Singularity on the Plane

The useless background narrative

I’m 3 years late, but here it is…

There are indeed chance meetings that are just wonderful. Meetings which upon reflection would make you think, “I couldn’t imagine how things would work out without it!”. A perfect example is when I was hotspotting in Puskom UGM with Karnan and met Adit there. Adit is a fellow Ilkomer, and I had chatted with him through IM about studying kanji. I had told him that I want to copy his study materials some time.

And what a time indeed! After copying the kanji-related files, I was shown quite a lot of mp3s on his Nihongo folder. Not anime soundtracks or jpop whatnots, mind you, but Japanese language lessons! Adit said that you can turn it on and enjoy it while having your Morning Coffee. (or was it another drink?)

My focus was, and probably still, on reading. Therefore I thought some audio learning materials would be a great boon to enhance one of my weakest Japanese skills, listening. I happily copied it.

Most of them were japanesepod101.com podcasts and some nihongojuku. I listened to some of them, and indeed thought it was very great. However, in the end I didn’t have enough yaruki to do a full-fledged and regular listening of it. Probably because a lot of the episodes are missing. I like to study a certain thing thoroughly, from back to back, so those podcasts look like a book with lots of torn and missing pages. Not very appetizing.

Until one day I stayed at a relative’s house in Jakarta with ultra-blazing Internet connection. I wisely utilized it to download jpod101’s audio files (nihongojuku was dead). Collecting all the links and feeding it to Flashget took me well beyond midnight.

The first episode was in 2005. So yes, I was years late and was faced with a 4 GiB pile of digitalized sinusoidal waves. But no worry! They release like 1 episode per day, so one can definitely catch up just by listening to 31 podcasts a month.

About the podcast itself

The essence is simple: The free podcast teaches you Japanese using English. The teachers are Peter-san who is a native English speaker and at least a native Japanese speaker. After a short intro, you will be given a short dialog, then that dialog again in slo-mo, and finally the dialog with the English translation inserted in-between. Vocabulary is given after that dialog parade. Then finally the grammar points.

What’s so captivating about it? Probably because Peter-san is such a skillful and mesmerizing teacher. He gives lots of insights, interesting anecdotes, and Peter-style jokes in the explanation. Or maybe it’s because of the many nihonjin casts with their unique personality. From Yoshi the cool guy to Takase the tough girl. Or is it because the stories are genuinely interesting and most of the time hilarious?

No matter what your level is, if you’re learning Japanese then you should try to tune in to japanesepod101.com. They have a fine gradation of level ranging from newbie to upper intermediate. For those interested in the Japanese culture, they also have weekly Japanese Culture Class podcasts with topics from superstitions to marriage. Advanced students can even enjoy Miki-sama’s full-Japanese audio blog. (the link points to the wrong person, but their nickname are actually same) And if that isn’t enough to assure you, they even have 1 lesson with Morning Musume as the topic!

Currently I try to listen to 2 podcasts per day. I’ve covered 300+ lessons so now my ears can even differentiate the voices of Yoshi, Jun, Natsuko, Sakura, Hatsumi, Naomi, Takase, Chigusa, and others. I’m quite surprised that I found lots of new words even in the Survival and Newbie series because I was well beyond my 3rd year of studying Japanese.

It certainly increased my listening comprehension significantly. Probably my speaking skill too, because I often repeated after the dialogs. At any rate, I’m looking forward for the day I can catch up with the latest episodes.

Closing words

I probably should send Adit a DVD as my gratitude. Oh, and anyway, upon leaving Puskom that day I carelessly left my student card and had to travel all the way from Milan…

And lastly, are you a japanesepod101 listener too?

“Haikara-san ga Tooru” is the theme song for a 1987 movie of the same name. I stumbled upon this song on Uta Doki! Pop Classics, a short regular TV show where Hello! Project members sing old songs requested by the viewers.

On Uta Doki! #301, this particular song was sung by Konno Asami with Michishige Sayumi as the MC and spontaneous uninvited dancer (see screenshot). A very nice and warm song (YouTube links: Original song by Minamino Yoko; Konno Asami version in Uta Doki!).

I present you below the kanji, romaji, and my translation. Corrections are welcomed. Sorry, no bahasa Indonesia because it is planned to be released as an MMIF (Morning Musume Indonesia Fansub) product for international consumption :).

