Otearai Wa Doko Desu Ka?

Pause? Stop? Not Sure.

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:16:00 +0000

I haven't posted much on this blog this year. In fact, I recently started a new blog while I slowly accelerate into a concerted job search. If you want to see what I'm babbling about these days, you can find me in the following places:

Twitter
My Career Adventures (don't worry, I'm trying to think of a better name)

I'm sure I'll be back here within a few months. Until then, 気をつけてください。Take care!

Hello, Blog!

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 01:58:00 +0000

おひさしぶりですね？！
It's been a long time, blog! I said I didn't want to talk about my adventure in Japan right away, and then I got too busy! I changed schools a little while back and have working hard to finish up my degree. It feels good to work so hard on something that will net visible rewards, and feels even better being so close to achieving my goal!

But enough about that...how about a little recap of my trip? I promised pictures of the apartment I stayed in for six weeks, and they're coming up. It was just a little off the beaten trail in Hiroshima, but still quite convenient to the streetcar and within comfortable walking distance of the city center. I even walked all the way to Mazda stadium once to buy some baseball souvenirs; that took about an hour, but it was a beautiful spring day and the hour passed quickly.

And that's my room. Sorry I forgot the flash and didn't notice until later (I took this photo as I was leaving). The room was small but clean and the neighborhood was quiet. I had a small kitchen area with sink, refrigerator, rice cooker, hot water heater and a single burner gas stove. Provided for me were basic cooking utensils and dishes; it really was all I needed. The closest supermarket was well-stocked and only three blocks away. 7-11 was less than one block, which was great for satisfying sudden urges for pudding or Kirin Lager!

Another half block from the 7-11 was a gyudon shop. My friend met me at the train station when I arrived and then gave me a ride there when I was leaving, and since this restaurant is open 24 hours a day, it's the first and last place I ate on my trip. I still have a coupon on my desk for a free pudding :) This is the place:

Across the street from there was Mos Burger. I had lunch there a few times and also took a few lessons in customer service. One of the cashiers there had an absolutely dazzling smile and was fantastic in dealing with customers. It was pretty impressive, even for Japan where customer service can be phenomenal. And their teriyaki burger was mighty tasty!

I visited all the usual tourist spots: Hiroshima Castle, Miyajima, the A-Bomb Dome and Peace Memorial Park, but my favorite place in all of Hiroshima was here:

I attended two Hiroshima Carp games; they lost the first one and won the second, which was very exciting! When I lived in Dallas, I went to lots of Texas Rangers games and have always enjoyed going to baseball games. Carp games were no exception, and you can bet that anytime I'm in Japan and it's baseball season, I'll make a special trip back to Hiroshima to watch the Carp play!

I Don't Want to Talk About Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Mon, 17 May 2010 13:23:00 +0000

I don't know why, but I just don't feel like blogging about my trip to Japan. Last year, when I came home from my first trip, I couldn't shut up about it. Japan was a land of milk and honey, Shangri-la, everything is perfect in Japan and the rest of the world is pathetic. Well, maybe I wasn't quite that bad, but I was pretty much head over heels in love.

This year...well...I don't know. I mean, I had a great time and I'm working really hard to go back, especially as a permanent move. But this year was...HARD. My language skill (I use that term loosely) had improved and I was able to communicate better, albeit still horribly. And I saw something other than just Tokyo, which was really good. I lived in a building with a bunch of Japanese men, which didn't hurt my feelings either. And I had a friend who took me out to eat every few days.

The thing that was really difficult was constantly being told that I just wasn't good enough. I didn't do this or say this or think this way. But then I would see some moron from the States with his baseball cap turned sideways (who does that anymore??), surrounded by a gaggle of adoring guys and girls, all oohing and aahing over how interesting Westerners are and trying to emulate his idiocy. But me...all I got was constant correction. Is there an age cut-off for acceptance in Japan? In all fairness, it was no secret that I full intend to move there with my kids in a couple of years, so maybe they were just trying to help me "fit in" a little better. But I will always be an American, and I will always be perceived as a loud-mouthed, arrogant ass no matter how I speak or behave in Japan. And I was on my best behavior. I was on such good behavior that some days I thought I would faint from the strain. Oh well.

