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Topics - Watoad

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1
General Chat / Amazing Unexperiences
« on: October 21, 2005, 12:17:01 PM »
My comment about Top Gun in Doom: The Movie gave me the idea to start a topic about amazing things that people here haven't done. Think about things generally considered to be common experience in (y)our society and culture that you haven't experienced yourself. For example, if you, say, have never eaten at McDonald's, have never waved Hi to a mailman, or have never used a public restroom, then you should definitely mention those things here. Feel free to either post the single most amazing unexperience you've had or list all of the things you haven't done that you think would be surprising.



As for me, I have never . . .



  • played a Final Fantasy game
  • used a PlayStation 2
  • owned a Game Boy/Color game
  • had a Krispy Kreme donut
  • drunk Mountain Dew
  • seen the movie Titanic
  • gone fishing


2
Right now I'm staying with my second and final host family in Japan. Unlike my previous one, this family has a kid—though he is grown up and moved away now. When he was younger he was quite a gamer, reportedly staying up until 5:00 a.m. every night playing games (during times of vacation).



Now that he is older, he has moved onto playing Internet PC games, and his collection of Game Boy, Famicom, Famicom Disk System, and Super Famicom games sit in a box and patiently wait for nasty, gray dirt particles to land on them. My host mother said that all of this stuff will be going to the dump (well, incinerator) if I don't want any of it. Since their son is now 29, it's pretty amazing that all of the stuff has lasted as long as it has—or maybe it just means that dust and decay rather than dump and destruction is their doom.



While I would rather see either of the two above scenarios carried out before trying to take all of it back with me, I'll provide a list of all the games here in case there happens to be anything that someone (like MEGAߥTE, who I know collects Japanese Nintendo games) would want, or that is particularly valuable. So if you could provide me with a little assistance, even if it's only a, "It's all a bunch of junk," then I'd really appreciate it.



The only thing that I'll be keeping myself is the tiny bit of cassette tape Dragon Quest music that I found amongst the games. Although I could take home the family's Super Famicom and actually be able to play some of the games, I don't actually have either the time or the luggage space to do that. So although it isn't listed below, a Super Famicom is the sole system among the pile of plastic that my host family no longer wants. (It and Dragon Quest VI are the only things that I have tested and confirmed to be in working order.)



The reason that I need help is that I am not at all familiar with Japanese versions of games. As a result, I am largely unfamiliar with the Japanese and English equivalents of their names. So rather than mess with incorrect translations or crossovers, I'll simply put in English what should obviously be (or already is) English and romanize the rest (italics).



I don't know why, but the games' respective conditions vary greatly. This is not to say just that some seem more used that others, but also that some games are more complete than others. So although I won't go to the extreme trouble of ranking the wear on the cartridges, I will let you know of what each game actually consists. The three items of consistence are the cartridge itself (marked by C), the instruction manual (M), and the box (B).





Game Boy【ゲームボーイ】


  • F★1 Race(F1 Reesu)【F1レース】 – CMB
  • Fastest Lap(Faasutesuto Rappu)【ファーステスト・ラップ】 – CMB
  • Makai Doushi Sa•Ga(Makai Doushi Sa•Ga)【魔界塔士 サ・ガ】 – CMB
  • Nekketsu Koukou Soccerbu: World Cuphen(Nekketsu Koukou Sakkaabu: Waarudo Kappuhen)【熱血高校サッカー部:ワールドカップ編】 – CMB
  • Sa•Ga 2 . . .(Sa•Ga 2: Hihou Densetsu)【サ・ガ2:秘宝伝説】 – CMB
  • SD Gundam SD . . .(SD Gandamu SD Senkokuden: Kunitori Monogatari)【SDガンダムSD戦国伝:国盗り物語】 – CMB
  • Super Toudairou Dentetsu【Super桃大郎電鉄】 – CMB





