I've run out of witty puns!
So I finally found a Japanese class around here, not sure if I'll stick to it though. It's only once a week and I wanted something a bit more often. All the new students had to take a listening and writing test to see what level we were at.
Basically, we had to listen to an audio CD with some Japanese speakers just talking about their lives, etc. All we had to do was write down what it was in English. But, for the first couple(more than half of the test) of questions, I didn't know what the hell was going on. I was starting to panic, as I was sitting there blankly while EVERYONE else was madly writing stuff down with big smiles on their faces. But when it got near the end of the paper, I suddenly started to understand, and answered pretty much everything(15 questions at the most) from then on. Meanwhile, EVERYONE else was quick to make their confusion and aggravation known aloud to the class, complaining that it was "impossible". So, I'm unsure what this says about me at the moment since I basically just kept my mouth shut.
The speaking test went so badly that I can't help but laugh at myself in retrospect of it all. We were sat directly in front of this huge tape recorder, right at the front of the class, in front of all the other students. My mind just blanked the minute I sat down. I had to read a short paragraph one of the teachers gave me:
Hajimemashite, boku no namae wa Jorge desu. Kyonen, boku to haha wa nihon ni ikimashita. San-gatsu ni ju ichi-nichi ni, hikouki de rondon hiisuroo kuukou kara narita kuukou made kimashita. Tookyo no resutoran wa takai desu yo, demo akachochin wa yasui desu. Dakara boku wa yoku tori udon o tabemashita!
I kept stopping to think after pretty much every word. What's annoying is that I was practicing this stuff ALL DAY, and had it absolutely nailed, but as soon as I sat down ready to speak it all went out of my head. This is the thing about me though - in situations where I'm giving speeches (which thankfully doesn't happen much), my mind ends up thinking about the fact that it has to think, rather than thinking of what it's having to say. To be honest, I probably come across as a stuttering moron when I have to talk in front of large crowds. I had to do it a few weeks ago at a reading in English class...basically it just enforced the thought that I suck at talking in front of crowds larger than ten people. My mind wasn't really able to focus, so I just sort of gave one word answers to everything, made odd noises(uhh, Mhm, Mm...) the entire time.
Anyway, what made everything worse is that all the other students CLAPPED after I had finished reading, and started making comments such as "wow, that was so clear, I could understand everything!". That felt so incredibly patronizing, because it was so blatantly obvious that I'd messed it all up. Unfortunately the only items I had with me at the time were a pencil and an empty plastic cup from the coffee machine, otherwise I'd have just killed myself then and got it over with. Come to think of it, I probably could have rammed the pencil through my eye and into my brain. But considering the luck I've had for the last 17 years, I'd probably have somehow survived as a blind paraplegic.
Tomorrow and Sunday I think I'm actually going to be out most of the day. Have to go across town a lot with my mom and across state...again. We're supposed to leave at like 5 in the morning tomorrow and get back at around 11pm...fun.
Basically, we had to listen to an audio CD with some Japanese speakers just talking about their lives, etc. All we had to do was write down what it was in English. But, for the first couple(more than half of the test) of questions, I didn't know what the hell was going on. I was starting to panic, as I was sitting there blankly while EVERYONE else was madly writing stuff down with big smiles on their faces. But when it got near the end of the paper, I suddenly started to understand, and answered pretty much everything(15 questions at the most) from then on. Meanwhile, EVERYONE else was quick to make their confusion and aggravation known aloud to the class, complaining that it was "impossible". So, I'm unsure what this says about me at the moment since I basically just kept my mouth shut.
The speaking test went so badly that I can't help but laugh at myself in retrospect of it all. We were sat directly in front of this huge tape recorder, right at the front of the class, in front of all the other students. My mind just blanked the minute I sat down. I had to read a short paragraph one of the teachers gave me:
Hajimemashite, boku no namae wa Jorge desu. Kyonen, boku to haha wa nihon ni ikimashita. San-gatsu ni ju ichi-nichi ni, hikouki de rondon hiisuroo kuukou kara narita kuukou made kimashita. Tookyo no resutoran wa takai desu yo, demo akachochin wa yasui desu. Dakara boku wa yoku tori udon o tabemashita!
I kept stopping to think after pretty much every word. What's annoying is that I was practicing this stuff ALL DAY, and had it absolutely nailed, but as soon as I sat down ready to speak it all went out of my head. This is the thing about me though - in situations where I'm giving speeches (which thankfully doesn't happen much), my mind ends up thinking about the fact that it has to think, rather than thinking of what it's having to say. To be honest, I probably come across as a stuttering moron when I have to talk in front of large crowds. I had to do it a few weeks ago at a reading in English class...basically it just enforced the thought that I suck at talking in front of crowds larger than ten people. My mind wasn't really able to focus, so I just sort of gave one word answers to everything, made odd noises(uhh, Mhm, Mm...) the entire time.
Anyway, what made everything worse is that all the other students CLAPPED after I had finished reading, and started making comments such as "wow, that was so clear, I could understand everything!". That felt so incredibly patronizing, because it was so blatantly obvious that I'd messed it all up. Unfortunately the only items I had with me at the time were a pencil and an empty plastic cup from the coffee machine, otherwise I'd have just killed myself then and got it over with. Come to think of it, I probably could have rammed the pencil through my eye and into my brain. But considering the luck I've had for the last 17 years, I'd probably have somehow survived as a blind paraplegic.
Tomorrow and Sunday I think I'm actually going to be out most of the day. Have to go across town a lot with my mom and across state...again. We're supposed to leave at like 5 in the morning tomorrow and get back at around 11pm...fun.