여보세요 is もしもし

Image from news blog

Thought I'd share a little bit of my personal journal with y'all. 

"Found a podcast today about useful Korean phrases. Apparently 여보세요 (yeoboseyo) is the equivalent of もしもし(moshimoshi). Learned another thing .... actually, I already knew this: Korean phonetics make NO sense to me. "Yeoboseyo" sounds nothing like that to me. It sounds more like "Doo-goo-say-yo." Japanese romanji - as long as you know the vowels - is fairly simple to read. Even so, Japanese isn't nearly as fun as Korean. When you speak Korean you have to talk like you have marbles in your mouth. It's rather fun."

Quick note for everyone: もしもし and 여보세요 are both words for "hello." The interesting thing is that these are only used for two reasons. The first is for a greeting over the telephone. The second is used when a person is spacing out. For example:

1. *ring ring* Moshi Moshi?/Yeoboseyo?
2. *waves hand in front of friend's face* Moshi Moshi? Yeoboseyo? Anyone there? 

Both languages fascinate me. And for very different reasons. I was thinking last night about what I liked about them and came up with a few things:

Things I like about Japanese:

• Romanji are easy to sound out.
• Katakana/hiragana is fairly simple. し is always "shi." く is always "ku."
• It's not harsh on the ears. I think of the sound as like a grown woman. Very sophisticated. 

Things I like about Korean:

• It's much more attractive to the eye. The vowels and consonants are fairly easy to distinguish and the alphabet is one unit [instead of three like Japanese - kanji, hiragana, katakana. There's no kanji (adopted Chinese characters).] The only downside is the fact that it changes when you have so many of whatever. Like the "'y' to 'i' and add 'es'" rules in English. If Japanese reminds me of a sophisticated woman, Korean reminds me of a super cute child. 
• The y's, b's, o's, l's and m's make for a fun time. Marbles, people, marbles.
• It's not tonal, but it has a few phonetics that sound similar to Chinese (like the "xiè" in 謝謝)

Learning it is interesting. Since I don't know anyone who speaks either fluently, I'm listening to podcasts (which, by the way, are the most amazing things to ever happen for language. I'm currently looking for one in all Spanish so I can work on my listening skills.) I'm trying to develop an ear for sounds. I can already identify several sounds that I'm going to struggle with - just like the Japanese struggle with "r." Do any of y'all do this? Try to identify sounds that you can't quite get right and say them?


What languages are y'all learning? What resources do you use to gain a better understanding of it? If you listen to podcasts, what ones are your favorites? What ones do you suggest?

*おまけ* My name in hangul is 제시카 (Jesika); and in hiragana, it is じえしか (Jeshika).

Once in Every Lifetime

Hello chicadees! I apologize! It's been quite a while since I've caught up with things on here. Life has been extremely busy. I'm now working nearly 40 hours a week at two different jobs.

As a filler, I've decided to crosspost this entry from my last blogging venture Eating Cultures. 

(I dated this gentleman, and later ended the relationship due to mutual agreement from both parties. A fiasco ensue and we are no longer friends. However, I do hope that he is well and has learned to make friends.)

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Two things inspired me for today's post:

1. I met up with an old crush the other day (which was what reminded me of this phrase).
2. I remembered why I am a tea only person.

My biggest facination with the country of Japan is their cooking style (ahem... you are reading the blog of a foodie), particularly that of cha-kaiseki. This is the meal that accompanies a longer tea ceremony and it highlights the current season and the tea that follows. Asthetics are valued over taste (although taste is exremely important as well) and the presentation of the food tells a story.

If, no excuse me, when I stay in Japan, I hope to study this art form. (Actually, aside from governmental work, it is the whole reason I want to be in Japan.) But that's enough on that, I need to finish my story.

The boy I met with is a precious friend, and he could have been more than that. During our lunch meal I realized that any chance of a deeper relationship had fallen. A year ago, even at the beginning of the meeting that day, I would have considered him as a possible life mate. (Unlike most students, I do not think of relationships as a trivial matter. They are to be taken with the utmost sincerity ~ playing with hearts is not my style.) However, at the end, my mind had captured a phrase and would not release it: "Ichigo, Ichie."

"Ichigo, Ichie" translates to "One encounter, one chance."

The tea ceremony is a spiritual meeting. The participants as well as the tea master realize that, "ichigo, ichie," there will never be another encounter like this one. The zen philosophy calls to memory that every moment is a precious thing, and not to be wasted. (The kaiseki also follows this principle. Everything is consumned, including the rice burnt on the bottom of the pan ~ don't worry. It's served in a miso broth.)

