Job: On-site interpreters for Circuit Court of Cook County (Chicago, IL)
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Thanks to Bianca Jarvis (CIR Kyoto-shi, 2002-05), the Outreach Coordinator at the Japan Information Center, Consulate-General of Japan in Chicago, for passing along this job listing:
On-site interpreters are needed to work in an on-call, part time capacity for the Circuit Court of Cook County. The interpreter must be able to interpret simultaneously and/or consecutively in court proceedings, hearings, interviews, weddings, as well as other miscellaneous court related communicative events. Often times simultaneous interpretations are the preference and that involves rendering an interpretation continuously at the same time that someone is speaking, about one half to one full sentence behind the speaker. This way of interpreting is generally only intended to be heard by the person receiving the interpretation (in whispered tones); such as when the judge is speaking directly to that person. Consecutive interpretation gives the interpreter the opportunity to fully hear what the speaker is relaying in his message and then he/she will interpret to the listener. Even so this interpreter should still be no more than 2 or 3 sentences behind the speaker
In connection with this work, there will be on-going hiring for the next 3 years in all areas of Asian languages.
Contact: Joan Mattox – jmattox@readymadestaffing.com
Business Development, Ready Made Staffing, 1130 S. Wabash, #105, Chicago, IL. 60605, 312 341-0069
J-News Mini-Roundup: Plane Crash in Bangkok…What Really Happened?
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J-News Mini-Roundup is a recurring feature written by Friend Of JET, Jon Hills, who maintains the blog for Hills Learning (www.hillslearning.com). 
Hills Learning is a NY-based language learning services company offering customized and personal Japanese and Chinese language learning options. Their main service is private one on one tutoring in the NYC area, where the student chooses where and when to have lessons.
Background: It’s sometimes difficult to report on an international incident. Stories get conflicted, newspapers have to follow leads, and they’re pressed for time to release something to the public as soon as possible. Today’s crash for of a Bangkok Airways ATR72 showed how each Japanese newspaper can create a different story.
They did agree that the accident happened earlier today about 2pm Bangkok time, 4pm Tokyo time (although exact estimates are all different). The crashed happened on the island of Samui, with 72 people on board.
Asahi ”Landing failure in Thailand, the pilot dies, over 40 people injured” The time was 4:10 Tokyo time. As the plane was landing at the island of Samui, it went off the runway…
(CLICK HERE for the rest of the article, that includes Japanese News Summaries)
Graphic novelist Lars Martinson seeks funding for comic book about East Asian calligraphy
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JET alum Lars Martinson, author of the graphic novel Tonoharu: Part 1, is not only currently studying East Asian calligraphy in Ehime-ken, he wants to write a comic book about his experience. And he’s in the process of seeking funding to help make this happen.
If you’ve seen Tonoharu: Part 1, you know that “comic book” barely does justice to Lars’ sophisticated and detailed drawing style. And having won a Monbusho Scholarship to help him fund the production of Tonoharu: Part 1, Lars knows a thing or two about getting funding (as further demonstrated in a previous blog post titled “How to Apply for a Monbusho Scholarship“).
That said, it’s never easy getting funding and income as an artist/illustrator. (See, e.g., Lars’ recent post on adapting his drawing style for professional and practical purposes.) So if anyone can provide any assistance or leads to help Lars with funding, please feel free to get in touch with him at blog [at] larsmartinson [dot] com.
For information about Lars, you can read his blog at http://larsmartinson.com. You can also read a nice article about Lars from the Winter 2008 “Digital Media” Issue of the JETAA NY Newsletter, written by Alexei Esikoff (Fukushima-ken, 2001-02).
Japan America Society Roundup 08.04.09
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Current Hiroshima-ken JET Gail Meadows, co-editor of the Hiroshima JET webzine Wide Island View, shines a light on some of the upcoming events of the various Japan America societies…
JAS of the State of Washington
Wa in a Sports Bar — Best-selling author Robert Whiting, author of You Gotta Have Wa 2009, will be the featured speaker at JASSW’s cocktail reception. Whiting’s book is an updated version of the original 1989 book You Gotta Have Wa, a book about the cultural conflict between Japan and America, as seen through the common sport of baseball. In his talk, Whiting will address the question of whether Japanese and Americans understand (and like) each other more than they did two decades ago and the subject of how culture still manifests itself in baseball. Following the presentation, visitors can watch the Seattle Mariners play the New York Yankees on three large-screen plasma TVs in a private room. Cost is $20 for JAS members. Registration deadline is August 11. Click here to register.
