Waz's Up?

I can not believe how quickly time has pasted. Just yesterday I noticed how
the temperature has taken a dive. Two weeks ago my family and I visited World Revival Church in Kansas City, Missouri and I had a really great time seeking god and asking him to help me get though these troubled times. On the first day my parents returned from a conference they had attended and told me they met a guy at the conference named Pastor Kevin Tabuchi from Canadian Revival Center in Canada. He is the third generation of his Japanese Immigrant Grandparents as well as a missionary to Japan for several years. Later that night I personally met him and the first words from his mouth was "My wife and I are believing that your dream of Japan will happen.". That was the most encouraging thing anyone has ever said to me in years. He gave me some advise but held him self back out of reverence of the wises of World Revival Church. We exchanged contact information and he wants to keep in contact.

Pastor Steve and Kathy Gray.

During the last two weeks I also took the compass test at Prairie State College (Community College) to get in and take some class to obtain from certifications. I will be seeing a counselor tomorrow to see my results and what classes they think I need to take. Lucky for me I don't need to take these classes if I'm only pursuing a certificate. The three subjects I'm really interested in taking are Computer Networking, Japanese Language, and Anime Art. Unforchantly PSC dose not offer the last two subjects but when I see a counselor tomorrow I will ask if any other community colleges offer these subjects.

The other day my brother and I went to the rental house my family rents out in Lansing to pressure wash the foundation. Once I got there I realized that I forgot to grab the full gas can at home. So I went to ACE Hardware to buy a new can and then the gas station for some gas. I entered the store and went to the Gas Can Aisle to discover new safety Gas Cans with three switches you have to pull or twist in order to get a stream of gas and if that was not enough the can cost any where from $10 for a small 2 gallon can to $35 for a large 5 gallon. I asked if they still sold the older HAZARDOUS cans in which I get the reply of no. What happened to buying a normal 3 gallon gas can for only $5 maybe $7??? After buying gas and filling the pressure washer I realized how annoying this new can was and how people who make SO MANY MISTAKES (or just stupid) make this world so much harder for us smart people who remember that Yes, You boil water or soup it WILL be hot or Yes, Gas WILL spill and WILL ignite.

Stupid people make the world harder for us smart people.

A joke I once heard was "If Burger King married Dairy Queen, their child would be Jack in the Box." Many adults know how creative children can be, making up nonsensical new sentences in ways adults never could, bound as we are by social norms and expectations. I find the fun thing with learning a new language like Japanese is you get to be just as creative as children with no boundaries. Japan is absolutely one of the most pro-American countries in the world, with most people possessing a positive view of the U.S. which is one traits of advertisers in Japan. Japanese generally have the impression that America is kakko ii (meaning "good style" or cool) and are often open to owning items like Zippo Lighters, a set of Coleman outdoor cooking gear and clothes from Old Navy. Breading your product as American can often bring a boost in sales, which is why companies like Jack Daniels or KFC wrap themselves in images of old Tennessee or Kentucky. Levi Strauss struggled to build a name for themselves in Japan during the 1970s, until they hit on the idea of using iconic Hollywood stars like James Dean, John Wayne and Marilyn Monroe to advertise their jeans (they came cheap, since they were dead), which has to have been one of the most successful advertising decisions ever. And of course Harley Davidson sells a huge number of bikes in Japan, and has many dedicated fans.

would you like to wash your hair with "rinse in shampoo"?

Whether you're talking about Singapore or South Africa, Jamaica or Japan, every country is going to adapt the English language to their own local needs. In Japan, people generally learn six years of English in junior high and high school, yet because no one really needs it once they've taken their college entrance exams, it often becomes more of a decoration for society. One pattern I've noticed is that English gets shortened or simplified in ways that might seem strange to us. Hair conditioner in Japanese is called "rinse" (shortened from "cream rinse"), so it makes perfect sense to Japanese people that "rinse in shampoo" would be what conditioning shampoo would be called. In Japanese a convertible is known as an "open car," a name which gets the job done without adding any unnecessary complexity, while an RV your family can sleep in is referred to as a "camp car." One of my favorite Japanese word simplifications are Phillips and regular screwdrivers -- the Japanese just call them "plus" and "minus." I don't blame them with this one I called them that for years.