I still love Japan. And eventually, I'll get around to blogging about my trip. Just not until I get over the heartbreak and rejection.

Six Weeks in Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 09 May 2010 00:10:00 +0000

There are so many topics I could cover under this title, but I think I'll initially address the reason I went to Japan for six weeks- to study Japanese.

It was an interesting experience. I took a one-on-one class for an hour each weekday morning. In four weeks, I completed two textbooks and made my instructor really happy. But it's pretty easy to finish a textbook that has the answers in the back :) I honestly learned the most from the cashiers of Hiroshima. I don't remember much from the textbooks. As usual.

My 2009 trip to Tokyo was strictly tourist. Couldn't really speak any Japanese of value and I didn't mind since Tokyo is pretty English-friendly. But this year, I decided to learn a bit. I stayed in a ウィークリマンション a good distance away from the JR station just so I would be forced to interact with Japanese and not English.

This year, I tried actually listening to what store clerks were saying after the initial いらっしゃいませ!! And I thought my brain would fall out of my head. But I kept listening anyway. I don't know if I started to understand the words or just got in tune with the rhythm of the transactions (it doesn't matter: both equate to 'understanding')- but one day at 7-11 I was asked if I wanted my bento heated and "お願いします" popped out of my mouth before I realized what was happening. I had never understood the question before, relying on the visual cue of the cashier pointing at the microwave. And it was the first time I remember answering in Japanese without thinking about it. Well, well, well.

For six weeks, I kept my mouth shut a lot and my ears open. If I was at home, the TV was on- all day and all night. Didn't matter what the show was- I watched baseball, childrens' shows, cooking shows, news, anything. After about three weeks, this thing started happening in my brain. I could FEEL it starting to adjust and accept Japanese as NORMAL. As for speaking Japanese- well, people are kind to small children and that is pretty much where my language skill level was, so I just ran with it. No one pointed and laughed (in front of me anyway!), and other than a couple "OMGaforeigneristalkingtomewhatdoIdo" people, everyone was really gracious and patient. They couldn't speak English, so my crappy Japanese was all we had. And it was a-okay.

More on this later. And more on my trip, including a few photos.

Less Than a Week!

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 22:24:00 +0000

Only a few more days until I leave for Japan, so I thought I should blow the dust off my blog and bookmark it on my laptop. I've started packing, but I definitely need to prioritize the items I'm taking! Right now, I have a bit more luggage than is easily manageable by myself. It's hard to decide though since I'll be gone for six weeks. Especially with clothing. What if some random stranger sees me wearing the same outfit more than once? Unthinkable! Just kidding...but I don't want to be caught without appropriate attire. But I also don't want to pay for overweight luggage! Luckily, I began the packing process early, so I have a few days in which to mull things over.

I do plan to blog more often during my trip and to post photos. I finally finished my hectic semester at school and that has elicited an amazing feeling of relief. A little time off will be nice, although I will be studying Japanese during my sojourn. My friend got us tickets for sumo and for baseball; it is nice to have social plans made already, too. I'm really excited about the trip, although a little apprehensive. Last year's week in Japan was strictly tourist- no real need to worry about day-to-day things. Alas, I will be fine. I will even practice my slightly-improved Japanese and undoubtedly amuse a few locals in the process.

So until I reach my destination- adieu!

Japan Trip Plans

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 14:15:00 +0000

Only a month to go until I depart for Japan and I am very excited! Hopefully I will have time during my visit to breathe a little life back into my blog.

