September 2015 Part 2

Earlier this week, posting something on Facebook got a former officemate commenting about how much she could relate to my post. That and with her complaining about how little time I have for friends. It was just too cute to pass up so I made sure to meet up with her. [I very rarely post anything sentimental these days but I just missed someone so bad. He was someone I just met in one of my travels and we would chat every now and then on Facebook. Then late last year he asked me out on a movie date. Dunno if that qualifies as a romantic date though but he paid for our tickets.]

We met up in Shangrila Mall. The original plan was to watch a movie because Cine Europa was on and has just ended yesterday. Who would have thought that many Filipinos are getting interested in foreign films other than the ones from Hollywood. While I am happy about it I am also bothered that there will come a point in time wherein it would be difficult to grab tickets because of the crowd.

And for the first time in my life I didn't get one because I got stuck in the toilet. Times when I have to use the toilet I hate being female. It sucks having to wait for women who take so long inside the toilet. I wonder what they do inside? One can relieve herself in less than a minute!

Because I wasn't able to get a ticket, K and I agreed to just have our late lunch. Our choice was Johnny Rockets in the East Wing. Everytime I pass by that resto I would always make a mental note to save up to have a taste of their burgers. But then imagine my disappointment when, ordering their Grand Canyon, I discovered that it wasn't so grand at all. The bacon was not fried to a crisp and was badly sliced too thickly and was hard to chew. The patty had nothing special in it. The bun was soggy. I felt pitiful eating that junk and I couldn't help but miss my favorite burger place. And it's ridiculous to spend P645 for that burger. But anyway, lesson learned. I will never drop by that place anymore. Even the fries are pitifully lacking in flavor compared to Wendy's! Sigh. That's money down the drain. Seriously.

Johny Rockets' not so grand Canyon

We did a bit of window shopping with me checking out stores selling baking stuff. It's been a dream to bake and that dream got revived when I got Nestlé Professional mixes for making panna cotta, crème brûlée, and chocolate mousse. My first attempt was a flop and people at home didn´t like it. Bruised my ego big time but then again they never really appreciate anything I do so that´s no surprise. Will just make desserts for others then.

Then off we head to K´s place. MRT was down due to technical problems. ON A SATURDAY, I have to emphasize. Seriously, what the heck is the MRTA doing??? So we took the bus and for the first time in my life I was happy not to spend over an hour in EDSA.

We swam a bit that night then off we went inside the sauna room where we talked a bit about life in general but mostly focusing on love life. Because at this age, both of us are a bit preoccupied about finding a decent guy who can be with us in this lifetime. (Ugh! That's a somewhat gross topic when you write about it but it's the truth...) When a girl entered, we stopped talking for a while. LOL.

That night, we watched 時をかける少女 the animated version. It's a drama comedy about a girl who suddenly could turn back time. Every time she did, there's always at least one negative incidental consequence (love that phrase which I conjured up just weeks ago when we had visitors at the office LOL!). And if there's one thing she learned, it's that "time waits for no one". Makoto has always been boyish and was upset when a friend asked her out. Trying to evade his feelings, she turned back time many times. Yet in the end, realizing the sacrifices made by Chiaki who turned out to be the original time traveler, she accepted his feelings. Except theirs is not a happy ending because they belong to different time periods. (Awwwww)

Then more chatting. We seem to have the same view that girls who flirt get boys faster than decent girls do. Just whatever happens to boys these days? I'm not playing self-righteous here but I do believe that I am brought up with principles. I don't even let boys pay for everything when I go out with them. Do boys really need girls who depend on them? Can't they stand independent, strong-willed girls? Are boys really that insecure to ever want to have an achiever for a lover? [As a drifter, I question if I am an achiever sometimes but then again looking back, having hurdled a lot of difficulties and having faced a lot of challenges, I can confidently say that I've leveled up a lot. In that respect I can say that yes I am an achiever. People will have different notions of what it means to be an achiever. I may not be my own boss, I may not have won an important award, but I've come to the point wherein I can proudly say that I am proud to be me.]

The following day was a Sunday and we woke up before 6AM to attend the earliest Sunday mass. Then off we went to Legaspi Sunday market to have a taste of their offerings. I got to taste those awesome Polish dumplings and even talked to the Polish guy who was manning the kiosk. Very friendly guy. When I remarked that Polish is one of the most difficult languages to learn, he agreed and even let me guess how a word is pronounced. I did poorly, obviously. [And I wondered if maybe I should pursue a degree in linguistics...]

