What you did well and how you can improve your Japanese study habits

During Japanese Intro 11, I studied Japanese using the given material and worksheets. I think that my work on the group assignments was the place where I did most well at. There are tons of ways I could and could’ve improved my studying, I want to use school time more effectively to prevent last-minute work that I’ll just mindlessly complete but I also want to be able to endure being okay with sacrificing my own time for school. Feeling like I owe myself entertainment after doing something for X amount of hours is a bad habit of mine because I’ll always start procrastinating and leave work for another time.

I appreciate feedback on grammar and I’d prefer it be written or said to me clearly.

When faced with ambiguity or setbacks, I ask classmates and my teacher to advance the development of my ideas. 

An example of something I have spent a lot of time learning about is grammar particles and when to use them, I have an okay understanding of how and when to use them but when it comes to more complex and longer sentences I want to better learn how to properly use them.

How will you continue your Japanese language acquisition over the year?

I want to continue progressing my skill in Japanese in my own time and hopefully take Japanese 12 next year before I transfer.

If you could travel back in time, what study/language advice would you give yourself or others? (min 2 sentences)

My past self definitely wouldn’t take any school advice, but in the future, if I ever choose to continue studying Japanese or another language I would prioritize reading in that language.

For my Yokai, I chose the Tsukumogami. I decided on the Tsukumogami because they’re inanimate objects which become self-aware and alive after 100 years of existence. Tsukumogami are everyday objects that are possessed by spirits that come after 100 years of the item’s existence. The Tsukumogami could be evil and cause chaos but it could also live faithfully. To prevent evil spirits from occupying objects, people would discard items before they reached 100 years old, this tradition was called “susu-harai”.

Japanese Yokai and Western creatures aren’t that different from each other, Yokais and Western creatures both exist as folklore and are pretty similar in terms of popularity and belief. I personally do not believe in Yokais, monsters, or ghosts. I really believed in them when I was young and would get so scared when anything weird happened, my sister is currently in the same phase and it’s funny watching her freak out when I tease spirits and ghosts. I do not believe in monsters but will still be anxious and afraid during horror movies, I will never voluntarily watch a horror movie by myself…

I haven’t been judged because of my horoscope of blood type before. I feel like generalizing someone based on their horoscope or blood type and determining their worth solely off that can be upsetting to the person. You have no control of either traits and to be treated differently is discriminatory. It’s unhealthy to let a social label tell you how you’re “supposed” to act and have control over your personality and values. Although I do not believe in horoscopes or blood types determining yourself, I do think some personality tests could somewhat describe what type of person you are if you answer truthfully.

I believe these fortunes are still widespread and popular as of today because of superstitions, cultural traditions, generational teaching, and social norms. I personally don’t believe in superstitions but a Hindu superstition my mother told me about is that seeing one crow is deemed misfortune but seeing two crows is an omen for success.

For my Yokai, I chose the Tsukumogami. I chose the Tsukumogami because they’re inanimate objects which become self-aware and alive after 100 years of existing. Tsukumogami are everyday objects that are possessed by spirits which come after 100 years of the items existence. The Tsukumogami could be evil and cause chaos but it could also live faithfully. To prevent evil spirits occupying objects, people would discard items before they reached 100 years old, this tradition was called “susu-harai”.

Japanese Yokai and Western creatures aren’t that different from each other, Yokais and Western creatures both exist as folklore and are pretty similar to each other. I personally do not believe in Yokais, monsters, or ghosts. I always think to myself that I would be dead already if monsters or ghosts existed because I’ll be mocking and teasing them to do something and nothing ever happens. Maybe one day my teasing will catch up to me and I’ll mysteriously pass away or disappear.