My plans are coming along nicely. I've booked my flight and ordered my JR Rail Pass voucher. Since I'll be in Japan for six weeks, I went with the one week pass and I will spend the first week on a series of day trips. It's the most cost-effective way to visit several cities, and since they are within a reasonable distance from Hiroshima, I won't have to pay for additional hotel- I can just go back to my apartment each night. That's a lot of train time, but I don't mind.

In my first week, I plan to visit Kyoto, Fukuoka and Osaka. The sumo tournament is in Osaka that week, so I am planning to go one day. If I have the opportunity, I'll return to Osaka later in my trip to watch bunraku since they will have shows during that time. I will spread out my sightseeing in Hiroshima through the course of my visit, but will definitely spend a day at Miyajima Island. I promised my younger kids that I would visit the Children's Peace Monument and have been folding cranes to leave there for them. We have 750 done so far. They are in small bags, by color, and I'll string them together when I get settled. It's easier to pack them this way, I think.

Once my intensive sightseeing trip is done in the first week, I will prepare myself mentally for the true purpose of my trip: study! I will be taking Japanese classes for four weeks. My goal is to avoid English as much as possible (which shouldn't be too hard!) and really focus on listening and speaking Japanese. As a tourist, it would be easy to avoid Japanese since the ability to speak it won't really be expected of me, but I want to try my best as much as possible. I'm not setting a No-English rule, though. That would only frustrate me. A lot of people can do that and stick to it, but I don't know that I can. At any rate, I'll enjoy a little home-language time daily when I chat with my kids on Skype. Some other plans that have me really excited are attending a baseball game and seeing the cherry blossoms in full bloom, two things that I missed out on last spring.

I spent a lot of time looking for accommodations for my trip and finally decided on a small furnished apartment, or ウィークリーマンション (weekly mansion). The cost for a month is comparable to a week in a hotel, but I will also have a washing machine and a kitchen. Being able to cook for myself will save a lot of money- and I need to save money, as the kids have many requests for souvenirs! A hostel would have been just a little bit less, but only if I stayed in a dormitory-style room. We did that for a couple of nights last year and it didn't bother me, but for a longer visit like this one, I would like to have some privacy.

Well, I'm sure I will post more about my plans as the date gets closer. For now, I have a lot of studying to do so I can finish all of my classes before I leave.

Going to Japan Again

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:32:00 +0000

Hello, blog! おひさしぶり、ですね！I have been very busy with school. I have a whopping 22 credit hours this semester, kids with homework and extracurricular activities, and parents who have been in and out of the hospital. I am grateful that I have good organization and time management skills or I would be probably be curled up in a ball in the corner crying by now!

My courseload is heavy, but is even more challenging because all of my classes are online and I have only ten weeks to complete them. Why only ten weeks? Because I'm going back to Japan! I plan to go to Hiroshima for six weeks to study Japanese and I am really excited. I had planned to go in December, and then in February, but my mother's health required a postponement. But, now everything seems to be aligning properly; I even found a nurse who will come to the house and check on my parents while I'm gone. I will get a housekeeper to come in every two weeks to help with the "big" stuff, and I will pre-make and freeze a bunch of meals so they don't have to cook so much. I did that as a business a few years ago, so I can knock out about two weeks worth of dinners in around four hours.

I am going to stay in a small apartment. The rent is around 900円 per month, which is much cheaper than a hotel and I can cook for myself-- another big cost savings. I will have free internet and a free bicycle rental during my stay. I had considered a homestay that was available through the school I'll be attending, but they did not have internet access for me and I need to be in contact with home as much as possible. I'm renting a cell phone, too. I had a good experience doing that during my trip last year and after a bit of shopping around, I found an even better deal. The company even ships the phone to my US address prior to my departure. One less thing to take care of at Narita. I have to fly into Narita because of my particular travel arrangements and it's cheaper to take the shinkansen than to go from Narita to Haneda and then fly to Hiroshima. I love the shinkansen anyway, so I don't mind that at all.

