Looking for something to read

I’ve been undergoing an interesting phenomenon lately. It could just be my hopefulness, but my Japanese has improved to the point where I’m fairly confident I could pass 3-kyuu. (learned all that with nothing but the Internet and exposure :O)

So, of course I’m at that awkward stage where beginner texts aren’t helping me much, but everything else is over my head. I’m trying to hit more native-level material.

I’m dying for something to read. I have a few books on my “gotta-read” list which I really plan to snatch up, namely both “Read Real Japanese” books. Those look.. absolutely delicious for the level I’m at right now.

Also, in order to get my other skills up to par, I thought about picking up “An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese” for a few reasons:

• I saw the sample, and I can read through it but it’s still sticky.
• It’s one of the few intermediate-level books that looks approachable for me right now, obviously because this is probably at the lower end of the intermediate scale.
• I LOVE its grammar explanations. They’re a bit short, but in the context of reading/conversation it’s really nice.

The only thing I’m worried about is that if I keep studying, will it become too easy for me by the time I get it? I doubt it, but every time I get ready to buy it I hesitate.

I considered “A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar” for a while, but honestly, and this is probably a bit boastful, I feel like I know most of the grammar points in it. I don’t know them *well* and their differences, but I recognize them and it seems exposure would iron that out. Though.. the front part with all those delicious explanations is hard to pass up.

I wanted to get the 完全マスター２級 book, mostly just to say I’m reaching a 2-kyuu level but I’m not sure it would be as detailed as I need for where I am right now because it’s more or less focused on the JLPT.

*sigh* Maybe I’ll just buy some よつばと and curl up in a corner. More fun than a textbook, methinks.

Oh, btw I’m technically at frame 1805 in Heisig, but I have 111 failed cards.. so yeah. I’ve been doing reeeeeally crappy on reviews lately. I have at least 60 cards with more than 10 fails.

In a bit of a sticky wicket

Let’s say your school just started again, picking up after a while into a new semester. Now let’s say you are allllllllllmost 3/4 of the way through RTK1.

And you have a dogpile of failed cards. What do you do? Run to your mommy? Buy an apple and twist your head up in a contemplative pose while chewing thoughtfully? No silly. You buy an orange and look thoughtful.

I’m trying to come up with a new study plan. Henceforth, I’m going to add double my amount of kanji I was (well.. it was only 10) and try to add cards more often. Usually I add new cards about once a week but I really should have been adding more often.

This won’t work well but I feel like I’m going too slowly. I mean, yeah I’ve heard the usual “it’s not a race”, but don’t they say Heisig is better done fast? I’m scared to add more than 10 a day.. or even 10 a week. The reviews are so boring anymore that it gets hard trying to suck it up sometimes. It’s to the point where I’m not really paying attention and just want to get them out of the way so that annoying orange stack will disappear like Houdini.

Good news is, I think I might have reached a section which won’t be too bad. Right now I’m on Lesson 38 ( “orders”, “zero”, “cool”) which may not be too bad. I think I’m still secretly rote memorizing them which is why I say this section is easier. They say you get better at storymaking the further you go along, but I beg to differ

The “thread” primitive lesson was rough. I thought it would never end. But, it did, and now I may be out of a slump for a while (at least until that review wave hits in a few days)

Technically right now I’m on frame 1405 but I think my knowledge of kanji is still back in the 1200s. I end up reviewing the newest kanji probably..3-5 times before I finally get a pass.. and then *wham* the next time it pops up I fail it again. I’ve changed some stories but it’s really hard to develop well-crafted images quickly (or in my case, at all)

Woo! I’m 1337!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Ok maybe I’m getting too much nerd fun out of this but I just reached putting in the 1337th card. Granted, I rushed a bit to reach this milestone but it’s just so cool to see that number.

1337 kanji!

Plus.. 1000 kanji in the fourth stack! :D:D:D

*ahem* ok I’m done. Laters.

Getting there.. very slowly

I have arrived at 1306 kanji. My recall rate is still very meh, but it’s actually getting quite a bit easier now that I’m focusing more.

I’ve decided that I’ll try to write them out more often. Or rather, at least when I review. There are so many that I have just once-overed that it’s hard for me to remember each location of each primitive. I kinnnnda know it but at the same time I don’t know it. Plus I really need to work on my handwriting anyway. Sadly, it’s better than my English.

Been a while ain’t it..

ご無沙汰ね。

Just thought I’d update and say that I have hit the 1200 kanji mark.. I’m a slow worker, considering I’ve only done 200 in a month. I usually do no more than 10 new ones a day and the rest of the time is spent whittling on my huge fail pile.

I’ve switched to Anki for Heisig reviewing as well. The Anki deck is just a bit behind my Koohii deck, and I review in both daily. Anki’s gotten some really delicious new features lately and it is SO much easier to use with Heisig that it’s ridiculous.

I’m over halfway there and soon to be three-quarters (300 more!) Wish me luck. I should be done by..never.

If I did my calculations right, I have 842 kanji left. At 10 a day, it’ll take me about 85 days..around 3 months to finish from here.

Sometimes I do more though if I’m on a good streak ^^.

One thousand

It’s official, I hit 1,000 kanji yesterday. I’m 26 24 away from being halfway through the book

WOO!! *ahem*

My recall percentage probably sucks but I’ve started reviewing them before they expire. That normally is something I wouldn’t do, but I have so many cards hanging over my head that if I don’t my reviews will be huuuuge. Even if I fail them all again, the repetition will help.

Besides, I don’t mind reviewing that badly. It’s actually fun, except when you get it so wrong and then get so mad that you missed something that simple (happened too much to mention).

Maybe I am capable of learning this language after all…

I am 70 frames away from 1000

And it feels oh so good..

I never ever thought I’d get this far with it.. it felt like forever when I was doing it but now that I’m actually almost halfway it seems like it only took 3 seconds.

Unfortunately, the reviews are getting painful and I keep getting stuck on the  same ones over and over; the ones in the late 800s to early 900s. I guarantee though that if I went back and tested all 920 of them that I’d barely get half right..

Such is the way of my brain.

The day that will live in infamy

one hundred. thirty-four. expired cards.

Ouch. It’s 8:30 in the night and I’ve still got 76 left. I’m not doin’ too hot on them either.

Daily Study Update: 8/29/2008

“A day that will live in infamy…”

Why? Because I’m preparing for the biggest review of my life tomorrow. The kanji stacked up so much that I just wanted them out of my face so I sped through them with a passing glance and now I’ve only got 21 failed.

Kanji

• 33 to review
• Not many failed (like 6)

Other:

It’s the weekend! I can study! I can breathe!

Maybe I should take Stephen’s advice and switch to another more flexible SRS. I have Anki and use it, but never for kanji.

Daily Study Update: 8/26/2008

Kanji:

• 59 (?) expired
• 61 (?) % remembered
• 106 failed

Other:

Haven’t been able to study; school’s been killing me. I’ve been listening to news and weather and reviewing kanji but that’s about it.

On the plus side my last class of the day is one where I can use the computer,  which means that I can review my kanji there so I don’t have to worry about it later