With the JLPT over, I no longer have any excuses to slack. Except I have to pay homage to the most fantastic time-waster of all: KARAOKE! If there's one thing I have to thank in all my slacking while studying for the JLPT, it would definitely have to be karaoke for teaching me how to read many rare and scarcely used kanji that came out in the JLPT.=P You have no idea how much I was thanking Gackt for using the weirdest kanji in his lyrics. Haha...
Let's not talk about the other sections however. -_-"
This semester will be ending in about a week thereabouts... The semester just flew by but I guess that's also something to be grateful for ^_^ Although I took 18 credits this semester, it didn't feel like it at all... Possibly because I didn't do that much for the research credits... But next semester although the idea of slacking off and enjoying my last semester sounds awesome, I feel like my restless self won't really allow that to happen all semester long. After all, life is short, time is available, don't waste it right?
What I still need to do for this week and next week: Japanese Presentation (tomorrow ><) Academic Japanese Take Home Exam Complit Research Paper (which is super ultra long omg (T_T) kill me) Chinese Poetry Paper Psychology Negotiation Final Paper (also long weeps) Media Japanese Exam
And then I'll be done! With just the fabulous winter break stretching out ahead of me! And I can bake! Shop! Cook! Eat! Etc! I love breaks.xD
Just received my new Utada Hikaru CD today!~ The kuma charm/くまお守り was a bit of a let down... -_-" I bet it cost like 10cents to make or something. But the CD has all my favorite new Utada Hikaru songs so I'm pleased ^_^
PS: All we've been eating is azuki rice, seaweed soup, seasoned Korean seaweed, and pickles I bought from Mitsuwa in Chicago. It's a bit of a healthy kick I suppose, but it also tells of the sad state that is the contents of the refrigerator...
Here I sit, with 3 other accompanying laptops, in a Chicago hotel room studying for the impending JLPT exam (which is tomorrow... hence impending).
Lincoln Park is such a nice area of Chicago! Way nicer than downtown Chicago if you ask me... Obviously rich people live here. And thanks to the magic of the internet *ahempricelineahem*, we too can experience these riches! (albeit shared amongst a larger number of people than the hotel expected)
But anyway, in reviewing my grammar notes for the JLPT again, I have discovered very convenient grammar phrases that I can use in my everyday speech! So in an attempt to study and ahem practice, I will share these useful phrases that you too can adopt.
何か言いかけてやめるのはダメ！ - Starting to say something then stopping halfway is not allowed!
こんなにたくさん食べきれました。。。ヤベー - I've completely demolished this much food... Damn.
今度こそ試験がパスしたい。 - I really want to pass this exam this time around. (This doesn't imply that you've never passed though, just that you really want to pass this particular exam...)
ドラマを見る時、予想に反した結果が出てしまったんだ... - The drama had an ending that went against all my expectations...
いつも朝寝坊のBさんは、今学期にわたって授業を休んだ。 - B took a break from classes the entire semester due to him oversleeping all the time.
彼は私たちの心配もかまわず、勝手なことばかりする。 - He always does selfish things, not caring about us worrying over him -_-"
And so on. My battery is running out (such is the fate of running so many computers based on one plug X__x)... So.
Toodles!~ The next time I blog, I hope I'll have done well at this JLPT thing ._.
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : What Else Is There Royksopp] [mood : study study study] [food : KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN xD]
O November November, have you come already? Time is moving along without me noticing it and before I've awoken, it's all already gone. Halloween has passed in a blink of an eye, and so has the Singapore Food Festival.
All that awaits now is the dratted JLPT exam that is coming up in December in Chicago... That and you know, classes... papers... and so forth.
Previously I had adopted a rather blase attitude toward the JLPT exam. After all, I'd always studied for Japanese before and emerged unscathed (usually) so surely it couldn't be that bad... But of course, life has decided (once again) to prove that such an attitude can never be rewarded. Because this silly JLPT is all about testing your knowledge of grammar and vocabulary, more than whether you know how to express yourself in a coherent manner. How Asian. [And I can totally say that because I'm just discriminating against my own kind.] But the main reason I protest this method is because, obviously, those are pretty much duds in my Japanese learning career.
Look at this homework I'm doing right now. Is it worthy of my attention? Yes, because I need to hand it in soon. No, because unless I use these regularly I'll probably never remember them. And let's be honest here, they are surely useful and marvellous when used appropriately but will you really deliberately construct sentences that make use of all these vague and precise grammar? Of course not. That would make for sentences that go at whale-pace, referencing Finding Nemo.
Then again, I really should be adopting the attitude of yes! I will learn all this grammar, internalize everything and dole them out appropriately in my Japanese discourse with other people just like my classmates do! But I really don't work like that... rote learning has never been my strong point and memorization is like hitting me with a book - painful and it really doesn't do anything in the long-run (except cause brain damage probably).
Then there's the vocabulary. It is not possible, at all, to learn every single word in any language. Not only are there too many, there are also a gazillion obscure words no one will understand, and words that are being created all the time by movers-and-shakers like Ris Low. But at the same time, in order to read Japanese books or watch Japanese dramas without having to stab in defeat at my 電子辞書 (denshi jisho or electronic dictionary) or type repeatedly into dictionary website, I probably do need to brush up on my vocabulary skills. I did learn a ton of words in Kyoto which I cannot remember off the top of my head but I'm sure I did. Like テンション! Which no one ever taught me before.
And no one ever taught me useful words like 試食 (shishoku or sampling food) or 試着 (shichaku or trying on clothes) which would have been so useful in you know, daily life, as opposed to words that I'll never use.
