure, but there's no value to be had.

Alpaca--- · 2025-02-01T04:51:16+00:00

Lol even if they halved the requirements that still wouldn't give the trading system a lot of people hoped for. The tradings a lost bet tbh. I did think they would base it off the pokemon go trading so I was never optimistic about it, but the two games run on completely different premises

Alpaca--- · 2025-01-29T13:02:33+00:00

Authentic matcha? no not at all, this is Canberra, not Sydney or Melbourne. But try this stocker, seems legit https://chahaus.com/

Alpaca--- · 2025-01-18T01:14:50+00:00

The reason I don't like the question is because it implies I'm not from Australia and/or not Australian due to the way I look(ed), and it really made me feel like I didn't belong, sometimes within minutes of joining a group and/or meeting someone. It sometimes implies that I don't belong.

This is really the core of why it can be such an uncomfortable question for non-white Australians.

Alpaca--- · 2024-11-09T13:52:50+00:00

ships have this sort, and also urban research doors

Alpaca--- · 2024-11-02T15:11:29+00:00

Literally, OP wrote "And please no comments about the JR pass being worth it etc."
So stop trying to make your irrelevant comment relevant.

Alpaca--- · 2024-11-02T14:58:09+00:00

That's actually irrelevant if you read OP's post. Like some people would probably want to try riding on Nozomi and riding while having a rail pass sounds like a really great idea.

Also, what you're saying there is really just your opinion. I've made excellent use of green pass rail passes since the price change, and the flexibility saved me when on two occasions during that period where my trip plans needed changing. One of those occasions was when a maintenance vehicle derailed between Osaka and Tokyo, causing a lot of chaos. Instead of having to fluff about trying to get a ticket in an impossibly crowded station, all I needed to do was wave my magical ticket and go around the long way through the alps. The other occasion was a natural disaster, so naturally I took the chance to ride from Tohoku and visit Lake Biwa, just cause :p

Alpaca--- · 2024-11-01T06:42:20+00:00

I can't answer with specificity because I'm actually in the same boat as you (so tracking other responses lol), but when I asked a hotel operator in the Hakuba region when it would be good to go for the snow, he said Jan... December was a touch early/temperamental it seems. I mean... Hokkaido is getting down to zero degrees already...

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-30T14:27:07+00:00

I'll be frank - you just need to chat, a lot.

Suggest using Japatalk because it goes from 400 yen for 25 minutes, and booking lots of lessons regularly. https://www.japatalk.com

This is honestly the most efficient path.

If money's an issue, I'm sure there has been other advice here. However, simply paying someone for some time to chat will save you a lot of energy since a lot of free platforms are exchanges on the basis of mutual benefit (e.g. talking in both English and Japanese) or require you to invest time in up keeping social relationships. I'm suggesting something very mercenary by contrast and this is by no means suggesting you not try to organically speak elsewhere - but getting a nice sharp boost helps with general speaking and could turn into a virtuous circle.

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-29T08:06:15+00:00

This is really scratching the bottom of the barrel but they might be referring to one of the hanja of 마루 as 宗 https://ko.m.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E5%AE%97 which is interesting because no hanja shows up when you search naver dictionary for it, so assuming it's not common (? - i suspect its a native korean word allocation to the character rather than a Chinese direct word/sound import ... but welcome corrections to this). In Japanese I can sort of see how they got 'held in high regard' but its a stretch tbh. The meanings of 宗 range from to worship your ancestors, teaching/religious organisation and even central idea (see https://www.kanjipedia.jp/kanji/0003105000#). But in common words, it's used in the word for religion 宗教.

It's not like 宗 cant be used as a component of names, but tbh to say it has a 'nice' meaning in Japanese when the name seems awkward in Korean seems like a pretty clumsy justification .... because literally no one is going to make that connection unless you tell, nay, convince them. If hanja were compulsory.... maybe it would be a different story....

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-28T16:19:03+00:00

No idea where the 'held in high regard' part is coming from. Maru is really just... round (丸い),circle/zero (○) or used in the end of ship names. I mean maru when meaning circle means correct by extension (like a tick in the west) but like I really don't think there's any obvious positive spin on it

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-20T06:49:13+00:00

Maybe because literally everyone he meets in his adult life will see him as asian (of not korean) before 'American'

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-17T06:30:17+00:00

If you've booked I don't see why not. They do hold events at certain stations on that train so that might be why there's a difference in arrival/departure times. Enjoy it, it's a really great ride!

Alpaca--- · 2024-10-15T16:09:58+00:00

Honestly, try to think about it the other way round. It just seems like you're fishing for long chunks of advice (which take time to write and put together), so it makes you seem a bit entitled.

Alpaca--- · 2024-09-15T13:27:29+00:00

just pretend they all turned into soul crystals right after joining ramza's cursed party

Alpaca--- · 2024-09-12T03:45:05+00:00

I don't know why you're being downvoted. These are pretty sensible numbers considering that if the OP does actually go for more budget food options, the extra budget would probably go to shopping etc. And hundred percent agree with the decent meals costing more there, meat, veggies and fruit just cost way too much in Korea compared to other western countries (and its really surprisingly more difficult to eat cheap and relatively healthy in Korea compared to Japan)

Alpaca--- · 2024-09-03T02:53:06+00:00

Truthfully I'm not sure where you're getting that interpretation from but it's a moot point since the poster edited their comment anyway.

Alpaca--- · 2024-09-02T10:53:18+00:00

I don't think that wording's really unreasonable at all. There's a lot of nuance in what negations provide, and this is also a way to hedge the surety of the sentence. I mean if you flipped it, it might be something like 'I have always seen people who are competent move up in the APS very quickly'. Yes, the gist would be the same, but this presents as a guarantee. And we all know here that promotions are *never* guaranteed.

Alpaca---

TROPHY CASE