So what will I do in Japan besides study? I haven't really decided yet. I'll definitely pay a visit to the A-Bomb Dome and Peace Park. I'll even have a nice strand of 1000 cranes to take to the Children's Peace Monument when I go. My kids helped me fold them and I promised to take pictures of them hanging there. I'd like to visit Miyajima Island, too. But my number one goal is to go to a Hiroshima Carp game! I've checked the schedule and noted the dates of home games during my stay. I will also have the opportunity to see sumo in Osaka, so I plan to do that, if possible, too. I would like to visit Kyoto, especially since it will be cherry blossom season, and maybe take a trip south to Fukuoka (which was my original study destination) and/or Nagasaki. If I have time, I might also take a day trip to Kobe or Nagoya.

Then again, I might just sit in my room and eat, study and watch TV. Not likely!

So, some of you may wonder why I'm not studying in Tokyo. Well, the answer to that is easy. Hiroshima seems to have a unique charm and is a good base location for some of the other small trips I'd like to take. Last year, we went north to Hokkaido, so this time, I'm headed west. None of my plans are firm yet, and I have considered taking a day or two in Tokyo on the way home. I'd like to visit Nikko, maybe.

This may well be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me, so I am working hard to make it a reality.

Nothing New Happening

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 01:20:00 +0000

Just studying and trying to stay focused. Sometimes I strap on ye olde iPod while I study and this popped up in the middle of a bunch of dry and boring dialogs from Japanese class. Guess I dragged it into the wrong playlist. My daughter once forbade me to listen to this song before going to work. She was concerned that I might be unruly. Pfft. Nonsense. I am a well behaved lady, thankyewverymuch.

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 18:14:00 +0000

Much better than another sappy rendition of White Christmas or Silent Night. Cheers!

I Can't Learn Japanese/Spanish/Farsi/Whatever

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 13:12:00 +0000

I'm older than most of the people I know who are learning Japanese. It comes up in conversation a lot and I don't know why. In my little corner of middle Georgia, it never fails: as soon as I mention that I'm studying Japanese, I hear, "I could never learn that language." Inside my head, I want to reply, "You're probably right." I have little patience with the phrase "I can't." It usually just means "I won't."

There are a couple of good articles online that discuss reasons why people fail at learning a second language. Here are the links:

Why Some Spanish Language Learners Fail. This was timely for me because a few days ago I was thinking about how 99% of the people I interact with online speak Japanese to some degree and I was mentally noting that when I decide to improve my Spanish (or try something else new) I should dive into a similar community of learners/speakers. This article links to another good one which I read a long time ago...

Top 10 Reasons Why Expats Who Live In Japan Don’t Know Japanese. The author makes some good points and addresses many of the arguments I've heard/read. Worth the read if you're lagging in your studies and need a little motivation. In fact, the whole site is pretty good motivation, encouraging learners to create an immersion environment no matter where they live. I use it as my excuse for the giant Gackt calendar hanging on the wall in my bedroom :)

Ten good habits for learning Japanese for life in Japan. This article is chock-full of good suggestions for learning Japanese. The recommendation about annotating pitch is really good, but if you're self-teaching, it could be difficult (I know it is for me!). I have a tendency towards emphasis rather than pitch adjustment and I have to spend a good bit of time listening to and repeating words over and over. Even then, I still do it wrong.

My language study is moving along nicely now in every area except for one. I have been extremely reticent about speaking Japanese lately. I am at that awkward stage where I know enough to make simple conversation, but not enough to talk about what I want to talk about as an adult. So I have been really focusing on building my vocabulary and practicing kanji while I mull over this speech thing.

I also decided that I really really really need some people in my real life who speak Japanese. After the holiday break, I'm going to finally check the area (probably starting at the local university) to see if I can find a couple of Japanese speakers to chat with. And if that fails to work out (I'm in a really small town), I am implementing my back-up plan...my kids want to learn Japanese and are doing well at picking up the things I teach them. That's a big responsibility- the blind leading the blind, as the saying goes. But it will definitely push me to make sure that what I learn is correct and it will give us all the opportunity to speak Japanese within our comfort zone. My kids are very driven, so they will keep me moving forward. They are little task-masters!

