maiko-san

On the 21st of December one German couple and 10 other Japanese took part in a discussion. The topic was all of a sudden changed. The former topic was about "What do we expect the new German Goverment?" We were supposed to talk about the German Prime Minister Merkels new policies, such as Euro crisis, energy turnaround and its dipolomatic relations with other European countries. The new topic: "Coffee and Tea around the World." First of all the discussion leader breifly touched on the history of coffee beans. In the ancient Arabian countries coffee beans were used as medicine to prevent from sleeping. Probably it's due to the religeious reasons. They have the custome to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca. During this period they have to go through a fast time. In other words they have to pray for God day and night without eating. They'd have to stay up until wee hours in the morning. I am afraid I don't know if this story is true or not. But anyway coffee wa...

On the 20th of August I went to see my sister in Tokyo. I was supposed to taker her to the hospital the next day. In the evening my sister took me out for dinner in a restarant near the station. On the way to the restaurant I was surprised to see my sister's shoulders tilted on one end. In other words, the position of her left shoulder is higher than the other one. Moreover I noticed she walked rather slowly. After dinner we we went her home. She was busy filling out applying forms for the French newsweekly magazine, "Le Mond". To my surprise she had already written three letters and addresses on the envelopes. Now she's confused which one is the correct one to be sent to the newspaper company. She asked me a lot of questions and what should she do about it. Since it was written in French words, I didn't know what to do, either. Meanwhile she started asking me the same questions over and over, "Like this? Like this? Like this?" I was getting sick and ti...

"Why don't young Japanese women want to marry earlier these days?" That was the lastet topic about which I was supposed to discuss at Japan-Germany-Speaking-Club. Unfortunately I coudn't take part in the meeting, because I was under the weather. In my opinion, there are three reasons for this trend. 1. Younger women earn money these days. So they are on their own to some extent. 2. They want to marry a man who is willing to share housework. 3. They yearn for the marriage, as long as they can find a good man. Then what is the definition of "good man"? 1.They must be taller guys 2. They must be good lookers. 3. They graduate from a prestigious university. 4. They earn a bunch of money. 5. They shoud show concern about women. Incidentlly 40-50 year old single women always have a date. It doesn't matter whether he' s married or not. I obtained the information from a 70-year-old woman named Mrs. Ishibashi who presides over "Harry Potter ...

Early in November I visited the museum in Kyoto University to see my grandfather's exhibition of calligraphy. As it was early in the morning, the display room was not crowded. Thanks Heaven! I could enjoy watching his various calligraphy, "Haiku", "Tanka" and a long letter to his deciple by the name of Tanabe Gen. At first professor Tanabe belonged to Kyoto School Sect which my grandfather founded. Gradually he drifted apart and in the end criticised my grandfather's way of thinking. My grandfather wrote to him about an Austrian philosopher Husserl. I felt sad since I could not read his writings. It's all Greek to me. However two writings made a good impression upon me. First of all, I was taken aback when I saw "Ken-kon Itteki" (乾坤 一擲)which is literally translated, "sink or swim" He quoted it from an old great Chinese poet, Kanyu(韓諭). It means that "Let's throw the dice! Let's try it no matter what the results would ...

From time to time I chat with an American by the name of William Anderson over Skype. Our conversation goes like this. I say, "Hello, Bill. How are you doing this evening?" He says, "Good morning. I am making coffee and still yawning. It's cool and beautiful there." He likes talking about his family and his work. His wife named Peggy goes to House Depot nearby to complement Bill's salary. Bill is 63 years old. He works for Illustration and Graphic Company. He has some fun projects to do at work and he's looking forward to digging into them. He has a 20-year-old son, who always plays a Japanese game "Pokemon" and "Cosplay" with his friends in the garage. His son seems to be the apple of Bill's eye. He asked me, "How's your German Learning going?" I told him that I have been a bit dissapointed at Germany, because they don't want to tell from the bottom of their hearts how they feel about the Holocaust. They deli...