There were too many foods we wanted to try but prices are on the expensive side. A meal costs P150 on average. I wanted to eat laksa, roast duck, oyster omelette, and lasagna. In the end we settled for 6 pieces of assorted Polish dumplings. (Our fave was the one with truffle oil. I superrrrr LOVE it!) We also had takoyaki which disappoint for its lack of real squid inside. The liter of carabao's milk I bought was sad to say, a letdown. I've had better carabao's milk at a cheaper price, too. But we both agreed to go back there for the things we weren't able to eat. [Right now I drool at the thought of oyster omelette. Sigh! To think I just ate one last Friday when my sister treated me to Sincerity in Banawe which by the way, deserves a blog entry, too!]

takoyaki

Polish dumplings and Vietnamese spring rolls

We went back to her place feeling drowsy from eating [and because we had little sleep]. Since we're both feeling sleepy, we slept on the roofdeck while in the poolside. LOL. The cool breeze was wonderful but when it was time for a swim it felt cold. It was wonderful to be in the water again, though. I love how I could already swim short distances. Will just have to build up my stamina and breathing techniques. Then sauna again. I love it when I sweat a lot.

After everything we went out in search of Japanese food but all Japanese restos close from 2PM onwards til 5PM. So we bought some groceries at the Japanese store. It was my chance to buy my favorite curry noodles but I fought the urge because I was on a budget and I chose to buy some canned goods and curry powder instead. A Booksale visit was also part of the itinerary as well as eating at my favorite Thai kiosk at Makati Cinema Square. I super miss that place. It was where I first fell in love with pad thai. Too bad they don't have tom yum.

beef wanton noodles

my favorite eatery in MCS

It rained hard on the way home. It was a wonderful experience nevertheless, to catch up with a dear friend and to just relax on a weekend. 

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Despite the many bad luck I encountered, I felt lucky because I got a crush's cellphone number. He's way older than me and I think he's mature. [Okaaaay this feels like something written by a highschool student. Ugh! Pardon my giddiness.]

November

November is a rather gloomy month mainly because of Supertyphoon Yolanda leaving most of Visayas devastated. The deadly typhoon has now been confirmed to have taken more than 5000 lives and many are yet to be found. What's heartbreaking is that relief operations are chaotic and donations were not efficiently delivered to those in need. Many, including me, suspect that those in office are taking advantage of this tragedy to pocket money for themselves since donations by corporations and nations were not transparently announced. Nor will the public ever know if the funds will completely be used to deliver relief and aid in rebuilding houses and lives.

It just happened so soon, and barely a month after a major earthquake that destroyed most of Visayas' heritage structures in October. I could still remember the disgust I felt upon hearing someone (certainly not a friend of mine) say "This is it! It's our time to shine!" It felt so wrong, to take advantage of the situation to uplift one's self. At that moment, I was repulsed by the hypocrisy and by the shallowness of that person. How different is she from those politicians who added to the delay in relief delivery by demanding that donations go through their office first? Or how about those who, despite much criticism from the media, still resort to packing goods with their names on the bags? Printing those plastic bags means more resources spent, not just money but also time.

As an environmentalist, I cringe at how relief goods are packed using plastic bags. It's good if people reuse plastic bags or dispose of these properly. But in my observations, Filipinos are not very good at taking care of their surroundings and random disposal seems to be the norm. In soup kitchens, I wonder how many disposables are used and end up as trash afterwards? Sometimes I don't wanna think about these but they haunt my mind.

So instead of giving money as donation, I chose to give old clothes and volunteer at UP National Institute of Physics. The department initiated PROJECT LIGHTLINE, which aims to create portable cellphone chargers from old and broken ones. The concept behind this is joule thief. (I'm no scientist and I only got to work on circuits when I volunteered for this project so I'm in no position to talk about how to make a joule thief.) What I understood from my own research though is that a joule thief gets energy from seemingly drained batteries and then give energy to power something. (Just how vague was that???) Anyhow, I was glad to learn parts of a circuit--- diodes, transformers, transistors, capacitors, resistors, etc. I also learned how to solder and desolder. For a while I thought how cool it would be to take up some TESDA courses to be able to hone my skills. (But I already have my hands full with calculus alone... Poor brain of mine.)

