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| Where's my Rosetta Stone diploma? | |
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6.20.2008
7:48 AM | Link |
 The only good thing about waking up on the couch at 5:00 AM is that I have an extra long morning to get lots of stuff done! Today I realized I only had two lessons left to complete Rosetta Stone Japanese Level 2, so I decided to do them both in a row, and now I'm totally finished! This is a pretty big deal for me, since Level 2 encompassed over 200 individual lessons! I completed Level 1 way back in 2004, and then started Level 2 sometime after that, but I only worked on it sporadically because of my JLPT studies. But for the past few months I have been working on it daily (as a way of focusing on specific goals), and it finally paid off. For me, Rosetta Stone has been a great way to get a broad exposure to tons of Japanese vocabulary, and a nice overview (and sometimes review) of grammar concepts. I don't claim to have very much retention of the words that I've studied, but I know that when I encounter them again in other studies that a lightbulb will go on and I'll remember seeing them before! Sometimes the lessons were too wordy, but other times just right - I really enjoyed the series of comic strip lessons (guessing the cartoon panel that goes with the spoken sentence), and the several thematic vocabulary lessons were pretty interesting. I also love having a prepared lesson given to me - I would rather have a computer program tell me "you will learn this today" rather than deciding what to study on my own. Back when I started Level 2, Rosetta Stone didn't make a Japanese Level 3 product, but now they do (and it uses a new improved software engine), so I'm sure I'll dig into it sometime, possibly later this year. For now I have some other study materials that I bought a long time ago to check out!Labels: japanese |
| Warukunai desu yo | |
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5.10.2008
3:40 PM | Link |
You may remember that I was a disappointed in my scores on the 2007 Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 3, but since then I've been really curious to find out how the rest of the world did on the same exam. Every year they publish a set of statistics with that information, and this week I noticed the results were finally available online, so at last I can compare myself with the rest of the world! The numbers I'm interested in are the average scores for overseas examinees, and there were around 113,000 of them last year. I'm really happy to say that my scores were above average in all three parts of the test, so I feel much better now! My writing/vocabulary score was 84, while the average was only 69, and my reading/grammar score was 163, while the average was 126. Best of all, now I have proof that the 2007 listening comprehension section was really terrible - the average score was a mere 39 points, which makes my score of 48 seem much better! So overall, my total score of 295 looks nice compared to the average score of 235. I've really been enjoying my Japanese studies this year, and now it feels even better to know that my Level 3 results were definitely OK since the test was pretty difficult. Now I have new determination to pass Level 2 someday, most likely in 2009 - I'm definitely going to spend this year enjoying Japanese without cramming for the exam! While I'm on the subject, this week I had my last lesson with my tutor Mikie, who is moving to California soon. I couldn't have asked for a better teacher at this stage of my studies - her kindness really helped me through some tough spots and encouraged me to continue studying! I'm thankful that my pal Kumiko is my new tutor, and we are making fantastic progress and having fun, but I'm definitely going to miss Mikie-sensei! |
| Japanese in MangaLand Vol 2 / Marc Bernabe : 3 of 5 | |
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5.01.2008
10:15 PM | Link |
 I can't believe I read this first volume of this series back in 2006, and I just now finally finished the second volume (guess I was really busy studying for the JLPT)! I really like the way this book concisely presents Japanese grammar - sometimes it has to bend the truth a little to avoid mentioning the many confusing exceptions that are lurking nearby, but I love the way it spells out grammar rules with confidence anyway. The selling point for this series is the manga examples, but truthfully they are the least helpful part of the book (but still fun to study). Even less helpful are the cultural/conversation chapters, which are just lists of sentences like a typical phrase book, which is pretty boring. The other weird thing about this book is it was originally written in Spanish, so this English version is actually a translation, which may be the reason some of the sentences are annoyingly full of complex grammar jargon. For example, "Potentiality and prohibition expressions in Japanese are not excessively hard to assimilate due to the relative simplicity of the verbal conjugations" is an actual sentence in the book! On the positive side, I really learned a few things that stuck with me, such as the origin of the crazy -chau conjugation, which is really a slang version of -te shimau (and now it finally makes sense!). There's also a nice set of "giving and receiving" diagrams (you can never have enough of those, trust me!). So even though this series has its drawbacks, I still want to get the third volume sometime soon! I wouldn't really recommend it for a total beginner, but it's been very useful for me as a refresher, with great exposure to many areas of the Japanese language.
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| Yamenai! | |
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3.01.2008
10:20 PM | Link |
 Studying Japanese has been one of my major activities for the past several years, but lately I've been having a tough time. I always feel frustrated when I try to speak (even though I have two spectacular tutors), and I'm often too lazy to do the hard work of attempting to express myself by writing, so I don't feel like I've progressed much, especially this year. One of my goals for this year was to have more fun with studying - to find new ways of studying as a kind of enjoyable game - but instead, I feel like my studies have a lack of direction, which drives me crazy sometimes!I received my results for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Level 3 that I took in December, and I was a little disappointed. I was well above the passing score, so I have a nice certificate to frame, but my scores were just so-so. Actually, looking at the statistics from 2006, I'm way over the average mark, but I just wanted to do better. I made an 84 out of 100 in vocabulary and a 163 out of 200 in reading comprehension, but my listening comprehension was only 48 out of 100 (kind of embarrassing!). So, my total score was a high C grade, but since I'm such a perfectionist (probably because I was my high school valedictorian), I was a little bummed. On top of that, my work week was a little crazy, so I've been in a negative state of mind that made me consider just quitting Japanese all together. But since then I've changed my mood, and I definitely want to continue studying! I just need to really chill out and treat my studies as a hobby, because that's exactly what it is. I have a strong love of Japanese culture, and I've always enjoyed enhancing that by learning how this beautiful language works - I just need to remember that motivation! I'm really moving along towards finishing Rosetta Stone Level 2, and my pal Kumiko is going to assign me some fun essays to write for homework. It's always hard to balance my time and keep my over-obsession in check, but I'm going to do it! |
| Sweet shift | |
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1.23.2008
