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Kanji 練習

While making copies at school, I spied some kanji practice printouts near the printer.  Upon closer examination, they had a website address on them, so I hopped over to my computer and looked it up.  Sure enough, there were printable kanji practice pages on there (in the Japanese style of “of course you already know the word, let’s work on writing that word in kanji!”).

So if you’re studying kanji, perhaps these might help you out.  You can learn some vocabulary too, while you’re at it!

Right, in case you just want to know how to look at these mystery sheets I’m talking about, without actually reading the Japanese (yeah, it’s a Japanese site), the pages are ordered from 1st to 6th grade level kanji on the upper left-hand side of the page *in blue*, starting with 小学１年生の漢字 (first grade kanji) at top to 小学６年生の漢字 (6th grade kanji) at the bottom of the list. Once you click on the link, there is a list of pdf files in the middle. The first is a shaded kanji version, the second is the kanji all full strength, and the third is the kanji totally missing with only the reading on the side to guide you.

My internet find for the day.

*Insert Sigh Here*

Sometimes I feel like Japan really hates me.

Starting November 20th, all foreigners (minus diplomats, those under 16, and some “special” residents of chinese and korean descent) will have to get their fingerprints scanned and photos taken every time they enter Japan.  Tourists.  People on work visas.  Permanent residents.

Why?  Well, of course, to keep out the terrorists.  Because there have been so many foreign acts of terrorism within Japan.  Actually, I lied.  They’ve all been home grown, if you catch my drift.  But it was a nice thought, wasn’t it?  Works for me!  Scan ‘em all!

Here’s a cut and dry article on Yahoo! News, “Japan to take fingerprints, photos of foreigners“.

This article from Japan Today probably better sums up my feelings though, since I currently live here, and entertained serious thoughts of looking for other, non-teaching jobs, here after JET.  Meaning that I’d become a bit more long-term and permanent in my residency (not that three years isn’t already long-term).

But I’m not too keen on having to be bio-scanned every time I come back in the country.

This kind of thing really irks me.  Terrible timing, considering it’s once again time to re-contract.  Then again, perhaps it’s great timing, since I haven’t yet signed another year over yet.

And now I can’t help but wonder, why did I even bother getting super convenient re-entry permits (that cost money and a day of precious paid leave) into this country when I’m now going to have to go through the immigration line anyways?  I mean, have you ever been through those lines?  Make sure your DS battery is charged, is all I’ll say!  Oh…I am now crying in my brain, thinking of how absolutely horrible it will be when I return from my trip to the US after New Year’s…

I hope this was all a horribly blown out of proportion lie.  Or at least a half-truth.  Anything to get me out of that immigration line…

But it probably isn’t.  So damnit.

New Camera!

Well, I wrote about doing this, so it had to have happened.

After having sudden inspiration that new technology could turn my blogging life around, I did some research into cameras, found a few that looked good to me, then went to Kurume’s Yamada Denki.  This proved to be fruitful as it had all the models I wanted to look at…and one that I wanted, NO…one that I needed.  “needed” like I need my 灯油 *touyu ->kerosene* heater in the winter (starting two nights ago…).

Anyways, I’ve taken the camera for a spin now, and it’s lovely.  More megapixels, 12x zoom (much better than the 3x I originally had), manual controls if I so deem needed, and a camcorder function that is awesome (stereo, zoom capabilities during shooting, anti-shake, looks clear and sharp even on a TV screen, fully swivelling lcd screen).  The best feature is that it looks like a mighty camera.  Versus a little dented thin silver box…what I was using before.

Here’s a pic…

It was also cheaper than I thought. Cheaper AND 4000円 worth of points on my Yamada Denki card. A little present for the future, perhaps.

The new alt is taking my old digital camera for a spin to see if he doesn’t just want to take over (instead of buy) the awesome responsibilities that come with camera ownership.

…perhaps I should give him the battery charger to more fully appreciate the awesome.

Doing Laundry At School

Well, all the teachers are watching or giving demonstration classes, so, once more, I’m left all alone in the teachers’ room.

Oh, what’s a girl to do?

Play the DS, apparently.  But, oh my!  The DS strap was all dirty, so I decided to wash it.

On the right, double-bagged oolong tea.  I like it strong!  On the left, laundry!

Those mugs were both acquisitions from the first trip to Universal Studios: Japan.  JAWS and Peter Pan.  I love them both (and yes, I do keep two mugs,a spoon, and chopsticks at my desk at all times…don’t you?)!

Shame I didn’t have a “before” picture of the strap, because it was daarty!  Living in my purse can do that to a pure white strap.

Just wanted to share.