Photo taken here
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ProjectLightline

a circuit I assembled (a masters student coached me on what to put together)

Another highlight of my November is that I got to finally donate blood!!! I was once rejected because I was "anemic". Maybe I just lacked sleep at that time. It makes me happy to be able to pay it forward. I may not be able to pay back the person whose blood was transferred to me when I got dengue many many years back but I hope someone will benefit from my blood.

And just when I thought that Ilocos would be last of my trips this year, I found myself happily joining my two office friends and their friends to Baler. The end of the month saw me suddenly buying makeup and having the desire to learn how to properly put on makeup.

The last day of November, the 30th, and also Bonifacio Day, was spent with a very dear friend. We had a quick lunch at Sci Fi Cafe. (I was disappointed with the Aligue pasta but I LOVE their nachos!) We watched The Addams Family Musical at the Meralco Theater. Having watched the cartoon show in my childhood days, I am reminded of how both strange and adorable this eccentric family is. This time, my favorite character is Uncle Fester. I can't stop laughing at his solo number about his love for the moon! (Fellow lunatics unite!)

Hoping that in December I get to at least finish studying Calculus. Though of course it doesn't mean that learning will stop altogether since I haven't fully mastered everything. Integration and antiderivatives are driving me crazy... I wonder what I'll be studying next.

Excel!

Yesterday while solving for a problem involving linear approximation and having so many decimal numbers with only an ordinary calculator (the one that is packaged in a laptop machine), I was already feeling so slow and so helpless since I am used to thinking and acting fast. I thought, if only I were a programmer, or if only I knew a programming language, things could be easier. And then I thought that maybe Excel can do the job.

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not good at Excel. I owe it to the fact that I was traumatized by it when I was in grade school. At that time, it was my second to the last year in elementary when we were taught basic Excel lessons. I had a hard time catching up because I couldn't see then how I could use it in a practical way. I almost flunked my Computer subject. Almost but not quite because thank Heavens on the day of our final exams, I had an epiphany JUST IN TIME. I suddenly became aware of how Excel works. Probably one of the mysteries of the mind when under a panic attack. It saved me from being kicked out of the honor roll.

In highschool, I was praised for being one of the few who can do basic programming. That was my first time to have a taste of what it's like to work with programs. We started with HTML, then C++, and then 2 years of Visual Basic. On my senior year, I was made president of our school's Computer Club. (I actually joined the arts club but was pulled out by my Computer teacher.) It was a good thing he did so because while in the club, I was made aware of how computer hardware works and came to know many cool programs. My Computer teacher, who was also our club advisor, advised me to take up Computer Science. He's one of the few teachers who must have seen something in me though at that time, I really did not know that much about computers. In fact, I was embarrassed to be the head of a club when in fact other members, most of them younger than me, were more skilled. My only claim to fame is that I am a logical thinker so constructing formulae and using the language was fairly easy. But because computer language is not appealing to me in that one can never be poetic or express beautiful prose with it, I was not much interested.

So when I was about to take the UP Entrance Exam and choose a course, my two choices were based in the College of Arts and Letters. I really had a hard time choosing because many courses appealed to me, like Anthropology, Computer Science, Geology, Geodetic Engineering, Computer Engineering, Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Mathematics, etc. etc. At that time though I was studying Japanese all on my own and I was thinking how cool it would be if I were to be a polyglot so I could read in many many languages. Before I submitted my application forms, I was able to state European Languages as my first choice and Creative Writing as my second choice. (Up until today, I still don't know whatever possessed me to select CW as my second choice...)

So pursuing my chosen course, I was limited to a maximum of two Math classes. I took Math 1, said to be the more difficult of the two. I was lucky to have a very very cool instructor who introduced me to Umberto Eco (now one of my favorite authors). His class was my most favorite class during my freshman year. We discussed the history of math, logic, systems, a bit of basic cryptography, sets, and other more abstract math concepts. Taking this was one of my best decisions since Math 2, though easy to get an A, is just about problem-solving and I don't think I need a repeat of it since I excelled in it in highschool. Math 1 was also the right course because it opened new doors for me and it was then that I realized how COOL Math really is.