6:18 PM | Link | The other day I was typing up some vocabulary from my last Japanese lessons with Mikie and Kumiko, and I accidentally discovered something incredibly useful when typing in kana on the Mac! I'm sure everyone already knew this but me, but I was so excited about it that I just have to mention it just in case it makes someone else's life easier. Previously, I used to hate switching between hiragana and katakana - I would either use the menubar, or suffer through the weird keystroke Ctrl-Shift-K to get to katakana and then Ctrl-Shift-J to get back to hiragana. As I was making this bizarre stroke, I had the Shift key down and accidentally typed a few letters and realized they were coming out as katakana, even though I was in hiragana mode! Since Japanese has no upper and lower case distinction, the Shift key is totally open for this kind of shortcut, and it works beautifully. Now I can effortlessly switch when I need to type a katakana word, which will make typing Japanese so much better for me! |
| Ittekimasu! | |
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11.30.2007
7:35 AM | Link | Tomorrow I'm leaving for Los Angeles to take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Level 3 on Sunday! I feel like I'm a little more prepared than when I took Level 4 last year, so I'm looking forward to the experience (but I'm not looking forward to waiting until March for the results!). I'm glad that I've stuck with it and studied all year, and it's great to know that my pals are cheering me on, too. My pal Kumiko sent me a Japanese e-card, and my pal Melinda went all-out and surprised me with a "good luck kit" full of snacks and Christmas goodies! I'm going to enjoy the trip, especially seeing Dae and Ernesto again, and when I come back I'll be in full relax mode! |
| JLPT 2007 signup | |
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8.06.2007
11:07 PM | Link | I've officially registered for the 2007 Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 3! It's pretty exciting to actually be signed up, even though it only took me two minutes to register online. I think this year is going to be much smoother, since I'll be familar with the testing location on the USC campus and how the whole process works. Unfortunately, I didn't study at all this weekend, but I'm hoping to make up for lost time really soon! It's time to really get serious about focusing my studies on the test itself, and I'm looking forward to it. December 2nd is coming up fast! |
| Astro Boy 1980s Japanese opening theme | |
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7.28.2007
12:28 PM | Link |
 Lately I have been watching a ton of Astro Boy (already four episodes today!), since I realy want to finish this DVD set before I move on to other things to watch. The show is really fantastic, as I've said before, and it's kind of cool absorbing each episode one after another, since you can really watch the characters grow and see all kinds of connections. There are so many great stories, such as the Greatest Robot in the World saga, all of the Atlas episodes, and even some guest appearances by other Tezuka characters, such as Black Jack and Princess Knight! Of course, now I've heard the theme song a billion times, but strangely enough, I couldn't find the actual Japanese lyrics with translation on the web, so I just did my own. I tend to translate more literally than poetically, since it helps me learn vocabulary, and it's amazing how even a simple song like this can contain idiomatic phrases and things. By the way, Astro's "real" name in Japanese translates to Mighty Atom. So, here's the Astro Boy opening theme from the 1980s anime!Japanese sora wo koete ra ra ra hoshi no kanata yukuzo atomu jetto no kagiri kokoro yasashii ra ra ra kagaku no ko juuman bariki da tetsuwan atomu mimi wo sumase ra ra ra me wo mihare sou da atomu yudan wo suruna kokoro tadashi ra ra ra kagaku no ko nanatsu no iryoku sa tetsuwan atomu English Passing through the sky, la la la Far off in the stars Go, Atom (Astro), To the limit of your jets! His heart is kind He's a child of science He has 100,000 horsepower Mighty Atom (Astro Boy) Listen carefully, la la la Be amazed! That's Atom (Astro) Don't be unprepared His heart is just He's a child of science He has seven powers Mighty Atom (Astro Boy) |
| Maiasa no benkyou | |
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7.03.2007
6:35 AM | Link |
 I have about five more months of study before I take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) Level 3, so I'm starting to get a little more serious about how I spend my study time. Recently I've got kind of a morning routine going that takes up quite a bit of my free time before work, but I think it's worth it (even if I do have to get up early!). First, I go over a few new points from my grammar book and answer a few sample questions. It seems like there are so many new constructions in Level 3, and many of them blend together to confuse me, so this is really important! Next I work on my kanji, which I'm studying two different ways. I've started working through Heisig's famous book Remembering the Kanji, because I really want to just get all 2,000 essential characters out of the way. So far I'm really enjoying the method (even though some of the memorization techniques are a little goofy), and I've using some new flash cards to work through 100 characters a day, rotating 10 new characters in and out of the group. In addition, I'm using the awesome Speedanki.com website to go over the specific Level 3 kanji combinations, and brushing up on Level 4 kanji at the same time. Finally, I've been making tons of computer flash card sets (using iFlash) of Level 3 vocabulary, studying them in groups of 30 words. I think if I continue with this routine for a couple months before practicing with more JLPT sample exams, I will really see a difference! Hontou ni ganbarimasu!
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| Finally finished | |
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6.05.2007
7:14 AM | Link | Whenever I can see the end of a task is in sight, I have a habit of making a sprint to the light at the end of the tunnel - I just like to go all out to finish up whatever I'm doing. This weekend my mad dash was to finish watching all of the shows I purchased from YesJapan, and now I can say I've seen nearly every single episode they have to offer, and I've got them all archived for the future. I watched so many shows (usually about 30 minutes each) that I lost count, but it must have been at least 15 or so. Back when I discovered YesJapan, I thought these were the greatest thing I'd ever seen, but now they are only semi-interesting, so I'm glad I've finished them up (although I'll probably still check out new episodes periodically). Although there's some great Japanese learning buried in there, I'm weary of sifting through all the boring and often rude humor to learn something! I still think YesJapan is a cool resource, and I know beginners will be just as excited as I was when they take a look, but I can learn more watching an anime episode rather than cringing over these shows' embarrassing moments. Anyway, it was still a nice accomplishment to see them all! |
| Bunpou ga daisuki | |
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5.17.2007
6:57 PM | Link |
 Lately I've become obsessed with studying Japanese grammar! When I first discovered the fantastic JLPT Study Page, I was pretty far into my Level 4 studies, so I didn't use it that much. But now that I'm itching to discover every inch of Level 3 material, I'm really excited about the complete list of grammar concepts and constructions. I've been going over all of the examples with Kazki in my weekly lessons, and I think it's great practice (it also really helps with my kanji reading, since there's no furigana). Of course, I've read lots of language learning discussion that says boiling a language down to grammar is actually a bad way to learn - they say it's much better to absorb correct sentences and let the grammar follow naturally. I can definitely see how that could be true, but my analytical brain just loves interpreting Japanese like a math equation! Right now I'm studying another Level 3 grammar book from the Complete Master Series (from The Japan Shop, mochiron), and it's been great. I learned the useful -te kara construction just before a conversation with Mikie-sensei, and I used it a lot in my sentences! I guess getting excited about grammar is just about as geeky as you can get over a language, but since I'm proud of being a geek, I guess that's appropriate for me!