Then again, I'll never know which words I'll never use so I might as well learn as many as I can. It's not like English or even Mandarin [which I'm terrible at but is still considered a first/second language for me] which is much more internalized and I won't sound too off speaking it, but Japanese.. Gosh. It's a new language and no matter how much anime/drama I watch for listening practice, sounding Japanese is going to be really hard.
Not that that is an issue since the JLPT has no speaking component. Woohoo. I'll just practice more on my own. And in class since we have to. But still grammar! (T_T) Vocabulary! (T_T) These are depressing topics...
But yes. Internalization! I need to achieve this over the next month. Does that mean I can watch more anime and dorama as practice? If I pretend to not read the subtitles, it might actually be useful because honestly, they speak wayyy faster on shows than in those listening comprehension passages.
And as I strive to complete this soon so I can sleep...
Recently in my Psychology of Creativity class (I've realized that I have obvious favorites in Psychology.. This is not good), we watched this video on TED.com which featured a speaker a couple of years back expounding the argument that education kills creativity. Watching the video made me first question my own education (definitely a killer of creativity) but then it also led me to realize that perhaps, Singapore isn't all that boring and stiff after all. Because Singapore isn't alone in being totally rigid and unappreciative of non-Math and Science people. Apparently, (according to what my classmates were talking about during discussion) the supposedly incredibly liberal America is too!
I was actually pretty surprised when my classmates talked about the importance of math and science in their own high schools (despite a lot of them being performance majors in dance, theatre, or music...) and how they were "different" from other people. Though it didn't make a difference in the end, seeing as they all ended up in university anyway. But in a way, I think that their education was probably a lot more liberal and diverse than what I experienced seeing as Singapore (and probably the UK too) makes students specialize from a pretty young age and choose fields that they *assume* they'll enter later on in life. Of course, things are changing now, but essentially it's not so much about the education (ok it partially is) but also about the mindset of people who are within that society.
Society's demands and government policies help strongly to shape the type of education we receive. Obviously, in a more rigid system, different areas are emphasized and in liberal societies, unconventional choices are not looked at with such surprise. Certainly, it is important to get an excellent grounding in all areas but it is not always possible since there are obviously some things we are better in than others.
Speaking from personal experience, teachers make a huge difference. Perhaps if I hadn't received such withering looks as a child, I would enjoy doing art a lot more today. Or if I hadn't been so useless at math (in that particular context anyway), I might have been more encouraged to try to like it (somehow I cannot see that happening but we can imagine...). The emphasis placed on math and science is disproportionate to the amount of training we receive in humanities and social sciences - while math and science(s) are compulsory, humanities and social sciences are usually interchangeable and optional. (For example, you must take math AND one or more sciences, but you could choose literature, or geography, or history, or a combination.)
While those most inclined toward math and science subjects would rejoice, I certainly wasn't very happy but I had to do it anyway. I guess it was good that I received erm, exposure to all those different areas but trust me, I was very pleased when I took the last math class of my life (Stats 350) and could throw that part of my brain out the window forever and ever.
You may wonder where this is leading... And frankly, I have no idea. Haha. It's an endless debate - how can you strike an optimum balance between encouraging "creativity" (in its completely undefinable form) and training students in all areas? I think it's a question that will continue to be asked, but for now, maybe it would be good to give equal emphasis to all aspects of ... well everything. Math Biology Chemistry Physics Literature History Geography Music Dance Drama and so on. What a fun (and varied) education that would be.=) Sort of.
I guess this was a way of not thinking in Japanese for a while. Back to reality...
もう少しだけから．．．頑張るよ！
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : Daybreak's Bell L'arc En Ciel + Diamond Dust 氷室京介 + Need You Now Lady Antebellum] [mood : frazzled] [food : tea]
So the plan is to write a blog in 3 languages. O gosh. What am I getting myself into. I guess what I'll do first is to translate the above into Chinese~ x__x I sense death ahead.
THAT WAS TOTALLY HARD. *faints* I even had to use a Chinese dictionary when I didn't have to use one for Japanese. Do you see this gigantic problem here... X__X!!! I sincerely hope this effort pays off... Coming up with words in Chinese is so hard. X__X
Obviously the neural pathways that used to exist in the Chinese section of my brain need rejuvenation somewhere...
これからも頑張ります！～ [Somehow, saying "从现在起,我会努力的!" doesn't have the same effect O__o]
In the blink of an eye, it became November. It's been so fast, I've barely noticed time passing - or maybe I have noticed it's passing but certainly not time that is rushing towards us. When you have nothing to do, time seems to stretch endlessly out, luxuriously giving you time to pursue whatever you like. But when you're busy and have loads of things to do, time just rushes at you like a bullet train (or Shinkansen!), bypassing your stop if you don't reach out to grab it - and sometimes it goes by so fast you don't even know it's gone.
Studying for the stupid Research Methods in Psychology exam is killing my brain.. -_-" It's such a boring class that's useful for people who want to do research but not so much for people like me who will never succeed at that kind of thing.X__X At least this exam has much less content than the previous one - which probably indicates more in-depth questions?! (T_T) I weep.
As the title suggests, it hasn't snowed yet. And it's already NOVEMBER. I haven't even pulled out my winter jackets! (T_T) This is Global Warming's fault. I want my snow! It better come soon.xP
Anyway, the time is making my brain addled with sleepiness. I shall take my leave now.