Famicom【ファミリー コンピュータ】


  • 4nin Uchi Maajan【4人打ち麻雀】 – CB
  • Baseball(Beesubooru)【ベースボール】 – C
  • Best Play Baseball(Besuto Puree Puroyakyuu)【ベストプレープロ野球】 – CMB
  • Bokosuka Wars – C
  • Captain . . .(Kyaputen Tsubasa)【キャプテン翼】 – MB
  • Captain Tsubasa: Super Striker II(Kyaputen Tsubasa: Suupaa Sutoraikaa II)【キャプテン翼:スーパーストライカーⅡ】 – CMB
  • Downtown . . .(Dauntaun Nekketsu Koushinkyoku: Soreyuke Daiundoukai)【ダウンタウン熱血行進曲:それゆけ大運動会】 – CMB
  • Downtown Special . . .(Dauntaun Supesharu ♥ Kuniokun no Jidaigeki da yo Seninshuugou!)【ダウンタウンスペシャル♥くにおくんの時代劇だよ全員集合!】 – CMB
  • Dragon Ball . . .(Doragon Booru: Daimaou Fukkatsu)【ドラゴンボール:大魔王復活】 – C
  • Dragon Quest III . . .(Doragon Kuesuto III: Soshite Densetsu e...)【ドラゴン クエストⅢ:そして伝説へ・・・】 – CMB
  • Dragon Quest IV . . .(Doragon Kuesuto IV: Michihikareshi Monotachi)【ドラゴン クエストⅣ:導かれし者たち】 – MB
  • Excite Bike(Ekisaito Baiku)【エキサイトバイク】 – CB
  • Family Stadium ’89 . . .(Famisuta ’89: Kaimakuban!!)【ファミスタ’89:開幕版!!】 – CMB
  • Family Stadium ’91(Famisuta ’91)【ファミスタ’91】 – CMB
  • Family Tennis(Famirii Tenisu)【ファミリーテニス】 – CB
  • Faxanadu(Fazanadu)【ファザナドゥ】 – CMB
  • Final Fantasy III(Fainaru Fantashii III)【ファイナルファンタシーⅢ】 – CMB
  • Gambare Goemon! Karakuri Douchuu【がんばれゴエモン!からくり道中】 – CB
  • Hayauchi Suupaa Igo【早打ちスーパー囲碁】 – CMB
  • Hori Commander Black [controller](Hori Komandaa Burakku)【ホリコマンダー ブラック】 – CB
  • Hyper Olympic(Haipaa Orimpikku)【ハイパーオリンピック】 – C
  • Kinnikuman: Muscle Tag Match(Kinnikuman: Massuru Taggu Matchi)【キン肉マン:マッスルタッグマッチ】 – C
  • Mag Max(Magu Makkusu)【マグマックス】 – CB
  • Mappy(Mappii)【マッピー】 – C
  • Meijinsen【名人戦】 – CMB
  • Moeero!! Pro Soccer(Moeero!! Purosakkaa)【燃えろ!!プロサッカー】 – C
  • Nekketsu Koukou Dodgeballbu: Soccerhen(Nekketsu Koukou Dojjiboorubu: Sakkaahen)【熱血高校ドッジボール部:サッカー編】 – CMB
  • Nobunaga no Yabou: Zen • Kuni • Han【信長の野望:全・国・版】 – CMB
  • Raid on Bungeling Bay(Bangeringu Bei)【バンゲリング ベイ】 – CB
  • SD Gundam World . . .(SD Gandamu Waarudo Gachapon Senshi 2: Kapuseru Senki)【SDガンダムワールド ガチャポン戦士2:カプセル戦記】 – CMB
  • Seinto Seiya: Ougon Densetsu【聖闘士星矢:黄金伝説】 – CMB
  • Seinto Seiya: Ougon Densetsu Kanketsuhen【聖闘士星矢:黄金伝説完結編】 – C
  • Shin Moero!! Puroyakyuu【新燃えろ!!プロ野球】 – CMB
  • Spartan X(Suparutan X)【スパルタンX】 – CB
  • Star Soldier(Sutaa Sorujaa)【スターソルジャー】 – CB
  • Super Mario Bros.(Suupaa Mario Burazaazu【スーパーマリオブラザーズ】 – B
  • Super Mario Bros. 3(Suupaa Mario Burazaazu 3【スーパーマリオブラザーズ3】 – B
  • Super Real Baseball ’88(Suupaa Riaru Beesubooru ’88)【スーパーリアル ベースボール’88】 – CMB
  • Super Xevious . . .(Suupaa Zebiusu: Gampu no Nazo)【スーパーゼビウス:ガンプの謎】 – CB
  • The Tower of Druaga(Doruaaga no Tou)【ドルアーガの塔】 – C
  • Urban Champion(Aaban Champion)【アーバンチャンピオン】 – C





Famicom Disk System【ファミリー コンピュータ ディスク システム】


  • Exciting Baseball(Ekisaitingu Beesubooru)【エキサイティング ベースボール】 – M
  • Famicom Grand Prix F1 Race(Famicon Gurampuri F1 Reesu)【ファミコン グランプリ F1レース】 – M
  • Golf: Japan Course(Gorufu: Japan Koosu)【ゴルフ:ジャパン コース】 – CM
  • Golf: US Course(Gorufu: Yuuesu Koosu)【ゴルフ:ユーエス コース】 – MB
  • The Hyrule Fantasy: Zelda's . . .(The Hyrule Fantasy: Zeruda no Densetsu)【The Hyrule Fantasy:ゼルダの伝説】 – CMB
  • Igo【囲碁】 – CMB
  • The Legend of Zelda 2: Link's . . .(The Legend of Zelda 2: Rinku no Bouken)【The Legend of Zelda 2:リンクの冒険】 – M
  • Metroid(Metoroido)【メトロイド】 – CMB
  • Professional Wrestling(Puroresu)【プロレス】 – M
  • Volleyball(Bareebooru)【バレーボール】 – M