Angela Merkel celebrated a landslide victory with her Christian Democratic Union having fallen short of an outright parliamentary majority. The scale of truimph is due to the collapse of the Free Democratic Party, which has supported CSU/CDU coaltion ever since the end of the Second World War. Now FDP has no qualificattion to represent the Bundestag. On top of that Merkel had merely stand back and watch opposition parties' suicide.They eat each other and paid the price for failure to come grip with reality. What is new to us, is that the advent of  a party, AfD (Alternative for Germany) which popped up last April. It is interesting to know that one of their policies is to get back to the old currency of Mark instead of EURO. Do the Germans really want to walk out on EURO? Rumor has it, that the EURO crisis would be solved if the Germans took up Mark. For dibillitating countries like France, Greece and Ireland could discount the value of EURO and have competitive exporting capabili...

When the days are getting shorter, it's time for robust soup, roast meat and inflammable cakes. Especially  we crave for strong aroma, intensive vegetables and various fruits. If you are a vegitarian, it's likely you would end up eating red beets, cabbage und pumpkings. We enjoy eating autumn food every which way. It'a a shame I can't tell you autumn recipe because I can not cook. So I'd like to tell you about typical autuman fruits in Japan. They are pears, kaki and grapes. The best of all I like the red- yellow kaki . Kaki -tress grow only in China, Korea and Japan.When I was a kid, I used to climb up a kaki -tree in the garden and reaped kaki for my family. It's usual that people peel a kaki before they eat. But I love eating kaki with  the peel. Since kaki's upper part of the peel contains lots of nutritious fibrestuff, sweet and juicy substance, it's good for digestion. Kaki is also a season word for Japanese Haiku. I'm going to qu...

In April 1961 I entered Seikei Junior High School in Tokyo. As I also went to Seikei Elementary School, there was no entrance examination to go to Junior High School. I rode an excaltor that brought me automatically up to Junior High. As soon as the first term ended in July, we went on a journey to Summer School in Hakone. I remember a shabby-looking dormitory where we stayed two nights. We called it a spooky house. But we enjoyed seeing beautiful white lily flowers on the garden. During the summer vacation in August my father took me to Itoh Seashore, Shizuoka Pref. where I leaned to swim. My father told me, I would not be able to swim, unless I drowned in the surf once or twice. Brrr.. The second term started on the 10th of September. I couldn't sleep well on the very night before school started. It was exciting to see my classmates again! The beginning ceremony of the second term was held at the auditorium. About 1000 students gathered. For starters the principal gave a ta...

The other day I attended a meeting at Kobe German-Japan Society Club. 15 People gathered. One German  couple, a young Korean woman, a young Chinese from Hong Kongs, two co-eds from Kobe University and 10 elderly people who have retired from work. The theme is about "The relationship between Japan and its neighboring countries" and by the same token "The relationship between Germany and its neighboring countries." The facillitator started talking about the number of civillians and soldiers killed in the Second World War. He said, "In the Pacific theater 5 million people were killed and in the European theater....." All of a sudden a German woman screamed at him and said, "Do we have go all over this? I have enough of it. Why do we have to dig up the past? I'm here to talk about the present relationship between Germany and our neighbors." The discussion leader cleared his throat and answered, "Mrs. Merkel, I'm just touching on the ...

In the 70s I flew with Cathy Pacific Airways from Osaka to Hong Kong. My company's section chief and colleagues saw me off at the Itami Airport Terminal.  By chance I could sit on the window seat. I kept waviing my hand at the airport terminal until the the plane took off.  It was dumb of me to do that. Actually they had left the airport a long time ago.  Before I knew it, a rich decent American woman was sitting next to me. I confided to her that I was nervous, because this is my first trip  abroad.. She gave me a pat on my shoulder and said, "That's OK. You speak already good English. I wish you good luck." Well, I took it as a compliment but I was relieved. She said she's visiting Hong Kong with her husband. He is a lawyer. sitting in a seat a couple rows away from us. I wondered why they were not sitting together. I landed on the Kowloon Airport. I was surprised to see that the airport lobby was crowded with so m...

