I have decided that 15 minutes is more than enough time to spend looking up 「ピーヒャラ」 and getting no (meaningful) results. I have thus determined this is a nonsense word whose meaning is simply inferred from context.
I did happen upon a nice short blog post by a parent whose child was reading the book. The post is almost a decade old, meaning the kid’s probably an adult now. Maybe one of the WaniKani Community’s Japan-based members can locate him and ask him about the meaning of 「ピーヒャラ」. (Considering I just spent about 15 grueling minutes in a web search engine, I think it’s not unreasonable to ask a few people to take a fanciful trip across Japan in search of a young man who read this book around a certain date ten years ago.)
I promised myself to actively participate in the discussion (to justify not working today). But I think I understood what I’ve read. My question is about the reason to use this particular form, not what in means. Page 57
近所のペンキのやに めりなおしてもらうことにしたが、とんだめいわくだ.
I understand this broadly:
It was such a nuisance (to see graffiti written on my door and not being able to wipe it) that I had to ask the local painter to paint it over.
I think i am confused for 2 reasons:
why do we need here ことにしたが, without it would still be clear that the last part of the phrase explains the reason for the first
why do we need to おしてもらう, when we can just order the painting job. the use of this particular form means to me (correctly?) that we need politely ask painters opinion
Thank you for explaining. I think I learned those wrong being so sure now of the wrong meaning. It sounds like I need to get back to grammar practice. It is shame I cannot find time for all of that - kanji, grammar, reading.
I’m not entirely sure how that works in the sentence in the book then. I know it’s not entirely the same but given in English you can talk about ‘blowing your own horn’ ie boasting, maybe you can use ピーヒャラ in a similar way in Japanese to say that someone is complaining?
My Japanese isn’t good enough to try Googling that though
Yeah, this wasn’t super clear, but at the end of that sentence he speculates that “[they] probably resent that” - he wouldn’t need to wonder about the resentment if he was the one who was insulted!
ひとたば - one bunch
三千円も - as much as three hundred thousand yen
する ?
I was expecting a です at the end of the sentence and was a bit puzzled by する. I’m guessing it’s meaning 9 in Jisho - to cost.
Page 56-57: The graffiti!
So I’m seeing on the left what looks like an octopus with the writing バカ (idiot) and then some characters I’m not sure of.
Then we have an equals sign. On the right is that a tongue sticking out (?) (at first I thought it was a ladybird) and than a face poking the tongue out and the writing is フクオカ (the old mans name) and then I think ケチ (stingy).
Feels like the graffiti is a big clue to the crime. If that does say ケチ then it certainly points to the flower shop incident.
I’m confused because there doesn’t seem to be much of a comparison made? Could のほうがX also be used as a general intensifier? Like ’ he is rather stingy, isn’t he?'.
I think 福岡さんのほう means 福岡さん is being compared with everyone who is not 福岡さん. So, compared with others, 福岡さん is stingy (福岡さん is more stingy that others).
においを、アルプスにおぼえてもらわなければならない。
Is “must” applied to Alps or to Spitz? Like I must get Alps to learn the smell for me or Alps must learn the smell for me (the for me is to translate the もらう). Sorry, I’m just kinda confused by the use of なければならない in this context
(at first I thought it was a ladybird) and than a face poking the tongue out 
and the writing is フクオカ (the old mans name) and then I think ケチ (stingy).