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Yet another reason why Pythgoras Switch is the best children’s programme ever.

At the school I teach at, we have a few set routines in every class. The sit behind their chairs and introduce themselves. Then they colour in their attendance and give me their homework to be stamped.

If we’re running late, I may skip one of these activities or swap them around. This confuses the kids and I realise that they don’t entirely understand what I’m saying but have become accustomed to the sequence.

Instead of asking, “How many times did you listen to your homework?”, I could say, “Tak tak tak tak tak tak?”, a la Mars Attacks and they’d answer my question.

I say this because I’m pretty good at ordering from Americanised restaurants . The routine is usually the same wherever I go

- Eat in or Take Out?

- Do you want fries with that?

- Drink?

- X Yen please

But sometimes they change the order. Or even worse add in some extra conditions standing between you and your meal then I’m back to Mars Attacks’ Tak tak tak speak.

As I’ve said before, when you’re sick in Japan, you sure get a lot of medicine.

I came across Tenspotting.com and its top ten user-generated lists.

They have a top ten Japan Blogs list and I was in at number ten just edging out the far superior Sushicam.

I found a few interesting sites along the list which I’ve added to my reading list including Plastic Bamboo with the best post being Bilk - Beer made from milk

On top of that is Japan Probe a Japan news commentary site and Tokyomango a more relaxed commentary/personal blog.

Why is the sign on the train that says THIS SEAT SEATS 7 PEOPLE PLEASE MAKE ROOM FOR EVERYONE located BEHIND the six people sitting where they can’t see it tormenting those standing?

On a crowded train, a man noticed that another man had his eyes closed.
“What`s the matter? Are you sick?” he asked.
“No, I`m okay. It`s just that I hate to see old ladies standing”

The Japan Times

I got the results of the JLPT test I took in December. And I passed.

Writing/Vocabulary 63/100
Listening 74/100
Reading Grammar 163/200

I wrote about the tools I used to study JLPT before. I can’t recommend this book Japanese Language Proficiency Test: Grammar Exercises Level 3 highly enough. The practice exercises in it were harder than the actual exam and every single grammar point needed was covered.

My next target is level 2. I’d like to try it again this year but it’s a large jump up - from 300 Kanji to 1000 Kanji, 1500 words to 6000 words. I’m not sure if I can do it in one year.

When I ask Japanese people how they are, they reply 98% of the time with, “I’m fine thank you and you?” A stock phrase they’ve learned from school without being told any better.

They can have the worst expression on their face, be vomiting or have tissues up their noses to stop a vicious nosebleed but still they will answer, “I’m fine thank you and you?”

When Japanese people ask me in English how I am, they are often surprised to hear a two minute monologue about my day, the trouble caused by an errant pair of glasses and what I had for dinner last night. And they leave with an expression as if they wished they hadn’t asked.

Who’s better off?