So right after I finish European Languages, I took Math17, said to be the deciding factor for many engineering students if they should continue with their course or not. I knew many people who took that and who failed. I just had to see for myself how difficult it really is. I aced exams but flunked the final one because I never memorized the formulas and drawing circles and deriving formulas left me with very little time to solve the problems. It broke my heart, simply because I understood the lessons well, it's just that I couldn't memorize the formulae.

So anyway, studying Calculus now really shoved me down memory lane...

So going back to yesterday...

Yesterday while doing a problem in Calculus, I saw how foolish I was at my stubbornness in refusing to enlist the help of Excel, just the tool that can help me speed up calculations so I can devote more time in learning other things (or finishing that book I've been reading since last month).

I opened Excel, had a leap of faith that DAMN I COULD DO THIS!!! And just typed in the formulae for Newton's method of finding roots. Imagine my delight at my newfound powers! I overcame the trauma (I think)!!!!

one input, one look, and one conclusion

I'm just so happy with what I was able to do yesterday. Felt so productive. And I felt new powers flowing in my veins. The power of Math, the power to Excel! (Yes, pun intended.)

Trigonometry in Calculus

Right now, I'm taking a little break from studying Calculus today. Before leaving for Ilocos, I studied the derivative of logarithms  (a.k.a. logarithmic differentiation... Okay I sound so smart but really I'm struggling with all the things one must remember...) and while everything is a bit hazy, I didn't review much when I got back and immediately continued on, finding myself face to face with trigonometry once again.

Now trigonometry is one of my favorite math topics despite my slow speed in solving and/ or proving because I'm so used to drawing circles and determining formulas all on my own every time I solve a trigonometric function. Sometimes I get frustrated because I can't seem to just memorize the formulas, but in the end, I pride myself at being able to derive formulas from the ones I already know by heart.

So just to share, here are the the derivatives of trigonometric functions as well as the derivatives of the inverse of trigo functions. (Just hoping that everytime I see them here in my blog they'll get stuck to my brain LOL):

1. d/dx sin x= cos x
2. d/dx cos x= -sin x
3. d/dx tan x= sec^2 x
4. d/dx cot x= -csc^2 x
5. d/dx sec x= sec x tan x
6. d/dx csc x= -csc x cot x

1. d/dx arcsin x= 1/ (sqrt (1-x^2))
2. d/dx arccos x= -1/ (sqrt (1-x^2))
3. d/dx arctan x= 1/ (1+x^2)
4. d/dx arccot x= -1/ (1+x^2)
5. d/dx arcsec x= 1/ ( |x| sqrt (x^2-1))
6. d/dx arccsc x= -1/ ( |x| sqrt (x^2-1))

Actually the derivatives of the inverse are a bit easier to remember because they come in pairs. Derivatives of arcsin and arccos are almost same except one is positive and the other is negative. The same goes for the pairs arctan/arccot and arcsec/arccsc. 

It's been a while since I last did trigo, which was in the summer of 2010 when I enrolled in Math 17 (Algebra and Trigonometry) just to see how difficult it really is. I got two perfect scores out of five quizzes but unfortunately I flunked the final exam because I was overwhelmed by the number of items and we just had one hour to finish. (Deriving formulas ate up most of my time, you see.)

Now I'm hoping to somehow be able to use this knowledge for mapping sites. It would be very cool to be able to create a map of an irregularly shaped site.

And I also need to relearn how to use the scientific calculator if I want to get answers fast.

Autodidactic Mode On

Lately I'm finding it difficult to come up with a topic other than food and/or restaurants for my blog and I fear that this blog may seem support consumerism when in fact I go against this and as much as possible try to live simply without fancy things. I do admit that I frequent food establishments simply because I love food and I seldom get to have my way in the kitchen at home. Plus, eating out gives me ideas on what to cook next. The only thing I hate about food-tripping is that it hurts the pocket.

Lately I'm engrossed with a lot of things related to higher learning. I recently resumed my study of calculus, determined to understand it and to somehow use it to solve some of life's perplexing problems. Maybe I'm just a bored kid who misses school so much as a teacher and as a student that now I assume both roles for myself as I venture into this self-study activity. It's pretty much like what I did last year when I attempted to learn Japanese and came up with a blog entry that gives tips on how to learn a new language on one's own. I guess I must be overwhelmed by the difficulties encountered especially on Japanese conjugations. Four lessons to go and I quit. Okay, I didn't really quit, I just gave myself space and it's close to one year now since then. Perhaps next month will give me more motivation to continue (another plan that is sure not to materialize).