Super Famicom【スーパー ファミコン】


  • Chrono Trigger(Kurono Torigaa)【クロノ・トリガー】 – MB
  • Dragon Ball Z 2: Super . . .(Doragon Booru Z 2: Suupaa Butouden)【ドラゴンボールZ2:超武闘伝】 – CMB
  • Dragon Quest VI . . .(Doragon Kuesuto VI: Maboroshi no Daichi)【ドラゴン クエストⅥ:幻の大地】 – C
  • Final Fantasy V(Fainaru Fantashii V)【ファイナルファンタシーⅤ】 – MB
  • Final Fantasy VI(Fainaru Fantashii VI)【ファイナルファンタシーⅥ】 – CMB
  • Jikkyou Pawafuru Puroyakyuu【実況 パワフルプロ野球】 – C
  • Kuniokun no Dodgeball . . .(Kuniokun no Dojjibooru da yo Seninshuugou!)【くにおくんのドッジボールだよ全員集合!】 – CMB
  • NBA Pro Basketball: Bulls vs Blazers and the NBA Playoffs(NBA Puro Basukettobooru)【NBA プロ バスケットボール】 – CB
  • Puro Maajan Kiwame III【プロ麻雀極Ⅲ】 – CMB
  • Romancing Sa•Ga(Romanshingu Sa•Ga)【ロマンシング サ・ガ】 – CMB
  • Romancing Sa•Ga 2(Romanshingu Sa•Ga 2)【ロマンシング サ・ガ2】 – MB
  • SD Gundam 2 . . .(SD Gandamu 2: Kidou Senshi)【SDガンダム2:機動戦士】 – CB
  • SD Gundam GX(SD Gandamu GX)【SDガンダムGX】 – CMB
  • SD Gundam X: Super Champion World(SD Gandamu X)【SDガンダムX】 – CMB
  • Sangokushi III【三國志Ⅲ】 – CB
  • Sangokushi IV【三國志Ⅳ】 – MB
  • Street Fighter II: The World Warrior(Sutoriito Faitaa II)【ストリートファイターⅡ】 – CMB
  • Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting(Sutoriito Faitaa II Taabo)【ストリートファイターⅡターボ】 – MB
  • Super Formation Soccer(Suupaa Foomeeshon Sakkaa)【スーパーフォーメーションサッカー】 – CMB
  • Teitoku no Ketsudan II【提督の決断Ⅱ】 – M





Game Music【ゲームサントラ】


  • Suite Dragon Quest II [KSF-1486](Doragon Kuesuto no Sekai "Doragon Kuesuto II: Akuryou no Kamigami")【ドラゴン クエストの世界「ドラゴン クエストⅡ:悪霊の神々」】 – Only the cassette is missing
  • Symphonic Suite Dragon Quest III [KLA-1567](Koukyou Kumikyoku Doragon Kuesuto III: Soshite Densetsu e...)【交響組曲ドラゴン クエストⅢ:そして伝説へ・・・】
  • Symphonic Suite Dragon Quest IV [APTG-9001](Koukyou Kumikyoku Doragon Kuesuto IV: Michihikareshi Monotachi)【交響組曲ドラゴン クエストⅣ:導かれし者たち】





Should someone want one or more of these, then I might be able to bring it/them back with me. However, my luggage is already overpacked, so shipping (which is expensive) would probably be the only option. Also, this list unfortunately took me much longer to make than I expected it would (nothing unusual there), and not much time remains before I'll be leaving. My departure time is Thursday morning (Japan time), so that makes a deadline of, oh, I guess Tuesday afternoon or so (U.S. time). Maybe a little too rushed . . .



Well, perhaps this post will prove to be a waste of time, but at least I learned some new Japanese words and characters from making it. Also, I'm finding English more difficult to write (well) because I haven't used it much lately, and I'm really glad to have had a little practice. So no harm done. ;D

















"He is not a fool who gives up what he cannot keep for the sake of what he can never lose."


3
General Chat / Your Dream Displacement Machine
« on: April 12, 2005, 05:52:01 PM »
While most of us here aren't car freaks, I imagine that at least a few of this board's citizens have their eyes set on certain dreamy vehicles that they would love to get their hands on if their circumstances ever allowed it. Are you one of those? If so, then please share with everyone what strikes your fancy—and maybe even why.



Please also take this topic seriously. If your dream machine really is a DeLorean or an Oscar Mayer weiner mobile, then fine; but please don't make bogus posts about vehicles that don't really matter all that much to you. If you're thinking of mentioning something that is impossible to obtain, like the Batmobile, then you're missing the point of this topic. Financial impossibility is one thing, but fantasy cars are another.



Finally, pictures are welcome!





Okay, here's mine (you don't have to follow this format if you don't want to):



Make: Caterham

Model: Super Seven Roadsport SV (Special Version)

Year: N/A

Color: Metallic Blue

Cost: $35,000 to $40,000

Reasons for the Dream: The car is tiny, handles very well, looks great, and would be a thrill to drive. And it's a convertible.









"He is not a fool who gives up what he cannot keep for the sake of what he can never lose."


4
Site Discussion / TMK @ E3
« on: January 22, 2005, 12:12:49 PM »

Read it and weep. Or that's what I'll be doing if no one replies to this topic, at least.



Normally I do not post e-mails on the Internet for everyone to see, but somehow it seemed appropriate for this occasion. And the two messages below reveal nothing that everyone didn't already know (that Chup and I like game music, and that I have issues with priorities and stuff), anyway. As for the subject line, it's something of an inside joke that no one else here would get, so don't ask. ;)







Here's a shot of me to maybe get this topic off to a better start—and also because I don't look anything like the picture on my e-mail above.





Posts from all are welcome, but I'm most concerned about getting input from those planning on taking the trip themselves.



“Hey, lemme borrow your bike. C’mon, I’ll give you some chips.”


5
General Chat / My First Essays about Japanese
« on: December 19, 2004, 02:27:59 AM »

The death status lingers yet, but I have something to share with you that six feet of stale earth for some reason does not care to suppress. Maybe it has you in mind, hoping that you might learn a thing or two from what I have to contribute. I couldn't tell you for sure, I guess.