I have lots of discouragement and frustration ahead. I've experienced some already. But, knowing that those are only temporary phases keeps me going. And looking back six months really keeps me going! I am constantly surprised and amazed at how my comprehension has improved, even when my study habits were a little lax. It reminds me that hard work will reap even greater returns.

Pokemon is Evil? Bah.

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:26:00 +0000

I typically avoid topics on my blog that are thought-provoking, controversial, or of any other marginal value. But I came across this tonight via Twitter and I had an interesting series of thoughts. But, first, the video:

Yes, of course, there is a bit of editing there- but not during the parts that made me roll my eyes and think, "Well, this guy is really dumb." Pokemon is a tool of Satan? Interesting.

My experience through the years is that anything cool is immediately attacked by the church and labeled as demonic. Why? Because if you're spending your money on entertainment, you're not donating it to the church. Period. Had I not gone to church with my parents one Sunday many years ago, I would have never read the Harry Potter series. As the minister listed the sins of the book (teaches children witchcraft, opens their hearts to Satan, etc.), I thought to myself that the book sounded like it might be worth a glance. I think Goblet of Fire had just come out. So, I left church, drove to the mall, and bought Sorcerer's Stone. Thank you, sir, for the book recommendation. My kids and I have enjoyed them all quite a bit.

I remember the annual tirades again KISS when I was a kid. I can still envision a particular flyer that we were given at church that detailed all the horrors of the "Kings in Satan's Service." I recall that it said Gene Simmons collected polaroids of women in "spread-eagle" positions. I wasn't quite sure what that meant, so I did a bit of research and discovered porn. Hmm.

My parents are very devout Christians. My whole family, actually. My parents are completely involved in their church; it has always been their only social network. I don't share their passion. I find their Christian friends to be nosy, hypocritical, and downright ridiculous most of the time. I have no interest in church, never have. When I was about 8 or 9, I asked my mom how she knew that God was real. How did she know that some guys didn't sit around and write a bunch of books and then tell everyone that God told them to, as a marketing ploy? Yeah, that didn't go well. I was genuinely curious, but she informed me in an icy voice that I was being sacrilegious and disrespectful and that no child of hers would ever question God again. Uh, okay. So much for your faith, when you can't answer the questions of a child.

Uh-oh. All of my pent-up bitterness and hatred of Christianity is welling up, ready to explode, so this is a good place to end this post, I think.

Anyway, my point is that while Pokemon is getting old, it isn't sending anyone's kids to the fiery furnaces of hell.

Pearl Harbor Day

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:15:00 +0000

I'm not really in the mood today to postulate on events that happened before I was born, but a brief mention of Pearl Harbor Day was in order, so this is it.

When I was a child, we watched "Tora! Tora! Tora!" every year in school, probably in December, although I don't remember.

Letter-Writing Teacher

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 23:20:00 +0000

I will deliver a persuasive speech in class next week. (well persuasive by definition, anyway!). The topic I chose is being nice. So, I'm dredging up some sources to cite and I came across this video. I definitely think it qualifies as nice. A little sappy, but nice. :)

Never Give Up! Never Surrender!

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 02:57:00 +0000

What a month I've had. And I still have another month or so of absolute chaos before my life (hopefully) can launch itself into normalcy. But, I am pleased to say that my grades haven't suffered much and that I am enrolled for another intense semester. On top of my regular classes, I am planning to study for some CLEP exams. I should be able to pass and apply seven courses to my degree, which will shave off a whole semester of in-seat classwork.

