カタカナanalysis

In class, we learned the main occasions in which to use katakana:
a) loan words/foreign names,
b) onomatopoeic expressions, and
c) to add emphasis (though I think sometimes it is hard to distinguish between the two).

Exhibit A: ローシヨンプル（lotion pool, featured in a Japanese game show)
B and C: ピカチュ!
 
check out all the onomatopoeia.


ピカピカ　"Pika Pika" in Japanese means emitting light or brightness, which I found in a japanese adaptation of アカハナのトナカ (Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer). It is said to be onomatopoeic, but it makes more sense to say it's emphatic?

 チュ "chu" is the onomatopoeic expression for the squeaking of a mouse.

My question is why is Reindeer in Katakana if there is a Japanese word for it?
So I searched and multiple online descriptions of Katakana says that it can also be used for:
--> new Japanese words such as カラオケ
--> Scientific words such as ガン (cancer)
--> Fruit and animals, even though they have Kanji, but the kanji is said to be difficult and therefore replaced
--> Manga and anime when someone/something foreign (non-human) is speaking (i.e. alien/robot)
--> in advertisement, to be hip

IN CONCLUSION: I think the textbook sticks to the basics rather than enumerate everything because katakana usage has expanded due to culture/convenience, etc. Possibly too expansive to enumerate everything?

にほんごで procrastinating.

わたしはくじにべんきょうします。が,いまブログのupdateをしま!

For Thanksgiving, らいげつ、バスでうちへかえります。きょう、バスのきっぷんをかいました。ニユーヨークからうちまでにじゅうﾄﾞﾗです。
Sidenote, I just realized we haveにほんごのテスト the げつようび after break. =(
Oh well, at least I'll have something to do during the ごじかん　バスride back to ニユーヨーク.
------------->

On the subject of home,　きょねん、わたしはともだちとともだちのおかあさんとにほんごのplay をみました。
I don't remember all the details (not that I fully understood it the first time around, but luckily, the web is my savior).

We saw Yukio Ninagawa's Shintoku-Maru featuring Tatsuya Fujiwara (who I suppose is well known). I'm culturally illiterate so the name doesn't mean much to me ...まだ, and I couldn't make out a single word of the whole play (they do a brief summary in English at the beginning), but it was soo cool to watch! The special effects, costumes, set, etc, were great. It had the Spirited Away vibe, except much darker. It's about a young man's attraction to his stepmother .. dark.  I bring it up because I wonder how many years of Japanese I'd have to take to understand even a bit of it. I imagine it'd be a loong time. Suppose I'll start by deciphering what the title means. じゃまた。

 

supamaketto: わたしのいもうとはスーパーへいきました。

I went through my memory card this weekend and found some pictures from my sister's trip to Japan this summer. (She stayed with a host family in ひろしま for six weeks and took something of a ski lift to school everyday because her host family lived up in the mountain region .. sigh. still envious.)

Anyway, here's a picture from her travels that I stumbled across ..

このすいかはいくらですか。

If you can read the label : いちまんはっせんひゅうひゃくえんです。

This genetically-engineered cubed watermelon runs for about 18900 yen or roughly にひゃくじゅうドラ ($210). THAT IS SOME CRAZY.

EDIT: Apparently it was grown in a box as speculated, not genetically engineered.. According to CNN and the "National Watermelon Promotion Board"

http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/east/06/15/square.watermelon/index.html

 http://www.instructables.com/id/Grow-a-square-watermelon/

^if anyone wants a go at it.

aiiyiyaaaaaai

。。。

descending Hamilton

happy weekend!

until　らいしゅう！

Japanglish

こんばんは！

すいようびです。。。

Which means i'm doing/must do all the Frontiers HW I've been putting off until now.

もくようびをください。

Is that grammatically legal?

So, もくようびをください= Give me Thursday, please? Or do you only use ~o kudasai for tangible objects?

In any case, I'm taking a nap.

Until あした!

edit:

Chindogu of the week-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chindōgu

とむはちいずおたべます。

I would love to learn more about  Japanese culture--history, cuisine, customs, folklore, movies, music, etc--beyond what's been filtered into American culture. No better place to start than by learning to speak it?

I took french in high school, and contemplated spanish and japanese coming into college because I've finally accepted that I speak better franglais than I do french. I ultimately chose japanese because spanish is something I can pick up later in life if I really want to, which I still do, but I'll probably never get a better opportunity to learn japanese (correctly) than I do here at Columbia. After my brief enrollment in an Irish language class (out of pure curiosity.. gaelic .. irish.. english?) because the only section of Japanese I could take was full (panic), a spot openned up and here I am, playing around with my keyboard. えｆｈｓｊふぁ

It's a lot of work; I have a hard time naturally speaking without having to slowly piece together what japanese I know into something hopefully coherent. But, it's so fun and I'm amazed at how much I've learned in the span of eight classes.

It's a party!

Partially because we have (imaginary) soirees and shindigs.

This is why i love Japan. Blows american infomercials out of the water.

And with that, I give you my blog.

どうぞ。