Kanji:

曲名：はいからさんが通る/歌手：南野陽子

朝もやにけむってる　運命のわかれ道
あなたに出逢ってしまって
あやうい方へ　歩き出したの

木洩れ日が踊る日は　笑いころげたりして
曇った風が走る日は
心の奥がキュンと音をたてた

くちびるを重ねた数では
愛情をつなぎとめられない
知ってるけど…

凛凛しく恋してゆきたいんです　私
傷つくことに弱虫なんて　乙女がすたるもの
ややこしいかけひきは　苦手です私
晴れた空が好きです

ふれあう肌のぬくもりほど
さきゆきは　確かじゃないこと
知ってるけど…

たとえ涙の嵐がきたって平気
あなたとみた青空が　一番胸に輝くわ
別れてもまた出逢えば　いいもの平気
前を向いてゆきます

うつむかずに　歩きたいの
あなたへの愛しさも
せつなさも　まっすぐみつめて

凛凛しく恋してゆきたいんです　私
傷つくことに弱虫なんて　乙女がすたるもの
凛凛しく恋してゆきたいんです　私
晴れた空が好きです

Romaji:

Song: Haikara-san ga Tooru
Singer: Minamino Yoko

asamoya ni kemutteru unmei no wakare michi
anata ni deatteshimatte
ayaui hou e arukidashita no

komorebi ga odoru hi wa waraikorogetari shite
kumotta kaze ga hashiru hi wa
kokoro no oku ga kyunto oto o tateta

kuchibiru o kasaneta kazu de wa
kimochi o tsunagitomerarenai
shitteru kedo…

ririshiku koishiteyukitain desu watashi
kizutsuku koto ni yowamushi nante otome ga sutaru mono
yayakoshii kakehiki wa nigate desu watashi
hareta sora ga suki desu

fureau hada no nukumori hodo
sakiyuki wa tashika janai koto
shitteru kedo…

tatoe namida no arashi ga kitatte heiki
anata to mita aozora ga ichiban mune ni kagayaku wa
wakarete mo mata deaeba ii mono heiki
mae o muite yukimasu

utsumukazu ni arukitai no
anata e no itoshisa mo
setsunasa mo massugu mitsumete

ririshiku koishite yukitain desu watashi
kizutsuku koto ni yowamushi nante otome ga sutaru mono
ririshiku koishite yukitain desu watashi
hareta sora ga suki desu

English Translation:

Translated by agro1986 aka koushi

Here Comes Miss Stylish

The crossroad of fate shrouded in the morning mist
I met you by chance
And walked the path of risk

We laughed on the days when sun rays danced through the leaves
And on the days when the fog ran away
My heart sounded with joy

By our number of kisses
I wouldn’t be able to keep your feelings long
I know it, but…

I want to love you gallantly
Being afraid to get hurt would be a dishonor
I’m not good at making intricate plans
A clear sky is what I like

There is no certainty that our future
Will be as warm as our touching skin
I know it, but…

I don’t care if this will end in tears
The blue sky that I saw with you lit my heart the most
Even if we break up, I’ll be fine if we meet again
Move forward positively

I want to walk without hanging my head low
Please look honestly
At my love for you and my pain

I want to love you gallantly
Being afraid to get hurt would be a dishonor
I want to love you gallantly
A clear sky is what I like

Kami, kami, kami
Aku menunggu kertas itu
Menanti penilaian Tuhan
Sampai rambutku memanjang
Kami, kami, kami

- Agro

Ah, capeknya… Berkas terakhir yang aku perlukan untuk yudisium adalah nilai TA asli yang bisa diperoleh di sekretariat program studi S1 matematika. Hanya saja, petugasnya yaitu Mba Mira tidak ada!!!

Aku menunggu di dekat pintu masuk ruangan tersebut. Ada colokan listrik, meja, dan kursi di situ. Dengan laptop, semuanya bisa saja jadi sempurna. Yang kurang hanyalah koneksi Wifi yang fungsional.

Sambil duduk dan menyalakan komputer, aku diganggu oleh suara dak-duk-duk dan srek-esrek-srek beberapa tukang bangungan yang sedang merenovasi toilet di belakangku. Bau khas situs konstruksi pun sesekali tercium tajam. Aku menunggu walaupun kedatangan Mba Mira juga “belum pasti”, kata petugas lainnya. Tertulis di meja Mba Mira bahwa dia sedang mengikuti “PELATIHAN DI SMILE GROUP”. Apa mungkin dia kurang ramah ya sehingga dikirim oleh kantor mengikuti pelatihan tersebut :)?