Keeping myself extra busy with these things sometimes make me question why I do them in the first place. There always comes a point in time when I get so fed up (especially when topic's getting extra complicated) and I think of how learning seems to be a waste of time and brain cells, but I would pause and reflect that there is wisdom in learning. Who knows when I will be able to use the knowledge gained in practice? How many times have I felt disappointed and frustrated with myself over regrets when I encounter a situation where I could have used a certain knowledge of something only to find that it's not part of my arsenal and all I have to do is just stand and be frustrated because of ignorance? Those defining moments remind me to strive hard to learn something new each day. It doesn't matter which topic or discipline it covers as long as I build my knowledge base. And somehow that isn't enough. The how-process attracts me more and oftentimes I become restless when I can't figure out why something is the way it is.

Since time and money are finite resources, and since I cannot give up my job yet in favor of the academe, I'm investing part of my time to self-study with the hope that once I become ready to continue my formal studies, I can be better and more disciplined. So here I am in full autodidactic mode, learning things, discovering things, having fun despite the many difficulties. People may think I miss out a lot in life because I would rather curl up in bed with a book than spend evenings out in malls or waste time gossiping about people, but what actually makes me happy is the fact that I struggle with my studies. With this struggle I feel more alive.

Math for Fun 001

So here I am taking a break from solving Math problems. For the past few hours I have been answering some geometry problems on my own. There really isn't a reason why I do this, it's just that lately I am starting to feel like I'm not as mathematical as my former self, though I still have confidence in being logical so  even though I already forgot half of my math lessons in school, I still get to solve problems though not as easily as I could have because I have to analyze each part to come up with an answer.

And again this proves that in math, one does not need to memorize a plethora of formulas. One simply should understand the basic axioms and work out solutions to more complex problems. :)

Yeah, that and probably because of my desire to learn calculus on my own. My practical side would like to know if my mind can support such a topic. Again, I think there's this fear implanted in me because most people I know hate math, most people I know do not get calculus even though most of these graduated from courses requiring calculus...

And yes, I'm bored. I just want to learn something new.

Before 2012 Ends

Before 2012 ends, there are lots of things I have yet to do. Out of graduate school and I find myself leaning more towards movies and J-dramas, and spending less time with books. In just a few months I think I have become a screensucker and I find myself thanking the internet for classics I can read online.

When I finished my course in archaeology, I told myself that I would start leafing through the pages of my books as I have accumulated more than 300 books and am now having problems concerning space since I share a bedroom with my sisters and it disgusts them to see books everywhere from my so-called Garbage Island to my bed.

After years of focusing on too much non-fiction, I developed a short-lived thirst for fiction and so I planned to read all of Margaret Atwood and Robertson Davies' books in my collection, especially after reading the first's Lady Oracle and the second's The Papers of Samuel Marchbanks. Both authors are Canadians and I guess theirs would have to be my introduction to Canadian literature.

Other books I plan to read before 2012 ends are:

R. Davies' The Cunning Man, What's Bred in the Bone, The Lyre of Orpheus, The Deptford Trilogy, Leaven of Malice, A Mixture of Frailties

M. Atwood's Handmaid's Tale, Life before Men, The Robber Bride, The Edible Woman

Because this year 2012 is a special year in that the Phantom of the Opera will be staged in Manila, I also plan to read Gaston Leroux's novel of the same title from which the musical is based.

In addition, because  The Hobbit will be shown in theaters this December, I also told myself to read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and if I were lucky enough to find a cheap copy of The Hobbit I would also gladly read it. All these before watching the movie.

The Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra (PPO) will have its opening concert on September 21 (Friday) at the Philamlife Auditorium. (Click here and here for more information) To show my support for our own wonderful musicians, I have made it a point to attend at least the opening concert. (And also because I just miss Philamlife Auditorium that much.)

If I still have money and time, then I would no doubt go see The Seagull (Ang Tagak) (Sept. 19-Oct. 7), a play by Anton Chekov, staged by Dulaang UP and directed by the great Tony Mabesa, with Filipino translation by Rolando Tinio.