Marketing Ploys At Work

Well, well!

Look what I found in the most visible part of my middle school, tacked onto a door, blatantly visible, right upon entering the school!

ザ・シンプソンズ MOVIE

How it was able to be displayed so prominently in a school of learning is the message found on the blue part of the poster.  It basically says to “sleep early, wake up early, and eat breakfast”.  There may also be some talk of a contest or something below that, but I couldn’t really decipher it.

Picture quality is lacking because, yeah, I took it with my cellphone.  It’s a 3 megapixel camera, but I always have it set to full screen resolution of my phone, ’cause I usually only take pics on it for the sole purpose of making them my keitai’s background screen.

So anyways, yeah.  Nice marketing scheme.  My school probably has no idea what the movie’s about (let alone the kids), but that’s cool.  The Simpsons are only really known here because of some CC Lemon commercials (google “cc lemon simpsons”…I’d do it for you but all the good sites are blocked at work…confoundit!).

Journey of Blog Discovery

Well, no internet at home for some reason.  Perhaps Charity has forgotten to pay a bill or two (sadly I really don’t know right now) but in a way it doesn’t really matter for the moment.

I went to Osaka, had great times, took lots of pictures, and can’t post about them because I hate dealing with picture uploading an re-sizing on the work computer.

There is also the little dillemna of deciding what I should and shouldn’t blog about on a normal basis.  What pictures I should and shouldn’t post.  And what constitutes blog-worthiness.  This is a blog about Japan, after all.  Or is it about me?  …in Japan?  I’ve started worrying that my blog, now that it is over a year old, no longer contains the parts about Japan that are cool and different because they are starting to become the everyday for me.

Perhaps I need to re-discover this place.

…perhaps with a new camera purchase?  (ooh!)

Well, whatever the motivation to make me start blogging again, I’ll figure it out.  For now, pretend I’ve been on vacation.  Or working hard.  Because I totally did both of those these past few weeks.

And you know what I miss?  Those bizarro weird blogs I would write on occasion (the last one being when Okinawa Jon found out he was going to…you guessed it!…Okinawa!).

I also miss Taco Bell’s mexican pizzas.  Just saw a picture of one in a book.  Maan!

speaking of being in Japan too long, when I was typing, “Taco Bell”, I almost typed “Tako Bell”…which is similar to “Tako Ball”, which we all know as “takoyaki”, which I will eat tonight at the matsuri *pictures to be taken…of course!*

Oh, and ahh…yeah!  Right.  Matsuri *festival* tonight!  It’s the yearly Wakamiya Shrine Karaoke Matsuri…the same one I won Gamera, my lovable huggable turtle, at last year.

School Marks

Right before class started, a small group of boys were busy at work, marking on each others’ faces with black markers.  It was a jan ken pon (paper scissors rock) match gone bad, and by the time the bell rang, they were all marked up, one having the full deal with a れ on one cheek, a ん on the other, small scribbles on his forehead, and a full  scribbly beard.

The bell having rung, they all rushed to the bathroom, conveniently located across from the classroom.  Only one was able to start washing his face as the teacher yelled for them to come back.  I told the teacher, “I hope it’s permanent marker!”.

The one boy had been able to remove all but a shadow of the X marks from his cheek.  But the ”bearded” boy…

He walked back into the room, not having had a chance to wash any of the marks off of his face.  He kept his hand over his “beard” as he took his seat.  He eventually felt less self-consious and took his hand down, only to put it back up when I kept laughing (he’s one of the more popular, loud kids in class, and this humored me to no end).  We played a hot potato game, and when the music stopped on him (you have to answer a question when that happens…and it was totally my fault that the music stopped at him…I’m cruel), his hand shot right back up.

The lesson of the day focused on “____ look(s) _____.”  Marker Boy tried out his new English by saying a few key phrases, such as, “you look old!”.  The teacher told him that it sounded funny coming from such a weird old man.  Another student turned around and told Marker Boy, “you look バカ!” (a seriously well-placed line *which means “you look stupid!”*).  We laughed.

Throughout the class, he stopped caring as much.  Nonetheless, near the end of the period, when another teacher slowly walked past the classroom, looking for trouble-makers (I can only guess, what with the prowling-ness), the English teacher pointed out that the student’s face had become bright red.

You’d think that after an entire class full of mockery, the first thing he’d do once the bell had rung would be to wash off his face.  But, hey, there were markers, and it wouldn’t be so embarrassing if others looked like him, right?  By the time I left, several other boys were already fully markered too.  Markered lines under the eyes.  Outlined noses.  swirls on cheeks.

Why did I leave my camera at home today?!?