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| JLPT statistics | |
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4.19.2007
7:11 AM | Link | I recently realized that statistics for the 2006 JLPT are now available online, so now I can compare my scores to everyone else! I'm definitely happy with my scores, but seeing them in this light makes me feel even better. For Vocabulary & Kanji, the average score was 73.3, and I scored 93. For Listening, the average score was 53.2, and I scored 76 (I was interested to see if everyone else had the same trouble I did with this section, and it appears so!). For Grammar & Reading, the average score was 131.6, and I scored 186. Finally, the average total score was 258.2, nearly 100 points lower than my score of 355. (By the way, 55,957 people took the test worldwide, which is amazing!) Not bad, but I'm actually shooting to do even better on Level 3 in December! |
| Suburashii mise | |
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4.16.2007
10:02 PM | Link | Today I received some new JLPT study books from The Japan Shop, so I thought I would mention their fantastic service! They have a great selection of learning materials and other cool Japanese items that I can't find anywhere else, and everytime I have ordered from them they actually ship the same day, and even their least expensive shipping method arrives in only a couple days, nicely packed with care. I'll definitely continue being a customer of The Japan Shop as long as I'm working on the JLPT, so they can expect several more years of business from me! |
| The Preparatory Course for the JLPT, Level 4 / Unicom : 4 of 5 | |
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4.08.2007
7:26 AM | Link |
 Wait a minute, didn't I take this test already? Well, I bought this book from The Japan Shop on sale only a month or so before the exam, so I only had time to begin looking it over, and since I always have such a desire to completely finish a book once I start, I had to finish studying it! I really think this book is a great study aid, since it does a nice job of presenting each grammar point individually with lots of examples. My other study aids for Level 4 were mainly sample exams, which are totally useful, but I really like going over the details one by one. Since this is a Level 4 book, there's a little English thrown in, but in general everything is kana, as it should be. The price of this book is kind of expensive, mainly because it comes with two CDs (which I haven't even listened to, honestly), but I still think it's worth it to get a nice overview of everything that encompasses Level 4 Japanese. My only complaint with the book is that all of the sample questions have the answers clearly displayed at the bottom of the same page, making it less than ideal for testing yourself, but the amount of exercises provided more than makes up for the inconvenience. I'm definitely going to keep using this Unicom series in the future. In fact, now that I've totally finished this book cover to cover, I'm ready to hit the Level 3 book!
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| Daiseikou! | |
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3.07.2007
7:51 AM | Link |
 I finally got my results for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (Level 4) that I took in December, and I'm happy to say that I'm officially certified! They sent me a really nice certificate that I'm definitely going to frame, and I hope some day to have a few more levels complete to hang right next to it. My dream goal for the test was to make an A, but I actually figured I would make a high B, and that's exactly what happened. My overall percentage was an 89% (only one point away!), mainly because my listening comprehension score was lower than I expected. The listening questions were definitely harder than the ones I practiced, but I'm still happy with how I did. Here are my scores:
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| Owarimashita! | |
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12.04.2006
10:30 PM | Link | This weekend I took the Japanese Language Proficiency Test Level 4, and it was a great experience! It was nice to have a pal like Dae to drive me to the USC campus, and it was really easy to find the building and my classroom. There were tons of test-takers of all ages, including some older guys like me, and even several really young kids with Japanese mothers dropping them off for the exam (and there were plenty of cute Asian girls, too!). On the first section the 25 minute time limit was barely enough, so I paced myself better from then on. One question had to include the one kanji that never showed up on any of my sample questions, of course! Next was listening comprehension (via CD), which was really tricky - I think it was more difficult than what I studied, but I guessed when I had to. Finally, reading comprehension, which is usually tough, turned out to be the easiest for me. There were definitely questions that I had trouble deciding between two answers, but maybe I picked the right ones! Anyway, it's over and I'm glad that I took the exam - now I just wish the results would be announced before March (such a long wait!). I'm definitely going to take Level 3, and I'm looking forward to studying next year! |
| Ringo ga ikutsu desu ka? | |
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11.21.2006
10:21 PM | Link | The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is just around the corner! Lately I've been so busy with Christmas stuff that I haven't really been studying, but I'm reserving lots of time next week to take the sample tests again. Tonight I had a lesson with Mikie, and we concentrated on some sample listening comprehension questions. She read a script from one of my study books, while I listened and answered the questions in the same way I will during the actual test. I was really happy that I got almost all of them right! There were a few words I didn't know, but I was able to guess from the context, so I feel good about it. I need to watch out for tricky math questions ("I bought ten apples. Yesterday three friends at one each, and today I ate two. How many apples do I have?"), because my translating ends up falling behind and I miss the next important detail in the question! After Thanksgiving weekend is over, I'll be ready to really study again - I'm looking forward to the feeling of accomplishment! |
| Fun conversation | |
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10.17.2006
9:45 PM | Link |
I had some great Japanese conversation practice with Mikie-sensei tonight! We finished talking about my 2003 trip to Japan (by looking at my photo book), and it was so much fun. For some reason, I was able to make a few longer sentences than usual, and it really felt nice. I really didn't study much last week, so maybe it's from listening to JapanesePod101 or watching Hello! Morning episodes (which I have been hooked on recently). Whatever the reason, it was good to feel I'm still making progress. Although completely unrelated, I might as well mention that I'll be making my usual second Disneyland trip of the year later this week! I'm excited about seeing Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean for the first time, and I'm also looking forward to all the new Halloween decorations. I'm also planning on taking a stroll on Tom Sawyer Island, too, especially since there are rumors that it could be re-themed soon (to a pirate island). I've got to experience Disneyland history while I can! My pal Dae is always a fantastic host, so I'm looking forward to other fun Los Angeles adventures with him, too. |
| Mainichi benkyou shimasu | |
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9.22.2006
10:55 PM | Link | Here's a quick update on my various adventures in studying Japanese. I've been taking a few complete sample tests for the JLPT Level 4 (including listening comprehension from CDs), and I can usually score in the 90s. They only require a 60 to pass, but the old "grade monster" in me really wants a 90-something! Anyway, because of those results, I'm not thinking about the test too much (but I will still work on it weekly, I think), and instead I've been watching tons of Japanese TV! Granted, 90% of the stuff I'm watching features Hello! Project, but it still covers a wide variety of situations - game shows, cooking shows, talk shows, comedy routines, and so on. While I watch I write down words to look up later, and I save the slang or weird expressions for Kazki to explain to me. Tutoring with Kazki and Mikie is great as usual - lately Mikie and I have been walking step by step through my 2005 trip to Japan via a photo book I had printed, and it's so much fun that I'm going to make books for my 2003 and 2001 trips, too! I think I've had about four dreams where I'm speaking Japanese (of course, it's easier in the dream), and I'm trying to avoid the translation temptation - I'm hoping the meaning (when I read or practice conversation) will just "sink in" without trying to construct an English sentence in my head. I'm happy things are still progressing! |
| Japanese in MangaLand Vol 1 / Marc Bernabe : 4 of 5 | |
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9.15.2006
5:22 PM | Link |
 I have a weird habit of wanting to read Japanese study books covering basic concepts that I already know, but I've had my eye on this book for a long time, so I finally decided to give in (especially since it's the start of a three book series). The concept of using manga panels to help teach Japanese has been used in several books I've already read, but I think this is the best implementation so far. Each of the 30 chapters has a quick grammar discussion (usually with some pretty good reference tables), followed by a few manga panels that illustrate the idea. There's also a short self-test after each chapter, which is kind of fun (and verbose answers are included in the back of the book). I think this book covers things too quickly for a beginning student (I know I would have been confused if this were my first exposure), but it definitely explained a few concepts to me in terms I had never seen before (the differences in the various "give" verbs were very well explained, I thought!). I really like the book's binding and design, and it's cool that they've included chapters on things like swear words and rough language that you normally would never see (but since the emphasis is manga, they need to be here!). It was really fun to pick up this book for a five minute lesson every now and then, so I'm definitely going to continue with the next book in the series!