Niatnya, sambil menunggu aku mau menulis komentar tentang kertas pengumuman yang terlihat dari tempatku duduk, tentunya untuk ngejar setoran blog. Tapi saat mulai mengetik, datang teman satu kelompok dari mata kuliah “Pengantar filsafat ilmu dan sejarah matematika” yang dulu pernah kuambil. Dia sudah lulus dengan topik TA aljabar. Saat kutanya lebih lanjut tentang apa yang ditulis, dia memulainya dengan pertanyaan, “Tau ring?” Pertanyaan bagus, yang sayangnya hanya bisa kujawab dengan “Cuma pernah denger.” “Kalau grup?”, tanyanya lagi. “Cuma pernah denger juga.” Setelah tahu bahwa aku tidak mengerti apa-apa tentang aljabar, dia menjelaskan TA-nya dengan sangat bijak dan mudah dimengerti, “Ya, pokoknya tentang sesuatu yang abstrak di aljabar.” Sial, beginilah nasib anak MIPA yang tidak berpendidikan, yang tahunya malah “grup” idol macam Momusu…

Singkatnya, aku akhirnya ngobrol sambil menunggu Mba Mira. Ngomongin pendadaran. Kata anak matematika temanku itu, dia dosen pembimbingnya dua dan dosen pengujinya tiga. Ngomongin wisuda. Katanya dia pernah ngehadirin temen-temennya wisuda, nunggu di luar GSP. Saat momen siiiiing muncul, cuaca pun diobrolin karena kebetulan memang sedang mendung. Dan semua ini berakhir dengan buruk: Mba Mira tidak datang. Karena ini terjadi Jum’at, terpaksa deh menunggu minggu berganti untuk mencari Mba Mira lagi. Tentang pengumuman yang sebetulnya mau kukomentarin, kapan-kapan aja, untuk saat ini kusimpan dulu di “box” bahan blog. Tahu struktur data box kan? First in, random out (karena ngambilnya sambil ngubek-ngubek).

Urusan setelah pendadaran memang repot…

This is Morning Musume’s 16th single (lyrics). An energetic happy song that I really enjoy.

The kanji 会う (あう, to meet) is very common. In this song, I meet (no pun intended) another あう, 逢う. 会う is for meeting someone in a general sense, while according to EDICT 逢う has a more dramatic sense. An example is ここで逢った (koko de atta, I met (my girlfriend) here (for the first time)).

I also already know 超える (こえる, to exceed), but in this soung I found another こえる, 越える. According to Windows XP’s IME, 超える is for quantity or limit, while 越える is for place or time. Some examples:

• 定員を超える (teiin wo koeru): to exceed the passenger capacity (e.g., boat)
• 予想を超える (yosou wo koeru): to exceed expectation
• 国境を越える (kokkyou wo koeru): to go past the country border
• 山を越える (yama wo koeru): to go past the mountains

So, these are the 2 kanji:

逢越

which corresponds to these 2 words:

One essential aspect of learning a language is learning its vocabulary. In my Japanese study, this tranlates into learning kanji which are the building block of many words.

Most kanji are for things I am familiar with. Some examples are 人 (hito, person), 玉 (tama, ball), and 火 (hi, fire). Many are for common animals like 虫 (mushi, insect), 亀 (kame, turtle), and 猫 (neko, cat). Unexpectedly, I quite oftenly encounter kanji for an animal or plant that I have no knowledge about.

An example is 藤 (fuji, tou) which is the kanji for the plant genus Wisteria. It is found on many people’s name, such as 藤本美貴 (Fujimoto Miki), 後藤真希 (Gotou Maki), and 工藤新一 (Kudou Shin’ichi).

Using KANJIDIC or EDICT, I only get a brief description like “wisteria”. That is useless for someone with a shallow knowledge such as me, but enough as a pointer to get more information elsewhere. If I’m not online, my next stop is Stardict, which gives more detail such as “a climbing plant with purple or white flowers”. At least I could know that “Wisteria” is a plant, not something else like “hysteria”. My final stop is of course Wikipedia, which gives detailed descriptions and more importantly, images!

