日本語の会社員

今兄は日本語の会社員です。東京でＣＩＴＩＧＲＯＵＰについでいます。あにはとてもげんきなひとがおしごとはたいへんですよ。　それからひまなときじゃありません。
去年、兄が大学生から、よくにでんわをかけていました。　今、あには日本に住んでいますから、でんわをかけませんがＳＫＹＰＥをします。　スカイプはコムピュタの電話です。なにもおかねをつかいません。
東京の会社員はとても電車にのりますからべんりです。　私は電車にのるのが大好きですがここにありません。ちさいまちですから。　でも、アメリカの電車はきれいじゃありませにょ！日本のでんｓひゃはよくてきれいなでんしゃですよね。　私は日本はとてもよくて、きれいな国だと思います。シンガポアもきれいなくいですよ。

日本語ーどして

私はこの日本語のクラスにいくのがだいすきだようとおもっています。　毎晩、たくさん日本語のしゅくだいはあって、べんきょします。　わたしはにほんごのかんじとあたらしフォムをべんきょするのはたいへんだよ。　でも、毎日のクラスがとてもおもしろくて、つまらない。　　私はこどものときに、にほんにすんでいました。　でも、日本語を弁居しませんでした。　アメリカのｓひょがこうにいきましたから。　　今わたしのあにはにほんにすんでいますからにほんごのかいしあにつとめています。　私はにほんにいて、あにおあいます。でも、ひこきのきっぷはたかいだよ。　じゃ、月曜日に目のサガリがありますから、大学のクラスへいきません。　

わたしのふゆやすみ。私の街は友達がたくさんいまｓから、やすみはたのしかたです。私の個々せいのときのともだちもうちにかえって、あいました。私はともだちといしょにバーでおさけおのみましたがわたしはたくさんおあけをのみませんでしたから私はたくさんも酒を飲みますの時、げんきじゃありません。　
きれいな山がわたしのまちのなんとうですからかぞくといきました。　　あの山は寒くて、静かな山です。
ふゆやすみのときにいしゃにあいました。私の目がよくありませんから。だたら、今ほんをよんでいますはたいへんです。

ok, switching to english for the end of my blog.
Basically, I had surgery on my right eye on monday, and I'm getting the left one doen in 2 1/2 weeks. It's pretty frustrating right now because my vision isn't good at all. It's really hard to focus on things up close, so all those hiragana under the new kanji? yeah, impossible to see. I feel like I'm 80 years old because i am having reading problems. Luckily most of my teachers are pretty understanding, and I have some friends who have even offered to read to me (thanks zhou san). I just hope that they heal quickly and i don't too far behind. Kawaii sensei made the point that if I can work extra hard in the LL, then not being able to rely on my eyes to help me with the new words might actually make me learn this stuff even better. One can only hope...

So, my speech wasn't entirely true. I was shy when I was younger. But I did have friends. But I was shy. In fact, public speaking used to be extremely difficult for me. My voice would go monotone. I would play with my hair, my pocket, my paper. My hands would shake. I would pick a spot on the wall and stare at it the whole time. However, two things changed that The first thing, was doing a pageant a few years ago. It helped me think about public speaking, as acting instead. And I love to act. The second was pledging AKPsi, the coed business frat. After doing to much intense public speaking there, especially on the spot, I've learned to deal with the pressure. I think that everyone did a great job. I could tell a few people were nervous, but they still carried it through.
I liked doing speeches. I think writing it out helps to organize your thoughts, and speaking it outloud means you need to separate your thoughts with pauses and hand motions. After practicing so much, it gets ingrained into your mind where ideas stop and start. For me, I was able to think straight in Japanese, without first putting it in English.
The oral interview was a bit frustrating for me, because I kept on trying to say things that I didn't know how to say. For example, I started to talk abotu the sports I did in high school, and then realized, how on earth do you explain what Crew is, in Japanese. It's motivation to keep learning though until i can explain everything i want.

I think speeches and the oral interview were a good way to end the semester. Now, if only there wasn't a final as well....Good luck minasan!

Peer Editing

Ahhh, a blog in english again. It almost seems too easy to convey m thoughts as soon as they come to mind, as opposed to trying to find a way with the Japanese we currently know.

so, thoughts on peer editing. I think it's a pretty beneficial thing. For one, although our first drafts were not graded, you would want to put a little bit of effort into it, if anything of our respect for the people who read your work. I was in a creative writing class last semester, and there was one guy whose stories never made sense, and it actually made me angry enough to through the papers on the ground a few times. It was extremely frustrating.