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| Motto benkyou | |
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7.27.2006
8:02 PM | Link | I feel like all I'm writing about is Japanese and Japan-related stuff lately, but what can I say - it's just what I'm really into right now! None of my other interests have changed, but everything comes in waves for me. Anyway, I've done some great studying recently, and I'm especially proud that I'm finally really grasping verb conjugation better than ever before. When I was taking classes at ACC, I really only conjugated by memorizing various forms, which was enough to get me through tests, but now I finally understand the formulas and patterns so I can conjugate any verb on my own. Mikie-san gave me a list of all the verbs on the JLPT Level 4 that I'll be taking, so I've been conjugating those like crazy, and it really helps! It feels really good to be learning the "right" way instead of the lazy way. I'm also making myself write in my Japanese journal more often for Kazki, and it's amazing how much he can teach me from my short paragraphs. My journal has also been a help with Mikie-san, since we used it for conversation topics this week (and she even corrected my typos). I will finally be able to register for the JLPT next week, which will be exciting! Then I will probably step up my efforts with JLPT sample tests and kanji study. It's all so fun, even though it can be hard work sometimes. I guess I just like being a student! |
| Fighting discouragement | |
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7.12.2006
10:30 PM | Link | As usual, I'm still studying hard to learn Japanese, since it's pretty much my number one interest right now (I've even been hearing and speaking Japanese in my dreams every now and then)! Of course, sometimes I go through periods of frustration, and I start to wonder why I just can't cross that imaginary border into some sort of comfortable understanding. I was a little discouraged the other day, so I started to read a bunch of forum messages on JapanesePod101, and it made me feel a little better because lots of people feel like I do. It's fairly easy to get a certain point in language learning, and then the hard work really pours on, it seems. Tonight I had a good lesson with Kazki-san, though - just like anything else, I think attitude is really important! I've got to stay positive and stick with it! Speaking of JapanesePod101, I've been listening to their excellent podcast in my car all the time, and I've really learned a lot - I really like their upbeat excitement! Besides that, I'm realizing even more that one of the best things I can do is write in Japanese, since that's the only way I can "talk" to study, and I'm finally starting to nail some basic conjugation that I've always faked my way through before. Mikie-san and I studied some Morning Musume lyrics and came across tons of conjugations that I need to learn, so there's plenty for me to study. Ganbarimasu! |
| Basic Connections: Making Your Japanese Flow / Kakuko Shoji : 1 of 5 | |
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7.07.2006
10:13 PM | Link |
 I think I study too many Japanese learning aids at one time, but I just can't help myself when I see a new book that looks intriguing. This one seemed really interesting, and flipping through it I saw lots of examples of various concepts that I had run across recently, so I bought it. Right now all I can say is I'm glad it's over - it was really difficult to finish! It starts out nicely with a few sentence structures, but then suddenly goes completely nuts. This book claims to be beginner to intermediate level, but I have lots of complaints! First, the progression of the book seems really random - nothing seems to build on previous concepts. It seems the author just gathered lots of things that people have trouble with and jammed them all into one book. Individually these could be useful, but they definitely don't flow (which makes the title kind of ironic!). Next, kanji is used full-blast with no furigana, which forces you to read romaji all the time, which we all know is a bad thing. Finally, the sample sentences are ridicuously difficult! I can't even begin to tell you how ludicrous they are, so I have to give an actual example. "Recently the piles of litter along the roads have become a problem, so people in the neighborhood have met together to start a cleaning campaign." Oh yeah, I was trying to say that in conversation just the other day (yeah, right). Maybe someday I will look back at this book and enjoy it, but right now I'm happy to move on to something else!
