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I am back! After what seems like a decade. Thanks to women, mild chest infestations and broken laptops my blogging progress has been hindered somewhat. So far, my Christmas holidays have been something of a washout as 3 days into my sojourn back home my laptop died on me and then my chests did. Yes. Not only did Vista descend into illness so did I. A bloody chest infection. On Christmas Day! I spent the night unable to sleep, having mild hallucinations and running cold sweats. On Boxing Day, despite feeling the worst I have ever felt, I ventured to see my beloved football team play the worst fucking 90 mins I have seen in my life. I sat there, watching a bunch of clueless footballers in freezing cold weather with a fever. Wonderful.

But this got me thinking. I've had some pretty shitty goings on throughout 2008 and it has potentially become one of the worst years I've had in living memory. Yes... I am going to say it, 2008 is the worst fucking year I've lived through. And here's why via monthly rundown of my misfortune with a handy rating system;

January: I suffer from depression, brought on by being single, having SAD and suffering from shit flatmates. 1/10

February: More depression, and exams. But on the plus side. I moved out of my previous flat with my shitty flatmates. 2/10

March: I make a complete dick out of myself at an Easter party, get drunk and lose my hat. 0/10 (Lowest of the fucking low)

April: I get into mild trouble with the English Language and Linguistics department after pissing off one of the academic staff (one of them responsible for that module was really nice, the other was a bit of a cow.) 1/10

May: I do my exams and finish all of them before everyone else and end up putting on a load of weight through doing nothing for three weeks. Also it rained heavily on the day of my Japanese exam. 5/10

June: Put on more weight and did jackshit during the holidays. Got angry with myself for not taking up that job offer in Okinawa. 4/10

July: Probably the highlight. But even then it was dull. Saw some of France and Belgium. Those are two dull countries. Nice beer though. 6/10

August: Found out I scrapped a 2.1 for my first year after my results dipped severely from the first semester. Also dumped a girl I was secretly seeing from May. 3/10

September: Finally see how bad my Japanese has gotten. But worked myself into a stupour and didn't bother going to the gym at all. Also my birthday was shit. 5/10

October: I broke my mobile phone and had to pay £60 to buy another one. 4/10

November: I worked, worked and worked some more. A truly productive month in terms of academic output, but nothing in terms of the social sadly. 4/10

December: Develop a chest infection, suffer from a broken laptop and are scared by the costs of summer travelling to Russia, China and Japan. Xmas party was also shit. 3/10

Overall 3/10. I would say 2007 was great, mainly because I made the majority of my good friends then. Everything was new for me, it was exciting and fresh. 2008 was full of depression, illness and disappointment. Only my friend Michiko's loving kindness and another special Japanese girl I have discovered kept me sane. Yes, if it wasn't for this beautiful Japanese temptress the last months of this year might have just been a washout. However there are still two more days left in 2008, so just enough time for her to tell me that I'm a creep and she wants nothing to do with me.

However, I work by the law of averages with things balancing themselves out proportionally over time. I think, I just think that 2009 will be my year given my crappy 2008. It will be a year that my goals will be complete and I might just get out of life what I wanted when I first thought about my experiences of studying Japanese at Uni. Maybe... just maybe.

Well if all that fails, I can just hope for karma in the shape of 2010, when Cappello leads England to World Cup glory in South Africa when we beat Japan 7-4 in the final. What? Okay... that will never happen. But you never know I might have some horrendous shit happen to me next year and God will definitely owe me some huge positive karma...

This week Richard is... recovering from a post-apocalyptic laptop, football, chest infection, lack of revision meltdown.

* I definitely don't understand women. But then again, I'm not supposed to.

* I need to get out my current malaise and start partying - because studying Japanese is grating my tits.

* And on the notion of that, I need to start exercising and eating right as my tits are getting bigger. Subway, KFC and McDonald's does not constitute a balanced diet.

I've also become something of a staunch anti-Japaner now. Well, I've become more crustier and bitter than I was before. Where has my joie-de-vivre gone? Am I as really self-loathing as I feel? Surely not?

In summary I need to forget about women (they aren't worth it), forget about Japanese to the extent it is giving me panic attacks (again, it isn't worth it - well it is, but you get the point) and start to rediscover my passion which has been zapped out of me in the past two months. I really want to shout "FUCK JAPAN" really loud in my room right now - but my flatmate might be in earshot and hear my evil plans to bring down his country from the inside whilst masquerading as someone who genuinely gives two shits about his country.

Oh shit, I've gone and spoilt everything now. I can hear the secret-hypocrisy police sounding their way up the stairs to come and send me to the immunisation clinic where I can be injected with some of that nauseating serum that makes me think of Japan as that wonderful candyland with gumdrop trees and pedophile rapists.

