silver lining

every cloud has a silver lining.

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Results of Eiken Test

Here's the result of the Eiken test I tried weeds ago.

 氏名    nabocha
 年度回  2006年度第1回
 受験級  1級    個人番号 *******
 合否  一次試験不合格A

 一次試験結果 : 不合格

 分野               配点  得点  得点率(%)  平均点
                                      合格  全体
 語彙・熟語・文法        25   16     64       16   13
 読解     空欄補充     6    5     83.3      5    4
         内容把握     20   16     80      16    11
 リスニング  会話文      14    7     50       12   9
         一般文      20    12     60      17    13
 作文               28    22    78.6      20    14
 合計               113   78     69       86    64
 今回の合格点              80

That's close! Only two more points!!

Anyway I failed. I have to admit that I almost forgot the listening part because I got so tired at the writing part. This time I only studied for the vocabulary section and the essay section. I think it was not so bad for the first try.

The bad thing is that the next Eiken test date falls on the date of the Basic System Administrator test! On that day of all others!!

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Only ifs and buts

Yes, I have to admit that I've procastinated blogging here these days. Let me tell some reasons.












I started the morning aerobic workout again. I like this workout "30 days to Thinner Thighs" by Donna Richardson. About 3 months ago when I was into a drama, I made up my mind to lose my weight making use of the chance to act on the stage, and I lost about 5 kilos of my weight in one month with this video!! She says "You can see the result by using this tape three to four days a week". Well, I did it alomost everyday morning at that time. Now I try to do the workout every other day.

Not enough? Well, I've been so busy with looking for my roommate and flat! I left messages asking my roommate and flat on BBS at Roomshare Japan, Roommate Cafe, and mixi. I've got some responses until now. Well, just wait until you see the result of my house & job hunting!










And this is the heaviest pressure and stress for me. I've been using my company's education system for some studies because it's free! It's free if you pass the final test, though. Now I have three correspondence courses: English Writing Intensive Course (DHC), English Writing Basics (DHC), and System Administrator (TAC). I know I do too much, but that's the story of my life. In addition, these studies must be advantages for my next job.

Anyway these are only excuses.

Saturday, June 17, 2006

Recent Events

After taking the Eiken test, I couldn't start blogging here because my PC had been broken for this week. Finally I can write something here.

Speaking of recent events, I decided to quit my job in September. A half year before I had thought to do it actually. I was thinking that I would move to Tokyo, start my new job, and begin my study by a correspondance course from next spring. But I moved up the schedule considering my present status at the office. A new system will be introduced in October, and now there begins some projects and training programs for it. I didn't want to join the project which will take more than 3 years. Temporary staffs are supposed to offer one's resignation 3 months before that day, so I reported it to my boss this month.

I haven't decided my next job and place to live in Tokyo. Now I'm wondering "roomsharing" or flatsharing would be nice. I have some savings enough to live by myself, but I want to save it for my study abroad near future. Anyway accomodation is expensive in Tokyo. One big difficulty is to find a suitable flatmate. And now I'm wondering which should be decided first, my roommate, my new job or my flat.

Links:
Classified Rooms
http://www.shujik.com/roomshare/link.html
Tokyo Room Finder
http://www.tokyoroomfinder.com/
sharehouse.com
http://www.sharese.com/
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After taking the Eiken test, I couldn't resume blogging here because my laptop had been broken for a week. Finally, I can write something here.

Speaking of recent events, I decided to quit my job in September. I had thought about doing this a half a year before, actually. I was thinking that I would move to Tokyo, start a new job, and begin my correspondance course studies from next spring, however I accelerated my schedule considering my present status at the office. A new system will be introduced in October, and now some projects and training programs for it are beginning. I don't want to participate in projects which will take more than 3 years. Temporary staff are supposed to offer their resignation 3 months in advance, so I informed my boss this month.

I haven't decided my next job or a place to live in Tokyo, so now I'm considering if "roomsharing" or flatsharing would be nice. I have some savings, enough to live by myself, but I want to save it for my studies abroad in the near future. Anyway, accomodation is expensive in Tokyo. One huge difficulty is to find a suitable flatmate, and now I'm wondering which should be decided first, my roommate, my new job, or my flat.

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Other expressions of "wonder" (LONGMAN)

*mull
usually mull something ↔over
to think about a problem, plan etc for a long time before making a decision

*contemplate
to think about something that you might do in the future

*ruminate
to think carefully and deeply about something

Friday, June 16, 2006

Witty remarks 11










*The best way to predict the future is to invent it. (Alan Kay)

*I am always ready to learn but do not always like being taught. (Winston Churchill)

*Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it. (George Bernard Shaw)

*There are two rules for ultimate success in life. Never tell everything you know. (anonym)

*Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity. (Oprah Winfrey)

*Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot. (Charlie Chaplin)

*I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self. (Aristotle)

*The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it. (Pearl S. Buck)

*Indeed, I did have a relationship with Ms. Lewinsky that was not appropriate... (Bill Clinton)

*The toughest thing about success is that you've got to keep on being a success. (Irving Berlin)

*Freedom is danger of degenerating into mere arbitrariness unless it is lived in terms of responsibleness. (Viktor Frankl)

*Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world. (Joel A. Barker)

Saturday, June 10, 2006

Eiken Essay (2005 spring)

· Write an essay on the given TOPIC covering three of the POINTS below. Use the space provided on your answer sheet.
· Structure: Three or more paragraphs, including an introduction and conclusion
· Length: Around 200 words

TOPIC
MAKING THE WORLD SAFER FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS

POINTS
Diplomacy
Disaster preparedness
Human rights
Nuclear disarmament
Public health
Renewable energy
......................................................................................................