On my birthday this December, I would love to cook for my family. This is to showcase my cooking skills (if indeed I gained any... LOL). Menu would be a mix of Italian and Mexican. There will be nachos and home-made salsa. I will also prepare a new pasta dish never been tasted by the world (yes, it will be a new invention by yours truly). If chance permits, I would buy salmon and grill it. For dessert I would just ask my sisters to buy a cake from Conti's. (Thinking about all these make me drool...)

And of course, I'd like to go out more with my close friends since it's been a long time since we did something meaningful together. Eating out would be the best option. Or perhaps we can go hang out at some karaoke bar and goof around as in the old days, this time by trying hard to be wonderful music artists, or in my case, being a rockstar wannabe.

Concerning travels, I would love to go to the Visayan region and visit the lovely beaches which I hear seem like paradise on earth.

Last but not the least, I would be very happy if I were to be able to take the JLPT this year. I shall only allow myself IF AND ONLY IF I can finish studying my materials. As of the present, I am stuck with Japanese for Today with six more lessons to go. At this rate, I doubt if I will be able to study my other materials. Maybe I'll just take the exam next year at the latest.

Less than 130 days to go...

日本語の勉強: Japanese Verbs

While I find studying Japanese fun, I do admit that I'm somewhat stressed when it comes to conjugating Japanese verbs. The book I use as main textbook, Japanese for Today, may offer sufficient reading material of various topics, but it sadly lacks explanations on verb conjugations, leaving me a bit frustrated because sometimes I have to do research on the internet before I can proceed to my lessons.

I currently am on lesson 17 and I must say that I am already having a hard time with all the verb endings one has to know by heart. It is still a good thing that I am already familiar with most verb endings, having encountered them in songs. I have just survived lesson 16 which is all about the passive and causative verbs. Really I suck at verb conjugations. Now, I am absorbing the six verbs associated with giving and receiving.

I have yet to review my kanji but hopefully by the end of this month, I will have reviewed at least half of the list I made. My strategy is noting down in index cards all kanji that I encounter and write the pronunciation in hiragana to also increase my reading speed. I rarely put in the English equivalent since most Kanji have the same meaning as the Chinese words they originate from. Then on my spare time, I review my index cards to refresh my memory.

I have also resumed watching J-Drama. At present,  うぬぼれ刑事  and 未来講師めぐる make me laugh out loud. うぬぼれ刑事 tells the story of a detective who falls for a woman criminal. 未来講師めぐる on the other haand, is about a female English teacher who can see the future of other people when she is full. Watching J-Drama not only is a stress-reliever, but also allows my ears to get accustomed to others speak in Japanese since I really do not have anyone to converse with in the language.

Target for this month includes studying up to at least lesson 24. Also, I have begun to study the lyrics of some Japanese songs to increase my vocabulary. X-Japan was initially part of this project since I love their X Ballad Collection but then again I will have to change to other bands/ singers because the lyrics of most X-Japan songs contain stanzas in English. For the time being, B'z, Chage and Aska, Kamiki Aya, Shibasaki Koh, HITOMI, Kalafina, Do As Infinity, and Onitsuka Chihiro shall accomapny me in my study. Or better yet, now is probably the best time to get to know other singers. For instance I have discovered Tanimura Shinji who sang Fuushi Hanaden, the ending theme for the anime version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

All this to prepare for the JLPT this December!!! 

Why Learn a Foreign Language

Languages play an important role in our daily life as it serves as a communicative tool that facilitates interaction with other people. We acquire language skills since infancy and as we grow older these language skills are developed in such a way that it allows us to express complex ideas and to convey abstract ideas.

Knowing a language allows us to engage with people who speak the same language. Knowing a language allows us to access information written in that same language. Knowing a language allows us to appreciate more the culture to which that language is part of.

Imagine knowing more than one language. Imagine then overcoming language barriers to read poetry in its original language, to have access to information in other languages! Indeed, at present when information is almost everywhere and linguistic differences are the only things that keep you from getting that much needed information, there is a need for multilinguals. Nowadays, knowing one's mother tongue is not enough, and even fluency in English is not enough. Learning another foreign language is always a plus as it widens your horizons and opens more career opportunities.

