Back to studying...

Japanese class started up again this week! I tried to study at least somewhat (about twice a week?) during August so I wouldn't be left behind. Looks like I'm doing ok. Several people seemed happy to see me again, which was nice. The teacher was a new lady, and I could understand her Japanese pretty well.

However, class was a rather grueling experience because we got stuck on a grammar point for FOREVER, and it was like I just cannot, right now...

WE STUDIED THE SAME THING TWO MONTHS AGO!!!! Essentially, the section that threw a bunch of people was the transitive/intransitive verb thing. And I didn't understand this tense for nearly two years because I thought I was just using totally different verbs that happened to share kanji.

(There's not really an English equivalent where we can slightly change the pronunciation and suddenly the verb needs a direct object. Either the verb can only be used with a direct object, or it's the same verb. Like "I fried fish in the pan." "The fish was frying for about ten minutes.")

Anyway, the point is, even before I knew the rule, I could use the verbs no problem. And the concept is not too difficult so when it did come up in class I just went "Ok, I'll remember that." At least, anyone can notice that all the verbs with E in Japanese happen to be transitive verbs.

So we had to all sit through an explanation because SOMEONE forgot what a transitive verb is, and then we looked at the example of four verbs with the kanji 広.

Hirogaru--when an object widens or spreads out
Hirogeru--when you spread something out
Hiromaru--when an object, idea multiplies
Hiromeru--when you multiply an object, idea

At this point all hell of misunderstanding broke loose, and after I caught on to the nuance of the words, I could only sit there trying futilely to help convey to my classmates that the forms with E were transitive and had the exact same meaning as their intransitive counterparts.

Somewhere around here the voice of Jeremy Irons' Scar started playing in my head and wouldn't stop...That can't be a good sign.




When I'm not in class I try to study some vocabulary using these flash card sets. They're pretty small so I can fit them in my purse or my pocket. They're on a key ring so cards won't get lost, and I can change the order whenever. The shape isn't symmetrical, so they don't get flipped around the wrong way.

During work I read through a few at at time to practice. I start with the Japanese side and try to remember the English, and at the end of the stack I flip backwards with English-to-Japanese. There's 80 sheets in each, so If I word hard, maybe I can learn over 300 new words!