When I was 25 years old, I went on a business trip to Singapore. I flew with Sigapore Airlines. The flight attendants were beautiful and affable. Furthermore I liked a sweet smelling of the flowers in the airplane. As I was sitting on the window seat, I could realize vividly the outline of the Indochina Peninsula. It was as if I was seeing the real map. It was scorching hot when I arrived in Singapore. It's no wonder that I was really in an equatorial country. The sky was blue as far as the eye could see it. Our client's representative in Singapore tunred out to be a Japanese.  He picked me up at the airport. I spent three nights at a comfortable hotel by the name of Apollo Hotel. I found my room neat and cozy. From the big window I could enjoy the view of a British styled white colored elementary school in the forest. It was quiet and peaceful. I like the atmosphere. At that time the Japanese department "Isetan" was located near the hotel. I occasionally met th...

Extreme sports is a popular term for certain activities perceived as having a high level of physical exertion. Unfortunately I have never done extreme sports in my life. In Japan we have Bunjee Jumping, Paragliding, Scuba Diving , Snow Boarding and Rock Climbing and so on. Especially young people like this extreme sports, because they are thrilling, exciting and adventurous. I would assume that the young people want to blow off steam due work stress. Yet thier highly specialized gear is cool! On the contrary to these advantages of extreme sports, we should take in consideration their disadvantages. The extreme sports is risky and chances are that you could get injured. If an accident happens, it would be nauseating, sickening and disgusting. The most dangerous part  is that you start the extreme sports without knowledge. Hopefully you take part in the beginners course and learn by experience. As long as you pay attention to this point, you could enjoy the ext...

You will never give a good speech if you don't first reduce everything to writing. That means every sentences, and every word of every sentence. Now, don't jump to the conclusions that you're going to end up readig the thing to your audience. The final delivery may take place from notes, something we'll talk about later. But for now, your all-important starting point is a fully-written text. Why? There are three reasons. You must have the incentive to think the speech through-word for word. You must have the opportunity to edit what you've started with. And you must have the confidnece that comes only after you know that every word has been mapped out in advance. Source: "Overnight Guide to Public Speaking" by Ed Wohlmuth

A couple of months ago I talked to you about the concert of a Japanese opera-singer in Osaka. The concert was held on the 10th of August at Osaka Club. I'm so proud that my wife and my daughter organized this event. I'm also glad to know that about 300 people gathered. The concert was successful. After the concert my wife invited her friends over to my house and gave a party. Some of them stayed a night at my house. Earlier this month my wife had said to me,"Honey, I'm afraid you'll have to go out alone on the evening of the10th. But I'll lend you my credit card and 10,000 Yen. Have fun!" Actually I left my house on that day. I carried a computer bag and a suitcase. I dragged them down to a business hotel nearby. It was so hot that I started to sweat on my way to the hotel. The clerk was rather afffable. But I had to pay in advance. Of course I let him charge to the credit card. The single room was so small. I turned on the air-conditioner immediatel...

Many men are scared of women these days and feel discriminated against them. We men have enough of powerful women and put up with them for a long time. Now people say men and women have the equal right. Actually women have opportunities to enter a job market, to acquire a disposable salary, to buy expensive designer bags in a Gucci shop and to enjoy thier life to full. I am not against this woman's movement. But please don't you women ever ever expolit us men! Many men feel discriminated especially in the train because of women's accusation of men's sexual incrimination. Therefore we all men ask for men's trains in the same token that women have right for the women's trains. When the train is crowded in the rush hour, I feel uneasy, because women might point at me at any moment and declare I am a sexual perverse! Never mind, I have already prepared for  the following measures myself. I make it a point of holding this blue bag with my right hand and with ...

Recently I read an article in a newsmagazine by the name of Project Syndicate. The article is entitled "Opening Up Japan" written by an emeritus professor of International Political Economy at IMD, Switzerland, Jean-Pierre Lehmann. It's interesting to know that Japan is evaluated as a closed society from the Swiss viewpoint. First of all I'd like to give you summary of his key points. After that I'd like to talk you about my opinion concerning his article. According to the professoer, Japan's economy is the most closed among OECD countries. Foreign capital, foreign managers, intellectual are all absent. It's outrageout that  Japan Prime Ministers disobey Asian opinion by paying his respects to war criminals at the Yasukuni Shrine He attributes the closed nature of Japan society to its inferior knowledge about the world language, that is English. As a matter of fact Japan ranks above only North Korea in scores on the Test of English (T...

