stolen stuff

[Confound]

It has come to this... I need some advice from those living in Japan on how to deal with getting your stolen stuff back in the dojo.

My bogu bag was been stolen, and my bokutou. I don't give a damn about thebogu bag, but the bokutou was my sensei's. He gave it to me when he moved, it was his first bokutou, he used it to pass his sho-dan exam. it's the oldest, rattiest looking bokutou you've ever seen, but it has nice balance, and it isn't heavy like some poorly made bokutou.

at any rate, it was taken. not only was it stolen, it was stolen from the women's locker room, and i found it in a rack, with someone else's name on it. a guy's name in fact.

how do i go about getting it back? I've explained in no uncertain terms that my bokutou has been misappropriated, everyone knows it isn't where it is supposed to be, but noone is volunteering to give it back to me.

itook it up the ass over the bogu bag, because it's replaceable, but the bokutou is a totally different matter!

c

[cklin]

Just steal it back!

And then buy a new one and use the new one when you go to keiko.

[kendokamax]

ya just steal it back, it's yours!

You said before that you were bigger than all of these small japanese. shouldn't be a problem lol

But seriously I never though of someone stealing kendo stuff.
Maybe because not as many people practices kendo and that we all know each others (all over the country).

Sucks! I hope you get your stuff back

[KENSHIN]

Originally posted by Confound
It has come to this... I need some advice from those living in Japan on how to deal with getting your stolen stuff back in the dojo.

If you know who it is, then technically it should be easier to get back...so you say he is a some kid, well then i think that there are three options you have, the first is go and talk to him see if you can convince him to give it back, this should embaress him of the thought that he is one of your pupils and that he had stolen from his teacher, in which if he is a keen kendokan then he will not want to jeapordise his kendo training as you will inevitably give him a hard time from training from which he can not do anything about.

secondly, you can then go to his parents house, and explain the situation to them, i am sure they would believe you because being his parents they should know what their son owns, and of course if they can't remember buying him that then it is a dead give away, i mean they should know what he owns in terms of kendo equipment because parents like to know how much their child is investing into this sport because it is an expensive sport and therefore keep an eye on what he buys.

third option would be, and if it is that important to you, to get your old sensai to come and identify it in front of the sensai of that dojo, surely he would be regarded as a reliable source of evidence to your current sensai. furthermore, if it is an old bokutou then the incription of his name should be quite fresh, in which you can argue that if he had decided to put his name on his bokutou for the purpose of identifying it as his, then he would have done so from the outset of when he bought it, so then why are there fresh markings on the bokutou...i am sure if your sensai is logical enough he will be able to see through this.

i don't recommend stealing it from him, as you say his name is now inscribed onto it, therefore it will be hard for you to disprove that it is not his, making it easier for him to get you into even more sh.it.

Anyhoo, i don't want to sound too bad to you, but for some reason i just find it quite hard to believe that someone would steal it...it just sounds to strange and too stupid for someone to do it from the same dojo because if i had found out who had stolen something of mine i would not be merciful.

I guess this situation will inevitably go into your black book of the hatred you feel for japan, what a shame i guess.

[Hyaku]

You certainly work for some wierd schools. If something of mine went missing at some of the places I work at, all hell would break loose

Normaly thefts of this type are reported at the early morning staff meeting. Then the staff will search all the lockers. Failing this the whole class will do it.

If an item is found someone will be in the guidance councellors room pretty quick. As already mentioned get the Sensei to identify it. These things do happen so its important to deal with the culprit as an example.

Hyaku

[Kendoka]

Tell the class, making sure that the culprit hears you, that you intend to call the police unless you get it back by next week, giving him time to retrieve it from the rack and to remove his name.

Richard

[inner_cent]

Confound, no offence intended, but, really curious here.

How come you always getting yourself stucked into situation like this ? So far I had no problem with something like this when I was in Jaapan ( or anyone else that I know of were in japan ), but you seems getting alot of weird things happened around you.

[KhawMengLee]

Hmnnn...bad luck or not...I would go for the Sensei thing. Even if you confront him it would be good. There are so many questions you could ask to trap him, "where did you get it? which shop? etc"

Stealing Public property is one thing (eg. Tanuki) but private is a no no.

Meng

[Kuri]

Confound, you seem to be a magnet for trouble. Based on what you have already said about your situation, even if you can prove it's yours, you have no chance in hell of ever getting it back.

You really need to examine why you even still train there.

Good luck �i‚ª‚ñ‚΂ê�j

[Confound]

Originally posted by inner_cent
Confound, no offence intended, but, really curious here.

How come you always getting yourself stucked into situation like this ? So far I had no problem with something like this when I was in Jaapan ( or anyone else that I know of were in japan ), but you seems getting alot of weird things happened around you.

i have no idea why these things happen to me. I'm one of those people who plan for all contingencies, so when something happens to me, it's incredibly weird.