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : music from Spice and Wolf!] [mood : tired] [food : 麻婆豆腐！]
I am currently reading moon in a dewdrop, which collects the works of the Zen master Dogen (道元) and I am understanding absolutely nothing. X__X It makes my preparation for the Japanese oral exam [which is a mock business interview and I'm definitely going to die] seem easy.
Let me quote you something:
Sit solidly in samadhi and think not-thinking. How do you think not-thinking? Nonthinking. This is the art of zazen.
Now allow me to say: WHAT!?! I am so baffled by this. He goes on and on in all this naturalistic poetic stuff that sends me into a tizzy and like, ?!? because I'm completely utterly lost as to how I'm supposed to interpret what he says.
Another section:
Enlightenment is like the moon reflected on the water. The moon does not get wet, nor is the water broken. Although its light is wide and great, the moon is reflected even in a puddle an inch wide. The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in a dewdrops on the grass, or even in one drop of water. Enlightenment does not divide you, just as the moon does not break the water. You cannot hinder enlightenment, just as a drop of water does not hinder the moon in the sky. The depth of the drop is the height of the moon. Each reflection, however long or short its duration, manifests the vastness of the dewdrop, and realizes the limitlessness of the moonlight in the sky.
I totally appreciate the whole like, poetic tone of this being ~zen~ thing so I'm being very ~zen~ about it and just absorbing like a sponge - which is what he recommends anyway because if you have your own thoughts about stuff you won't be able to attain enlightenment. Or something like that. X__X
And besides reading this inexplicable stuff, I'm also attempting to remember what I'm supposed to say during the mock interview that is my oral exam. Please kill me now.死にたいな！ This whole 敬語 (keigo; honorifics) thing is terrible. And remembering the "nice" way of saying things is really hard. (T_T) Plus I get incredibly nervous during such situations which doesn't help much. 囧
Randomly...
Sam's comment made me think of the "Rayleigh scattering effect of your eyes!" from my trip to Sydney. Hoho. Except that's a different Rayleigh, and a different spelling of the name too..
山下智久 (aka YamaP!) has a new PV (this is a short version and thus incomplete) where he looks droolful:
Allow me to now skulk back to my work. X__X May I have amazing memory and zero nerves for my exam tomorrow!
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : Transatlanticism Death Cab For Cutie + Loveless 山下智久] [mood : 囧] [food : Fried Rice!!! I want to make Pumpkin Soup xP]
Sam: Nope, the scientist is Rayleigh! Raleigh is an Elizabethan period poet.^_^
potatoos: I hate typing "potatoos"! It's completely inaccurate.-_-" But yay I like cheesecake and scones too! Though I think my versions can do with improvement xP
AT last she comes, O never more In this dear patience of my pain To leave me lonely as before, Or leave my soul alone again.
Robert Louis Stevenson
I have spent the past few days feeling like I accomplished many things and accomplished nothing all at the same time.
For example, today alone (!) I finished my Japanese homework [erm, totally required], changed my auto insurance [saved tons of money!], and did up my resume [yay it looks a bit more presentable now]. And later, I have a mass meeting for an event I'm interested in doing, Zumba class, AND a consulting workshop. And yesterday, I went for the Luxury Goods and Retail Club mass meeting [super fun, I am totally joining], a Blackrock Solutions info session [convinced me for real that I am not interested in finance no matter how much money it promises], and cooked a 5 course dinner [I personally think it was a 3 course dinner but everyone else counted each component as one course.O__o Go figure.] in less than one hour. I feel so accomplished!!! And it sounds like I did a lot of things [to me anyway, obviously I am of the slacker variety] but in the end, I didn't really do anything.
Not to me anyway.
Like for example, I have a paper due tomorrow that I have only written the THESIS STATEMENT for. -_-" And I have readings due too. X__X Schoolwork schoolwork. Bane of my existence!
However, on top of these required things [like schoolwork, eating, exercising], I also have to start that internship hunt! Like everyone else! That's why all the companies are coming down now [I love my B-school-related friends for telling me about them all the time.^_^] and people keep attending info sessions.
Did I mention I was totally and completely under-dressed at the Blackrock info session yesterday? Everyone was in a SUIT and because I came from class, I was in JEANS. I died from embarrassment trust me. Thank goodness I don't intend to apply, and I've realized that working in an environment when everyone dresses uniformly is er.. pretty boring. The only exciting parts of their outfits are accessories [maybe].
So I'm worried for the consulting workshop today.-_-" But whatever. I'm wearing jeans SO THERE. xP [But I will still shrivel if I discover that I am under-dressed later on. *hangs head* So much for that bravado 2 seconds ago...]
I suppose this kind of makes up for being MIA the past week or so.=)
No matter what, everytime I hear this song, and this verse is sung, a beautiful image is etched in my mind.
目を閉じて燃え散るキミは花びらのように 夜闇を朱く染め続けてゆく 風よ舞え 哀しみは舞い散る灰に乗せて ゆらゆらとキミは闇に消えた In Flames, Gackt
Rough/direct [unedited!] translation from me: Eyes closed, the burning you scatters like flower petals Continually dyeing the darkness of the night red Dance Wind, the sadness rides on dancing, scattering ash Slowly swaying, you disappeared into the darkness
Translation from another website (linked!) With eyes closed, your burning form scatters like petals continuing to stain the darkness of night crimson Dance, oh wind, the sadness carries the fluttering, falling ash with a flicker, you vanished into darkness
Obviously you can see the difference in grammar and stuff.=P I need improvement. Though I think the first line isn't super duper well conveyed. You can think of the image, but it's hard to describe in a concise manner. Unless of course, you choose to translate directly as per Japanese grammar.=P
But despite the partially gruesome imagery, and even with the english translation being a pale copy of the actual meaning, it conveys this.. beautiful and vivid evocation which is fully appreciated if you know Japanese [and it helps too! if you know some Chinese characters =P]. I think it's partially the grammatical structure of Japanese which makes it so hard to translate into another language. Particularly this finicky creature called English which is horrendously concise and doesn't lend much to all this fantastic imagery that comes from Mandarin and Japanese [and maybe other Asian languages? But I don't know Korean or Vietnamese or Thai or ... so...].
