WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her
own observations.
福袋 (or fukubukuro) are an essential part of the Japanese New Year’s celebration. These are grab bags (literally translated as “lucky bag”) given out at department stores that contain merchandise worth much more than what you pay for the bag itself. However, there is a bit of chance involved as some deals are better than others. Here are some new fukubukuro available through the end of 2009 that reflect political and social trends from the past year.
One is the Takashimaya 友愛 (yuai) fukubukuro playing off of Prime Minister Hatoyama’s fraternity theme. In this case the yuai refers to Read More
Recommendations for intensive Japanese language programs in Tokyo?
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Via JETAA DC yahoogroup:
JET alum Jordan Heiber (Fukui-ken, 2000-02) is looking for info/recommendations for intensive Japanese Language Programs in Tokyo — similar to the one offered by Keio University. Requirements would be:
1) year long course
2) qualifies the participant for a student visa for the year
3) ideally close in proximity to Minato Ku
Jordan notes: “The Internet is overflowing with less-than-useful information on this, so I’m hoping some of you may have some insider’s knowledge. Thanks.”
If anyone else in the JET-o-sphere has helpful information, please share in the comments section of this post. Or e-mail jordansensei [/at/] hotmail [/dot/] com.
WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with
her own observations.
One of my favorite things about Japan is the constant changing of flavors, often in accordance with the seasons. I love just wandering through conbini to see what new tastes have popped up for my favorite snacks/drinks. One product over there I follow religiously is Kit Kats, as you can often get flavors that are not available here in the States. This is why I was thrilled to receive an omiyage of ginger ale Kit Kats from a friend who had recently traveled to Japan.
Next to the customary phrase, “Have a break, have a Kit Kat” was a glass of ginger ale with lemon in it. With use of .3% lemon powder and ginger ale flavor, it promised to be something new. The aroma was Read More
WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Last week I had the opportunity to hear a talk given by the Japanese sociologist Dr. Yuko Kawanishi. Dr. Kawanishi has written numerous articles and is often quoted by Western media on topics such as declining birth rate, education reform, mental health and depression, family relations, juvenile crime and youth culture. She did her undergraduate work at Doshisha University and got her PhD in Sociology from UCLA. Currently she is the recipient of an Abe Fellowship and a visiting scholar at Hunter College and Columbia University’s Teacher’s College.
Dr. Kawanishi spoke mainly about her new book entitled “Mental Health Challenges Facing Contemporary Japanese Society: The ‘Lonely People.” It addresses the question of mental malaise in its many forms in contemporary Japanese society, focusing on three main areas: work, family and youth. These include Read More
WIT Life #62: Otaku analysis
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with h
er own observations.
Thanks to Rochelle Kopp at Japan Intercultural Consulting, I was alerted to an article posted to the website Boing Boing by Lisa Katayama, writer and commentator on modern Japanese society. In a previous post this summer, I had discussed Katayama’s New York Times magazine article about the subcategory of otaku men and women who indulge in real relationships with imaginary characters. This time around she focuses on not taking the weirdness of Japan too seriously. As an example, she cites the strange story last month of a Japanese man wedding an anime game character which received much attention.
This morning I was surprised to find the topic of otaku also taken up by Read More
WIT Life #61: 今年の漢字
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Yesterday at Kyoto’s Kiyomizu Temple the official announcement of 今年の漢字 (kotoshi no kanji), or the Kanji of the Year, took place. This is an annual contest run by the Japanese Kanji Proficiency Society that had a record number of applications from all over the country this year, 161,365. Coming off of last yea
r’s
selection of 変 (hen) or change, this year’s winner by 14,093 ballots was 新 (shin) or new. Among the reasons why this character was picked were the new political administration and the new strain of the flu.
This morning’s news interviewed both young and seasoned prominent political figures regarding what their picks would have been. One was Read More
WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
政権交代 (seiken koutai) or “change of government,” was announced to be the winner of Japan’s 2009 Buzzword Award on December 1 (Incidentally, last year the title was won by 「アラフォー」 or “around 40 years old”). This phrase of course refers to the rise to power by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), overturning over 50 years of Liberal Democratic Party rule. Other contenders for the buzzword title were 新型インフルエンザ (shingata influenza) or “new flu” and 草食男子 (soushoku danshi) or “herbivorous men.”