I have been fortunate to have been exposed to Fookien, Tagalog, English, and Mandarin since childhood. Since I love reading, I discovered one of the advantages of knowing Chinese as this allowed me to read manga translated into Chinese, like Ranma 1/2, Dragonball, Mojacko, and Doraemon. As a young adolescent infatuated with anything Japanese due to the anime boom in the '90s, I started picking up simple Japanese phrases and words until I decided to study the language by myself. In college I took up European Languages with the main goal of being able to read untranslated Spanish and French literature. I would have loved to learn Russian, Italian, Portuguese, and German, but there's always the problem of time constraint. Instead now I'm back to studying Japanese seeing how useful it will be in the near future.


Autodidactic's Tips on Learning a Foreign Language: Learning a Foreign Language by Self-Study

Autodidactic's Tips on Learning a Foreign Language: Learning a Foreign Language by Self-Study

Studying a foreign language does not mean you have to enroll in a language school in order to learn. While interacting with other fellow learners would be an advantage of language-learning in the classroom, there are also disadvantages. One disadvantage of enrolling in a language course is that one has to adjust to the class schedule which means that you have to sacrifice other activities (i.e. work) just to learn. Another is the costly fees usually associated with language schools.

I have just recently resumed my self-study of Nihonggo. I started to study Japanese in 2003, after buying two books: "Japanese for Today" and "Everyday Japanese". My goals then were just to be able to read Japanese and to make myself familiar with Japanese words, thus my studies were done in a highly undisciplined manner, opening the books only when I felt like it. I went on hiatus in 2006 when I entered college and by that time, I knew how to read and write hiragana, had little knowledge of katakana, was already familiar with a lot of Kanji, and could already understand simple sentences. 

Now, I have resolved to continue my self-study of the Japanese language. I still use the same books, but the difference is that now I include online materials.

Here are some tips to help you learn a foreign language all by yourself:

Image:  http://learnworldlanguages.com/

1. Before anything else, ask yourself why you want to study a particular language.

This will be your motivation for studying a foreign language. Are you planning to work, live, or stay in a country where that language is spoken? Or do you want to gain a thorough understanding of a culture through its language? In my case, I want to study Japanese to achieve fluency in order to be able to translate texts. Keep in mind that there is no right nor wrong answer to this question but that knowing your motivations will keep you more focused and will help you design your own curriculum.

2. Set goals.

Have a realistic goal in mind. What do you want to achieve? In my case, I want to be able to translate simple stories and to watch movies without subtitles after two months of self-study.

3. Use a main reference material but prepare supplements.

Buy a book which suits your level. To be on the safe side, choose one that is appropriate for beginners and which contains conversations, grammar explanations, and exercise drills. Make this your main reference material, but do not limit yourself to this one particular book. Supplement this songs, videos, dictionaries, and other grammar books. In my case, I watch anime and listen to Japanese songs.

4. Read children's books.

Reading children's books in the language you are studying helps, too, since sentence structures are fairly simple and you will not be overwhelmed and discouraged. Besides, it is a good way to build your vocabulary. Oh, and when you read, READ ALOUD!

5. Make studying a habit.

I know this is hard especially when it gets frustrating, but a lack of discipline would get you nowhere. Sometimes it's just in how you manage your time. Twenty minutes of study everyday is sure to bring much improvement.

In my case, I study almost everyday but without a definite schedule. Sometimes I study for three hours and sometimes just half an hour. 

6. When stumped or uncertain, RESEARCH!

Suddenly having difficulty with a topic? Research online! Or research on ways to cope with that difficulty. Chances are other learners also experience what you're going through.

To share some of my experiences, I found verb conjugations in Japanese difficult since the book I use does not explain in depth how to conjugate verbs. So I did a research on the internet and found useful information.

7. Take notes.

Notes are not just taken in class, they are also helpful when doing a self-study. Taking down notes not only increases chances of remembering words or grammar formulas, it also lets you practice writing non-romanized languages. Also, you may bring your notes with you everywhere so you may review what you have learned while in the bus or waiting for someone.

In my case, I create lists of kanji and foreign words (in katakana) as I encounter them. 

8. Immersion!

There is no quicker way than travelling to the country where your target language is spoken. Once there, interact with locals. Speak no English. Speak the language no matter how awkward or stupid you may sound. 

No budget? Search for online language communities or online forums and befriend a native speaker with whom you can practice your target language.

9. Face the mirror and talk to yourself.

This may make you look like a crazy idiot but it does work as it helps in making your tongue accustomed to producing sounds in the target language which may not be found in your own language. It also helps you come up with what to say faster.

With these tips, I'm sure you would be learning any foreign language in no time!