For one of my classes last quarter—JAPAN 342: The Japanese Language (an introduction to the linguistic study of Japanese)—I had to electronically submit four essays as a final assignment. If you know me, as perhaps none of you does quite well enough, then you know that I dread writing essays and long papers. A sad result of this usually is that I leave writing assignments undone until the night before they are due, and then stay up extremely late, trying to complete them so I can get some kind of a grade.



Such was the case with these four essays that I had to write, which means that they are not of the highest caliber. Yet even though this is true, I am going to post three of them here for anyone interested to read. The reason is that I know several people here are studying Japanese like I am, and they might be able to learn a few things about it from reading the first two; from the third one you have the opportunity to learn a little bit more about me and my personal interest in Japanese.



The electronic submission worked in such a way that it made sense to me not to title the essays, so I'll post them here without the titles that they don't have. Below each essay I'll provide readings (that is, pronunciations) and English definitions/explanations for the Japanese words contained within.



I apologize for having written these things so last-minute—or maybe just for being a big bum in general when it comes to essays—but I hope you can get something out of them.





The complexity of Japanese runs deeper than a nonnative speaker, even after years of study, might realize.It does not take long to learn that the language is spoken very differently to different audiences, with people who deserve special respect and others who are close friends requiring greatly varied versions of the same tongue.But the extent to which these versions differ is amazing, and it can catch the unsuspecting learner off guard.



The complex category of 若者言葉 is part of the more familiar (that is, less formal) side of Japanese and is likely to be wholly unknown to people who haven’t visited Japan.Used pretty much exclusively by young people, this group of words is most closely related to what in English is called “slang.”However, whereas slang is often looked down upon in English as being substandard and unnecessary, 若者言葉 serve specific and important functions for the people who use them.And even before that, they formed and continue to change over time by way of following certain linguistic rules, not by arbitrary happenstance.



Fashion is not the only indicator of whether a Japanese considers him- or herself to belong to a younger or older generation.Without even seeing someone it is possible to glean with which generation the individual affiliates by observing how he or she speaks.This is especially true with the Japanese language because 若者言葉, which are a red flag for people of the younger generation, specifically function to discriminate against outsiders.They work kind of like a sub-language within the mother language, similar perhaps to the many and various dialects found throughout Japan.



Dialects by their nature indicate where the speakers of them are from, but 若者言葉 communicate by design that their speakers are hip, sophisticated, and up-to-date.They are meant to, in a way, reflect the speakers’ lives, to show what they think is cool.The short words that compose this category generally have unexpected sounds, such as ガッピューン, and thus deviate from the norm just like the users of them enjoy doing.



And while giving young people another avenue through which to assert their uniqueness, 若者言葉 make life easier also by making unpleasant or awkward things more pleasant to talk about.They offer new, less direct terminology with which these socially difficult things can be encoded, making them relatively painless to discuss.An example of this is the word なんぱする, which alludes to having sex by making reference to a certain group of people considered to be particularly interested in that action.



The younger age group that makes use of 若者言葉 was originally responsible for bringing it into existence, but they did so rather unintentionally.Along the same lines as the introduction of 外来語, college students of the past brought about the young person’s speech by mincing different languages together.One of the things they studied in school was foreign languages, and they used this newfound knowledge to set themselves apart from the rest of society.Instead of using normal Japanese terms like everyone else, they decided to speak foreign words to each other that only they could understand.These words, or versions of them, were eventually adopted into the Japanese language—at least by the younger generation—and became the building blocks for 若者言葉.



Today 若者言葉 consist of more than just borrowings from foreign languages—otherwise they would be virtually indistinguishable from 外来語.At the most basic level, these words either are entirely new or are derived from other words already in existence.It is in the latter of these two courses that the application of linguistic rules is clearly apparent.Words from either Japanese or other languages are in some specific way changed when they become 若者言葉.For example, the Japanese word むずかしい is simply shortened to むずい.Or from the English proper noun “Denny’s” the verb デニる is formed by adding the verbal suffix る.Through a multitude of different word alterations and combinations, standard words of Japanese and other languages are made worthy of 若者言葉 and are added to their ranks.



In a language that is constantly changing, 若者言葉 are perhaps the epitome of what makes Japanese difficult for outsiders to learn and use.After coming to a level of proficiency with the language, one must remain at work to fight the never-ending battle of staying up-to-date.




若者言葉(わかものことば):Japanese slang words, basically; young people's vocabulary

ガッピューン(がっぴゅうん):shock

なんぱする:the original meaning of なんぱ, I think, has something to do with a group of guys more interested in literature than politics

外来語(がいらいご):loanwords

むずかしい:difficult

むずい:difficult

デニる(でにる):to go to Denny's





English—often assailed for being an unnecessarily difficult language due to inconsistency and its tendency not to follow its own rules—would be much harder if it branched out and tried to incorporate another language into itself.It would perhaps be so difficult, in fact, that many people would just give up on it and switch to one of the world’s thousands of other languages.As such, it is unimaginable that this great undertaking would ever occur.



Yet with a language that many have argued is even harder than English this very thing has been happening for quite some time.A flood of words from various foreign languages have bombarded Japanese, many of them passing through cracks in the storm gates and emerging on the other side in a shape more usable to native Japanese speakers.These loanwords, called 外来語, are useful in Japanese, but even though they are significantly changed from the original words that they come from to better fit the rules of Japanese, many Japanese believe they pose a problem, or even a threat, to their language.



