It has been a long time since I have come up with anything entertaining to write about on this blog. Life has been relatively calm in the last few months. I broke up with my girlfriend in April, passed my 1 kyuu (last brown belt) karate test, started a new school year in Japan, bought a Playstation 3 and a bunch of Blu-ray movies, started a low-sugar and low-carb diet which has resulted in the loss of a couple of kilograms and two belt notches, and I have seriously started studying Japanese.
I have been reading the news every day and it has me in a worried panic for the continued existence of the human race.
I have finally come to terms with my atheism and I am proud to be able to share that. Years of consideration and wishy-washy flip-flopping aside, I am much happier now than I ever was as a Catholic. The realization that this life is all I have, while short and seemingly uneventful so far, is a great motivator to get out there and live my life as I deem fit. It is an amazingly freeing feeling. Though this outlook can be bleak at times, I believe dealing with the reality of the world around me is more useful than worrying about the unlikely eternity awaiting me beyond the grave.
This is the season where old JETs begin to pack their bags and head home as their contracts expire in the next month or so. I have already said good-bye to a couple of good friends last year and there are a few more leaving (one is already gone) this year. It is sad, but I envy them for being able to pull the trigger and make a decision to leave this cushy job for the uncertainties of the Western world job market. Currently I am exploring the idea of staying in Japan and doing a Master's degree. It seems like a good idea now, seeing as I really enjoy living in Japan and teaching English as a foreign language is quite entertaining. If only for the occasional hilarious "Engrishisms" that pop up now and again. I also feel that mastering a second language will be useful in the job market. Whatever market that will be in the future...
As to the Japanese language progress; I have made a significant leap in my listening ability. My speaking is still sub-par, but I have a few Japanese friends with whom I attempt conversations. Attempt being the key word. I have been studying for a test next December, so I hope I can stay dedicated to my study methods. I have also started a new Kanji learning method which is based on associating elements inside the kanji characters with English meanings and using those vague meanings to create stories so that I can easily remember the English definition and the shape of the character. Over the past 4 weeks, I have "mastered" the writing and definitions of over 300 kanji. That, in addition to the other 200+ kanji I have come across over the 2 years that I have been here, should be enough to help me pass the test in December. I have also been studying grammar and reading manga in Japanese.
Well, I have successfully wasted the last 30 minutes of work today writing this update. So let's call it a day.
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Quote of the Week
A stupid man's account of what a clever man says can never be accurate, because he unconsciously translates what he hears into something he can understand.
- Bertrand Russell
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3 comments:
Wow, you buy movies? That's so 90's.
Glad to hear you've "come out", officially at least.
But give up on kanji, you really dont need them, even for the JLPT. Computers can guess what you mean fairly well if you know the actual word, and chances are you're not going to need that many uncommon words though.
I would take a while to think seriously about that masters degree though. After 2 years in japan I thought I might do that too, and that I would be able to continue teaching for the a long time yet, hell maybe even be a professor of it at kyoto university or something! You will become frustrated eventually, and you will regret not concentrating on a real vocation earlier, trust me. English teaching is not a job, it is something we do for fun, and happne to get paid.
For you, English teaching is something that you do for fun, perhaps. But I actually enjoy it. I have, for as long as I have been able to remember, wanted to be a teacher. So saying that I should give up now and find a "real" vocation (i require some evidence here as to what a real vocation is in your opinion) is a bit insulting, though I don't think you mean to be.
As for the buying movies thing, I have a pretty extensive dvd collection which I have amassed over the past decade. I bought some blu-rays (Matrix, Fifth Element, Star Trek, and Firefly) because they are movies/shows which I have seen several times and will continue to watch over and over and so they are worth my money. I would never buy a movie like Gone Fishing on dvd or blu-ray because I don't support such terrible things. But, I will support the people who made a movie if it is something i do support.
Additionally, my internet has been so slow that it has been taking days to finish downloading stuff.
You do need kanji. If you want to be able to read a book, newspaper, magazine, menu, etc. you at least need to be able to recognize them to understand the content. And for the JLPT you do need to know kanji to pass...there is a kanji section. There is also a reading section. But, I am actually studying for the purpose of learning the material in order to put it to use, not just pass the test. I also find writing kanji and being able to read kanji, even just the few i know, to be a marker of success in studying.
I understand that computers can do anything with kanji, I write and type in Japanese often and I use the kanji that way, but it is useful to my memory to practice writing them.
My designs for staying in Japan and doing a master's are tentative. I would eventually like to get a MA in something, something education or academia related. I have no interest in entering any other field right now. One of the major factors being that the US economy is crap right now and there are tons of people with BAs out there with nothing to do. I might as well stay where I have a skill that people want until I can come up with my life plan. If I go home I would be in a place I dont particularly care for without a job AND no plan. At least here I am in a place I like, with a job I like and a tentative plan for the future.
If you have a suggestion for where/what/when/how/why I should do with my life, I am more than anxious to hear it! Any input is good.
Being a teacher is a great profession, the world has a great need for individuals who love being able to share knowledge with others and make it an enjoyable experience. Your personality would make you the type of teacher kids will remember for a life time. So go for it Mike -- college, high school, middle school, even elementary school - you would be a great teacher.
And teaching English as a second language becomes more important as time goes on -- as it has become our global language. It is a language you can teach anywhere in the world - so your experience in Japan may open doors to living and teaching in other areas of the world.
What you are doing now, whether you decide to teach or not will open doors in every profession.
Learning Kanji is tough, but I was reading on a 4th grade level after living a year in Kyoto. There were no computers then to help. I learned by reading children's books, starting with kindergarten books and working my way up. (Momotaro was one of my favorite children's stories.) My Japanese friends helped me to learn to speak and write Japanese and I had a private teacher once a week - to help with understanding the grammer.
And to the definition of Real Vocation - it is the profession you find yourself living and breathing with a passion. The passion is different for each of us and it is not unusual for the passion to change during our lifetime or for there to be some detours along the way.
Mike it sounds like you have for this moment found your passion and have a plan to grow the experience. Carpe Diem! Enjoy!
Aunt J
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