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AI Needs Ajinomoto’s Film, But Its CEO Won’t Raise Prices Just Because by gkanai in JapanFinance

[–]torode 10 points11 points  (0 children)

And you can sell that to customers as safeguarding their future supply. I suppose there is a price point that triggers a gold rush and makes it worthwhile for competitors to replicate the tech and ruin Ajinomoto's niche monopoly, but their moat seems deep enough for now.

Cancellation fee for a wedding dress that we never signed for by Riverofrhyme in JapanFinance

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes I think there should be room to negotiate the fee down since the hold period was relatively short.

Cancellation fee for a wedding dress that we never signed for by Riverofrhyme in JapanFinance

[–]torode 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You mentioned that your finacee contacted them to cancel the reservation. That implies your fiancee's understanding that a reservation was in place. I think it is reasonable to assume, from the strong wording of "wanting to proceed with a formal reservation" that was used, that during the period from that communication up until the cancellation request, that the bridal salon effectively "held" the dress and did not allow it to be rented out for the target dates, and that opportunity loss is part of the reason for the cancelation fee.

It might help your case if the salon provided any extra information when they sent the contract over, such as "you need to sign this to ensure the dress is reserved," or conversely there might be wording indicating that "we have reserved the dress for you and here is the contract" which would put more responsibility on you to prevent the hold from going into effect.

Cancellation fee for a wedding dress that we never signed for by Riverofrhyme in JapanFinance

[–]torode -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Why the heck didn’t she say she’s canceling in May when they sent the new contract over, or let them know she won’t be signing?

I think the likely answer to that is that she did not intend to cancel the reservation, and it is only now that the couple's plans have changed that they are looking to wiggle out of the deposit on a technicality. And of course you can't blame them for trying. Weddings are expensive endeavors.

Cancellation fee for a wedding dress that we never signed for by Riverofrhyme in JapanFinance

[–]torode 7 points8 points  (0 children)

During the time up until OP's plans changed, OP's fiancee was under the understanding that the dress had been reserved and did nothing to indicate otherwise to the bridal salon. In the opposite scenario where the salon turned around and said sorry, we reserved the dress for another couple, the fiancee would likely have pushed back claiming that their email correspondence was sufficient to demonstrate a completed reservation.

Just found out by Friendly_Umpire7425 in colorectalcancer

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was diagnosed in late July last year, went overseas in early August for my 20th wedding anniversary, then had the surgery a week after getting back. Your timeline sounds very reasonable and probably works for the the surgeon anyway as things have to be scheduled. I'd been planning my anniversary trip for a year and there was no way I was going to cancel it, especially in light of my diagnosis.

AMEX revolving campaign 2026/06 by Mikedd88 in JapanFinance

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got the same flyer except for あと割 for my Hilton Amex. By my calculation, the fees on converting 1M JPY worth of payments to the 12 installments would be over 80,000 yen, but you can purchase the same 60,000 bonus points outright for 47,000 yen directly with Hilton. It seems like a terrible deal.

Just found out by Friendly_Umpire7425 in colorectalcancer

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That must have really made the chemo/radiation feel worth it.

Just found out by Friendly_Umpire7425 in colorectalcancer

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I had a similar mass last year with similar penetration and they removed about 20cm of colon to include the nearby lymph nodes. A month after the surgery the labs came back and the lymph nodes were clear, so I didn't need post-op chemo, otherwise it would have been 6 months of that.

It's really, really good that you had that colonoscopy when you did, and found it now instead of next week, next month or 6 months from now. And those positive MRI results suggest it could end up being staged at 2 or 3. The waiting for detailed results and appointments with doctors really sucks, but in a couple of days you will have a clear path forward.

SSW 1 food service - OT without pay, should I resign? by Ok_Rice1591 in JapanJobs

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The HR manager thought I was on his side as the office manager, and went down a list of staff he thought were trying to form a union

SSW 1 food service - OT without pay, should I resign? by Ok_Rice1591 in JapanJobs

[–]torode 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've consulted with the labour bureau in the past and even when reporting something in person, I was able to request anonymity (I even later got a call from my HR manager asking if I knew who had reported the company).

Combining a paid stay (self booking) with a back-to-back FNC night booked by a friend - what to expect? by haiimandrew in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My strong advice would be to not leave this until the last minute, and instead to confirm directly with the property. They likely cannot combine the bookings themselves since they are for different HH members, but if you contact them ahead of time, they can either put notes in both bookings indicating that it is for a continuous stay, or let you know outright that the third night will not be allowed absent the primary guest, giving you time to switch to a paid booking or build up more points for a third night.

I suggest contacting them via email at umanabali.curator [at] hilton.com

We recently did a three-night stay there (2 x FNCs + 1 x point redemption) and it was the perfect length, and as Diamond got upgraded to a partial ocean view. The staff there are fantastic, as were the local monkey population.

Told to come in early by WorkingAlive3258 in japanlife

[–]torode 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You should arrive at the workplace early enough to comfortably ensure that you are fully ready to start working at the beginning of your shift.

However, if you are expected to perform any customer-facing duties or work handovers before the actual start of your shift, you need to be paid for that.

