2/27/2013

Robert De Niro appeared Japanese TV commercial !!



My favorite actor Robert De Niro appeared Japanese TV commercial recently. The commercial is from Japanese Cell Phone Company. They started "d-video" that is on demand services for smart phone. If you use that services, you can see any video, movie, drama animation, music video, and special show…like Netflix. Anyway, I was so surprised because he accepted to work for Japanese CM.  I think De Niro had enjoyed with another Japanese actor, Ryuhei Matsuda. His father is Yusaku Matsuda. Yusaku was very famous actor in Japan. He acted with Michael Douglas in "Black Rain". He died in 1989. He was 40.
The commercial (narration of Ryuhei) said...
The guy is god of movie!!
De Niro asked Ryuhei and he answerd to De Niro "It's impossible!!"


There are supposed to be movies of changing your life.
"You remain oblivious to such that important thing until later." the guy said.

After this conversation, that phrase appeared to a screen...
[This movie said, "You have to fall in Love!"] 




11/26/2012

What is the difference between other countries women and Japanese woman of English learner?


I was so busy because I had to write some articles for a Japanese web site for women called "Josei no Bigaku". The site is intended for Japanese women 18-50 who are learners of beauty life and has no commercial agenda. I wrote the articles with all Japanese. So I wanted to translate my article from Japanese into English. And I made it!  (I am not professional translator!)
From "Josei no Bigaku" 




I asked an American native English teacher "What is the difference between other countries women and Japanese woman of English learner?"

Japanese people respect Japanese women who can speak English.  At the same time many Japanese companies have become an international business and their official language has changed from Japanese to English. These companies prefer Japanese women or as they are called "office ladies ", who can speak English.


Here is my example. Yes, I go to English class and I study very hard there. This time I asked my English teacher about Japanese women who are learning English.
She told me about a lot of interesting topics, so I would like to share some of them with readers.My English teacher is an American woman who is an expert in teaching English to immigrants for over 20 years.

Ms. Patricia Hatfield is the ESL teacher who has been teaching English to immigrants for over 20 years. ESL means English as a second language.

Now there are many ESL classes in United States. First time I met Patricia was in her class. She had about 20 to 30 students in the class. There are students from over 10 countries in her class. She teaches the class by herself without help from anyone else. We can hear many languages, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Vietnamese, Thai, and Japanese, of various countries ... sometimes jumbled.
Patricia could set the mood in the class and made it become kind of an English world for the students. She is trilingual and can speak Spanish, French and English.  Her experience learning foreign languages helps her understand her students' situation and how to help them learn English. 


Interviews with an ESL Teacher

It's time to start to ask Patricia some questions.

Please tell me about your impression of Japanese women who learn English.

I understood about Japanese women who try very hard to learn English.  They are very dedicated to education because their writing and reading skill is better than other counties students. However Japanese women are very shy about speaking English in the class. I still think Japanese women are the most reserved to speaking up.

How about women from other countries who study English?

Which foreigners have been the most successful in learning and adapting to English?

Any languages that are related to English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and German, etc. They are able to easily make sense of English. They speak a lot and they don't mind making mistakes in English conversation.

I think each country's women have many activities to learn English at a high rate. Women have a proficiency to chat more than men. I think if you like to talk a lot it is because you are a woman.

Which foreigners have the most difficult in learning to English?

In my experience it has been Vietnamese. Vietnamese speakers have a harder time with pronunciation. I had a Vietnamese student like that but she made it!!

Sorry to say this but if you are too shy to speak, that will slow down the learning process.

What is the best way that you recommended for learning English?

I recommended you that have a boy friend that is a native speaker. You will want to have communication with him because you want to try to learn for him, don't you? A very good way to learn is by doing one of your favorite things in English.

For example, you can sing or memorize a song in English. If you like cooking you can learn about American food with recipes in English. You want to do something in English on a daily basis.

Do you have any advice to Japanese women who are learning English?

Motivation is required when studying English. English learners are usually motivated because they came from another country to the US.  Japanese women work harder at learning English and they take it more seriously.