It always stuns me to read/hear of poems/writings where this super vivid image that is highly complex and very much real is conveyed in a few words. It's amazing. Language must be one of the coolest human inventions ever.
And while I ponder over that..
May Gackt continue writing lyrics with such amazing imagery [see! limitations of english force me to continually use this word!].=D I am dying to see what's next. *:.｡☆..｡.(´∀｀人)
Stuffed ourselves at our favorite~ ラーメン屋さん! ^_^ We keep going there, and we're probably the only 2 girls who keep patronising the shop... so much so that I think the workers there all recognize us!!! =X But we can't help it... It's good... ^_^" The best~ part about the shop is their 唐揚げ [karaage; Japanese fried chicken] which is fabulous. With emphasis. Haha. And I really~ like the soup they use for their ramen!!! However, the noodles aren't much to write home about [in other words, it's yummy but not eye-poppingly fabulous]. But I don't think the noodles make the ラーメン shop... Rather it's many components that form a favorite shop for all of us.^_^ On top of it being yummy, this place is pretty affordable and, extremely nearby.=D
Exam tomorrow. I don't want to study anymore!!! But... I will do my best... ^_^"
Happy 七夕！～ (Tanabata; the star festival which has the same story as the Cowherd and Weaving Maid in Chinese legends) I hope you've made your wish today~ [And tied it to bamboo, as is the traditional Japanese way~ =)] As for me, it somehow came true when I went for the 和菓子 (wagashi; Japanese traditional sweets) making workshop today with my classmates!!~
During the 課外活動 (activities outside of class, literally) period, we zoomed down to a traditional 和菓子 shop near 三十三間堂 (Sanjusangendou; a famous temple in Kyoto that has 1000~ carved images of Kannon) by train! Everyone was pretty excited... I mean, I guess food does that to people.xD Haha...
和菓子 has dozens of forms and loads of variety - there are different seasonal 和菓子, traditional festival-related 和菓子, and so on. What we learnt were pretty much the common type of 和菓子 - although they are presented in a seasonal format, those are pretty much the standard formula which is then presented in a seasonal way. [I could be wrong about this by the way, so don't take my word for it but it's what I imagined I'd learn in a basic 和菓子 class.]
So anyway, where was I. Ah yes. 和菓子 making.=D We stepped into the 本店 (honten; main shop) of this 和菓子 place and headed into a tatami-lined room in the upper regions of the building, where we were greeted by an enthusiastic older man, his assistant, and a couple who were attending the class too. ^_^" They seemed rather surprised actually, to see this huge bunch of obviously 外人 外人 (gaijin; the not-so-polite way of saying foreigner) hunker into this serene tatami environment. And the chef was very worried that we wouldn't understand Japanese but no worries my dear sir, we do. ^_^"
He started out by demonstrating the 3 different types of 和菓子 we'd be making: アサガオ (morning glory), a maple-leaf shaped one, and one that's supposed to resemble moss. Sorry, I err can't remember the proper names of the latter two. Ahem. [They have specific names by the way, not just general names for "moss" or "maple leaf".] We made two アサガオ ones, one to eat after the class, one to bring home as お土産！～ (omiyage; a souvenir)
和菓子 is very easy to eat, just use the bamboo stick to cut and eat! But to make it requires some skill... X__X Carefully, he walked us step-by-step through the process, though we did cheat by using pre-prepared ingredients that were already portioned out nicely for us. I think creating 和菓子 from scratch is far too time-consuming and is a lot of work. The basic things you need for the 和菓子 that we made are: 白餡 (shiroan; a white bean paste), 漉し餡 (koshian; smooth red adzuki bean paste), 潰し餡) (tsubushian; mashed red adzuki bean paste), 粒餡 (tsubuan; sweetened adzuki beans), and 寒天 (kanten; a kind of jelly). Then there are the tools! And specific they are too: a cloth that has a little knot on top [used to create a pretty impression in the 和菓子], a flat paddle like bamboo tool [used to create lines in the 和菓子], sharpened chopsticks [used to pick up and place stuff], a bamboo basket netting [used to create little bits of the 白餡], and your hands!
It was a really fun hands-on, interactive experience if you ask me - and conducted entirely in Japanese with the occasional katakana English word thrown in although I'd like to note that many people in Japan use katakana English which is used like any other Japanese vocabulary word. And it was really fun to try to shape the 和菓子 in as pretty a way as possible to imitate the 和菓子 master... X__X [Total fail on the maple leaf one for me - it cracked! (T_T) Sobs...]