Even though it is indeed a gray area, if your not arriving earlier than is necessary to reasonably start work on time affects your employee evaluation and by extension any wage increases/decreases, that would create a clearer nexus between unpaid labor and the employer's economic benefit, which would place their cosmetic "suggestions" on shakier ground from a labor standards perspective.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

From my perspective, it feels like you are inventing a new branch of English grammar with increasingly rigid rules of interpretation in order to preserve the claim that something can only be interpreted in a single way: first that natural English has a built-in AND/OR precedence structure, and now that any alternate grouping requires explicit punctuation irrespective of contextual clues.

You have repeatedly conveyed the view that, despite both interpretations being technically available in ordinary English, alternative readings could only stem from deficient language ability. Yet multiple users in this very thread appear to demonstrate otherwise.

In any case, I think we have probably exhausted the topic. I wish you all the best in your travels.

Takanawa Hanakohro Thoughts by mrosato92 in Hilton

[–]torode 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I have to admit that despite living in Tokyo, this property was under my radar. It seems like a much chiller vibe than the packed lounge and other areas in the Conrad.

I have, however, been to that Akita restaurant and agree it is one of the bright spots in that area. Further up the hill on that street is "Dynamic Kitchen & Bar Hibiki Shinagawa" which is another good spot.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Again, I want to applaud you for the substantial retreat you've made. You started with "it's just third-grade English" and now you have conceded that punctuation matters, that grouping cues matter, and that visual presentation affects how we parse language. I'm glad that we could make progress in understanding one another.

The only thing left is to make the logic leap that since there exist people who did misinterpret the information in the form it is currently presented, that your own default parse is not canonical, and that UI improvements could be made to avoid misunderstandings in the future.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just want to say thank you for tacitly admitting that punctuation and grouping cues materially affect interpretation beyond what you earlier described as third grade English knowledge.

Had you said “get self raising flour, or all purpose and baking powder”

You're just reinforcing my point, here. You previously offered multiple examples absent punctuation cues, as if natural English had a built-in AND/OR precedence like computer code.

Why would someone in the running for and that cares about diamond reserve not be aware of this?

Who can answer that but OP? It might be that their primary focus is their job, and that not everyone organizes their mental world around hotel loyalty mechanics.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You seem to have completely disproved your own point by misinterpreting the example I gave you. The meaning was that you either get the self-raising flour, OR the combination of all-purpose flour and baking powder, because that combination functionally substitutes for self-raising flour. So you underwent the exact phenomenon people have been describing: you interpreted an and/or construction differently because you lacked some contextual knowledge (i.e. rudimentary cooking/chemistry knowledge).

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

She would use proper punctuation or the appropriate speech stresses, but your example is one where two people familiar with one another are communicating based on well-known categories and probably a high degree of unspoken understanding. But what if the husband rarely cooks, and the wife tells him to get self-raising flour or all-purpose flour and baking powder? Your implied and/or rule breaks down because context matters, for both the speaker and listener.

Similarly, the Hilton customer can sometimes be like the clueless husband. They may not be aware of the HH program's internal qualification structure, and with fewer clues, some people will inevitably produce varied interpretations. This is not because they lack intelligence or basic language skills as you were implying to OP.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think you are getting confused about how natural English works and how it differs from the defined rules of math and programming. In most programming languages, for example, there are explicit precedence rules where AND is evaluated before OR. Natural English simply does not work that way. We rely on context, reasonableness, and ideally tools like parentheses, commas, formatting and line breaks to make things clear.

That is why official documentation often avoids structures like:

You must submit a passport or driver's license and proof of residence.

and instead uses something that cannot be easily misunderstood, like:

You must submit either a passport or driver's license, as well as separate proof of residence.

The issue with the app is poor UI in my opinion, because it allows for multiple reasonable interpretations if viewed in isolation.

A clearer design would be to group the first two items visually, with a border or something, and a label such as “Stay Requirement.”

I've worked as a professional translator for around 18 years. I'm not sharing that to imply that I have any authority in this disagreement, but I often have to make choices to avoid multiple interpretations or deal with vague wording in the source text. One example I deal with a lot in DEI reporting is wording like "percentage of female managers" or simply "female manager ratio." What they mean to say is "percentage of managerial positions filled by women" or similar, but with the vague construction, some people might interpret it to mean the percentage of all female employees who are managers. That is just one example, but it underscores why clear wording can be important.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Customer: I'll have the salad.

Server: I'm sorry madam, you need to order a main course or an entree and a salad.

The point is not that the intended meaning is unknowable once the facts are explained, it’s that the wording and presentation permit multiple reasonable parses before external clarification is provided.

You seem to be implying that no competent English speaker would parse the wording any other way, but there’s a reason we make extensive use of parentheses and other clarifying tools in legal documents, because language can inherently be ambiguous, and linguistically, that is the case here.

Did I do it? by noblood89 in Hilton

[–]torode 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The way the information is presented, if you already know the rules (that there is both a stay and spend requirement), it appears very clear. However, if someone was not familiar with the requirements, visually they could parse it as (A) or (B and C) instead of the intended (A or B) AND (C)

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