You also have to consider where all these weird things were happening (and are still happening): In a school where no one wants a foreigner, and there are many many children whose parents are either IN the yakuza or indirectly involved. So i was teaching, and am still studying kendou, in an area with extremely traditional views, both toward foreigners and toward women. The school in general is pretty crappy. Students hit, punched and slapped me *in* class, while the teacher was there, watching. Not to mention the time a kid menaced me with a knife. These things were all 'acceptable'. Needless to say, I requested a transfer.

I'm working at another school now, but i'm still returning for a night kendou class at that school. The sensei is a nice old man, but he hasn't even bothered to learn my name, even after a year. he gave me my ikkyu certificate, but it had no name on it. a fully official document, but my name wasn't there because he told me he doesn't know it. well, he didn't tell me, a mother of one of my students to whom he gave it (so she wold give it to me, so he wouldn't have to talk to me), told me that.

it's odd really. because when we're in bogu, he treats me like everyone else, but the rest of the time i'm some kind of weird monstrosity he'd rather not speak with.

perhaps that explains why these things happen to me... I suspect that the new school will be better, however, the old budokan is going to get worse, because the students I used to get along best with will be leaving ths school soon. leaving only the ones who like to steal my stuff. At least I know my bogu is too big for them, they would have no reason to steal that.

c

[KhawMengLee]

Hmmnnn...when all else fails, take the law into your own hands and get yer bokuto back.

Meng

[Hyaku]

I have had a number of things stolen. After one day one bike dissapeared which I got back.

I did also lose a nice mountain bike.

This time last year someone was trying my cars doors at 3:30 in the morning. Now I have sensor light all around.

Underwear thieves are rife. Cuaght one red handed removing stuff from a line.

Sexual molestation is also abound. Its really no different here to anywhere else apart from the fact that these things never seem to actualy get printed in the newspaper

Hyaku

[Confound]

Originally posted by Hyaku
Its really no different here to anywhere else apart from the fact that these things never seem to actualy get printed in the newspaper

Hyaku

Thank you, Hyaku. I am often flamed for telling the truth about my life here. Do check out the 'budokan abuse' thread that was recently revived from the dead by a passing troll. I admit, I fed him. Bad. Someone slap my wrist.

At any rate, like any other place beyond our own neighbourhood, we often don't see Japan as it really is. Then again, we don't see Bolivia, or any other country in the world as it really is through the tv screen or on printed pages. The 'holiday inn' syndrome doesn't help either.

see? I'm not lying. These things happen. This is not the happy land of the harmless cuddly Pikachu, it's just like any other place. There are good and bad people here. I'd even go as far as to suggest that the good people here are more open in expressing their willingness to help.

Total strangers, who have later turned out to be the mothers or elder sisters of my students, have offered me drives when i was waiting or walking in torrential rains. A kendou sensei gave me his very own bokutou, his first one, because he knew I was too sick at the time to go get one before practice. I've had a decent time here all told, it's just that these nasty incidents almost seem to seek me out. You learn to grow a tough skin over time, not that I didn't have one to begin with, but the constant staring and nasty comments from my former work colleagues and students tend to wear thin after a while. (It was an area apparently popular with the yakuza, hardly foreigner friendly...)

enough public confessions for today.

c

[KENSHIN]

Originally posted by Confound


see? I'm not lying. These things happen. This is not the happy land of the harmless cuddly Pikachu, it's just like any other place. There are good and bad people here. I'd even go as far as to suggest that the good people here are more open in expressing their willingness to help.

c

I think most people know that, but i have to say that some times the negativity that you express can at some times be quite harmful, I say this because I can imagine that there are quite a few Japanese people on this forum, and speaking on their behalf it's not nice to keep hearing about your country in such a hateful way. I mean afterall it happens all over the world, it is actually very discoruaging for some who may take what you say about Japan and have second thoughts about going there, just because of things that are happening to ya.

[KhawMengLee]

Underwear thieves are rife. Cuaght one red handed removing stuff from a line.

Arrghh! I hate those perverts! We got them in Malaysia as well. My friend's housemate (a girl) was complaining about her undies going missing and we both spotted the next door nieghbour's kid taking them one afternoon. So my mate and I waited next day and he actually popped up on cue! He took two panties then noticed us standing at the back door.

It was pretty funny cause he actually slowly put them back and ran back in. He was a teenager so it was kinda fun because he was really freaked we'd tell his parents. Every time we see his dad or mom, we'd like "G'day!", and strike up a conversation. I can still see him shitting himself peeking nervously from his window.


By Confound

see? I'm not lying. These things happen. This is not the happy land of the harmless cuddly Pikachu, it's just like any other place. There are good and bad people here. I'd even go as far as to suggest that the good people here are more open in expressing their willingness to help.

I agree. When I was there some people, (after finding out I wasn't japanese) said, "Oh, you are chinese! You eat dog!"

"I was like, nah, man! I'm Hokkien, you are thinking about the Hakkas."

Then they were like, "Hok..kki..en??!!??"

Heh, that stumped them.
Menh