Cute pen ✅

Cute mug ✅

Cute study buddy ✅

Last push 😬 Let’s gooooo!

Tried my hand at a JLPT past paper (grammar/reading section) and I thought I did pretty well but. hm. Well, it went better than the exam in December I guess? I actually finished the paper in time for one thing, and there were only a couple of times where I just straight up didn’t know what was going on and skipped the question (on the real test I would pick a random answer but I didn’t want to do that on a practice paper).

Had this been the real test, I’d have passed. But also, the real test requires you to sit in an exam hall and fry your brain with the vocab section before you do the grammar/reading. Still, I’m happy with this as a starting point. As I’ve said previously, I’m not gonna study study (apart from grammar I guess because if I don’t study that my brain just skips over it); I’m just gonna continue engaging with Japanese as much as possible between now and December. Hopefully it’ll be enough and I’ll be able to pass this time!

Dusting off my N3 textbooks ready to try again after last year’s failure. Reading and grammar were my worst scores last time, so that’s what I need to focus on most. Hopefully adding reading practice in the form of a children’s novel will help too!

Kuromi’s helping me stay hydrated too. Gotta water the brain if I want it to function!

Today’s listening practice was an interesting look into the economics of farming in Japan and how Japan’s older generation view the world.

Vocab I learned/should already know but had to look up:

高齢　こうれい　old age
先祖　せんぞ　ancestor
役割　やくわり　part, role, duties
介護　かいご　caregiving, nursing
世話　せわ　care, help, assistance, looking after
肥料　ひりょう　fertilizer, manure
借金　しゃっきん　debt, loan
曾おばあさん　ひいおばあさん great grandmother
仏壇　ぶつだん household Buddhist altar
お供え　おそなえ　offering
お経　おきょう　sutra
金額　きんがく　amount of money
長女　ちょうじょ　eldest daughter, first-born daughter
相続　そうぞく　inheritance, succession

食わず嫌い（くわずぎらい）

I learned this word in today’s italki lesson:

• 食う（くう）= to eat (informal)
• 〜ず = without doing
• 嫌い（きらい）= dislike

食わず嫌い = dislike something without eating it

日本の伝統的な料理はイギリス人時々食わず嫌い。
When it comes to traditional Japanese food, British people sometimes say they don’t like it without trying it.

(Based entirely on personal experience whenever I tell people about anko and matcha chocolate 😒)

Learned the word 三日坊主（みっかぼうず）today, which basically means someone who starts something but quits quickly, eg they say they’re gonna write a novel, get the first two pages written in a day, spend the next day staring at their Scrivener document, and then never touch it again. 坊主 = Buddhist priest, 三日 = 3 days. “3-day priest.” Pretty sure we’ve all been there are some point in our lives 😅

今日のボキャブラリー（８月１０日）

発展（はってん）development

くっきり　clearly (standing out), distinctly

浮気（うわき）infidelity, extramarital sex, affair,

変更（へんこう）change, modification, alteration, revision, amendment

論じる（ろんじる）to discuss, to talk about, to deal with (a topic); to argue, to dispute

横切る（よこぎる）to cross (e.g. road), to traverse

連想（れんそう）association (of ideas), being reminded (of something), suggestion

炎（ほのお）flame, blaze

解説（かいせつ）explanation, commentary, exposition, elucidation

幻（まぼろし）phantom, vision, illusion, apparition

何と（なんと）what (a) …!, how …!

学歴（がくれき）academic background, academic credentials, academic record

貴重（きちょう）precious, valuable

覆う（おおう）to cover, to hide, to conceal, to wrap, to disguise

保存（ほぞん）preservation, conservation, storage, maintenance

奪う（うばう）to take (by force), to take away, to snatch, to steal, to rob (someone) of

激しい（はげしい）violent, furious, tempestuous

故郷（ふるさと・こきょう）hometown, birthplace, native place, one’s old home

訳（やく）translation, version (e.g. “English version”)

晩年（ばんねん）one’s later years, final years (in life)