- Date: Thursday, August 13
- Time: Doors open at 5:30 p.m., Presentation starts at 6:20 p.m.,
- Place: FOX Sports Grill, VIP Lounge, 1522 6th Ave., Seattle
- For more information: http://www.us-japan.org/jassw/index.htm
- Symposium on Historic Preservation in Kyoto & Boston — This symposium will include comments by the mayor of Kyoto and presentations by leading Japanese and American architects, urban planners and other specialists. Presentations will be in Japanese and English, with simultaneous interpretation. The symposium will be followed by a reception in honor of Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa at the Kyo-no-Machiya (Kyoto House) Boston Children’s Museum. Admission is free but registration is required.
- Date: Wednesday, August 26
- Time: Symposium 1:30 to 5 p.m. Reception 5 to 7 p.m.
- Place: Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, first floor theater, 600 Atlantic Ave., Boston
- For more information: http://www.us-japan.org/boston/Calendar.html
J-Pop Summit Festival 2009 — Mark your calendars for this pop culture-themed street far in San Francisco’s Japantown. The day’s festivities will include a Harajuku Kawaii makeover pageant and performances by Japan’s hottest girl bands. The celebration will be accompanied by the grand opening of New People, a center of Japanese cinema, retail and art.
- Date: Saturday, August 15
- Time: 10 a.m. to midnight
- Place: New People, 1746 Post Street, San Francisco
- For more information, click here.
Does your Japan America Society have an upcoming event that you’d like to share with JetWit readers? Email Gail Meadows the info.
Transcript of Roland Kelts full interview with Hayao Miyazaki (via GhibliWorld)
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For those of you who weren’t able to catch Roland Kelts’ (Osaka-shi, 1998-99) interview with Hayo Miyazaki in Berkeley, CA on July 25, a “fanatically thorough transcript” of the full interview has been posted at the GhibliWorld site: http://www.ghibliworld.com/miyazaki_on_stage_conversation_berkeley_july_2009.html
JET alum artists: Brooke and Daniel Lauer
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JetWit just learned of two more JET alum artists who happen to be married to each other and live in Greenville, SC. They also both lived in Niigata-ken.
Lauer, Brooke (Niigata-ken 2004-07) – Greenville, SC
- Writes and illustrates picture books, makes dolls from polymer clay, and handmade journals. Her newest work can be found at http://brookelauer.blogspot.com
- Motto: “Creating a more interesting world, one character at a time…”
Lauer, Daniel (Niigata-ken 2005-2007) – Greenville, SC
- His wheel-thrown pottery can be seen at http://www.firebirdpottery.com
Japanese Proficiency Test – applications now being accepted in U.S.
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Thanks to JETAA Pacific Northwest for passing this along:
The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles Office Now Accepting Applications for the “2009 Japanese Language Proficiency Test”
The Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) is an internationally accredited language examination designed to measure a person’s Japanese language skills. Those who pass the JLPT receive a Certificate of Proficiency and, as a result, are better able to market their Japanese skills in order to further their careers and educational pursuits.
Date: Sunday, December 6, 2009
Test Site in Seattle: University of Washington
Application Deadline: September 25, 2009
To register visit: http://www.jflalc. org/?act= tpt&id=8
Contact Information: The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles Office
JLPT Administration Committee
Tel: (213)621-2267
E-mail: noryoku@jfalc. org
For more information and on-line application, please visit the Japan Foundation, Los Angeles site: http://www.jflalc. org
Free “On-line Japanese Language SUSHI TEST” is also available for those who are not yet ready to undertake Level Four of the Japanese Proficiency Test http://momo. jpf.go.jp/ sushi/
Roland Kelts and young fans at Keio Academy Digital Media Creation program
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Over the weekend we mentioned that Roland Kelts (Osaka-shi, 1998-99), author of Japanamerica, gave a talk for the students in the Keio Academy of New York Japanese-English Bilingual Summer Program in Purchase, NY in connection with a two-week Digital Media Creation program. (Additional speakers in the program include Michael Arias, director of “ANIMATRIX” and “Tekkonkinkreet,” Shoji Kawamuri, animation director and mechanical designer and Yuji Nunokawa, CEO of animation producer Pierrot Co., Ltd.)
Here are a couple nice photos from the event:
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Job: Speechwriter and intergovernmental affairs assistant for Consulate-General of Japan in San Francisco (CA)
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Via Peter Weber (Saitama-ken, 2004-07), the JET Program Coordinator at the Japan Information Center/Consulate-General of Japan in San Francisco:
Consulate staff member who functions both as a speech writer and an intergovernmental affairs assistant at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco
The Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco has an opening for a staff member to work both as a speech writer and an assistant in the Intergovernmental Affairs Section of the Consulate General of Japan. The start date will be in September or early October.