This week Richard is... attempting to form a polemic on why Chinese and Japanese people exist only to discover its mildly racist and slightly controversial. Next week, I'll be attempting to ring up beloved Tenko actor Bert Kwouk and make accusations that I slept with his granddaughter. Which I did... and it was the best sex I've ever had...

じゃまたね。。。

A part of me feels really bad for not trying hard enough in Linguistics sometimes when I saw my lecturers response to my e-mail message I sent last week.

With regards to referencing and the inclusion of illustrations for my investigation :

It is good of you to be so concerned, but I have absolutely no
preference -- either as to illustrations in or out of the text, or [but don't
tell my colleagues!] which referencing convention you use!

So, basically, it's Liberty Hall!

regards,

Malcolm

Really friendly guy. hahaha. Its a shame I've decided to drop Linguistics from my degree now. But sadly the care just ain't there anymore and I'd rather focus on studying about Japan from now on. I've also gone on a slight invective against the poor sods on the Education Committee who sent a harmless generic e-mail about discussing problems with joint-honours only to have me respond back with a million suggestions and scribbled angst about my problems on doing JH.

I don't want to go fully into why I feel let down by JH - but the whole scheduling conflicts and lack of departmental communication is basically shocking. Far better to be loved by one department as a son than be the 'lonesome creepy cousin nobody talks to at family events such as weddings.'

I'm normally wide awake on Mondays. However after Nagai sensei's class even the lure of warm coffee couldn't keep me awake and I ended up slumping on my bed and had a quick power nap before I woke up in a daze, believing I had slept in and then rushed off to uni to go learn about Japan's Minorities with the semi-legend that is MC Sick Riddles. Perhaps it was the fact they ran out of those delicious bacon and egg sarnies you can buy in Tesco on west street and which I seem to buy everyday as brunch alongside my morning coffee. It knocked me off my balance and the chicken sandwich was clearly not ample replacement.

Anyways, our flat at Rockingham House was subject to a mandatory inspection today to make sure we are keeping the place clean. So after hours of scrubbing and scrubbing on Sunday night (well 30 minutes.) We passed the inspection with flying colours. Well actually, I was really dishearted by the fact that we were only awarded 'OK' for the state of our kitchen desktop but 'Good' for our furniture and coffee table etc... The fact our only 'clean' flatmate is still in Reading explains the semi-derelict state of living room and kitchen in the past few weeks.

Because of my nap, I launched myself towards the Arts Tower a bit early, before buying some colour pens (more on this later) and then decided to spent 20 minutes taking photos with my mobile phone. Oh the joys too. I didn't know the quality was that good (not bad for 1.6 mega pixels!) Here is the highlight of that journey with yours truly looking really interested about his lecture on Burakumin.



Later in the day I also discovered that I need another injection before I go to Japan, bringing the grand total up to 6. (!!!!) My exam is just under 7 weeks or so away and I feel really unprepared and really shitty about my Japanese ability - especially my speaking, which has gotten worse despite the benefits of having Japanese people around me 24/7...

Oh well, onwards and upwards. My essays are done and things are going okay in my life right now. Except this vulture of japanese doom circling my head everyday I look up.

Right I'm off to memorise these kanji compounds. I've got a feeling some funny bastard is going to choose 性欲 (lust, passion etc) just to annoy me.

またね☆

という点で変わらない

This piece of grammar seems really pointless, but apparently I have to be aware of it. The という点 basically extenuates the difference. Generally speaking its slightly more formal and stricter than other such structures such as 同じです;

博美さんも恵子さんに似ている。
Hiromi and Keiko are similar.

博美さんも恵子さんのヘアスタイルが同じだ。
Hiromi's and Keiko's hairstyle is the same.

博美さんも恵子さんも日本人だという点で変わらないが、どちらもショッピングやファッションなどが好きだから、同じと言うわけではないよ!
Both Hiromi and Keiko are Japanese, but you can't conclude that they are the same because they both like things like shopping and fashion.

ugh this is really difficult to explain isn't it?

I think the という点で変わらない is often used alongside が to indicate the fact that its the case that they are the same, BUT there is some difference which should normally be explained.

に対して

Facing something, or against something...

イギリスでは少年犯罪の問題に対して、イギリスの警察はその問題を戦うために、色々な策を作ることになった。
Faced with the problem of juvenile crime in the UK, the British police have decided to create various policies in order to combat this problem.

しかし、タイムズ新聞によると、その政府に作られた少年犯罪に対して政策は無効そうである。
However according to the Times, these policies that are created by the government to face juvenile crime are ineffective.

The results are in, the polls have been tallied and the choice of Year Abroad 2009/10 is;

Seijo

A few things that makes Seijo seem a good choice for me;

1. Its just outside of central Tokyo in the lovely residential area of Setagaya, just 15 minutes into Central Tokyo and 50 minutes ride to Yokohama. My flatmate also lived in Setagaya and I know someone in Sheffield who went to school there!!!

2. There is no standard uni accomodation at Seijo, so I'll be getting my own place at reduced rate. No goddam mongen (curfew) and no living with other international students.

3. There are hardly any international students at Seijo giving it a distinct Japanese feel to it. In fact Sheffield is the only other partner institution from the UK, the rest are from the US (about 3 I think), Australia (again just the one) and some from Belgium and France. So in short, the gaijin population is tiny. This is very good news if I want to improve my Japanese.

4. Seijo allow me to study non-Japanese language modules if I want, meaning I could improve my Japanese fairly quickly.

5. Seijo has its own internal scholarship programme, meaning if I don't get the government scholarship I will be able to apply for theirs. Fingers crossed...

HOWEVER...

The very same things that make Seijo seem appealing are the same ones that are putting me off. The lack of international students (I think I will antitipcate I will be the only British person there!) as well as the distance from Yokohama and the whole scholarship issue is scaring me...

Onwards and upwards. I can at least start to research now and harrass the few Seijo students over here at Sheffield on an exchange programme for the year.

Elsewhere some people have been unhappy about their choice of uni. I know for a fact had I chosen 'outside of Tokyo' on my form, I would have been sent somewhere like Okayama or Kanazawa. Beautiful yes, but I would get bored soooo quickly. However this year 10 people are being sent to Doushisha in Kyoto which itself is great for learning Japanese but rubbish if you want the whole experience of not hanging about with your mates all day and night. Certainly going to Seijo is going to throw me the deep end straight away.

I should also add, next week I am certain (well maybe 80-90% certain) that I will be told of my university choice for Japan for Year III (aka: Year Abroad.) Just to crank up the knob even further. If its one of the unis I want to go to, this may just give me the desire to push on, or give me the much needed hate to kill other people in my year for going to a uni or place they are so fucking apathetic over...

And besides, what happens if people drop out after they have been selected to go to one university? -_-

Actually, it might be this weekend. Oh blimey. I'm shitting myself.

I am now starting Week 10 of my teaching here in Sheffield and that means I have less than 3 weeks to go and 8 weeks before my exam! *eek* Christmas is just about in the air, with shops now putting up their crappy tat in the windows (including a rather festive Nandos on West Street) and the weather is goddamn freezing. All in all, winter has arrived and its being a bitch.

I woke up at 8.02am today (those two minutes past the hour are important!) and looked outside my window to see the sun just lifting its head beyond the clouds. Not today, just not today. But then I thought about my 義理 - my social obligation to go to class on time and study Japanese like a regular trooper, regardless of the time and the weather.

I shouldn't have bothered with this attitude really, as several people missed the class, some turned up late and then there was a complete carry-on with people reading sentences and forgetting rudimentary kanji. Either its just one of those mornings or my classmate's hours of partying and procrastinating is coming back to haunt them. A few weeks ago, yours truly was worried about his Japanese ability. But now it seems after this week at least I am actually beyond the curve when it comes to studying. So far I managed to finish my sakubun (handwritten and ready to hand in - ON TIME!), I 've learnt this week's kanji (to some extent), finished off my translation (well 90% of it) and also managed to almost complete my other essay!

And others seem to be moaning about having not done any of it. I suppose my complete lack of social life is bearing fruit in some ways.

Anyways, to get back to the story at hand - the class I have just this very minute finished (our lovely 9am grammar class with the wonderful Nagai-sensei) was a bit of a joke. You could well see the consternation in poor sensei's face when a good chunk of the class struggled to remember very basic kanji and make no real effort to translate sentences. To this point, I get very concerned both for the long-term prospects of some of my classmates - who are going to get a sharp and very hard lesson in Japan (things like punctuality are severly frowned upon) and also when we sit our exam in January. In many ways I both fear and am generally excited about sitting the exam - because above all, it will give me a good excuse to shine and put into practice all this hardwork I have supposedly been doing.

As I walked back from the class. I spoke to Chris, as I seemingly always do. He's probably the nicest guy you could ever meet and works unbelievably hard on this course, somehow managing to juggle all sorts of activites and part-time work in his life. Contrast that with some of the antics of my classmates sometimes and I just think how they would last if they were in his shoes. Perhaps the end of this semester will be the watershed before Japan, the final push to see who finally lasts and ultimately stays the course of the degree.

A part of me believes everyone is judged by the effort they put into the course and I am hoping my efforts will be rewarded and some other people's not so.

;;