One new anime I started watching is Gabriel DropOut, a fun show about an angel who graduates top of her class from angel school, then goes down to Earth to complete her training. She gets off to a good start, but soon becomes addicted to a netoge (online net game), and the next thing she knows, she’s become a sloppy hetare like Umaru-chan or Anzu from Idolmaster Cinderella Girls, being as lazy as possible and playing videos games all day (or sometimes teleporting her pantsu to school). As is often the case in anime, the main character is not the most interesting or endearing person in the show: I much prefer Satanichi, a clumsy devil girl who’s always trying to cause mischief and who doesn’t know how to eat with chopsticks. If you like shows that celebrate modern NEET culture and comedy, you should give Gabriel DropOut a try!
There are many approaches to studying a foreign language, including the Communicative Method, stressing verbal communication with other students, the Natural Approach, which tries to imitate the way children acquire language, and the method I used, Read Lots of Manga and Translate JPOP Songs and Date Japanese Japanese Girls. When the Japanese study English, they do it with lots of grammar and translation, attempting to understand the mechanics of the language analytically, sort of like learning the theorems that allow us to solve math problems, without ever actually solving them. As a result, the Japanese often have an excellent grasp of English grammar, even though they may lack the self confidence to open and speak. Do you understand the difference between gerunds and infinitive verbs and why sometimes they can be interchaged? How about why we sometimes say ‘the’ (rhyming with ‘uh’) and ‘the’ (rhyming with ‘three’)? (It depends on whether the next word starts with a vowel.) How about the way words like record, present and suspect are always stressed on the first syllable if they’re nouns, but on the second when used as verbs. Since Japanese people expect native speakers to know every vocabulary word and grammar that exists or has ever existed in English, they’re disappointed when they find out we don’t.
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and it seems to us that some J-List customers will be giving chocolate to their boyfriends and girlfriends, while others are spending time alone, or with their favorite 2D waifus. We decided to have a sale for both groups, giving 2x J-List Points off all chocolate and snack items, as well as all onahole and other “H” toy items and lotion, so everyone will be happy. Stock up on both! Sale ends February 15.
