Japanese & John Kerry
I have come to a realization that my Japanese is horrible! It’s been really frustrating. Even though I spent nearly a year in Japan, I didn’t spend enough time in language school studying. I’ve tried studying since I’ve returned to the U.S. but I have a full time work schedule and an already crowded schedule with classes at Harvard.
Then there is language exchange which I’ve found to be useless in both Japan and America. I haven’t found a Japanese person in Boston that actually wants to speak Japanese. Otherwise why would they be in America? Frustrating. I wish I could go back to Japan and do three months of intensive language study, though another six would be ideal.
In other news. John Kerry has the democratic nomination, in case you didn’t know. I guess I should be happy since he’s my neighbor; he lives three blocks away from me. However I’ve grown angered at mainstream politics. I got a lot of flack for saying that Kerry waffles on issues. For the war, against the war, against the death penalty for the death penalty.
I’m a democratic, but what I like about mainstream conservatives is that I know what they stand for, 99% of the time I disagree with what they have to say but at least I know what they stand for. Some of our mainstream democrats have me confused and again frustrated.
March 5th, 2004 at 12:29 pm
I know how you feel about speaking Japanese. It is so frustrating. I can understand quite a bit now, but I always have to reply in English. Here like Boston, it’s difficult to find some who wants to speak Japanese. Anything new I learn comes from J-TV or my wife. The crappy thing about learning from my wife is I tend to talk like a girl, or so I’ve been told. 6 months in Japan would be perfect, just to get past this learning block.
In Canada our politics is not much better, though the American system seems a lot more complicated then it needs to be. That is coming from my limited understanding of the workings.
—