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| Benkyou update | |
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6.04.2006
7:19 PM | Link |
Lots of big Nihongo news for WEBmikey! I decided to enhance my studies even more by trying out a second tutor, since my pals Barron & Mariko told me about the wonderful person who teaches their son Bay. Her name is Mikie, and she was a school teacher for several years, so she was amazingly organized at my first lesson. I had a great time talking with her as she assessed my language level with mini-quizzes and things, so I'm looking forward to continuing studying with her! It will be nice to experience two different styles of teaching and conversation - I will still be seeing Kazki once a week, and Mikie every other week (and my tutoring budget is now more than my cable bill). My studies with Kazki have been going well, too, and lately I have been writing a short journal in Japanese, which he checks for me and suggests different ways to phrase what I'm trying to say (since I want to learn more natural, colloquial conversation). Today I started posting this nikki (journal) here on WEBmikey! If anyone tries to read it, I apologize for the inevitable mistakes, and it will probably read like a baby book since I'm using all hiragana and spaces, but it's great practice for me to type what I've written. There's a new Japanese link in the sidebar, so click it to take a look! |
| Kanji de Manga Vol 1 : 2 of 5 | |
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4.10.2006
11:07 PM | Link |
 I picked up this little book before I started studying for the JLPT, but soon realized that it was pretty handy, since it covers the exact set of kanji that you're expected to know for the Level 4 test that I'll be taking. It's a pretty simple concept - each page covers a single kanji, includes the various readings and a few compound words, and then has a panel or two of manga to illustrate the use of the kanji. Even though it was fun to read through it all, I don't think it's really that useful for studying. I like the overview kanji chart and the general meanings, but the major portion of each page is the manga, and in my opinion, the examples aren't that great! My major complaint is the type of language they use is so informal and slang-ish that I can barely recognize the verb conjugations - I don't think folks reading this beginning kanji book will be familiar with these forms! I guess they just wanted to maintain a manga "style" - when I read them out loud it definitely sounds like anime dialogue. Still, it was great to get an overview of the first kanji set. I think I'd like something a little more academic, but still interesting and fun - I'm not sure if I'll continue with this set of books or not.
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| Level 1 ga owarimashita | |
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4.02.2006
7:47 AM | Link |
 I like supplimenting my Japanese study with Rosetta Stone, since I like how computer-based test are all planned out for you with immediate feedback. Last night I finally finished the complete Level 1 package, which is about 90 lessions (I always do two of the testing styles on each lesson)! Of course, this is way behind what I thought it would take me - I started Rosetta Stone in November 2004! But, I usually only do one lesson a week since I have so many other avenues of study. I went back and took the review test on each unit and made sure I could score over 90% - it really gives me confidence in my listening ability! I already have Level 2 installed and ready to go, so I'm looking forward to whatever new language concepts are in store.
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| Atarashii benkyou | |
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3.17.2006
9:48 PM | Link |
 My Japanese lessons with Kazki have taken a new turn, and I'm pretty excited about it! We've been working on conversation for the last several months, but I still have lots of "holes" in my grammar and vocabulary. So, Kazki prepared a lesson where I had to come up with synonyms for words such as "easy", and then use them in sentences, both as adjectives and adverbs. It was really great, and it made me think about getting serious and taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) at the end of this year. After doing a little research, I've decided I definitely want to do it, so now there's a new direction to my studies. For example, I found on KanjiStep an online placement test for Level 4 (the easiest of four levels of the JLPT) that I took to see what I could do - I passed, but there were plenty of areas that I need help in. So, I printed the test for my last lesson and Kazki and I went over my mistakes - it was so helpful! I also just bought some great testing books from The Japan Shop, and I'm excited to be studying those now, too. I guess I will finally learn some kanji! The test isn't held until December, so it's going to be a long wait, but I'm just happy to have a new compass to follow in my studies.
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| Breakthrough Japanese / Hitomi Hirayama : 4 of 5 | |
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2.08.2006
9:50 PM | Link |
 I'm pretty much always reading some book on Japanese language in addition to my other regular study methods, and when I saw this book was by the author of the Pera Pera Penguin column (that I've been a fan of for a long time), I had to add it to my collection. The book is divided into twenty short lessons that each cover a particular language topic, but aren't organized into any order. Each lesson starts with a common point of confusion, such as the difference between shirimasen and wakarimasen, and then presents lots of sample dialogue and exercises. Actually, many of the topics covered are taken right from Pera Pera Penguin, which is available for free online, but it's nice to have them all together in a book, and I believe each includes more example sentences here. There's tons of great lessons, including a nice explanation of the use of buri (which I didn't quite understand in a recent lesson with Kazki), and a great chapter of the many, many set phrases (which the author calls "pocket phrases") that make the language so lively. The layout of the book also has a great style and it's really fun to read. My only complaint is that the tone of the book makes it so easy to breeze through and yet not remember anything! I guess that's mostly my fault, but I feel like I should go back and re-read most of the book again. As an intermediate Japanese student, I definitely think it's worth reading for exposure to some interesting topics.
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| Learn in Your Car Japanese / Levels 1-3 : 4 of 5 | |
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1.31.2006
10:28 PM | Link |
 Way back when I was first starting to get interested in Japanese, I used to buy a lot of beginner study aids. One of these was the first volume in this series, and now that I've been studying for a few years, I can definitely see that this series of CDs is pretty good, and actually still really helpful now (which is why I'm glad I got Volume 3 for Christmas from my parents!). Each volume contains three CDs, and each CD is divided into several lessons that generally present a single concept (although there's lots of cross-over vocabulary). The English voice (male) will say a sentence, then there is a long pause for you to respond with the Japanese (if you already know it), then the Japanese voice (female) will say the Japanese phrase, pause, and say it again. So, you have three chances to say each phrase, and it's really nice to see if you can say it correctly before the Japanese voice comes in. The lessons definitely increase in difficulty, and the Japanese voice speaks much more quickly on Volume 3! I've actually learned quite a bit by listening to these, especially when the sentence structure corresponds to something I'm learning with my tutor Kazki. The only negative with these is they introduce a few vocabulary words that are rarely used in actual conversation (according to Kazki) - for example, they like to say jidousha for car, rather than the more common kuruma. Each volume also comes with a book of all the phrases on the CDs, which is great for in-depth study. I definitely recommend this inexpensive series for Japanese language enthusiasts!