The hardest one was the one to imitate moss because it was so random. O__o You had to stick these little bits of 白餡 onto a ball of 潰し餡 in as pretty a way you could without squishing the whole thing.X__X
At the end of it all though, it was really fun and all of us were laughing at each other's misshapen 和菓子, or exclaiming at the perfectly shaped ones. Then we made our own 抹茶 (matcha; bitter Japanese green tea) to savor the 和菓子 with~ =D Yummy!!! I can't say it's the most delicious 和菓子 I've ever eaten but because you made it yourself, it tasted just a tad more special... ;) And with the bitterness of the tea, the sweetness of the 和菓子 was reduced by a fair bit~
Because Jeldine doesn't eat 和菓子, I am now inclined to finish all 6 of our creations which are sitting prettily in the fridge! O__o I don't know if I should happy about this... But I do know that if I eat them all at once, I will go into a severe sugar high! Haha...
And due to us rushing to the 和菓子 class after lessons, we didn't get a proper lunch - all the better to savor 焼肉食べ放題 (all-you-can-eat yakiniku or Japanese/Korean Meat Barbecue!) for dinner!!! Haha.. I ate so much that I couldn't even stand still because it was so uncomfortable.. X__X But yes, it was good~ Beams.
Randomly, I have realized that I absolutely adore the B-sides to Gackt's 4 latest singles, but find that the main singles themselves are great however ... if I had to pick, I would definitely choose the B-sides as favorites this time. ^_^" And I really like the lyrics because I somehow can finally sort-of understand! X__X I think. I've realized that lyrics are a lot deeper than they look...
I want to try my hand at my own 和菓子!!! Look out for lots of failures...
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : In Flames + Suddenly + No Reason + My Father's Day + Oblivious ~顔のない天使~ Gackt] [mood : sleepy and annoyed at the ultra long Japanese article..] [food : 和菓子 と 焼肉！]
liu-yi: Is there a specific size I should be looking for?
Jiamin: Yup. I don't remember Keita's birthday. Sorry. And I was wrong! Jin and Gackt are born on the same day! Haha... Isn't it Takki & Tsubasa? Oops. =S You put on weight? YAY! Good job. Please continue to do so, because despite all my confidence, Japan has food that is wayyy too good and I've definitely definitely not lost weight. (T_T) Nino is from Arashi~ =P And we should add Gackt + Jin + Keita's birthdays to our list and celebrate them too! HAHA.
I'm in Kyoto, in the apartment with the shortest LAN cable I've ever seen, and am already freaked out by the crazy syllabus they have planned out for us!!!
Thankfully, there's the Gackt! Concert! to look forward to... And the people to meet... Japanese to speak... food to munch on... and so on.=D
Been running a lot of errands these 2 days, what with orientation, settling into the apartment, and exploring 八坂神社 [Yasaka Jinja] in 祇園 [Gion]... And of course, doing the homework that's already been given to us..X__X Err.. Did I mention I'm not here on holiday? =P
The apartment's a lot bigger than I expected but it's definitely just right for 2, and if you were to fit one more in, it'd be quite a squeeze. We already know one other student who's staying in the same building and he was saying our apartment looks so much smaller than his.. [He lies of course, it's totally the same size..xP] Most other people live in the dorm which is quite a while away so I'm very thankful that we took this apartment and not the one we originally wanted - we had totally mixed up the areas we wanted to stay in and now we're only a 10 minute bus ride from 京大!!
We walked around the university grounds a little today and it's smaller than I expected but I guess not everywhere's like Michigan.=P Haha. The sun here is also crazy strong and it's so much cooler and dryer than I expected but everyone assured us that things will only go downhill from now and the heat and humidity will catch up with us soon.=S I don't know if I'm looking forward to that...
日本で日本語を分かって、よかった～と思います！！！ It's great to actually understand what people are saying around here, without looking [or seeming] completely lost at the store, or in the bus.=D Next thing besides learning how to understand people? Learn how to dress like those impeccably attired and made-up women out there. I am totally impressed...
I think it's time to complete that worksheet so I can slack off a little tomorrow and just study 漢字！～ Beams. =)
May the days get cooler, but not rainier, and not so sunny!!! =P cheers *[-witchstone-]*
So with the end of my exams [yippee!] I decided to rewatch a dorama that I really really enjoy! おせん!~
With today's last exam [I got another prize for Japanese! Beams.] my semester has officially come to an end, and with the academic year finally at a close I also found out that my Japanese teacher is returning to Japan.=( She's doing happier things [getting married!] though so I really hope she has fun. Hehe~ I hope that next semester will be more enjoyable than this one!! ^_^ 楽しみに！～
Despite having watched it very recently [ie: last year], I couldn't help but watch it again - and once again fell in love with the show.=D
And this is after watching Antique [the Korean movie] a second time!
Although both are vastly different, they still show how food is made exquisitely and from scratch, with traditional methods, and the best ingredients. And with おせん, it's about keeping tradition and preserving the methods of creating/preparing food that is the most delicious - it's not always that fast food is good food.
In the last episode, they showed this kid who has never really eaten real food because his parents work all the time and hence survives on instant foods [ie: Cup Noodles! Instant Ramen!]. When served traditional Japanese food, he declares it tasteless and proceeds to squirt ketchup over everything. When I saw that I was really sad.=(
And then I realized that we're all equally guilty of doing such things. Honestly, in Singapore, I really couldn't tell you where I could buy freshly made tofu, or freshly harvested vegetables from a farmer who doesn't live in another country - maybe the hydroponics farm counts but they don't grow everything. Here, there's a movement for eating local and buying local which I think is great because it gets you to think more about where your food comes from, how it was grown, how you can prepare it so that it's own special flavor can be tasted, etc. But more often than not, we have to eat instant foods - which tastes good for a while but not long later [in other words, within 1 or 2 meals], you'll find me craving for freshly prepared food and fresh ingredients like vegetables and fruit.