Since the change in administration, Hatoyama has been dealing with 3Ks. However, this is not referring to the typical usage regarding undesirable 3K jobs that are kitsui (difficult), kitanai (dirty) and kiken (dangerous). Hatoyama’s very own 3 K’s are kenkin (contribution), keizai (economics), and kichi (military base).
The first K is in regard to a donation scandal plaguing the new Prime Minister. Prosecutors have traced Read More
WIT Life #59: Winter culinary trends
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Believe it or not we will be greeting the new year in about a month, and today’s news took a look at what is being forecast for お正月 (oshougatsu) 2010. Similar to last year, it is expected that in light of the dismal economic climate there will be a tendency toward 巣篭り (sugomori), literally nesting or staying close to home as opposed to going abroad or visiting one’s family. Compared to last year, there has been 30% increased sales of two-person servings of osechi ryouri. According to an osechi salesperson at a department store, this goes along with Read More
Sign of the Times: JET alum works to save language programs in Fairfax, VA schools from budget cuts
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The following request was posted to the JETAA DC yahoogroup by JET alum Tina Meek (Saitama-ken, 1990-92):
I’m co-leading an advocacy called Fairfax FLAGS (Foreign Language Advocacy for Grade Schools), which is working to save its elementary school foreign language programs, currently at risk of elimination due to Fairfax County schools‘ budget crisis.
All 13 language immersion & 32 FLES (foreign language in the elementary school) programs are on the chopping block. This includes the amazing Japanese immersion programs at Great Falls, Floris and Fox Mill Elementary (where my daughters easily learn the language I struggled with during my JET years!).
We are asking as many people as possible to write letters/emails or make phone calls on the importance of early foreign language programs to Fairfax County Supervisors, Chairman Sharon Bulova, Fairfax County Public School Board Members & Superintendent Jack Dale.
Contact information & talking points are on our website at www.fairfaxflags.org. We also have a Fairfax FLAGS Group on Facebook if you’d like to support or join our cause.
Feel free to contact me for information, especially if you went through any of Fairfax County’s language immersion programs. We’re seeking testimonials!
Loss of these programs would be a huge step backward for Fairfax County (currently a role model for early foreign language).
Thank you,
Tina Meek (Saitama-ken, Urawa-shi, 1990-92)
tina.meek [/at/] yahoo [/dot/] com
WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
As we get ready to prepare our turkeys, stuff ourselves silly and max out on football, yesterday Japan celebrated their own day of appreciation with 勤労感謝の日(kinrou kansha no hi) or Labor Thanksgiving Day. More than anything else this gave Japanese citizens a three day weekend to relax and enjoy. The keyword for how this long weekend was spent was 「安・近・感」 (an/kin/kan), meaning “cheap, close and feeling.” The first two words are self-explanatory, and the last one refers to the experience, such as getting a sense of the season.
For Tokyoites, this meant to going to places like Read More
NYTimes: I.B.M. working on n.Fluent translation project
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Apparently I.B.M. is making progress on a fairly revolutionary translation project called n.Fluent. They’re taking advantage of their international employee base to “teach” a system that has the capacity to learn. See the article in the New York Times:
A Translator Tool with a Human Touch: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/23/technology/23link.html?th&emc=th
Any translators out there have an opinion or perspective to share? How does this compare to Google’s Rosy Etta (see previous JetWit post on Rosy Etta)?
WIT Life #57: Teleworking in Japan
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 2000-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
My only time traveling one-on-one as an interpreter for the Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program was a year ago with a female entrepreneur from Hokkaido named Yuri Tazawa. No one epitomizes the “Yes We Can” spirit more than Yuri, so it was appropriate that we were able to celebrate Obama’s victory together while in DC. She began a company in a town called Kitami 11 years ago after being raised in Nara, going to university in Tokyo, and starting a family. You might wonder what kind of business one could have being located so far away from a metropolis, but Yuri heads a company called Y’s Staff (taking the Y from her name as well as being a homonym with “wise”).