Starting with Portuguese, but now drawing mainly from English, Japanese adds words to its own vocabulary by simply taking them from the vocabularies of other languages.The reason that the cracks in the storm gates aren’t patched up, and that this mass importation is allowed to happen, is that the imported words fill an important gap in Japanese lexicon.With the rise of new technologies, concepts, and ideas, new words are needed to label them.In Japanese it is often easier to bring in foreign words for these things than to make up new, native words for them.アメフト, for example, seemed easier for the Japanese to deal with than coining an entirely new word like, perhaps, 米国技.



However, now that 外来語 have reached an alarming level of about ten percent of the language’s vocabulary, this easy solution is feeling to many more like a troublesome burden.Many loanwords do not make the essential trip from esoteric to mainstream use, and they resultantly are the cause of misunderstanding and frustration.Another result of this, though, is that the proportion of 外来語 in Japanese does not really climb any higher.New words are forgotten and pass out of use at about the same rate that even newer ones come in to give the minds of Japanese speakers a whirl.外来語 are thus sort of regulating themselves at this level, and the Japanese government has yet to step in and directly regulate their usage.



What has made it possible for the proportion of 外来語 to balloon as much as it has is how much the loanwords are changed from their original languages to fit the needs of Japanese.When a word is imported, it takes along with it just the single meaning for which it is being brought in, and not any of the other meanings it has in its original language.The word ストライク, for instance, refers only to a strike in baseball.When workers go on strike, the slightly different ストライキ must be used instead.But to tell someone to strike a match, only a native word, like 擦る, will work.



The words themselves are also changed to fit within the phonological rules of Japanese and to make them easier to pronounce.Sometimes they’re shortened and combined, like “word processor” into ワープロ, or are affixed with Japanese elements, as is the case with サボる.This way the words fit into both regular Japanese sentences and the standard Japanese-speaking mouth.



Despite the adaptations undergone by loanwords to make them flow a little more smoothly with the foreign tongue around them, language reformers and many in the Japanese government see 外来語 as enemy number one.To them the useful service they provide hardly outweighs the threat that they perceive these words bring to the beauty of native Japanese.This language that is based in foreign origin has, after many centuries, survived the incredible challenge of taking in so much Chinese and making it distinctly Japanese.Those wary of 外来語 simply don’t want to wait hundreds of years more before Japanese can once again be called a language of its own.




外来語(がいらいご):words (語) that come (来) from foreign (外) origins; loanwords (words normally written in katakana)

アメフト(あめふと):American football

米国技(べいこくぎ):America's national sport. Note that this is not a real word; I made it up by combining 米国(べいこく), the native Japanese word for America, and 国技(こくぎ), which means "national sport."

ストライク(すとらいく):strike in baseball

ストライキ(すとらいき):strike posed by disgruntled workers

擦る(する):to strike (a match)

ワープロ(わあぷろ):word processor

サボる(さぼる):to skip class (from the word "sabotage")





My favorite element of JAPAN 342 was learning why things are the way that they are in the Japanese language.There is an endless list of things about Japanese that mystify me, but in this class I was able to check off a few more items on that list.Whether it was learning a little bit about 連濁, seeing why there are so many different readings for 漢字, or for the first time learning the names of things that I’d been using all along, like 送り仮名, I am grateful for each little confusion of my that has been cleared away.In my study of Japanese I come across countless things that I must just accept as the way things are, but in JAPAN 342 I got some greater insight into a few of those things.



What I hope to do in life is probably impossible, but I’m going to try to do it, anyway:I desire to become as proficient with Japanese at some point as I am with English right now.My study of Japanese started typically late for an American, and those precious early years when picking up language is easy were long gone before then.So what’s ahead of me is one very difficult task, one at which I’m not sure how many people have been successful.What I know is that most people who study a foreign language get to a certain level of proficiency that is certainly good, but they can never rival a native, educated speaker.



Since this is my goal, crazy though it may be, most everything that helps me to get there interests me greatly.Some of the more scientific things in linguistics will not really help me because I didn’t learn any of those things about English, either.My level of proficiency with English, however good it actually is, exists primarily from extensive practice with the language.And so practice with Japanese is something that I love.When I learn practical things about it and about how it works, I can feel myself getting just a tiny bit closer to where I’m trying to go.



Ultimately what my quest will require is living in Japan—for a long time, maybe even the remainder of my life.Even this will not guarantee me achievement, though.What it really, truly comes down to is whether I have been blessed with a mind than can handle this task.I will probably discover the answer to that sometime while I’m in Japan.But right now I cannot go there, so I’d like to learn as much as I can about the workings of Japanese here in the U.S., and that’s where the content of interest in JAPAN 342 comes in.Every time it brought me from understanding that something about Japanese is true to understanding why it is, it did just exactly what I wanted it to.



I don’t think that this class brought me any closer to being able to think in Japanese, but an intuitive understanding of or feeling for the language is less than I need, anyway.With English I was way beyond that stage a long time ago, but I have been learning important things ever since, and there is still a lot that I do not know.So JAPAN 342, although not a regular language course, contained a lot of information that I need to know if I’m going to someday come to a real understanding of this complex and most interesting entity.




連濁(れんだく):euphonic change of unvoiced to voiced sound1

漢字(かんじ):kanji (lit. Chinese characters)

送り仮名(おくりがな):the kana in a word that contains both kanji and kana. For example, in the word 食べる, meaning "to eat," べる is the 送り仮名.