For readers who don't follow my Twitter feed, my mother was in the hospital for a week. When my father went to pick her up, he fell in the parking lot and broke his arm. A few days later, my mother collapsed and nearly died, and went into ICU for several days and was in the hospital for just over a week again. During that time, my father had surgery on his arm and can't drive until he has the pins removed (he broke his dominant arm). So, I've been official chauffeur to doctor appointments, hospital visits, etc. while still going to class full-time and taking care of the kids. It has been hectic and exhausting, to say the least. But, aside from a very disappointing failure on an Algebra test in the midst of all the action that dropped me to a B average, I've kept up my A's in everything else. I'll take it :)

I have high aspirations right now and relaxing in mediocrity just isn't my style anymore. I realized that I had some good excuses for not finishing school in the past- and some of them really were good reasons- but if I had just pushed on and suffered through the hard times without losing focus, I would have finished school a long time ago. But, if...whatever. It is what it is, and I'm doing what I'm doing now. Life is good, my kids are great, and everything is and will be as it should. As long as we're happy, it's all good. And getting back into school makes me very happy. Finishing my degree will make me even happier, so I'm not letting go this time!!

Because of my parents' health, I can't take the JLPT this year, which is a big disappointment. But, I have a full year to study and I'll aim for level 3 next year instead (or the new level 4, whichever it is!). JLPT is great, but what I really want to do is communicate in Japanese and no test other than real-life application will properly gauge that. So, onward I press in school, with my goal clearly in sight.

Never give up, never surrender!

Sakubun Assignment for Japanese Class

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 00:59:00 +0000

(Last word of the title should be 生かつ- I caught the mistake )

I finally started on my essay. I'd been putting it off for a while just because I thought it would be difficult. I did the draft while sitting in the food court at the mall, waiting for my mother to have her hair done. I'm the official driver for my parents right now, so I squeeze in homework time during doctor visits, etc.

I posted the first draft (mailed the final copy before I thought to scan it, but I'm glad I have the original draft for posterity). I already made some changes and corrections and translated it into English so I could mail it in to the instructor, but feel free to point out any glaringly horrible mistakes (if the comments box is long enough, haha!) so I can cross-reference with what I changed. It's in the mail now, but feedback would be helpful to my learning- which is far more important than my grades. Okay, that's a lie. It's equal. I really like good grades.

One limitation that was really frustrating was on the kanji and vocabulary that we could use. We were instructed to only use what was taught during the semester. The textbook is tailored to young college students who attend class on campus, not toward moms with kids who live in a house and take the class online. So a lot of the vocabulary that I needed (and wanted) to use was unavailable to me. But, I broke the rule and used こども even though it wasn't in the book. The kids are a big part of my life. It would be hard to describe my day without including them. I had a hard time explaining that I take them to school in the morning, since we haven't covered that verb yet, so I did my best with what I had.

Despite the rudimentary verbiage and the awkward grammar, I was very proud to have sat at a table, thought about my typical day in Japanese, and to have then written about the day- in Japanese. When I finished the draft, I wanted to stop the morning mall walkers and say, "Look what I can do! Can you read this? No! But I can!!" Luckily, I controlled the urge to do that, and instead just felt really happy to see a physical manifestation of my progress. Yes, Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus. And he's gonna take you to Tokyo Disneyland.

I'm starting to think that the next time I visit Japan, I might be able to do more than just find the restroom.

P.S. Yes, my handwriting is pretty bad. But you should see my handwriting in English. There's a reason that I type everything. :)

No, Not Japanese- Klingon

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 02:28:00 +0000

I've been really busy lately. Ridiculously, insanely busy. So no blog posts of worth, but I had to take a moment to post this so I could nerdily enjoy it again later. Ahh, Shakespeare. In the original Klingon, of course.

Nod to jlist for the Tweet that led me here.

JLPT 4 Cheat Sheet

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 00:12:00 +0000

The author of Nihonshock has assembled a really nice cheat sheet for JLPT 4. It's even available as 8.5x11 or A4 size. Go get it! And read the rest of the blog while you're there, because you should do that, you know. You'll find some really nice information under the category of Language & Study.

Link to the cheat sheet post.

NOW I am Motivated to Study! (not!)