1. What is a Japanese presentation like? When you take a look at a Japanese presentation for the first time, you think that Japan is not Mecca for a professional presentation.For you don't know what to make of it. You'd be having a hard time to come to grips on what theme they are talking about. Furthermore it is not clear for whom the layout is given. The Japanese are fundamentally fond of flashy pink and orange colored slides. They want to make their presenation look charming. Even if they give a scientific presentation, the German audience would get sick and tired of watching Kitty-chan, Ninja and Micky Mouse hopping around and flying on the screen. Chances are the audience would  fall asleep soon. 2. The Japanese attitude toward the presentation During the presentation period various themes are discussed. They flood the meeting with exorbitant information via handouts, flyers and ...

Recently I received  a postcard from Osaka Public Safety Committee. It's about a renewal of my driver's license. I was told that I turn in my present driver's license to the police within the designated period namely between July.3 and September 3.  For I'll be 65 on the 3rd of August. I feel a little bit sad about it, because I'll join a group of senior citizens which accounts for 25%  of the whole population. Let me tell you a little bit more about instructions stipulated in the postcard. -I'm classified as a "good driver". All I need is to take part in a seminar that lasts only 30 minutes. -I need a photo and 3,100 Yen to get a new driver's license. -Photo size: 3 cm high and 2,4 cm wide I took into consideration disadvantages  and advantages of  having a driver's license. In the end I decided not to renew the driver's license. Reasons: -I have not owned a car for years. It is better that I use public transportation. ...

Last Thursday I dropped in a Comprehensive Care-Giving Support Center and talked with a Care Manager, Ms Minoo, about my sister who suffers from Alzheimer's. She explained to me about function of Caregiver Community in detail. Based on this conversation I drew  graphs and tables to straighten up my thoughts. Then I got the whole picture of a caregiver community comprising hospitals, patients, caregivers and Care Managers. Now I'd like you to briefly take a look at the copy I just distributed round you. Under the auspices of District Support Center in Tokyo, a caregiver company dispatches a caregiver to my sister once in a week. The caregiver cleans the bathroom, checks out food in the fridge and talks with my sister as a companion. Recently I received a letter from her. It seems my sister doesn't take a bath regularly. She eats the same foodstuff. Furthermore she seems to have trouble with her knees, as she walks slowly. As far as I'm concerned, I'm o...

It's been six months since Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held office. He is a good-looking man and doing well as far as the relationships with America is concerned. Then he cooked up a modern word "Abeno-Mix" to get into hearts of the Japanese people. But I doubt, if "Abeno-Mix" works out. There are three reasons for that. First of all, the word "Abeno-Mix" is just named after "Regano-Mix". In 1980's US President Ronald Regan put various economic policies into action and led America successfully  to an unprecedented Super-Power that exceeds the Soviet Union. That's the whole meaning of Regano-Mix. On the contrary the Japanese are not convinced that Mr Abe is like President Regan, unless he shows them  a concrete, articulate and down-to earth domestic policy. There's no time to be infatuated with his own play-on-words. Even before the election campaign he should get thi...

Today I'd like to talk about a new eating style in Germany. My speech consists of the following three cornerstones. 1. First, introduction of a Vegan in Germany 2. Then, an analysis of a Vegan by a Swiss specialist 3. Finally, my opinion on a Vegan 1. As you all know that vegetarians eat nothing but vegetables. They don't like eating meat, because animals are killed in the slaughter house. On the contrary a Vegan goes one step further. They avoid not only animal stemmed food products but also milk, egg and honey. (Isn't that going too far?) Moreoever they often give up on clothing made of wool, fur, leather and feather . They ciriticize the massed production of keeping cattle, pigs and chicken on a farm. Because that generates carbon dioxide and methane. A large amount of water is also down the drain when they keep these animals. They are to some extent motivated from a desire to be healthy on one hand, environment-friendly and animal-friendly on the oth...