I think there are many different ways to study, and you can be successful if you take it seriously. However, I feel like I have become less talkative because I feel like I am on a stage when speaking English and if I make a mistake that everyone will be critical of my performance. You can learn from your mistakes to improve your English skill and no matter what your feelings or opinions, please say it in English.
For my last advice to you let me say, "Just open your mouth and speak!"

9/10/2011

What do you call your partner? (From Japan)


“What can I call my husband?”  It was my first question for international marriage.
 My husband’s name is Jeff. I live in America, so I should call to my husband with some cute name like the American way?  After a lot of hair pulling, I decided to keep calling just his name.
 My husband calls me Shizu chan or chanshizu… sometimes Hime sama (It is Japanese, Hime means Princess)


Today I read news from a Japanese site. Recently many Japanese couples call each other with their first name or nickname and they are having good relationships.

Here are the most popular partner: names from a survey:
1. Nickname or first name
2. Mother, Father, Mama, Papa, or Grandmother, Grandfather

                                                                            (By couples aged 20-60 )

I remember my mother, when she called her husband “Otousama - Father” after they had grandchild “ojiichan - Grandpa” I think she called his name when she was young. My father also called my mother by her first name.

That news said this.
Young couples are calling each other nickname or first name.
Middle couples are calling each other father, mother.
Elder couples are calling each other nothing. They are just calling  "Hey!"

Today's wisdom word
Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, half shut afterwards.
- Benjamin Franklin

8/04/2011

You are not late for getting education. He was 84 years old!!


I got an email from my friend, Mr.Futai. He is a professional movie writer in Japan. He wrote about movie “The First Grader”. That picture is on now in Japan. I did not know about this movie. This is the true story about an 84 years old guy who got education from a elementary school. He went through with his right to go to school for the first time to get the education he could never afford. When I saw that trailer I think about education. If you was child, you didn’t have to think about education, because you have natural right that get education. Same time maybe you didn’t want to study. You just wanted to play...me too!!
I couldn’t realize about education is very important for whole my life. Now I wanted to study a lot when I was teenager. My parents didn’t have enough money so I couldn't go to University. I went to vocational school after high school and then I had to work soon for my parents.
And right now I think, I am not too late for studying. I will try to study again and again.   I hope my daughter realizes about her chance. She can study hard because she has time and good environment.  Life is like studying!! 


Today's pick up word 
- To me, liberaty means going to school and learning. I want to learn more and more. 
                                                        Kimani Ng'ang'a Maruge  





7/14/2011

A dinner with my friends


Yesterday I had a great time with my friends. First, one of my friends emailed me. She had said the day before yesterday, "Let's have a dinner because our friend is visiting San Diego now. If you want to join us please let me know."   I wanted to join them so I asked my family; of course they accepted that I go to meet my friends. 

In fact my friend and I were classmates from a Qigong class. She moved to Yokohama, Japan, 2 years ago. She came back here in her traveling.

In Japan we learned a lot of sayings (of Confucius) from China; we had that skill in our life naturally.

I was thinking about one of these sayings:

Confucius said,
To learn and then practice what you have learned time and again is a good pleasure, is it not?
To have friends come from afar to share each others’ learning is a pleasure, is it not?
To be unperturbed when not appreciated by others is gentlemanly, is it not?" 

I could meet my friend who was coming from a distant place. I was so happy to have had the time with great friends!!

7/13/2011

Life is Funny !!

I would like to start this blog with English. Nice to meet you reader, I am Japanese and an English learner. If I make a mistake in my blog, please correct it. :-) I love to try to new things but I don't know yet how I will keep this blog.  This is my English blog! ha ha ha...

Yesterday when I went to ESL class (English cafe), my English Teacher Cathy gave me some advice. Then I decided to start this blog in English. I am so happy about this idea. My blog's title is about my experience because I make a lot of mistakes in my American life.  

Today's pick up word of wisdom.
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.  -Helen Keller