I’ll share some of the new living things I’ve discovered… Do you know them?

Wisteria

In Japanese, it is フジ (藤, fuji). And no, Mount Fuji is written differently. It is native to Japan and other countries including eastern US. It can climb by twisting itself along any available support. As I have written above, it is used on many people’s name. Anyone knows its Indonesian name?

Cicada

In Japanese, it is セミ (蝉, semi). I found it on Berryz Koubou’s song titled “Semi”. It is a family of insect that makes a lot of noise (but it’s different from Cricket). According to Wikipedia Indonesia, the Indonesian name is Tonggeret (never heard it before).

Chrysanthemum

In Japanese, it is キク (菊, kiku). I found it on an author’s name (菊池, Kikuchi) at the digital library Aozora Bunko. In Japan, this plant is a symbol of death and are only used for funerals (which means, don’t give it to your Japanese girlfriend). 菊花紋章 (kikukamonshou) is the name given to the position of Japanese emperor. By the way, I recently went to Moro department store and found a Chrysanthemum product. It is a Chinese product and how happy I was to see the character 菊 written on the box :). The Indonesian name is Seruni (never heard it before too).

Manchurian Violet

In Japanese, it is スミレ (菫, sumire). I also found it on a writer’s name (薄田泣菫, Sasakida Kyuukin, and please don’t ask me what “sasaki” means). Is it also “Violet” in Indonesia?

Japanese Royal Fern

In Japanese, it is ゼンマイ (薇, zenmai). I knew what a fern is, but I was curious whether this fern has a striking difference (nothing striking to a layman like me). Strangely, it is the kanji used in Rose (薔薇, bara), which is where I found it. In Indonesia, ferns are called paku or pakis.

If you want to be able to read people’s name, you’ll be sure to encounter lots of these exotic kanji. It’s almost like they’re forcing us to be a botanist or zoologist. You’ll also find these kanji in songs and literatures (e.g., novels), because writers want to look cool by using obscure characters.

As a closing, note that I use katakana to write the name of the plants and animal above. This is a modern practice, which originates from the scientific community. Even in the Japanese Wikipedia, the article for dog is titled イヌ (inu) despite its kanji 犬 being taught in grade 1 elementary school. It is probably a sensible decision, considering that there are countless living things on Earth.

This is the coupling track of Morning Musume’s 25th single, “THE Manpower!!!”. Heh, I actually like this a lot more than the single itself :). The lyrics itself is quite silly, first being serious and asking questions like “Does peace exist because there is love, or does love exist because there is peace?” but eventually ends with “There’s no answer, so let’s just eat deliciously” :).

4 new kanji:

承蔭継懇

Stats:

• Previous “average new words/song”: 18.96
• New words in this song: 6
• New “average new words/song”: 18.52

And the words:

Also a song from Koharu’s 1st album (lyrics). It is also the coupling track of her first single (Koi ka na). A very nice and enjoyable ballad.

6 new kanji:

悩頬撫膨蕾姿

Stats:

• Previous “average new words/song”: 19.33
• New words in this song: 9
• New “average new words/song”: 18.96

And lastly, the words:

Another song from Koharu’s 1st album (lyrics). This song is quite crazy but also fun.

3 new kanji:

腕駆誘

The stats:

• Previous “average new words/song”: 19.81
• New words in this song: 7
• New “average new words/song”: 19.33

And the words:

A song from Kusumi Koharu’s 1st album, Mitsuboshi (lyrics). Here she stars as the anime character Tsukishima Kirari. The anime name is Kirarin Revolution, and it is about a girl who can’t sing but strives hard to be a singer (she has a romantic motive to be a singer, but I won’t tell much further).

Well, I don’t watch the anime and not a fan of Koharu. However I got the album cover (with kanji lyrics!) and so thought it would be a cool romanization excercise.

The song itself is quite nice.

So, 5 new kanji:

暖匂斯溢飽

The stats:

• Previous “average new words/song”: 20.04
• New words in this song: 14
• New “average new words/song”: 19.81

And 14 words:

(more…)

This is from track 3 of Morning Musume’s 7th album, “Rainbow 7″ (lyrics). A really fun and energizing song, with trumpets and harmonica!

There are 4 new kanji:

眩吹繋輝

The stats:

• Previous “average new words/song”: 20.54
• New words in this song: 8
• New “average new words/song”: 20.04

And the words: