Introductions

I have never had much luck with learning foreign languages. Recently, I've come to discover my problem. It can be perfectly summed up as: The only languages that should be taught in schools are dead ones. It is impossible to learn a second language without proper motivation, nevertheless, schools insist on force feeding them to students. Learning a second language has great merit. It opens ones eyes to other cultures, improves the perception of grammar and the meaning and concepts behind words in one's native language. However, without a way to use that second language on a regular basis throughout the learning process and after, retention is impossible. For three years of high school and two semesters in college, I studied Spanish. I passed all my classes, barely, yet I would be at a loss if you asked me to string more than a few sentence together. I constantly found myself reading the Spanish and translating it into English in my head, rather than truly comprehending the Spanish.

I decided to make a clean break and begin with a language that (other than borrowed words) has no relation to English. Japanese seemed an excellent choice. I've been a fan of anime for years, and only recently discovered the wondrous world of manga. Japanese content is both readily accessible online and an interest of mine. Japanese pronunciation is a breeze, however, the biggest problem with the language is its difficultly to read. I am currently five months in to my language journey. I have made many mistakes along the way. In this blog, I will share my triumphs and my successes. Doubtless no one other than myself will ever actually read this blog. I have no delusions of grandeur in cyberspace. But this will be a good place to document my progress in order to keep myself motivated. My goal is to learn all 2131 kanji recommended by the Japanese Ministry of Education. I'm not insane enough to attempt to learn every kanji there is, most Japanese don't. I would simply like a comfortable understanding of the language. I would like to be capable of reading manga and watch anime and Japanese films without subtitles.

I realize this is a massive undertaking. Personally, I'm considering it a new hobby. Some people collect stamps, I plan to collect a language. For the time being, this blog will be a record of what I have done thus far, what I plan to do in the future, and a place to post my work as I go. By the end, I expect this blog will be completely written in Japanese.

About Me: I prefer to maintain a fairly anonymous presence in cyberspace. I will not post my whole life story up for the world to see, its boring as hell.