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| Bizarro sentence structure | |
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1.06.2006
9:35 PM | Link |
Most of the things I post on WEBmikey are either reviews or journal entries. I'd like to add a little variety to my posts (if I can manage it) by talking about other topics when they're on my mind. Of course, studying Japanese is always fresh in my brain, so hopefully I can share some interesting language tidbits with you (or maybe this will be my only post like this!). Anyway, I'm going to give it a try! (By the way, if any students of Japanese happen to read this, remember that I'm just a student, too, so anything I say could be completely incorrect. I'm just writing things as I understand them at this moment!) In my last lesson with Kazki, we stumbled upon a really strange sentence structure. In fact, it seemed so strange that I kept asking him if people really say things this way! Look at these two sentences: keiki o tabemasen deshita. keiki o tabeta no dewa arimasen deshita. Both of these can be paraphrased as "I didn't eat the cake." The first sentence is literally that meaning, but the second sentence is much different. From a literal view, it says "The situation of eating the cake didn't exist", or to put it another way, "I ate the cake - not!" I thought this was funny and bizarre, but Kazki pointed out a nuance in the meaning. A better translation would be "It wasn't the cake that I ate", which implies that I ate something else. Wow, subtle meanings like that seem to be light years away from my current understanding! However, I think this kind of phrasing is something that could only come up in conversation practice with a tutor, so I'm really glad I'm studying this way. Labels: japanese |
| My tutor is a rock star | |
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12.03.2005
8:25 PM | Link |
 I've been working on my Japanese regularly since July with my tutor, and in that time I've found him to be a really interesting person (and a really helpful teacher, too). The first time I met him he had his guitar with him, and we've talked about music several times, so recently I asked him if I could hear some of his music, and he made me a CD. I was totally amazed when I listened to it - Kazki is a serious performer! (By the way, I've been writing his "proper" Japanese name Kazuki here, but he uses Kazki so people will pronounce it correctly.) He writes his own music (with English lyrics), full of passion and emotion, with some excellent melodies and some seriously cool rhythms - I've even seen him writing out drum parts on staff paper, because he definitely has a vision for the sound he wants to produce. Listening to him play really reminds me of my days writing poetry and living more of an art-filled life, and it's inspiring to me. Now I'm really going to have to see one of his gigs! I'm glad my search for a tutor led me to such an interesting guy. Check out his website sometime.
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| Lonely Planet Japanese Phrasebook : 3 of 5 | |
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10.24.2005
11:02 PM | Link |
 A foreign language phrase book isn't exactly something you read cover to cover, but I actually did skim through each page of this unique book, since it's definitely "modern" in its selection of phrases! I love to browse the Japanese language section each time I'm in a book store, and I was attracted to the cool color-coded layout of this book. After flipping through it a while, I decided I had to get it just because it was so funny. Along with the usual sections on taking trains and ordering food, this book has sections on sex and drugs (it makes you wonder what Lonely Planet expects their readers do be doing when they travel)! It's really funny to read translations for "I take mushrooms occasionally" and "You're just using me for sex." Joking aside, there's definitely some good stuff to learn here, but I don't like their use of non-standard Romanization. They always try to write things as they are pronounced, so they use des instead of desu, which drives me crazy. If you're just looking for a general phrasebook, I don't think I would recommend this one, since it's just a little bizarre, but if you're a semi-serious student looking for interesting phrases that don't often appear in other study materials, this is the book for you!
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| Nihongo dake! | |
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10.12.2005
6:58 PM | Link |
Last night I had my best Japanese tutoring session so far! Kazuki and I decided we would speak only Japanese for 45 minutes straight - no going back to English to ask questions or explain things at all. I figured we might make it 30 minutes before my brain totally gave up, but it actually went really well! We started talking about playing in bands, and he was actually able to explain to me the difference in words for "music" (which I knew) and "written music" (which I had never heard before), so I even learned new vocabulary without English help. Kazuki was great at figuring out ways to explain things using the Japanese vocabulary I already know, and it was totally a blast. For whatever reason, I feel cool when I'm speaking Japanese, so having a long conversation like that made me feel great! Before I knew it, we had talked 50 minutes! Then we went over the fuzzy areas we encountered in English, and I took some new vocabulary notes. Anyway, it was the best practicing I've done, and I'm excited we're going to try it again next week! WEBmikey will be taking a brief posting break since I'm off to Disneyland again for three days of adventure! I can't wait to ride Space Mountain again, and everything else, too! I was just there in July, but I'm just as excited as ever. This time I'll be going to both parks, and having a great time with my pals Dae and Melinda. Bye for now, everyone! |
| Best of YesJapan Vol 1 : 4 of 5 | |
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7.26.2005
6:38 PM | Link |
 I'm a big fan of the shows that George Trombley produces for his Japanese leaning website, YesJapan (and I definitely need to write more about the site soon in case you haven't discovered it!). He regularly releases great videos that can be purchased - each is usually 30 minutes long, and introduces several language concepts and vocabulary by listening to natural conversation with key subtitles and on-screen notes. I've been downloading and saving the shows for several months now, but I would much rather watch them on TV than on my computer, and now I can! This DVD brings together lots of the best shows of the past, including four episodes of the George & Keiko Show (my favorite, and the staple of the site), two episodes of George & Chie, plus an episode of George in Japan. I think the shows were selected by visual interest, because they all look great, but aren't necessarily the shows full of the most material to learn. Still, it's awesome to see them in full digital video resolution, rather than the encoded versions, and each episode is funny and really interesting from a cultural standpoint. I had only seen one of these episodes before (since I've been watching the older ones first), so buying this DVD was a real bonus for me. I love the scenes of everyone singing karaoke or having lunch - you can learn so much just by listening to natural speech. The production quality is fantastic, from the excellent menus and chapter stops to the cool packaging. I hope the "Volume 1" in the title means that more DVDs are on the way - I'm definitely buying them all!
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| Slowly improving | |
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7.20.2005
9:02 PM | Link | Here's another Nihongo report! Last week Kazuki asked me to write a few sentences that we could go over and correct, so I wrote about my upcoming Disneyland trip. My phrases were mostly okay, but it was really helpful to see more natural ways to say the same thing. I can definitely see my more intense studying is starting to pay off, but of course, it will take a long time before these new language concepts seem natural to me. I'm just happy to be improving, even just a little! What else has been going on? This week I've been falling asleep on the couch too much - maybe it's from getting up so early to exercise. At least I'm not staying there all night, although one night I zonked out so early that when I woke up on the couch at midnight, I thought it was morning! By the way, I've posted to WEBmikey over 2,100 times now - unbelievable! I'll miss a couple of days this week while I'm at Disneyland, but don't worry, I'll tell you all about the trip when I get back. |
| A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Sentence Patterns / Naoko Chino : 4 of 5 | |
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7.17.2005
2:13 PM | Link |
 How's that for a gripping title? Even though this is more of a reference book, I actually did read through it cover to cover over the course of several weeks, just going over a few pages at a time. When I was taking Japanese classes, we would always learn new types of sentence patterns in the same way this book presents them, so it was really interesting to see the "entire" language broken down into fifty different patterns. For example, the most simple pattern would be "N1 wa N2 desu", but also covers the ones I always forget like "N1 no hou ga N2 yori Adj desu" (and many, many more complexities, of course). There are several examples for each pattern, using both formal and informal forms, which are also useful for picking up some new vocabulary. And speaking of vocabulary, there are excellent appendices with tons of verbs fully conjugated (even into forms I didn't know existed!), plus lots of conjugated adjectives, too. The book is nicely-sized for quick reference, and everything is printed in kana and romaji, as it should be. Having read the whole book, I can safely say that I've completely forgotten 90% of it, but I think this book will really come in handy when I need to look up some pattern that I can only vaguely remember.
