Try your general knowledge out in this classic anime and manga quiz
If you liked that, check out all the quizzes here.
July 1st, 2009
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I’m with Tommy Lee on this one…
I love Tommy Lee’s portrayal of a guy in Akihabara wondering what the hell is going on. As you’ve guessed, this is one of the few times I identify with someone in a commercial which must mean I am a boring old fart who drinks crap coffee.
I came to Japan more than 12 years ago, way before the pokemon invasion of America and cosplay had exploded into the international phenomenon it is today. Back in the 80s, managers and business majors were being sent to Japan to learn the secrets of the Japanese miracle. Little did they know the real miracle was fooling the world into thinking there was one. The bubble burst and suddenly learning Japanese was only for weirdo linguistics geeks like me.
When I started learning Japanese at uni back in 97, Japanese wasn’t cool, at least not as cool as it is today. I was never into manga or anime and I was totally unaware of cosplay even if it did exist then. I was just a kanji geek then.
Then there was pokemon. As with most exponential increases you didn’t see it coming until it was too late. People in the states who had watched it as kids were now old enough to get a flight over to Tokyo and go nuts Akihabara. Cosplay came out of the closet and now Akihabara is swarming with maids being photographed by an army of men with cameras as advanced as their interpersonal communication skills are retarded.
And here I am, an old fart with a crappy can of coffee who simply doesn’t get it. You can tell my age by the fact that Harry Potter stimuli gets a flat line brain response from me.
Not to rain on the cosplay parade, it is cool that people are freely expressing themselves in a creative, imaginative, artistsic and interesting way. I would be the last person to pull a Taliban on people’s freedom of expression, clothes, music and ballons (Yes, the Taliban were anti balloons).
I guess you saw the BUT coming… The disconcerting thing for me is the whole regression into an infantile state. People, is acting like a five year old going to help us? And because Cosplay, Anime and Manga are Japan’s most visible exports it lends to the tired, old and boring idea of “quirky Japan”.
AND ANOTHER THING… Sorry. Here’s to you Tommy.
(A message to anime fans, don’t bother to call me on the inaccuracies of this blog post. I know I got it wrong. I don’t get it. Hey, fancy a can of coffee?)
Posted in Blog
May 28th, 2009
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In this week’s podcast, Waka sensei teaches us how to use the phrase 間に合う/ ma ni au / to be in time. The easiest example of this would be “電車に間に合った” densha ni ma ni atta – I was on time for the train or I made it in time for the train. This is a really useful phrase that I hear all the time.
However I was interested to learn that this in fact has another meaning I had never heard of before which means to “be enough”. For example, “お金は間に合ってる” okane wa ma ni atteru – I have enough money. This isn’t quite as common as the first usage but it is used. Enjoy the podcast.
Posted in Blog
March 20th, 2008
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[podcast]http://media.libsyn.com/media/japanese/lj61.mp3[/podcast]
Waka sensei was kind enough to teach me Japanese outside on her sunny flower filled wooden deck. This week we studied the verb “Kariru” which means to borrow. This is a very useful word you can use in everyday conversation. Sorry about the noisy dog in the background.
Posted in Blog
February 19th, 2008
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[podcast]http://media.libsyn.com/media/japanese/lj60.mp3[/podcast]
Today Waka sensei teaches us about the word “あたりまえ”(atarimae) which has a few meanings including, obvious, of course and to take something for granted. This is quite a useful phrase that you will hear in daily conversation to express that a fact or answer to a question is obvious. It can also be used to express the idea of taking things for granted.
Resources:
Atarimae example sentences
Don’t forget to check out the…
FORUMS
Posted in Blog
February 7th, 2008
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[podcast]http://media.libsyn.com/media/japanese/lj59.mp3[/podcast]
Hello again everyone and Learn Japanese Pod is back with a new free Japanese lesson podcast for your entertainment and edification. In this lesson Beb and I discussed the use of the word “寒い/samui or cold.
However, this word can also mean something is unfunny. Why? The idea is, when you hear a joke that is so bad, it sends shivers down your spine, hence “Samui!”. So it’s a great way to tell someone not to give up their day job.
Another word in Japanese that is used to describe something cold is “冷たい/tsumetai. Like Samui, this means cold however it is used to describe objects and liquids. Samui is usually used just to talk about temperature. For example you can say “kyou wa samui” or today it is cold. However you say “kono koucha ga tsumetai” or this tea is cold. Another possible use is “ano hito wa tsumetai” or that person is cold. (Standoffish/distant/unfriendly)
Posted in Blog
November 29th, 2007
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[podcast]http://media.libsyn.com/media/japanese/show58.mp3[/podcast]
I got together with Beb and studied how to tell someone to cut it out in Japanese. We had a look a standard and kansai dialects and learned a few more useful phrases along the way. Some of these phrases can be a little frank so be careful when using them.
Posted in Blog