Y’s has offices in both Hokkaido and Nara, but its actual structure is virtual. Through her company, Yuri is a promoter of teleworking. This concept is often confused with telemarketing, but is essentially the idea of doing work in a place other than a fixed office. This could be your home, the local Starbucks or any other location. Yuri also advocates Read More
WIT Life #56: Talk Like Singing
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Translator/Interpreter/Writer Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken, 20 00-03). Recently she’s been watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese and sharing some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own obser
vations.
Last night I attended the world premiere of Talk Like Singing, the first-ever original Japanese musical to premiere in the U.S. I had high hopes for this production due to the involvement of several big names in Japan. The star of the show, Shingo Katori, is a member of the ubiquitous boy band SMAP, and though he is less well-known than heartthrob Kimutaku or recently headline-making Kusanagi he holds his own thanks to his eccentricity. Back in my JET days, he adopted the persona of “Shingo Mama,” and sang of his cooking skills, eating breakfast together and properly greeting everyone with a genki “oha!” This abbreviation for ohayou or “good morning” and its accompanying hand motion became all the rage at the workplace and beyond.
This song was composed by Yasuharu Konishi, who is in charge of the show’s music and musical direction. He was Read More
I just got an invite to Google Wave and started playing around with it. And I noticed that one feature is a simultaneous translator they call Rosy Etta. The concept is that it translates in real time as you type an email or chat with someone. (Email and chat are actually kind of fused together in Google Wave which is part of the big picture concept.) Essentially, this means that you can theoretically have a conversation in English over email with someone else who speaks no English.
The relevant question to JetWit readers: How effective and accurate is Rosy Etta for English-Japanese? Have any JetWit readers had a chance to try it out?
A second question: What implications, if any, are there for professional translators? (or JETs for that matter)
Share your thoughts and experiences so far in the comments section. And if you’re on Google Wave, feel free to start a “wave” with me as well at stevenwaseda [/atto/] googlewave [/dotto/] com.
Lastly, here’s a video about Rosy Etta where you get to see it work with a very basic example:
4 Jobs: Japanese language/cultural instructors and J-E translator/interpreters (Georgetown, KY and Nagoya)
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The following four (4) job openings are via Kentucky-based JET alum Zach Graham (ALT, Niigata 1999-2000) of Consultant Solutions, Inc. Zack says his company’s current staff is comprised of nearly 50% JET alumni and is looking to add 5-6 new positions over the next several months.
1. Japanese/English Language and Cultural Instructor
We’re looking for a part-time Japanese/English language and cultural instructor to train busy executives. In this position, you’ll be expected to wear the dual hats of Japanese and English teacher. Not only will you teach Japanese language classes to American corporate expats on assignment in Japan, but you’ll also be responsible for all levels of English conversation classes, all while facilitating understanding and helping your students communicate across cultural borders. Additional duties as necessary.
The ideal candidate is an experienced teacher who enjoys working with people of varied backgrounds, has some knowledge of manufacturing environments, and believes that mutual understanding is the first step to mutual success. The instructor will work closely with our client contacts to develop and implement a flexible curriculum that focuses on cultural fluency and effective verbal and non-verbal communication. A high level of Japanese fluency is required for this position (JLPT 1 or equivalent).
If you’re a hard worker with strong interpersonal skills, an outgoing personality, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of your students, send a cover letter and résumé to hr@csi-ky.com.
Position is in Nagoya, Japan.
Consultant Solutions, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We will provide training and a support network. We will also consider relocation and/or visa support for the right candidate.
***************
2. English Language and Cultural Instructor
We’re looking for a part-time English language and cultural instructor to train busy executives. In this position, you’ll work primarily in our Georgetown Classroom and teaching offsite at student locations such as manufacturing facilities and corporate boardrooms, where you will facilitate understanding while also helping your students communicate across cultural borders. Read More