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| Lots of benkou | |
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7.14.2005
5:47 PM | Link |
Last night was my third Japanese conversation practice with Kazuki. I think I'm doing a little better, and hopefully remembering some things - I used iFlash to study all of the vocabulary from our last session (33 new words and phrases), and now I have a bunch more to learn this time! Today I started thinking about all the studying I do, in one form or another, and I use quite a few methods: Wow, it sounds like I should be fluent by now! However, constantly taking so much in means that lots of it spills over the edge (of my memory, that is!). I think practicing conversation will help me to finally make some real progress. But most of all, I just have fun learning because I think it's all so cool! |
| Muzukashii desu ne! | |
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6.29.2005
9:42 PM | Link | Tonight I had my first session of Japanese conversation practice, and it was fun and mentally exhausting! I found several tutors on the web, and I picked this guy Kazuki because he's a native speaker. He's a really nice guy, and he regularly does Japanese to English translation for anime series (he's working on Hello Kitty and Mega-Man right now!). He did a fantastic job of asking me tons of questions and keeping things flowing, but I was embarrassed at how difficult it was for me. Even though I can understand all the stuff I read in books and ace all the lessons I do on my computer, right now I just can't put it all together yet. My listening skills were good - besides asking about some vocabulary I didn't know, I pretty much could follow it all. I just get hung up when I try to make an actual sentence myself! I'm not feeling discouraged, though - I'm going to try doing this weekly until my mouth catches up with my brain. I've been wanting some "talking practice" for such a long time - now I realize how desperately I need it! |
| Sing 'n Learn Japanese 1 : 3 of 5 | |
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4.20.2005
7:18 PM | Link |
 When my pals Matt & Kumiko visited Austin this year, I asked Kumiko about a million Japanese questions. She was nice enough to be a great teacher, and one of the things she taught me was a children's song about an elephant's nose, called Zoo-san. I did some searching on the web, because I didn't want to forget the song, and I found this interesting book and CD set on Amazon. This is a very simply-made book with lyrics (in both Romaji and kana, thankfully) to popular children's songs, along with a few illustrations, notes, and a small glossary. The CD contains each of the songs with and without vocals, and since these are really short songs, there are 23 songs to learn! These are definitely kiddie songs, such as translations of things I knew like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, but mostly traditional Japanese children's songs like Zoo-san (which has a second verse I didn't know about!). I've had so much fun singing along with the CD, and I've definitely learned some new language stuff by taking apart the lyrics to discover the grammar and vocabulary. Even though this isn't a high-quality production, I think it's a perfect way to learn through music. By the way, my favorite song is Umi (ocean), which has such beautiful lyrics that I can't believe it's a kid's song!
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| Mangajin's Basic Japanese Through Comics : 3 of 5 | |
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4.09.2005
3:15 PM | Link |
 For my study of Japanese, I think it's key to have a variety of study methods. So, I end up looking at the foreign language section of the bookstore all the time to see if anything looks new and fun. This book uses panels of all kinds of manga (Japanese comics), from adult dramas to kiddie stories, to illustrate various concepts of the language. For example, there are entire chapters devoted to the various uses of doomo or sumimasen, and other bizarre subjects such as how "baby talk" is expressed in Japanese! The concept seems like a good idea, but I don't think I really learned that much from the book (or at least, I don't think the method makes anything "stick" in my memory). Nothing is really presented in a progressive way of learning - it's more like a collection of semi-advanced discussions on the nuances of a particular idea. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy reading it, because it definitely was fun to read the detailed translations of the various manga (and they even translate sound effects!). I just think I would enjoy it more if I were already semi-fluent first ("Basic Japanese" really means "basic concepts presented in advanced style"). I actually bought this book and its sequel at the same time, so I'll see if the second volume can do a better job than this one.
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| Jimi's Book of Japanese (Hiragana) / Peter Takahashi : 4 of 5 | |
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4.03.2005
8:13 AM | Link |
 This is the first book of the Jimi series, designed exactly like the Katakana edition, which I thought was fantastic. Both books together are a great introduction to Japanese kana (in fact, they compliment each other so well that I think having both is essential). Since this is the original book, it introduces the characters that appear throughout the book, namely Jimi, Robotto-san, and Akiko, which is a fun way to get things started. Each page contains a giant kana that you can trace with your finger while reading it (and watching Jimi's mouth to help with the sound), along with a few vocabulary words. Most of these include a culture note by Robotto-san, and these really make the book interesting (there are many more culture notes in the Hiragana book than the Katakana book, which is wonderful!). There's a cool bonus section that labels the parts of the body, but unfortunately these pages are only in Romaji with no Hiragana! All of the illustrations are cute and have such an adorable Japanese style, which gives the book a cool flair. I'm hoping there will be more Jimi books, because I'm wondering how they will present compound kana, or maybe even beginning Kanji! Even if you already know your kana, these books are a fun addition to your Nihongo study library.
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| Thanks, Jimi! | |
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4.01.2005
9:21 PM | Link | Sometimes it pays to be a blogger! You may remember that I recently reviewed Jimi's Book of Japanese (the Katakana version), just because I've been in the habit of reviewing everything I touch for years now. A few weeks ago I got an email from PB&J Omnimedia, the publisher of the book - he had found my review on WEBmikey and asked if he could send me new copies of both the Katakana and the Hiragana (which I didn't have) books, signed by Yumie Toka, the illustrator! Besides being totally incredible, that's a fantastic thing for a publisher to do, so I hereby declare that anyone learning Japanese kana should pick up the Jimi's Book of Japanese series! I'm really enjoying having both books (review coming soon), and I thought it was cute how Yumie signed each book with arigatou in the appropriate kana for the book. WEBmikey sends a big arigatou right back! |
| Jimi's Book of Japanese (Katakana) / Peter Takahashi : 3 of 5 | |
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3.13.2005
7:09 PM | Link |
 I discovered this book on Amazon since it gets great reviews (and keeps popping up as a recommendation), so I decided to give it a shot since my Katakana reading isn't so great (I can read Hiragana pretty quickly, but for whatever reason my Katakana just won't "stick"). The look of the book is irresistible, since it's filled with fantastic color graphics that really have a Japanese kawaii look to them, featuring the little monkey Jimi. Each page is filled with a giant Katakana character (big enough so you can trace it with your finger to help remember it), along with several little cartoons of different vocabulary words. Most pages also have a little paragraph that explains various culture references, too (I wish all of the pages had these!). There are lots of other neat touches, like color-coding the pages for the "K" sounds, "T" sounds, and so on. I don't think it's a miracle book, though - I think it needs to explain more about how English words are broken down into Katakana, but it's still a great presentation of the characters anyway! In fact, it's so colorful and cool that I think I might buy the accompanying Hiragana book just to have in my library.