If you are interested enough in Japan-related things to read this far, then you would most certainly enjoy reading the following excerpt from Learning to Bow, a fascinating book about Japan.




Beethoven’s Ninth is to Japan what “Auld Lang Syne” is to the West. This soaring, romantic opus was played in Japan by triumphant American soldiers at the end of the Second World War and has remained ever since as the symbolic music of closings. It is such a perennial best-seller that the Japanese inventors of the compact disc system designed the CD to be seventy-two minutes long so it could hold the symphony in its entirety (120).




Note to Chupperson: Progress continues with the 13,881 words you asked me to read. Once they have all passed at least once through my eyes, I will send more of my spontaneous, digital literature to your modem.



Except for quotations, all of the stuff in this post is © Errol Cleary, now and forever. I of course don't care if you use or quote this information, but please be a reasonable person by not taking any of my work and submitting it to others as your own.

Edited by - Watoad on 12/19/2004 12:33:53 AM


6
General Chat / The best $324.12 I've ever spent
« on: May 02, 2004, 12:11:02 AM »





Yes, I can. These 300-dollar QuietComfort 2 Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones I just got are good. Their sound quality is superior to that of any other headphones I've tried before, and it is possibly better than any reproduced sound I've ever heard, period.



Then add noise canelling—that actually works. When there is no audio playing, the noise cancelling dampens unwanted sound but doesn't block it out completely. However, when I'm listening to something, the world just disappears. I can't hear myself typing right now (the only thing I can hear is game music), and I was unable to hear my dad and brother as they were cracking jokes about me earlier tonight from just a few feet away. I can't wait to try these things out on a plane flight.



Below are some shots taken a little while ago (I'm sitting in the same place right now as I was when the photos were taken). I hope they, uh, help you or something. I can't really show you what the headphones sound like, so . . . you get pictures instead!!
























"Greetings from Belgium, the only country in Europe where the leading source of natural gas is the local dairy farm."


7
General Chat / What do you like on your pizza?
« on: April 22, 2004, 12:03:11 AM »
The inspiration for this topic is obvious. It seemed like too good of a topic to pass up, so I decided to post it even though there are other topics out there screaming at me (that is, telling me to reply to the replies to my posts). Oh—and Lizard's e-mail . . . I seriously at this moment just remembered about it. Ahcgtch~!! *^^*



Anyway, to the topic question. My answer would be most anything, I think; I can't really think of any pizza topping I've had that I don't like. (This is not to say, however, that I've tried everything, for I certainly haven't.) Barbecue chicken and Hawaiian pizzas are really good, as is just about anything that you can order at CPK (California Pizza Kitchen). As for toppings in general, perhaps my favorite combination is mushrooms, olives, and light cheese.



Okay, that's it for me. Your turn!



"Greetings from Belgium, the only country in Europe where the leading source of natural gas is the local dairy farm."


8
General Chat / Text Art
« on: March 30, 2004, 03:00:05 AM »
Here are some cool "text art" things. Both are stolen from other places. The castle comes from someplace in the past, and the Yoshi comes from Luigison, who stole it from someone else. Feel free to make text art contributions of your own, or just to look at what I've posted.



