So today I got to choose my new office. At first I was impressed that I was actually given a choice. There are three (only three?) offices available so I was shown each one. The first was great. About a third larger than my current office, sixth floor, overlooking a great view of Tokyo in general, lots of light. Great!
"You probably can't have this one, though," I'm told.
"Eh? Why not?"
"Well, we have a special rules for choosing offices. There are three criteria: the age of the professor, how long he's been at Rikkyo, and, er, something else I don't remember."
"And?"
"Well, we have three new professors coming this year. Another one is three months older than you, so he gets first pick."
"Oh, OK," I said, "No problem. Let's see the other two."
So the other two won't be quite so good, but they can't be that bad, right? The second office was in a 20 year old building that looks about 60 years old. It's damp, rather decrepit, and, in the honoured tradition of Japanese educational institutions every where, painted grey. (Although I'm not sure if it's battleship grey or dull-sea grey.) There's only one power point, and, speaking to the guy in the office next door, the ancient looking thing that, I'm told, is the air conditioner doesn't work. The view is still OK, but now looks over some rather nasty looking roofs.
On to the third. The third office is ground floor, but a way away from the main building. It's carpeted and clean, but that's about all than can be said. It's currently used as a psychotherapy room. In the end, I chose this one simply because it's clean and, as the room is being converted from a therapy room, it'll get a new air conditioner.
Once again, Rikkyo proves it is nothing if not traditional. "Here's the room you can't choose." As usual, you just live with it. Japanese are so keen on fairness it's actually very unfair!
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