To me, it's important to know where your food comes from, how it's grown/made, and how it can be prepared in the simplest way possible - a lot of the time when you go to restaurants with really fresh ingredients and stuff, you'll notice they don't use that much seasoning so you can really taste the flavor of the food.
If we do manage to work it out somehow, I hope that our business can hold on to such principles of buying local, buying in season, and doing something good for the rest of the world as well - like how Ben & Jerry's operates or how farmer's markets support local farmers. As well as preserving the old school methods of creating dishes and delicious other things - sadly I have yet to try a palmier or croissant or ... that is not made from butter, fresh from the patisserie that tastes great. It could be just me and my prejudice but I think it's safe to say that I really dislike it when they use palm oil or anything except good butter because there's a weird oily taste.X__X
I hope I can learn more about traditional ways before it all disappears so that I can learn about them, and preserve them.=)
Well, today was my last day of classes that I actually cared about. Tomorrow's just Intro to the Study of Asian Cultures but I don't really care much for it so... As my last class of the day [and last official class of the semester - tomorrow's an exam..] ended, and as I remembered the professors/lecturers thanking us for the semester, it suddenly struck me that even though I really really dislike exams and homework and endless readings, I enjoyed this semester. A lot. Because I had classes I actually wanted to take and willingly took.
Japanese Cinema
After taking this class, I can't say I have developed a new love for Japanese cinema because, well, I've always liked movies from Japan. Rather, I'd say that I've developed not only a deeper understanding of film from Japan - but also about film studies in general. I've always watched movies from the perspective of the layman - knowing nothing about film technique, knowing little about the directors, actors, and historical context and what not. And I wouldn't say I rarely watched movies, I've watched the most insipid shows made merely to showcase the goodlooking people in the show, to movies that are inspired and very brilliant, and even shows that I completely didn't understand and was totally lost. But after faithfully attending every screening this semester, I must say that I've discovered new things - for example, silent films and black & white films aren't all that bad, it really depends on how they are made. I've found that I really like Kurosawa and Ozu as directors, and that the simplest stories put in the hands of brilliant auteurs can turn into something spectacular to watch. And I've learnt much more about making films from the perspective of the people behind the cameras - editing, shooting, etc. It's very interesting I must say.
I also think my professor is pretty brilliant - she's modest yet opinionated and very very entertaining when I started to appreciate her classes a little more. The deadpan humor of [what I think characterizes] Asians also makes her classes fun. It's really sad that she's a visiting professor because there probably won't be anymore classes on Japanese film studies.=( And that makes me sad.
Some films that I've enjoyed a lot in this class and that I highly recommend [if you can find them, some aren't available readily or are my professor's copies that were translated by friends. Or something like that.]: - 羅生門 Rashomon, Kurosawa Akira, 1950 - 何が彼女をそうさせたか What Made Her Do It?, 1929 - 生まれては見たけれど。。。I Was Born, But..., Ozu Yasujiro, 1932 - 七人の侍 Seven Samurai, Kurosawa Akira, 1954 - 野良犬 Stray Dog, Kurosawa Akira, 1949 - 晩春 Late Spring, Ozu Yasujiro, 1949 - 巨人と玩具 Giants and Toys, Masumura Yasuzo, 1958 - 青春残酷物語 Cruel Story of Youth, Oshima Nagisa, 1960 - ゆれる Sway, Nishikawa Mika, 2006 [Plus! All of them are probably given a stamp of approval from my professor; if not, why would she show them right? =P]
So after this little introduction to Japanese Cinema, even if it was difficult to understand at times, and a little boring at others, it's a class I really really enjoyed thoroughly.=D
Organizational Psychology
Ah, the only branch of psychology that appeals to me slightly as a career! =P I wouldn't say I enjoyed this class the same way I enjoyed my cinema class, rather it was more like I thoroughly liked the lectures because my professor was entertaining! [I sense a trend here..] I thought discussions were absolutely useless but we did have some pretty fun activities like filling out those network surveys and stuff - pretty useless but they did give you a better understanding of yourself. Somehow. But it puzzles me because essentially, organizational psychology is about taking commonsensical ideas and concepts that you apply without thinking in your everyday life and putting them into a more scientifically acceptable form of theories, experiments, and long write-ups. Still, the readings were mostly really interesting because they talk about using researched concepts and applying them to your life - from culture in organizations to leadership, I think we covered most concepts.
Sometimes when you take a course, it's only after it's over that you realize, omg I never ever want to do anything to do with that again! [Cue my experience with physics. Ewww.] But after this brush with the introduction to organizational psychology, it makes me think "I probably wouldn't mind doing this at all." =) I guess that's discovery for you.
Third-Year Japanese
My favorite class every semester is inevitably Japanese class! =D It's relaxing, and fun! And of course, you get to interact with the cutest teachers on campus. There's just something I must say that seems to prevail in every Japanese teacher - an inherent cuteness in the way they react and deal with things. It's great! Haha. And it makes class super duper fun. Of course, learning Japanese and realizing that you can understand more and more of what's happening in doramas and anime helps a lot in terms of motivation..
In our last class, we were talking about communication - communicating your message effectively to other people in order to pass it on [I think it had to do with the environment, about a greenie group in Japan called A SEED Japan] and when we ended, 先生 talked about how she hopes that we'll all continue using Japanese as a form of communication in our lives [many people stop taking Japanese after finishing 3rd year], and passing on our own message to many other people so we too can inspire, motivate, and actualize things. When I heard that, I felt rather sad because most of the teachers who've taught me so far don't teach 4th year Japanese so there ended my interaction with them.(T_T) This is like when we had to bid Satou sensei farewell after year 2!!! (T_T)
I guess that's what it means to establish student-teacher relationships. They are cyclical, and very short - lasting only a period of time that exists in a created space [the classroom]. And classes last just that period - the designated amount of time given to you to learn about a subject. In other words, I suppose we'll have to develop for ourselves learning through the ages, and pick our own paths and interests in life.^_^ That's why I'm happy that after finishing all the introductory classes, I can now begin to take classes that delve deeper into topics that I'm interested in.=D
And now, it's time to edit my paper *weeps* and study for my exam/quiz *weeps again*.
I'm touched!!! So it's that easy~ I'm still thinking noooo but Gackt's words are really... touching.
Energy What would Gackt's source of energy be?
A person's/People's face(s) filled with joy. Well, this is really what creates (my) energy. For myself, I wish that everyone's face can be filled with joy, and that's really what I feel. I love smiles. If there is someone nearby who will smile for me, just that would make me feel happy/lucky.
Spirit To Gackt, what is spirit?
I guess it is not running away/escaping [from something]. No matter what happens/No matter what you face, not escaping. No matter what it is, face it. - That would be, showing how you live/are alive (?)
From Arena 37C, January 2009, the letters interview with Gackt.=)
Err. I'm not too sure about the last line. 生きざま?? Mr Life?? And there are bound to be a TON of errors/inaccuracies because I just translated it off the cuff with no one to check it... =X
But I've been on a Gackt kick lately. =) And somehow I feel like, I'm actually progressing somewhere in Japanese since I'm able to read and kindasorta understand what these magazine interviews are saying!! *feels accomplished* Of course, I have a long way to go, but I'm not even an actual adult yet so I still have time. Right? =D
I need to get around to writing up those application essays which are languishing somewhere.
Also, I've added TWITTER! =D
And I need to finish this particular reading, which is the most boring one in this class so far. And it's long too, what torture!
Haha. I was going to translate this whole entry but omg! It'll KILL me!! So maybe not.=P Practice your Japanese [and help me correct mine!] and read what I wrote above.=D HEE.
And lately I've been listening to a lot a LOT of Gackt again.=) I miss his voice!!! OMG. And I've been trying to catch up on his news.. Let's not even talk about trying to catch up with alice nine. ... X__X!
Ok. Time to resume studying for my Japanese exam. Technically, I managed to practice some grammar forms up there so I was kindasorta studying... right? =D
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : I Can See Clearly Now Jimmy Cliff + 希望のカケラ 北出奈菜 + 哀 戦士 Gackt] [mood : boppy] [food : cod!]
PS: I've realized that alice nine. concert playlists are great at the gym! =D And yes. I've started going to the gym. What a shock!
YX: I'm still thinking about it.=( Something my friend said made me think more... AHH!
Sam: Have you done it yet? Hahaha.
Wendaye: SSA = Singapore Students Association. And since Joyce keeps saying singsoc, I guess it's similar? Haha.=P
So tomorrow is the Singapore Food Festival [actually today, but it's erm EARLY today so I still consider it tomorrow..=P] and we're halfway through the prep work! We've already fried our ikan bilis, roasted our peanuts, fried our keropok, made the chilli [I think it smells awfully spicy but everyone says it tastes good so...] and bought all our ingredients. Tomorrow, we just have to make the rice, omelettes, slice the cucumbers, and season our ikan bilis-peanut mix! ^_^
I am so tired but.. I think it'll be a rewarding event.=)
Anyway, from the ever resourceful Chenli [and accompanied by fabulous knowledge from Xinyi and Guolu - the resident Chinese experts], I've discovered the origins of the powerful Chinese search engine, 百度!
辛弃疾 - 青玉案
东风夜放花千树，更吹落、星如雨。 宝马雕车香满路。 凤箫声动，玉壶光转，一夜鱼龙舞。
蛾儿雪柳黄金缕，笑语盈盈暗香去。 众里寻他千百度；蓦然回首，那人却在、灯火阑珊处。
"百度" originates from the last line of the poem - it's also the nicest line of the poem and resonates within you with loads and loads of meaning. [In other words, I didn't understand it at all, especially the most important parts of the sentence. AHEM.] According to Guo Lu though, the first part is made up of descriptions.=)
But thanks to the kindness of my friends, [they refused to translate the whole thing, apparently it's rather complex] I now understand the last line and boy do I feel smart! =P It's a very nice line though, rather inspiring.=)
众里寻他千百度；蓦然回首，那人却在、灯火阑珊处。
I always marvel at how beautiful the Chinese language can sound and mean, and I wish I had studied harder at it. ;_; I loved learning 唐诗 though, so maybe I would have been more interested if we had done poems instead, and learnt it for fun rather than for exams all the time..
Omg. Typing all that Japanese out and trying to think of gramatically correct sentence has taken a toll on my brain. I think sleep is in order. cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : when one can stay awake when it's silent, concentration on your work improves dramatically] [mood : tired] [food : nabeyaki udon! xD]
Direct Translation: In class today, we had to do a mini presentation! We had to present using a graph.. I went online to search, and found this graph! ^_^
Jaa, this is what I said:
Using this graph, I think I would like to present on the places where electronic money is commonly used. This graph is from Oricon Japan and was made in 2007, it shows the results of a study on the places where electronic money is commonly used. From this graph, you will be able to see the place where electronic money is used the most. Firstly, 55.7% use electronic money at convenience stores, next 40.5% at train station stores and since there are many places you can use electronic money at, you can also see that other places like the book store or at fast food chains on the graph. These results tell us that in Japan, electronic money is frequently used by busy people or by people who don't have cash on them. I think that inventing electronic money is a great idea for busy people since it's convenient and fast. If there were such a thing in other countries, I'm sure it would be popular too!