(Note: The castle looks best if you have the Courier or Courier New fonts on your computer.)










~~~

~~_----|

----|_----|]-I-II-I-[________

___/\____---||----|\`'/]I-I-II-I-I[

]-I-I--I-I-[---||||.`|~~~\_`'__/

\_`'__/|/\||/^\|~~~|~_[],|

[&]`|^/^\^||&||_|______|_

&#124;__’&#124;/&#92;/^^`&#92;/&#92;&#124;===&#124;<=-=-==-=-=>

___&#124;___’&#124;__/^/=_=_=_=&#92;^&#92;&#124;,`_&#124;~~&#92;___'_/

I_I__I_I__I_I(====(_________)_^___&#124;___&#124;___~~&#124;._&#124;

&#92;-&#92;--&#124;-&#124;--/-/&#124;.I[&]__II_I&#124;_II&#124;I_I&#124;_&#124;

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__/&#124;'v..&#124;&#92;&#124;&#124;&#124;//&#124;_______&#124;&#92;&#92;&#124;&#124;&#124;/&#124;..Y..&#124;&#92;_________________/-...&#92;__

.........










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“Hey, Strong Bad. You jumped over some u’ my busses.”

Edited by - Watoad on 3/31/2004 10:24:28 PM


9
Mario Chat / The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! News
« on: March 24, 2004, 06:10:44 PM »
Anyone who is interested in The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, particularly those who want to see more of it on DVD, would do well do read a news article about it that was posted earlier today. I myself don't care too much about the show, but I know that there are people out there who really like it. If you're one of them, enjoy!



This is my second topic in GMc, and my first that actually belongs here. Heh.



“Hey, Strong Bad. You jumped over some u’ my busses.”


10
General Chat / Rules
« on: January 02, 2004, 03:11:06 AM »
Hello, best message board on the planet. It makes me happy to be back in your presence, most especially because you're not the reason I'm here. My appearance can be explained by some of those who still belong to this place, but not by the system itself.



It isn't necessary for me to explain exactly what I'm talking about to those who don't understand because I think I said it all well enough in my self-titled "resignation post." If you read what I wrote there, you'll probably wonder about the second-to-last sentence:


I can say to you now, with almost nary a regret, that the Fungi Forums will not see the likes of me again.


Well, here I am. Kinda going against what I said, aren't I? Perhaps. But I prefer, in this situation, to take the words very literally so that they will not make me out to be a liar&#151;you'll have to decide for yourself whether to adopt a similar interpretation of them. I said that this message board "will not see the likes of me again," and so far it hasn't. The Watoad standing before you now is not the Watoad of the past. I am not addicted to these forums or using more time at them than I can really afford. Although it is too soon to conclusively say that this is true, I'll go ahead and claim that I am now posting reasonably, spending only as much time with you good people as I can&#151;just as I should have done in the first place.



This claim that I believe to be a truthful statement is where some important particulars, which I like to call "Rules," lay in wait of enumeration. All that this post really "does" is allow me, from this point onward, to reply to threads as I will without causing anyone confusion as to where on Earth I came from. What this post doesn't "do" is hint that you can expect me to be posting regularly again. Read now my Rules:


  • Most generally, I will post only as time allows. I am usually very busy doing many different things, so my posting here will have a lot to contend with.
  • This could be my final post. In other words, I cannot guarantee that I'll reply to any particular topic or at any certain time. If I have time and the desire, then I'll post. If not, then I won't.
  • As further explanation of the previous point, I will not necessarily be able to follow up on any responses that you might make to any post of mine (including my own topics). That means I may not even reply to any posts placed in this very thread.
  • Whether or not I say anything has no impact on whether I'm reading what others post. It takes me more time to write posts than to read them, but it may often (or always) be the case that I don't have time even for the latter activity. Thus, if you post something for me to read, I cannot guarantee that I'll see it (or even know of your post's existence).
  • It is my hope that you don't see me as a complete flake because of what I'm saying. I am simply trying to build a protective fence around myself before I fall back into the deep hole that took me so long to climb out of.
  • I give you my apology in advance, should I ever fail to read a post that is written for me or post a response where my input would be appreciated&#151;I do not desire that either should happen. These Rules warn of what could happen, not foretell what will happen.


Hopefully my last two Rules counter the first four well enough to assure you that I my intentions are pure, and that I really do like it here.



It is not simply because I like the Fungi Forums that I decided to post again. The real reasons reside with Lizard Dude and Chupperson, to whom I dedicate this post for what it's worth. Lizard Dude has been encouraging me in a non-pushy way to post here again, and he helped me to agree with him by appropriately leaving a November #TMK chat with this quit message: "I have the feeling Watoad -will- post under his own name once more...someday." After he said that, I wanted to prove him right. Then, the following month, he mailed me a Christmas card, and my determination to post at least one more time solidified. It was then only a matter of when I would get the chance, and that ended up being now.



Chupperson's importance is possibly not as marked as Lizard's, but it has been around for longer. After I disappeared from this place, my only connection with it for much of the time (before the instatement of TMK's chat room) was with Chupperson. He and I continued to communicate, but if we hadn't, I may have become distanced enough from here to never be seen within its pages again.



Well, technically speaking, half of me hasn't actually been seen here at all. I have shown a few people pictures of myself, but I haven't posted even one of them for everyone to see. Now I'm going to change that, more or less; you will have the opportunity to see both sides of me for what they really are. You may think of this as a long-overdue tribute to my "legacy" here, or as a token of my earnestness in not wanting to be rude in spite of my potentially off-putting Rules, or just as a way to spice up this post of mine. I'll leave that up to you. Here is a brief movie that I hope you will enjoy:



Since it is true that I may not be able to post again, I may as well go ahead and list all of the members who, for one reason or another, mean something to me and made sad to be gone. Besides, it feels like a pretty good way to conclude this post. If you aren't included, it probably just means that I left before I had the chance to meet you (though I'm not perfect, so an oversight is possible). Also, this list refers only to what I have experienced in the forums, and not in the chat room.



Chupperson Weird, Sapphira, Luigison, Lizard Dude, Black Mage, Insane Steve, Fifth, Deezer, The Big Boo, CharginChuck, Gooch, jjf8420, Pink King Boo, CashCrazed, Dairy King, Yoshizu, Mario Maniac, DavidDayton, Screech, frostbite, goodie, and Chocobo.

11
Video Game Chat / Top 10 Reasons GCN beats the pants off PS2 & Xbox!
« on: July 11, 2003, 01:27:57 PM »
