希望がないと。。。生きることが苦しい。

Amazing what a little kanji can do...

I finished studying the kanji in this book and I am completely surprised at how much more I understand of Japanese media. It's a long journey to fluency, but understanding kanji is a big help in feeling comfortable with the written language. I cannot recommend this book enough. With subtitles on, I can actually understand the majority of what's happening, as opposed to becoming more confused (which is what happened before learning the kanji). It also allows me to rely on an actual Japanese dictionary, rather than a Japanese Learner's Dictionary. There's never a need to look something up in English because the nuance of each kanji is already there (albeit in English, but you get the idea... right?)

The other great thing relates to Kendo: I've been having a lot of fun lately and an actual DESIRE to go, something which had been decidedly lacking for several weeks before. "Then why were you even going in the first place, Jonathan??" some astute observers might mutter derisively. Well, as may have been mentioned in a previous post (jackass): if you want to not be a complete woosy girly girl, you need to suck it up sometimes and recognize that some things aren't always about having fun. No, it's about learning to accept with open arms the shit getting flung in your face (or, if you're one of the kids in the class then it means learning how to cry because a guy 4 times your size is beating the crap out of you). I really feel like the basics are finally sinking in for me; instead of worrying about all the little things (footwork, hand position, shouting the right word, etc), I can start looking at the strategy behind the fighting.

Alright, that's enough of an update.

Hope January is going well for you,

Jonathan

PS: Skiing in Hiroshima in February! WOOOHH!

Check this out

Gunkanjima is an uninhabited island off the coast of Nagasaki. Ted, a fellow JET in the area, first introduced me to the place and I was surprised to find this article while browsing the Asahi news reel. I didn't think that one of Japan's premier newspapers would ever publish a story about this place, it isn't exactly Japan at it's finest hour. Here's a wikipedia article on it in English. The article doesn't really discuss the history or the impact the island has had on the area; from what I gather it's explaining a photo album that was recently published with photos of the island from both now and back when people lived there. Still, it's good to see that the news in Japan isn't afraid to point out Japan's blemishes.

This is a good song: Tagatame, by Mr Children!