^_^" I know. It sounds so.. not-smart. Haha..X__X But considering my currently horrendous level of Japanese, I think it's ok..=P Japanese is getting increasingly difficult as the chapters go by... And what's more, there's a 1000-1500 word Japanese essay due on MONDAY! Weeps.=( I am so going to die!!!
My classmates also had super interesting presentations.. HAHA. There was one guy who presented on the statistics of whether men in their 30s-50s urinate while sitting down or standing up. HAHAHA. The whole class was totally tickled by that one.. =P And another guy did a presentation on the link between Global Warming and the number of Pirates. Like, WHATT. Haha. My sensei was totally confused.=P
Although I must say I think I managed to develop a deeper friendship bond with my classmates [and sensei! =D] from RC Japanese, my current classmates [and sensei!] are a very interesting and entertaining bunch.^_^ Everyone's really nice too. Somehow, it seems like everyone who takes a language is really nice and enthusiastic about stuff.^_^ I like that! Haha..
Tonight, I'm going to make SOUP! =D And Chicken in Black Bean Sauce.^_^ I just bought a jar from Lee Kum Kee, so I want to try it..=D Hehe.. I really need to email my mom to ask her how to use it [properly. And with variety.]...X__X
I think I need to go hunt for more Cantonese dishes so I can be like, YAY I CAN COOK THIS! Haha..=P *being retarded*
明日、「桜」というレストランに行くつもり！うれしい！～日本料理が食べたい！！！ We're going to Cherry Blossom for lunch tomorrow. Yay!~ [if my plans don't fall through..] I've been dying to eat Japanese food for a while..-_-" [And Korean food. But it's still too warm to eat Kalbi-tang..]
Thanks to an assignment from Japanese class getting us to look for graphs about something in Japan, I chanced upon my favourite rubbishy Japanese site, I found this totally hilarious poll!
日本のファーストフードの『復活してほしいメニュー』！～ What do you want to revive in the menu of fast food restaurants in Japan?!
Totally random right?!
Anyway, the article goes on about how fast food restaurants introduce new products every season but surely, there is one that you'd like to eat again! [Speaking of seasonal products, Starbucks just launched 3 flavours in their Signature Hot Chocolate collection!! xD やった! I am so going to try them when the weather gets colder..]
HAHA. Super funny!! But I'm sure some people can't read it, so let me explain.. 1st place: チキンタツタ/マクドナルド Chicken Tatsuta (it's a chicken sandwich flavoured with soy and ginger!) from McDonald's! 2nd place: マックチキン/マクドナルド McChicken from McDonald's! 3rd place: ベーコンポテトパイ/マクドナルド Bacon Potato Pie from McDonald's! 4th place: オニオンリング/ケンタッキーフライドチキン Onion Rings from Kentucky Fried Chicken! 5th place: かるびマック/マクドナルド Karubi Mac (presumably it's a burger with Korean style beef) from McDonalds's!
Looks like McDonald's is extremely popular in Japan!!! ^_^ The funniest name is KFC though.. kentakkifuraidochikin! xD xD xD HAHAHA. *dies*
This is the burger ranking. ;) Hilarious!!!
Sorry, but I still can't think of how this is not totally pointlessly random. =P But still, it's great entertainment news.. Haha.. Time to return to my search for a pie chart!!! xP It appears that they don't have any?! SIGH. I don't want to get a boring ol' news one!
By the way, I'm thinking of entering the Scharffen Berger chocolate contest!! There's no hope of winning of course, but I think it'll be fun!! =D
cheers *[-witchstone-]*
[music : Continued Story Kuroishi Hitomi] [mood : =P] [food : Homemade Cottage Pie!]
ZL: I love Osen!!! Haha.. And that white-haired piece of perfection, for your information, is SO mine but we can share. ;) He's from the new Final Fantasy XIII!!! Haha. Most clips of XIII are of this totally hot girl but the extended versions have this gorgeous guy. ;)
Jiamin: Final Fantasy XIII!!! PLEASE INVEST IN A PS3 NOW THANKS.=D =D =D
Wendaye: I think he transferred out of here. Or something. That's what I heard. Haha..
YX: I can't believe ebay works for you!! Haha.. But that's GREAT!! =D =D =D
My Emotible!
starry-eyed: filled with such youthful hope and optimism that one's eyes twinkle even when it's dark
Wish List
ie: motivation to save money!
- clothes
- shoes [heels! boots!]
- the perfect tote
- coats/outerwear! [Soïa & Kyo, Burberry...]
- Gackt - nine*nine
- Gackt Photobooks:
1 The Gift The Sixth Day & Seventh Night Tour Document (2004)
2 Crescent Photobook (out of print)
- Cookbooks!
1 Thomas Keller The French Laundry Cookbook
2 The Nobu Cookbook
3 Emily Luchetti A Passion for Desserts
4 Alice Medrich Pure Dessert
- Anime/Manga
1 Rurouni Kenshin
2 xxxHOLiC
3 Tsubasa -RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE-
- Proficiency at Japanese!
- Learn French for Food!