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:27:00 +0000

I was trying not to study today. I thought to myself, "Hey, I think I'll just randomly look up dumb stuff and see where it leads!" Have you ever done that? Well, I urge you to exert caution. Probably not entirely safe for work, children or small animals.

This is how it started...I told my friend in Japan about the "Whale Whores" episode of South Park. He watched it, we talked about. He watched more South Park episodes. We talked about those. He watched the Jonas Brothers episode and told me about it, so I watched it. I decided to write a blog entry about how Americans do things that seem weird and strange to other people. So I was looking for a clip of the South Park episode to post here and this what happened:

I found this...

Which led to this...

Which led to this...

I'm very sorry.

New Japanese Books & Getting Back to Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:12:00 +0000

I ordered Eve Kushner's "Crazy for Kanji" recently, but just got around to reading it this week. So far, it lives up to its introduction. Kushner's enthusiasm is contagious and her comments confirmed some of my suspicions, so I am looking forward to the rest of the book.

Arriving today was James Heisig's "Remembering the Kanji." I resisted buying this book for a long time. I've never been a big fan of mnemonics and memory tricks because I thought that they would detract from my learning. But, I am softening in my old age and trying to be more open to other ideas. And I have come to the shocking realization that I've always used tricks; I just never saw them as such because they weren't the same tricks being taught or used by other people. So, I spent some time just thinking about learning Japanese and made some decisions about how I want to progress, based on what I know will work for me.

I've tried the learn-by-textbook method, which I hate, but is necessary due to the fact that I'm enrolled in a college Japanese course. Immersion works really well for me, so I'm trying to adapt that as well as I can in my hectic and very non-Japanese lifestyle. And after thinking a lot about Sesame Street in the past two weeks as I worked on my speech, I've decided to add as much children's programming and books in Japanese as I can.

The real problem that I had was in my own expectations. I wanted to learn Japanese perfectly, with immaculate grammar, with an expansive vocabulary, similar to my grasp of English. I've decided that I'm about 41 years too late to do that. It just isn't going to happen as a non-native speaker, no matter how much I want it to. So I re-evaluated my goals. What do I really want? I want to be able to speak Japanese. Well, I speak English every day with using advanced grammar or vocabulary. So why I am I trying to learn Japanese like that? It was real DUH moment. But I am hard-headed and stubborn. No doubt about that :)

My friend has mentioned a couple of times that I really should read out loud more. So, I've been doing that and my pronunciation and comfort with speaking in Japanese has improved a lot in a very short amount of time. I've been doing well with my written assignments in Japanese class, and I can respond to questions (although I tend to reply in English), so this has been a really good supplement. Hopefully, I can start to break free of my "I won't say it unless I know it's right" mentality.

Oddly, I learned Spanish just through day-to-day conversations and I spoke a very broken version of Spanglish with my employees years ago. I realized that I didn't mind making mistakes with them because their English was just as weak as my Spanish. So we would just laugh and point and draw pictures and use baby talk and everyone was happy. But my friend's English is excellent, and so I hesitate to speak Japanese. I really have to get over it.

The real motivator this week came from my five year-old son. He and I play word games in the car all the time. Recently, we have spent lots of time with Japanese words: counting, colors, animals, food, etc. One day, we were driving and I was telling him something. He responded with, "Sou desu ka?" and giggled. Learning Japanese is fun for him. When did it stop being fun for me and turn into something I had to do or else? I know that learning another language is full of roadblocks and hurdles. Otherwise, everyone would do it, I guess. Time to Godzilla stomp those hurdles and get back to having fun.

When Did Google Release a Generic Version?

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:23:00 +0000

This is what Google looks like on my computer today. I call it: Google Plain. No buttons, no text; I can't even feel lucky today. I feel so alone.

トムとジェリー

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 15:06:00 +0000

Finally found a good selection of Tom & Jerry episodes in Japanese. Yay!! I was really happy to find my favorite episode. Enjoy!