Peer editing also lets you see where you compare to your peers. And it's comforting to know that maybe even when you feel left behind, in truth, we are all still making mistakes. And in this class, I feel comfortable making mistakes (even accidentally calling Sato Sensei a yasai...) because the laughter is never malicious. At least it doesn't seem that way to me...

By editing other papers yourself, it forces you to have a critical eye. Instead of just passively reading through, you actually have to think about the particles and word order, and conjugations. Even writing can be passive sometimes, because, at least I, get caught up in where I am trying to take the idea or using words, I forget to pay attention to detail. So by peer editing, you train yourself to have a more critical eye.

Like I said in class, there are some downsides, such as we sometimes make the same mistakes, so we might not catch each others, and in that sense, having a professor edit your paper can be more helpful.

Another thing I liked about this process, not the peer editing part, was that we've taken plenty of time to write and rewrite this speech, so that I feel everyting time I look at my speech, i have a fresh view. And I will get new ideas with a fresh perspective.

All in all, thumbs up.

TAKE TWO!

ジャネットマッカーテイのこどもの時　　　

私 はこどもの時にしずかなこどもでした。私のかぞくは日本にいました。でも、私は日本語をあまり話しませんでしたから、日本ごのともだちがいませんでした。私は日本語のかっこうにいきました。まい日がっこうにいて、先生をわかりませんでした。よくじゃありませんでした。

私はともだちがいませんでしたから、よく本をよみました。　だから私は本がだいすきでした。　食べ物を食べて、本をよみました。　私のおにいさんのスポーツゲームにいて、本をよみました。　私もおふろにはいて、本をよみました。　でも私は一人でから、つまらなかったです。

だから私はいぬが大すきでした。ともだちがいません。でもいぬはいいともだちですよね。　だから私はおかあさんにいぬをくださいをききました。でもお母さんはいぬをかいませんでした。東京のうちでいぬは ちょとうから。　だから、おかあさんは金のさかなをかいました。　でも金のさかなはいいともだちじゃありません。　私は金のさかなとこえんにいてはいけませんでしたから。　それから金のさかなといしょにおそんではいけません。

あとで私のかぞくはアメリカにきましたから、おかあさんはいぬをかいました。　　私はいぬとこえんにいて、あそんで、よかたでした。　今、私はしすかじゃありませんから、たくさんともだちがいます。　でもいぬをわすれませんから私のひとつのともだちでした。　（５８０）

If anyone needs to smile about the difficulties and trials of learning japanese, check this out

http://pepper.idge.net/japanese/

ahhh, as we settle into the last 2 weeks of class, what a marvelous opportunity it is to look back on all that I've learned. And actually, well, pat on the back to us, because I can say we are quite competent for a 101 class. I mean, we can make jokes and laugh at each other, and understand some of the fine subtleties that japanese offers. In truth, these last 6 lessons have packed quite a bit. I've began to really care about mary and sue, and I'm a little worried about robert. I mean, he just had a three day weekend, why is he so tired that he is falling asleep in class? And, I've looked at chapter 7, and there is a picture of Mary smoking a cigarette. Although from what I learned about her high school days, she's always been a rebel child.

I kind of wish that I had started japanese 2 years ago as a first year. That way, by the time I graduated, there would be a very good chance that I would be pretty competent in the language. Where, if I keep going with it, the best I can do is really 2 years of college japanese.

I guess the idea of leaving college kinda sucks in a way. Because although you will continue (hopefully) to learn as you go along whatever career path you choose, it's nothing like college, where you can learn completely different topics at the same time. For instance, what job is going to have me still learning Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, and random other stuff, like religion and history and whatnot. sighhhhhhh. (I don't want to grow up)

I'm looking forward to winter break. I think my brother picked up some Doraemon dvd's while he was in china a few years ago, so I'll consider it "working on my japanese" if I watch those. Also, my mom is pretty decent at Japanese, so I'm sure I'll be hearing a lot of "Ohayogozaimasu" at 8 in the morning when she attempts to wake me up. haha. 8 in the morning. that's so hayai.

Maybe we should have a countdown until the last days of 101, and then have a party. In my portuguese class, we are speeding along at the moment because my prof really wants to spend the last few days watching a movie. Could Sato-sensei be convinced to do the same? After all, who wouldn't want to watch Totoro for the twentieth time? (and I'm not exaggerating)