I believe harajuku fashion is an incredibly “out there” fashion statement. I think it’s so crazy where it could be fashionable and work in Canada. I Like the more monochromatic forms of harajuku fashion. They seemed to look more regular and I’m fine with that. I think the reason this style of fashion is so popular is because it allows the youth to express themselves through fashion and go against the “standard” that has been put up. Fashion is incredibly important to me as I used to dress like a goober. I now take my fashion seriously and try to make outfits that give me confidence. An outfit can make or break my day. My fashion is inspired by a lot of my friends and people I see on social media. I like my fashion style. If I actually had money to spend I think I would be able to improve my fashion style drastically.
This is me when I study. I look over past worksheets and normally listen to music while doing so. Japanese makes me lose my mind, so listening to music really helps calm me down.
An example of something I have spent a lot of time learning about is… the hiragana alphabet took time to memorize and while I still need a refresher every now and then I would say that I have a near full understanding of hiragana. I achieved this using multiple techniques such as recognizing similarities in the alphabet and flash cards.
I am curious about all the kanji that exist in the japanese language that I am excited to learn more about how I could memorize basic kanji to make iteasier to write sentences in a short amount of time. To celebrate an accomplishment such as doing good on a test, I do absolutely nothing. Whenever I do good on a test I’m of course happy, I tell my mom, and then nothing else.
I will continue to study Japanese outside of class to further help me in the following years. If there is any advice I could give for anyone going into Japanese, it would be to thoroughly study the vocabulary sheets and familiarize yourself with the alphabet as soon as possible.
Japanese schools are extremely different yet simultaneously similar in many ways. For example, in Canadian schools, we don’t have class monitors but it is possible to find hall monitors and other similar roles. You (normally) don’t bring a toothbrush to school in Canada but students in Japan brush their teeth at lunch. Maybe that’s a good idea considering some people forget about basic hygiene. I believe that kids in Canada should have more responsibilities. Responsibilities such as cleaning duty should be enforced rather than simply implied. Of course all students are expected to clean up after themselves but I believe that there is no harm in recruiting students dedicated to cleaning. Maybe students can earn rewards like a free lunch from the cafeteria or something like that. Speaking of lunch, students in japan can participate in じゃんけん (rock paper scissors) to win leftovers. Me, personally, I’m an absolute demon at rock paper scissors. I would be able to destroy everyone in じゃんけん and I would be the leftover king.
This mascot is an all-black silhouette from the city of Saitama. I chose this mascot because unlike the other mascots, it’s not bright and colorful. It’s an all-black silhouette that leaves the viewer with nothing to look at except their own thoughts and nightmares! I don’t know if this mascot is popular, but it would probably have something to do with it standing out among the colorful yuru-chara.
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Learning about Yuru-Chara was a fun and enjoyable experience. There are definitely a lot more Japanese mascots than there are Canadian mascots. The only time I could see mascots being used in Canada is when there is a sports team that has one. Yuru-Chara is obviously very important in Japanese culture and that is something I think is cool!
I chose the Shojo Yokai because it’s translation stuck out to me. Shojo roughly translates to “Drunken ape”. It was also funny learning about what the drunken apes do. All they do is drink alcohol on the beach, and sometimes prank sailors.
Name some characteristics and provide a background/history on your Yokai.
As I said before, the Shojo only really get drunk and mess around. They sing, dance play on the beach, and just enjoy life. They prefer not to bother humans, but if they do come across them, they can understand and even mimic the human language. Drunken apes absolutely love sake and other alcohols, and can even brew their own. Although uncommon, when encountering humans, they are friendly and gentle. When drunken apes are feeling devious, they sometimes steal sake from sailors and jump in the sea.
Do you think Japanese Yokai differ from Western monsters and mythical creatures? Explain.
Yokai are a lot scarier in my opinion compared to western monsters. The scariest monster I can think of from the west would be a skinwalker, maybe bigfoot. I read one of the Yokai stories and in that story a girl got assaulted, hit by a train (losing her lower half in the process), and she now crawls around at 150 kmh with a sickle, trying to find people to chop in half. Japanese Yokai definitely have a longer history and are in my opinion, a lot scarier.
Do you believe in Yokai, monsters, ghosts, or mythical creatures? Why or why not?
I would sure hope that some Yokai are real, more specifically the drunken apes, I can’t say I believe in them. The same thing goes for monsters or mythical creatures, but ghosts are a different story. I actually do believe in ghosts, at least the idea that when you die you can float around and mess with people.
I remember doing chores from a pretty young age. I started doing small chores around the age of 5; simple things like dusting or cleaning my room. The independence of Japanese children is admirable. Children younger than 5 are taught to be independent and run errands while alone. If I ever had kids I would want them to be able to do the same, however, while I would trust my kids, I wouldn’t trust the other people around my kids. Japan’s low crime rate is an important factor in the independence of the children. I would make sure my kids are responsible enough to get to school themselves. Whether they have to take the bus, walk, or ride a bike, I would make sure that they know the proper route to get to and from school; as did I when I entered elementary school.