So Lazy With Blogging

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 01:08:00 +0000

I have been a very bad blogger lately. But I have lots of excuses! Like how I took a nap today. And it has been cold and rainy lately. Excuses like that. I think they're good excuses. The truth is, I have lots of things going on right now, some great, some not-so-great, and those things are keeping me very busy.

The JLPT 4 exam is approaching quickly, and while I am certainly not prepared enough to pass, I have been studying hard for it anyway. Mid-terms have come and gone, and I am behind my projected pace on a couple of my online courses, so I am trying to re-focus and catch up on those, too.

I have been reading aloud in Japanese quite a bit lately. I downloaded about ten children's books. My kids roll think it's fun listening to me read them, so that has been helpful. I feel silly reading out loud to an empty room sometimes. And the kids are picking up a little Japanese, which both pleases me and annoys me. They make it seem so easy, but in actuality, they're only learning words here and there. They have no schedules to adhere to, so there's no pressure for them. Maybe I need to give myself some slack and stop putting so much pressure on myself, and just get back to enjoying learning Japanese. Experience has shown me that if I think of something as work or as a "must-do" that I lose motivation pretty fast. And so I allowed myself a nap today and tonight I'm watching a movie in Japanese just for the fun of it.

Happy 40th Birthday, Sesame Street (Maybe?)

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:26:00 +0000

Google has Big Bird's feet in place of The Letter L today in honor of Sesame Street's 40th anniversary. I said "maybe" in the post title because, according to Sesame Street, the first episode aired 10 November 1969. So Google seems to be a week early, but good wishes are always appropriate, eh?

As mentioned previously, my speech next week is in commemoration of Sesame Street's success both in the US and abroad, so I was happy to see Bird's feet this morning while I searched for something totally unrelated to children's television.

Here's some more Sesame Street goodness for you:

Journalism at its Finest. And My Next Speech

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:08:00 +0000

My next speech for class is to be a commemorative speech. I have selected Sesame Street as my topic since the show celebrates its 40th birthday next week. I am having lots of fun watching clips of the show, some old and some new, while I pretend to research my topic (I already have the basic framework for speech hashed out in my head).

Anyway, here's a clip of some fine journalism.

JLPT 2009? Probably Not

noreply@blogger.com (Kara) — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 23:42:00 +0000

If you've read my blog, you might know that I signed up to take JLPT 4 this December. Since I haven't formally studied Japanese for very long, it was an adventurous goal. Unfortunately, I think it is a goal that will have to be postponed for next year. In the last month, I have had almost no time whatsoever to study Japanese, which is bad since one of the classes I'm taking this semester is Japanese 101.

I know that tons of other single moms have been able to balance everything and go to school. But, it isn't working very well for me right now. I can't remember the last time that I had a single hour, uninterrupted, in which to study. I've tried staying up late or getting up early, both with poor results. Getting up early seems to invite more tasks from other people who are excited that I now have time to do things for them. Staying up late just encourages the kids to stay awake longer and makes me tired. I'm really frustrated right now. I'm really getting behind in some of my classes, and while I'm still making decent grades, I'm not doing as well as I could be. And that is dissatisfying to me.

It's hard to find the balance between my needs and everyone else's. Honestly, there is no balance. Once I finish doing things for everyone else, I am left with very little time of my own. Setting "limits" is out of the question. The other people in my life have needs that far outweigh my own.

Wow, I'm sounding really whiny.

At any rate, I won't be taking the JLPT next month. It would be a waste of gas to drive to Atlanta just to frustrate myself and fail the exam. I am nowhere close to prepared and I can use the time that day to take care of my responsibilities. I feel really bitter today, and I find myself wishing I could just quit school. But my life has changed so much in the past year that it isn't an option. If I don't finish my degree, I won't be able to provide for my kids and put them through college. So, it's time to give up some of my dreams and focus on the realities of the here and now.

And no, I couldn't be studying instead of whining right now. The kids are in the room, noisy as ever. :)