In October 2006, I sighned up for the class B1 at German school. The classroom was located in the establishment of Levi Strauss & Co., a couple of stations away from Osaka. An hour and a half -long- session took place on Monday mornings and Thursday mornings beginning at 10:00. The teacher was a young German woman by the name of Brigitte. Unlike the  most  German teachers who have long lived in Japan, she was dispatched from Leipzig especially  to broaden a growing Japanese market for German learners. I think they must have paid her lots of salary. But as for me the lesson was worth taking. For she was so passionate when she gave a lesson. What I heard from the participants in her former class, she asked them to write a diary in German. Then she corrected grammatical errors in the sentences and tunred in the diary before the lesson started. What a practice! Well, in the B1 class I joined in, she has never done that. Maybe she was exhausted. Instea...

In March I attended a seminar on teeth caring. It was organized by a Non Profit Organization. The speaker was an expert on health care in the mouth. He is also a dentist and graduated from Okayama Univeristy. First, he referred to cleaning of the teeth and regular scaling of tartar by the dentist. For nobody can be sure of removing every food particles with every brushing only at home. Then, he asked all participants how much is one tooth worth. I thought it was somewhere around 300,000 Yen. From the dentist's view it would cost as much as 1.000.000 Yen. Incredible! Next, he suggested that we use toothpaste that contains fluoride, because it helps prevent cavities. After that, he talked about the relationships between the gum disease and diabetes. A person who has gum disease runs the risk of suffering from diabetes and vice versa. Finally  he gave tips when we look for a good dentist. There are 70,000 dentists in Japan, more than 60...

  Today I'd like to introduce a classical concert to you. It's going to be held at Osaka Club on the 10th of  August. So, I'm distributing pamphlets to all of you. Anyone who is interested in going to the concert, please fax me under the number written on the flip side of the pamphlet.   I find this concert so special, because it was organized by my wife and my daughter as well. My wife is a passionate fan of the main entertainer, by the name of Shun-chan. She booked the Osaka Club hall all by herself whereas my daughter was responsible for advertizing. She promoted the concert under the auspices of "Classical Note" which publishes monthly booklets for ballet, modern dance and classical concerts..    Now I'd like to briefly introduce Shun-chan to you. He went to Tokyo University of the Arts, specializing in voice music courses. He got top marks when he graduated. He is a baritone and opera singer as well. At the concert he's going to ...

I started learning German in 2006. I belonged to the A2 class. My teacher was a mature woman, by the name of Frau Braun, from Kiel in the northern part of Germany. She was married to a Japanese man by the name of Fukumoto. I remember the name vividly, because Frau Braun invited all the class members to her apartment in Kobe Port Island for the final lesson. It was the best party I've ever experienced in my life. For the classmates, consisted of cuties like Masako, Michiko and Akane, who had graduated from musical universities in Osaka, played the piano. I enjoyed for the first time in my life live classical music composed by Johann Sebatian Bach, Richard Wagner and Wolfgang Amdeus Mozart. But from time to time I went outside the apartment. It's a refreshing time for cigarettes. When  I was about to get inside, I saw clearly her husband's name on the nameplate in the doorway. It was getting late and the party was closing in to an end. Of all kimono-clad girls, Frau Bra...

"Harvard Medical School, Family Health Guide" page 58 Tabacco smoke contains more than 4,000 chemicals, many of which are known to be carcinogens( cancer causing agents). Three of these tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide are especially dangerous. Tar is a mixture  of hydrocabons that becomes a sticky substance in the lungs and contains many cancer-causing substances. Nicotine is an addictive chemical that, when absorbed through the lungs, affects the cardiovascular and nervous systems. A smoker smokes cigarettes to maintain a particular level of nicotine in the bloodstream. Carbon monoxide robs the body of oxgen by decreasing the amount oxygeon that red blood cells can carry throughout the body. There is no such thing as a safe cigarette, and that includes those that claim to deliver less tar and nicotine. People who switch to these "lighter" cigarettes eventually inhale longer and smoke more cigarettes to keep their level of nicotine up and prevent cravings for...