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| Still studying | |
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11.28.2004
1:16 PM | Link |
 Even though my schedule didn't allow me to take Japanese III last semester, I still enjoy studying the language a little every day. I usually study a few pages from my textbook or from several other books I've bought, and of course watching anime and looking up words in my dictionary is fun, too. The other day I came across this great article, How to Learn a Language, which mentioned Rosetta Stone software. I had thought about trying language software before, but I could never decide on one. With this recommendation, I decided to give it a whirl, in spite of the expense! Plus, the online demo was really helpful, and I was glad the software works on both Macs and PCs. Anyway, I got the first Japanese package, and it's really helpful - I've finished 6 of 92 lessons, so I have a long way to go, but it's a great supplement to my learning. A lot of the concepts I've already covered in class, of course, but I've already learned several verbs that I didn't know before. Tanoshii!
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| Nihongo no kurasu is over! | |
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5.05.2004
8:52 PM | Link | I just took my Japanese II final - I'm completely wiped out, but I'm so glad it's over! I've now completely finished a year of Japanese study, and I think I've learned a lot. I can read and write pretty quickly now (only 50 or so Kanji, but my Hiragana and Katakana is solid), and I can put together some complex sentences, too. Still, there's no way I could follow anime without subtitles, but I do catch many more phrases than I used to. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to continue on to Japanese III - this course was a ton of work and study, and although it was fun, I want that time back now to enjoy other things. I'm looking forward to making another trip Japan next year, and now I have the means to brush up a little before I go, so it should be a fun experience! |
| The Japanese Way / Noriko Takada : 3 of 5 | |
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4.09.2004
8:49 PM | Link |
 This was a nice birthday gift from my pal Kristin, who has probably heard me ramble on about various Japanese customs one too many times. The author covers just about every nuance of life in Japan, from vending machines to Pachinko parlors, as well as Japanese customs and even some aspects of language. There are 89 really short chapters in the book, covering a topic in a paragraph or two, and each one is pretty interesting. It was fun seeing which ones I already knew, and to read the use of some phrases that I've learned in Japanese class (and the explanation of saying "yes" when you mean "no" was much clearer than my textbook!). Lots of fun to read a quick topic or two in spare moments of the day!
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| Escaping with Lizzie | |
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3.23.2004
8:11 PM | Link |
 I'm sure it won't be a surprise that I watch the Disney Channel often, but until recently, I used to avoid watching Lizzie McGuire. Of course, Hilary Duff is a cutie, but I just couldn't get past those weird cartoon interjections of her "inner thoughts". But now I have to confess that I've given in, and I've been watching Lizzie almost daily. Thanks to TiVo, I can watch an episode whenever I have a spare 20 minutes, and it's kind of a fun escape for me, since the adventures of high school students are nothing like my daily life. They ran a marathon a few weeks ago, so I got to see the first episode (at least I think it was the first) - it's funny seeing the kids looking so much younger than they do now. It's kind of sad that they've already stopped making new episodes, since Lindsey Lohan seems to be the new "Disney girl" (Disney always seems to have to have a girl star to promote, from Annette to Halley Mills and so on!), but they're all new and funny to me!
Tomorrow is my next big Japanese II exam. This one is so full of different verb forms that my study feels really unfocused, but I did my best going over everything, so I'm as ready as I'm going to be. Unfortunately, the difficulty level has started to surpass the fun level, so I'm going to be happy when the semester is over next month! I feel great about what I've learned, but I think I've done enough to appease my interest. |
| Hajimemashoo! | |
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1.12.2004
9:46 PM | Link | Tonight I started Japanese II, which is a perfect continuation from last semester, since I have the same professor, we use the same book, we meet at the same time, and we're even in the same room! There are about 8 students I know from Japanese I, which is kind of cool, and then some new folks that had different professors last year. I'm pretty excited about learning more, and I really want to improve my reading (it frustrates me to have to sound everything out slowly), but I know I'm going to be rusty at first. I didn't watch any anime over the holidays, so I better find time to watch some in between my Christmas gifts! |
| Yatta! | |
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10.23.2003
8:34 PM | Link |
 Good news, Mikey fans - I aced my first Japanese quiz writing the whole thing in hiragana and katakana! I was a little stressed about it, but practice really does pay off. (I definitely recommend Nuku and Hiragana & Katakana for Mac users!) Our sensei was really funny - she walked around the room looking at our papers, grinning from ear to ear. She said that she felt like a mother watching her babies take their first steps - she was so happy we were actually writing in Japanese! By the way, that's "Michael" (Maikuru) in katakana!
 In Love Again / Blossom Dearie / May I Come In
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| Ready for class | |
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8.02.2003
8:56 AM | Link |
 Yesterday I bought my books for Japanese I - there's a big hardcover text book, a paperback workbook with tons of exercises, plus a set of CDs to listen to. They were motto takai (more expensive) that I thought they would be, but it all looks exciting! There's going to be much more reading and writing than I thought, but that sounds pretty cool to me.
I picked up a new pair of glasses yesterday - I had completely abused my old pair by rubbing them with my shirt, restaurant napkins, and sandpaper (just kidding) and the anti-reflective coating had turned into a clouded mess. When I put on the new pair, I couldn't believe how clear everything was! Now I have to be a very good boy and never, ever rub these lenses the wrong way! I thought I should mention that Blogger has totally been kicking ass lately! In the past I've been accustomed to various bugs in the site, and I'm used to working around them or trying things a few times to get them to work. For the past month or so (knock on wood!), everything has been working flawlessly! I guess that Google money has done some good.  Disneyland Countdown: 19 days!
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| Blogger | HaloScan | Levelfield | |