Yet another NEWBIEâ„¢ enters your ranks! Well, I am a NEWBIEâ„¢, aren't I? Surely someone who has never posted a topic in General Mario chat before is one of those. This is my inaugural thread in in GMc, you know . . . and, at the same time, it is also very likely my final post in this forum.


I'm posting because an amazing thing has happened. In its June 2003 issue (Volume 169), Nintendo Power published an article much needed by some of the members of this board. There have been several debates here over the three gaming consoles, and NP has now provided what I  consider to be significant support for the Nintendo GameCube. Yet no one has posted the cool article and spread the word! I'm here to fix that, to get this excellent list of arguments on the Web so that it might start circulating to other, much more war-torn areas of the digital realm.


It is in honor of Mario Maniac, who posted about 150% of all previous console debate topics, that I have decided to put this post in General Mario chat where it doesn't belong. Enjoy and be enlightened by it!











IN DEFENSE OF NINTENDO GAMECUBE


You've probably seen the arguments raging on Internet chats and bulletin boards about which console is the best or what game is the hottest.  Some misguided gamers think the Nintendo GameCube is a toy for tots.  On the contrary:  Players of all ages revere Nintendo games, and some of the best Mature-rated games are exclusive to GCN.  At Nintendo Power, we think it's a tragedy when gamers turn away from pure gaming excellence because they're afraid of what someone might say.  The next time a deluded gaming guru tells you that the GCN is lame, refer him or her to Nintendo Power's...



Top 10 Reasons GCN beats the pants off PS2 and Xbox!









10.



The handle.  Okay, so it's a little goofy, but imagine trying to take an Xbox with you to a friend's house or on vacation.  You would need an industrial crane and a parking permit.










9.



It only plays games.  That's right.  Anyone who tells you that playing DVDs on a game console is a benefit has never had someone monopolize the machine for hours playing Meg Ryan movies while the rental game you have to return in three hours gathers dust.










8.



It's more powerful than PS2.  PS2 has slower processors and its graphics are noticeably inferior to the GCN's.  Sorry—there's nothing very funny about that.










7.



Gone platinum.  The Platinum GCN is a work of art, shiny and sophisticated.  PS2 and Xbox look like every other piece of electronics hardware created in the past 20 years, and dust really shows up on those black casings.










6.



Controller design.  The PS2 Controller has way too many buttons, and the Xbox Controller was designed for a giant or an octopus.  Ah, but the GCN Controller is elegant and practical—and extension of the human spirit; an epiphany in plastic; the ultimate interface between mind, body and technology.










5.



Experience.  Nintendo has consistently produced the highest quality video games for more than two decades dating back to Donkey Kong.  You can bet that Nintendo will continue to do so in the future.  Twenty years ago, Sony was making Betamax tape machines and Microsoft hadn't even come up with Windows.  What will they be doing tomorrow?










4.



The incredible freedom of the WaveBird Controller.  Your can even play from the bathroom.  Let freedom ring!










3.



Game Boy Player.  More than a hundred million people have Game Boys, and we suspect that most of them own a game or two.  With the Game Boy Player, all those millions of deserving gamers will be able to play their games on Nintendo GameCube as well as on their Game Boys.










2.



Connectivity.  Sony and Microsoft can't do it because they don't have Game Boy.  They have robotic dogs and word processors.  Let's face it, they're not really game companies.  But Nintendo does only games, which is why Nintendo innovates ways to play—linking consoles, swiping cards, visiting villages filled with animals and sailing the high seas in a talking boat.










1.



Exclusivity.  The GCN offers The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Metroid Prime, Resident Evil Zero, Super Mario Sunshine, Eternal Darkness, Animal Crossing, Star Fox Adventures, Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Mario Kart, Metroid 2, Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike, Pikmin II, Resident Evil 4 and Soul Calibur II as Link.  (That's 15 exclusive reasons GCN reigns supreme.)  Try naming 15 exclusive hit PS2 titles.  As for Xbox, you can count the number of exclusive hit titles for it on one finger.


Edited by - Why are you highlighting? on 7/13/2003 10:49:22 PM


12
General Chat / Please Post in Here
« on: April 15, 2003, 02:10:31 PM »
The purpose of this thread is to see if any of the users of this message board post exclusively in General Mario Chat. If someone posts in here, then I (and all of you) will know that he or she visits more than just the one forum. My reason for doing this is that almost all topics are posted in General Mario Chat, including many that don't belong there, and it gets the most activity by far. It seems to me that General Chat, which by its very name should logically get some activity, is ignored by most users.

To help me out, all you need to do is post a reply in here. It can be just your signature. Or, if you don't have a signature, spend some time thinking up a witty sentence or two and post that (and then make that your signature :). Really, you don't have to type anything, just so long as you post, and your name appears in this thread. Conversely, if you have something to say, please feel free to say it.

I posted in BORED!! With a pinch of salt.

13
General Chat / You know you post too much in the forums when. . .
« on: February 03, 2003, 12:01:48 AM »
. . . you don't have enough time to play the games you're posting about.
. . . the word "post" brings to mind video games rather than British mail delivery.

Feel free to add your own ideas!

14
Site Discussion / Mario the Music Man
« on: January 18, 2003, 02:50:33 AM »
I sent an e-mail to the TMK Mailbag address, but it has not been included in one of the Mailbags. Perhaps you have read previous posts of mine in the forum about this? Well, enough time has passed that all hope of its appearing in a Mailbag is gone. There were some things in it that I really wanted others to see, so I have gone to the effort of uploading it myself.

It is, of course, not on TMK. But, if you feel so inclined, you can follow the URL below to find my Mailbag entry as it looks when my HTML skills are at work, as opposed to Deezer's (which are definitely superior to mine).

http://www.harbornet.com/folks/readers/mailbag.html

Thank you.


Note: The title of this topic, "Mario the Music Man," was the subject of my Mailbag e-mail.

15
Site Discussion / Alas
« on: January 10, 2003, 11:04:15 AM »
Well, the next Mailbag is up, and my message is not in it. I wonder why? It's really too bad; I put a lot of great stuff in it. Some pretty helpful things as well. If either David Dayton or Deezer want to comment on this, I'd appreciate it. Again, I signed the message not as "Wataod" but as "Errol."

Now, I'll just be off to the corner of the room where I can cry myself to sleep . . .

--------------------
MarioBros of the past is Watoad of the future. That is to say, I changed my user name from MarioBros to Watoad.
[I will stop using this signature once I deem that my name change is well enough understood by everyone who cares.]

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