Next Saturday I'm going to Japan-Germany Association in Kobe to discuss two themes in German. 1. The Best from Japan 2. The Best from Germany As far as the Number 1 topic is concerned, I'd like to talk about a Karaoke house in Japan. It's surprising to know that Karaoke machine was originated of all cities in Japan, right here in Kobe and invented by Mr. Sugiyama who applied for no patents. He must have been the richest man in the world if he had asked for them. With development of Japanese electronic gadges in the 80's Karaoke conquered entertainment establishments in Europe and America rapidly. A month ago I went singing Karaoke at Cote Dazur with my friends from Fullnest Club in Minoo. In the Karaoke cabin lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen. So it is easy for everyone to sing all kinds of music. Actually we had lots of fun together. As we were about to leave　the Karaoke house, Mr. Yamazaki was on the top of the world. What he referred to Karaoke sing...

I was a salesman at a medical appliance company more than 10 years ago. I relocated to Niigata from Tokyo. I dealt with oxygeon concentrator machine, which is as big as a refrigerator. I took care of doctors, nurses and patients. I realized two things. First, I must stop thinking like a salesman and not do any kind of pushy selling.Second, despite doctors knowing more than I did, I needed to find out specific things about gadgets that they didn't know which might be useful to them. In that way I'd become useful. Incidentlly, while attemtping all that, I discovered something else. Doctors learn a lot about disease, but they're not well informed about the instruments. Then there was something else. I realized I must always tell doctors the exact truth, and never exaggerate, never conceal. And if I was asked about a competitor's product and it was better than ours, I'd say so. What differentiates us from  medical representatives is that we were allowed enter the hos...

I went to German Culture Centre earlier this month to see a movie. A decent woman at the front desk ushered us into the hall. which accomodates as many as 100 people. The movie portrays the story of an Italian family that emigrated into Germany  in 1971. The family consists of Romano (father) and Rosa (mother) and their two sons. It's also about the brotherly love and hatred between Giancarlo (elder brother) and Gigi (younger brother). Romano deserted the idea of becoming a coal-miner in the Ruhr district. Instead he decided to open a pizzeria. Many German customers came to the Italian restaurant. His businnes was thriving. In the meantime Giancarlo always flirted with German girls, held a wild party while Gigi was big into making documentary films with the help of his pretty girlfriend, Jo. One day Romano cheated on his wife. She caught him with his pants down! She was so shocked and eventually suffered from an incurable disease, leukemia. The doctor suggested that s...

One month ago I started reading a book entitled "Harry Potter and Philosopher's Stone." in German. In Germany they call it "Harry Potter und der Stein der Weisen." I bought this book, because I wanted to read Harry Potter series in German once for all and test my German reading ability at the same time. My Skype friend from Germany told me he read every novel of Harry Potter series. So I understand that the book is very popular among the Germans. Last not but least the title is the first novel written by Joanne K. Rowling and published in 1997. The book describes how Harry Potter,  a young wizard, makes close friends and a few enemies at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and with the help of his friends and thwarts an attempted comeback by the evil wizard, Lord Voldemort, who killed Harry's parents when he was one year old. It's interesting to know that Harry was an orphan and adopted by the Dursley family. Due to his wizardry he was a...

The book entitled "Reader" is written by a German novelist, Bernhard Schlink. One of the most successful novels of the first German book which took the first prize in New York Times and became a bestseller in the United States. A 15-year-old student fell in love with a 36 year-old- handsome woman. Michael suffered from yellow fever. Hanna helped him out to recovery. She worked as a conductor for streetcar. When they see each other, Michael reads aloud classic literature from a school textbook for Hanna. She's on top of the world when she listened to him. Then he takes a shower with her and sleep with her. Reading, bathing and making love became a ritual. In the course of time he entered a law school. He got to know a lovely girl by the name of Sophie. One day he mulled over his extraordinary relationship with Hanna. He wanted to betray her. Then, he flirted with Sophie at the poolside. Out of nowhere Hanna appeared and towered above them. She was an eyewitness. No dou...