The world is facing several problems which threat human security. In order to make the world safer for future generations, practical measures must be taken for the following three factors.

Firstly, one of the biggest worldwide issues is how to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Currently, Iran is promoting uranium enrichment against which the United States tries to take economic sanctions. At the same time, the U.S. calls for direct talks with Iran on the nuclear program. If some appropriate measures aren’t taken, there could be another war in the future which will make the world more dangerous.

Secondly, there should be more education on human rights. The state security has been much more considered, while much less human security which proves that we have neglected human rights. For example, Japanese and Korean abduction issue still remains. Protecting human rights is the core of protecting human security.

Last but not least, public health should be more focused. Despite the progress in health care, millions of people died of preventable diseases. For example, AIDS is the greatest health disease. Lately, bird flu is another significant threat. Providing access to drugs is crutial for those in developping countries. And there should be some global control system against infections diseases.

I think responding to these challenges in today’s world is the most realistic way to make the world safer for the future generations.
.....................................................................................................

The world is facing countless problems which threaten humanity. In order to make the world safer for future generations, practical measures must be taken regarging the following three issues.

Firstly, one of the biggest world issues is how to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Currently, Iran is promoting uranium enrichment against which the United States is attimpting to enact economic sanctions. At the same time, the U.S. is calling for direct talks with Iran on its nuclear program. If some appropriate measures aren’t taken, there could be another war in the future which will imperil all.

Secondly, there should be more human rights education. State security has been considered much more, while has been ignored; human security. This proves that we have neglected human rights. For example, Japanese and Korean abduction issue still remains. Protecting human rights is at the core of protecting human security.

Finally, and importantly, public health should be more focused. Despite the progress in health care, millions of people die of preventable diseases. For example, AIDS is the greatest health disease. Lately, bird flu is another significant threat. Providing access to drugs is crucial for people in developing countries, and there should be some global control system against infections diseases.

I think responding to these challenges in today’s world is the most realistic way to make the world safer for future generations.

Saturday, June 03, 2006

TOEFL essay 2

TOPIC NUMBER: 98
If you were asked to send one thing representing your country to an international exhibition, what would you choose? Use specific reasons and details to explain your choice.
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I had my articles corrected by a native teacher again this time. One of my classmates told me at the drinking party that I should write essays for Eiken, not using my past essays... Ah-ha! Now you know I've been cutting corners. I promise I will write a "fresh" essay next time.

If I were asked to send just one thing representing my country to an international exhibition, I would send a folded paper crane. The skill required to make a paper crane symbolizes Japanese dexterity. Origami (paper folding) is a unique Japanese cultural phenomena. Furthermore, origami is an excellent educational activity for children throughout the world.

Most Japanese children learn how to do origami at school, and most Japanese people can make folded cranes. Origami is created by just folding a square piece of paper without using glue or scissors. Some people think that Japanese are relatively dexterous because they are taught this skill as children. This Japanese dexterity must be related to the craftsmanship of state-of-the-art technologies such as LSI semiconductor, Light Emitting Diode, nano biology etc. A paper crane can reveal this relationship.

Origami is the original Japanese art of folding paper into various attractive shapes, such as birds, animals, and flowers. Among them, the crane is a symbol of longevity and purity, it is known as auspicious shape by Japanese people. There is even an old saying that a crane lives for one thousand years, and a tortoise, ten thousand. As a result, Japanese people customarily make one thousand folded cranes and link them together by thread in order to give them to a sick person wishing them a rapid recover. Only a paper crane can communicate so much unique Japanese culture.

Origami is also a wonderful educational activity for children. In fact, origami is taught in many other countries, and is used to help teach geometry. Also, it helps not only children, but also the elderly in preventing aging problem and dementia. This is because they have to use their hands carefully to fold origami. I believe that origami should be introduced to many more countries all over the world.

You can learn a variety of cultural activities through a folded paper crane. You can understand Japanese dexterity, unique culture, and its flexibility in being accepted by many other countries throughout the world. For these reasons I would send a folded paper crane to an international exhibition.

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If I were asked to send one thing representing my country to an international exhibition, I would send a folded paper crane. The skill required to make a paper crane symbolizes the Japanese skillfulness. The culture of origami (paper folding) is unique to Japan. What’s more, origami is an excellent educational activity for children in the world.

Most Japanese children learn how to make origami at school and most Japanese people can make folded cranes. Origami is created by just folding square paper without the use of glue or scissors. Some people think that Japanese are relatively skillful with their fingers because they are taught this skill as children. This Japanese skillfulness with fingers must be related to craftsmanship of state-of-the-art technologies such as magnetic disk equipment or integrated circuits. A paper crane can show this relationship very well.

Origami is the original Japanese art of folding paper into various attractive shapes such as birds, animals and flowers. Among them, the crane is a symbol of longevity and purity, it is seemed to be an auspicious thing by Japanese people. There is even the old saying that a crane lives for one thousand years and a tortoise ten thousand. As a result, we customarily make one thousand folded cranes and link them together by thread in order to give them to a sick person making a wish that the sickness will be cured soon. Only a paper crane can tell a plenty of Japanese unique culture quite well.

Origami is also a wonderful educational activity for children. In fact, origami is taught in many other countries and is used to help teach geometry. Besides, it helps not only children but also older people prevent from aging problem or dementia, because they have to use hands carefully to make origami. I believe that origami should be introduced to many more countries all over the world.

You can learn the variety of cultural activities by a folded paper crane. You can know Japanese skillfulness, their unique culture, and its flexibility to be accepted by many other countries in the world. That is why I would send a folded paper crane to an international exhibition.