〜となると　when it comes to 〜, where 〜 is concerned

今日のボキャブラリー（八月八日）

Green/orange indicates pitch accent

真似（まね）imitating, copying, mimicry

勇気（ゆうき）courage, bravery, valour, valor, nerve, boldness

味方（みかた）friend, ally, supporter

無駄（むだ）futility, waste, uselessness, pointlessness, idleness

表す（あらわす）to represent, to signify, to stand for

共同（きょうどう）cooperation, collaboration, association, partnership, (acting in) unison

振る（ふる）to wave, to shake, to swing

技師（ぎし）engineer, technician

合わせる（あわせる）to match (rhythm, speed, etc.)；to join together, to unite, to combine, to add up；to face, to be opposite (someone)

世話をする（せわをする）to take care of

長期（ちょうき）long-term

知事（ちじ）prefectural governor

種（たね）seed (e.g. of a plant), pip, kernel, stone (e.g. of a peach)

備える（そなえる）to furnish with, to equip with, to provide, to install；to prepare for, to make preparations for, to make provision for

注（ちゅう）annotation, explanatory note, comment

知恵（ちえ）wisdom, wit, sagacity, sense, intelligence

通信（つうしん）correspondence, communication, transmission, news, signal, telecommunications

主婦（しゅふ）housewife, mistress (of the house), homemaker

需要（じゅよう）demand, request

今日のボキャブラリー（八月四日）

Green/orange indicates pitch accent

迷惑（めいわく）trouble, bother, annoyance, nuisance, inconvenience

譲る（ゆずる）to hand over, to transfer, to turn over; to give up (e.g. one’s seat), to give way; to yield, to concede, to give ground, to surrender

要求（ようきゅう）demand, firm request, requisition, requirement, desire

まさか　by no means, never!, well, I never!, you don’t say!, certainly (not); something unexpected, emergency

衛星（えいせい）satellite, moon

ケチ　stinginess, miserliness

評価（ひょうか）valuation, appraisal, evaluation, assessment, estimation, rating, judging

器用（きよう）skillful, skilful, adroit, dexterous, dextrous, deft, nimble, handy

案件（あんけん）matter (to discuss), item (on the agenda), issue, topic, case

言動（げんどう）speech and conduct, words and actions, words and deeds, behavior, behaviour, manners

アプローチ　approach (to a problem, issue, etc.)

一杯一杯　（いっぱいいっぱい）to the limit, to the fullest extent, absolutely the limit, the best one can do, breaking even

そもそも　in the first place, to begin with, from the start, originally, ab initio

ただただ　absolutely, completely, utterly, really, simply, only

継続　（けいぞく）continuation, continuance, going on

遭遇（そうぐう）encounter, running into, meeting with (e.g. an accident), being confronted with (e.g. a difficulty)

品種（ひんしゅ）breed, variety, kind, type

今日のボキャブラリー（八月三日）

Colour denotes pitch accent

就労（しゅうろう）working, being employed, being hired

密（みつ）dense, thick, crowded

角（つの）horn, antler; antenna, feeler, tentacle (e.g. of a snail)

親しい（したしい）close (e.g. friend), familiar, friendly, intimate; familiar (e.g. story), well-known (to one)

貢献（こうけん）contribution (furthering a goal or cause), services (to a cause); paying tribute, tribute

張る（はる）to stick, to paste, to affix; to stretch, to spread, to strain, to tighten, to put up (e.g. a tent)

財産（ざいさん）property, fortune, assets

繰り返し（くりかえし）repetition, repeat, reiteration, iteration, refrain, cycle

扱う（あつかう）to deal with

安定（あんてい）stability, steadiness, consistency, equilibrium, balance, composure

縁（えん）fate, destiny (esp. as a mysterious force that binds two people together)

縁（ふち）rim, brim, edge, brink

正式（せいしき）formal, official, regular, proper, legal, due (formalities)

結ぶ（むすぶ）to tie, to bind, to link; to bear (fruit)

遊園地（ゆうえんち）amusement park

底（そこ）bottom, sole

勇ましい（いさましい）brave, valiant, gallant, courageous

落第（らくだい）failure (in an examination), failing to advance (to the next year); falling short of the standard, not making the grade

言葉の壁（ことばのかべ）language barrier

専門用語（せんもんようご）technical term, terminology, jargon