Last Staurday I went to see a movie at German Cultural Center in Kyoto. The movie was entitled "Lili Marleen." Lale Anderson sang this song for German soldiers in the 2nd World War. Hearing her sweet voice with melancholy melody associated with the French Chanson warmed the cockles of  German soldiers' hearts. Soon the record became German bestseller. It was boradcast by Radio Belgrade throughtout Europe to soothe the Germans at front, who yearned for his fatherland and loved ones. The broadcasting capacity was so strong that the song reached as far as  Casablanca in North Africa. In the course of time Anderson had an affair with a Jew in Switzerland. Then the notorious Advertizing Minister Joseph Goebbels forbade her to sing "Lili Marleen." As you know the Nazis, being proud of thier own race, abhorred the relationships with the Jews. What a jerk! He's a really pain in the ass. However his decision was renounced, as thousands of soldie...

As far as I can remember the first scene in my life is the green colored Keio-Line  trains chugging along the rice field in Hachioji. My mother gave me a piggyback. I was on her shoulder. Over the green trains I could see Mt. Takao in the westside. It was a very idyllic scenery. One day my mother took me to Kamakura, one of  the ancient  Japanese capitals, where my grandmother lived. We went by Enoden and dropped off at Inamuragasaki Station. Then we walked up the path. My grandmother's house was located at the top of the hill. She was the second wife for my grandfather. His ex-wife died ten years before. They lived usually in Kyoto, but from time to time come to thier villa in Kamakura to enjoy the pleasant warm weather on the seaside. I gather he married her, because she was a graduate of not only a prestigious women's college in Tokyo but also the ones in the United States. I recalled her teaching English to children in the neighborhood....

Today I'd like to talk about CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Language). The reason I chose this topic is that our NHK text is based on B1 level in CEFR. I wondered what exactly is CEFR? I wanted to learn CEFR from the bottom up. So, I searched it in Internet. Now, I'd like to tell you the results. CEFR is a guideline used to describe achievements of leaners of foreign languages across Europe. It was put togeher by the Council of Europe as the main part of the project "Language Learning for European citizenship." Its main aim is to provide a method of learning, teaching and assessing which apllies to all languages of Europe. The six reference levels are becoming widely accepted as the European standard for grading an individual language activity. As you all know in Japan we take it granted that the first grade in the STEP ("Eiken") and 990 scores in TOEIC test is a sign of the best English performer. Is that true? I compared CEFR to TOEIC...

According to a 2006 survey by national Geographic-Roper, nearly half of Americans between ages 18 and 24 do not think it necessary to know the location of other countries in which important news is being made. More than a third consider it "not all important" to know a foreign language, and only 14 percent consider it "very important." This reminded me of a world sales meeting, which I attended in America 16 years ago. One American asked me, "How long does it take to go to Hong Kong from Japan by car?" I was upset, "Drive to Hong Kong?"" I coudn't believe what he was saying. But I answered politely, "Since Japan is separated by the Sea of East-China Sea from Hong Kong, we take a flight and it takes usuually 4 hours." According to the National Science and Foundation, one in five America adults thinks the sun revolves the Earth. It's the alarming number of Americans who have smugly concluded that they do not need to kno...

Call me a snob, but Really, We're a Nation of Dunces Excerpts from Susan Jacoby Sunday, February 17, 2008 "The mind of this country, taught to aim at low objects, eats upon itself." Ralph Waldo Emerson offered that observation in 1837, but his words echo with painful prescience in today's very different United States. Americans are in serious intellectual trouble-in danger of losing our hard-won cultural capital to a virulent mixture of anti-intellctualism, anti-rationalism and low expectations. This is the last subject that any candidate would dare raise on the long and winding road to the White House. It is almost impossible to talk about the manner in which public ignorance contributes to grave national problems without being labeld an "elitist," one of the most powerful perjoratives that can be applied to anyone aspiring to high office. Instead, our politicians repeatedly assure Americans that they are just "folks", patronizing term that y...