Three cheers for the manji!

What bad luck - my bike was stolen last month.
What good luck - Japan has a bike registration system
What bad luck - I didn't know the registration number
What good luck - the powers that be did and I got a post card yesterday to say it had been found.
What bad luck - The postcard says I have to pay a fine to get it back.
What good luck - If you file a police report you don't have to pay the fine.
What bad luck - I hadn't filed a police report.
What good luck - I had picked up the sheet to fill in to file a report.
What bad luck - the kanji was too difficult and I kept forgeting to ask Hiro.
What good luck - I went to Ikebukuro this morning to lodge the form.
What bad luck - the police said there is no point to lodge if your bike has been found and to go to Shinjuku to collect it.
What good luck - the place to collect the  bike was close to Shinjuku station.
What bad luck - they said I had to pay a fine.
What good luck - After begging and pleading and saying that I tried to fill in the form but couldn't read it properly and Hiro had been away on business trips and too busy to fill it in,  the manji kindly said, this time you don't have to pay.  But if there is a next time, please follow procedures properly.

Three cheers for the manji  :)




(Note manji is not real Japanese for this context).