Full details here: http://www.sf.us.emb-japan.go.jp/archives/PR_e/2009/pr_09_0731.htm
Job: International recruiter – St John’s University (Queens, NY)
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Via HigherEdJobs.com:
International Recruiter (R2833) at St. John’s University in Queens, NY
http://www.higheredjobs.com/state/details.cfm?JobCode=175384287
Reporting to the Director of Admission, the International Admission Recruiter will assist with the development of the international recruitment plan and with meeting the enrollment projects in select regions. Read More
Japan Society (NY) Weekly eNewsletter Aug 3-9
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J DOC: Learn Japanese Grammar! Nuances of the Particles に and で
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The Japanese Doctor is a recurring feature written by Friend Of JET, Jon Hills, who maintains the blog for Hills Learning (www.hillslearning.com). 
Hills Learning is a NY-based language learning services company offering customized and personal Japanese and Chinese language learning options. Their main service is private one on one language lessons in the NYC area.
One of the most difficult parts of learning Japanese is not learning colloquial phrases or expanding vocabulary, but perfecting the usage of small words. Although small words to non-native speakers might seem to be trivial, just look at how important the articles “a, an, and the” are in English. “A girlfriend” vs. “The Girlfriend” means something entirely different in English, although in Japanese there is no direct equivalent to describe this situation. Japanese speakers who are learning English explain to me all the time that they still don’t quite understand when to use “a,” vs. when to use “the.” Conversely, the Japanese particles (が、は、で、に、を、へ) continue to confuse both beginner and advanced students of the Japanese language.
In this entry we’ll try to explain the subtle differences and the correct usage of the articles でand に. Both articles show the location of where something is, or where an action takes place. So if you were going to say…
(CLICK HERE to read the rest of the article)
Via JETAA Florida’s Tampa subchapter (aka 
JetWit has become increasingly aware of JET alum artists doing interesting work and making names for themselves in the art world. Below is a little background on a few of them (though there are many more out there). Click here for more JetWit posts on art and JET alumni. You can also see a more complete list of JET alums in the art world in the Art section of the Library.
Zandra Ellis (Nagasaki-ken, 2005-09) – Bronx, NY
- Painter and writer –http://www.flickr.com/photos/zmongoose/
Born in the Bronx to Jamaican immigrants, Zandra Ellis cut her milkteeth on Marley, manga and museums; 17 years later, she emerged blinking in the sunlight, from LaGuardia High School with a diploma stamped “Art.” Somehow she ended up studying English Literature in college. Nagasaki Prefecture’s Emukae Town (pop. 6,700,) warmly embraced Zandra as an ALT who loved drawing on the board and attending the local pottery class (’05-’09). Currently working on: freelance gigs/portraits for hire.
Manya Tessler (Wakayama-ken, 1998-2000) – Brooklyn, NY
Jewelry – www.MANYAandROUMEN.com- Children’s book illustrations – Yuki’s Ride Home (See interview with her from JETAA NY Newsletter at https://jetwit.com/wordpress/library/profiles/tessler-manya.)
- Read the “engaging” story of how she and her husband met and began designing jewelry together.
Manya’s children’s book “Yuki’s Ride Home” was published by Bloomsbury in 2008. (Read more) She received an Honorable mention in Category 1 of the Women’s Jewelry Association 2009 DIVA Design Competition. (Read more) She and her husband, Rouman, received the Mort Abelson New Designer of the Year Award at the JA NY Summer Show. (Read more) And the independent film “Adam” being shown at the 2009 Sundance Festival features several of Manya’s illustrations. (Read more)
Lee-Sean Huang (Oita-ken, 2003-06) – New York, NY
Lee-Sean Huang is New York-base multimedia artist who explores the creative and social possibilities found in the junction of technology, design and art. Recent works include:
- A computer-generated portrait of Mao constructed from the text of the Little Red Book
- An interactive music installation consisting of headphones that create a unique listening experience based on the wearer’s movements
- And a Japan-inspired animation and performance piece based on a poem by Catullus
Lee-Sean is a co-founder of Hepnova Multimedia, an interdisciplinary design collective and genre-defying band, and is currently a masters student at ITP, the Interactive Telecommunications Program at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Catch up with Lee-Sean at leesean.net. (JetWit Editor’s Note: Lee-Sean is also the JETAA NY webmaster, helped me get the JetWit site set up and is the one I call whenever there’s a “JetWit emergency.”)
This past Thursday evening, Roland Kelts (Osaka-shi, 1998-99), author of Japanamerica, gave a talk for the students in the Keio Academy of New York Japanese-English Bilingual Summer Program in Purchase, NY in connection with a two-week Digital Media Creation program.
Additional speakers in the program include Michael Arias, director of “ANIMATRIX” and “Tekkonkinkreet,” Shoji Kawamuri, animation director and mechanical designer and Yuji Nunokawa, CEO of animation producer Pierrot Co., Ltd.
