What did you do today?

I met a guy; let's call him Iz. Likes video games, anime, draws a lot, you get the picture. He wanted to learn Japanese, so I agreed on teaching him the basics of the language. Paying it forward with a study buddy sure helps, one of the reasons people quit doing something is because it's hard to get feedback doing it alone, especially if the main purpose of the endeavor is to communicate across people. He was alone doing it, and no amount of flashcards and other study material would save himself from the frustration of being unable to test what he has (or what he think he has) learned on anyone. Time to change that, I suppose.

I have taken the language as a requirement at university, up to the intermediate level, attempted JLPT Level 2 just for kicks, knowing I won't pass anyway. There was a promise long ago to myself to come back to it and get a certificate at any level, but that persistent secret procrastinator in me seems to have the upper hand. Not anymore.

What's the plan?

Iz takes the N5, I take the N4. He drives us to the test venue in exchange for all the free tutoring. Then hope that both of us pass, and see where it goes from there (possibly attempt another level up the following year). Preparation is a little tight, since we both have responsibilities, but it's a matter of putting all those spare hours we have to studying. Cracking open all the old study material from college sure brings back memories though. As I'm writing this, this reminded me to finish the last 4-6 nodes to complete the Japanese tree in Duolingo.

Registration in the United States is open the last time I checked, and if you are around the area, see you in December 3 at CSU Los Angeles; would be nice to meet a fellow Steemian. (Correct me on what the proper demonym of a Steemit user is). Bizarre how this test is only offered once a year here unlike on most parts of the rest of the world, but we'll make the most out of it. If you'd like to share your tips on how to prepare, please help a friend out and write it down the comments.

P.S. On a side note, I never really met a linguist or someone who majored in linguistics in real life. Many a polyglot sure, but for those who study languages, I'm not sure what they end up doing in life down the road. If you are one, do say hi. :)

Let's do our best! 頑張ろう !

Any other thoughts?

I looked out the window and realized that the moon is quite full out. Not being sure of what the phases of the moon we are in (since it looks full at first glance), So I checked moongiant.com and I was told that it should be shining at 98% compared to yesterday's at full lunar power. In that note, I should share sometime photos of the previous solar eclipse that happened recently.

Thanks for being my guest in this space of the blockchain. Until then, have a good one!

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Image from pixabay.com

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