Even for Christians, "ichigo, ichie" is an excellent philosophy. Each moment is precious; there will never be another like it. Life life to its fullest. Don't let the little things ruin your attitude. If we each savored every second, what would our outlook be like?

Tea Time

As for why I am a tea person? Coffee makes me dizzy and nauseated (even when watered down). My morning's aren't considered morning without my standard tea. While this varies daily, my current favorite being an herbal peppermint, in honor of the tea ceremony I will talk about green tea.

Matcha (ground green tea leaves) is served at all ceremonies, but the type varies: thin (usu-cha), and less common thick (koi-cha). Oddly, usucha is more bitter than its counterpart and is less expensive. If you have had any experience with green tea ice cream, than you have had a [super] sweetend form.

As matcha is supurbly expensive, I'll focus a little more on avaliable green teas. Essentially green tea is the same as black. They both come from the plant camillia sinensis. The most common is sen-cha (the typical grocery stores carry a lesser version of this form called ban-cha), and it is rolled and steamed when picked. The next type is matcha *points to previous paragraph*. Then you have blends. The two blends that are considered "true" green tea are genmai-cha and jasmine. Jasmine is a blend of green teas and, of course, jasmine flowers. Genmai-cha is sen-cha blended with toasted brown rice. Out of all the green teas, this one is my favorite as it has an earthy toasted flavor.

How to prepare a cup of green tea

Suprisingly, many do not know the difference in preparing a green vs. black tea. Believe me, it does make a notable difference.

2 tsp. - 1 1/3 tbsp of your favorite green tea (depending on how strong you want it to be)

1 c. of boiling water

1. Boil the water in a kettle, or in a microwavable cup.
2. Place the tea bag or strainer into the cup. Allow to soak for thirty seconds to a minute.
3. As you enjoy your tea, contemplate the meaning of "Ichigo, Ichie." :)

If you would like more information on the tea ceremony, I suggest checking out Untangeling My Chopsticks by Victoria Abbott Riccardi. She is an American who moved to Japan (with no language experience) to learn the art of cha-kaiseki.

Calligraphy of "Ichigo, Ichie."

First image courtesy of  ohihides on flickr.

Defining a Generation: the Myth of Adolecene

It's been a while since I've done a real post, and I thought it was high time I added another part to the Defining a Generation series.

 

The Myth of Adolecence

What is it? To understand this, you must understand from where the concept comes. Nearly four years ago, two 16 year old twin brothers started on a journey of self-growth. In 2010 they have interned for the Alabama Supreme Court, headed several state wide re-election campaigns, written two best selling books, traveled the world, and headed a series of forums and conferences. All by age 20. The "they" are the Harris twins, Alex and Brett, and they call their movement The Rebelution. 

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I would like to pause here and explain: I am a born-again Christian and I love my God. I enjoy talking about things I love, thus, I will talk about my Savior. This video (taken from one of the recent rebelution articles) explains where I stand in my religion... or rather my faith. I am by no means a religious person. In fact, I hate religion - it's my Lord I love and serve.

DugDownDeep_Carnahan.mov from Covenant Life Church on Vimeo.

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In 2005,  the Harris brothers wrote a series of articles on rebelling against the cultural norms. Many other teenagers caught their infectious spirit and thus was born a "rebelution." They proposed that American society was wasting their best asset, the minds and talents of teenagers. 

And they're absolutely correct.  As a younger generation we have vision and energy. We are ripe for innovating and shaping our culture. So why are we wasting it? Have we let society tell us for so long that we are "too young" and "too inexperienced"? Weren't some of the greatest men and women, the shakers and movers of history, teens? 

Child-like not Childish

The best type of faith (be it religious or not) is a child-like faith. I remember thinking about this topic one day late last autumn. Then it hit me. I had been taught all my life to have a "child-like faith." Never once had anyone seen fit to explain the difference between Child-like and Childish. My whole life I had thought there was no difference. How many others, I wondered, are trapped in the same mindset?

Have you ever spent much time around young children? Their world is filled with firsts - scintillating with exploration and adventure. Their observations are profound, and simultaneously simplistic. Nothing ceases to amaze them, and their discoveries are shared with any welcoming face. Life is wonderful. And that is that.

Role Reversal

Precocious kids are interesting creatures. Ever met one? That would be the girl wearing her mother's high heels and pearls, ordering others like she owns the world. She's ambitious and spunky - nothing (other than her parents "no") will hold her back. Her future careers goals include doctor, mother, lawyer, and princess. Perhaps a part-time job as president. 

What happens to that drive when she becomes a teenager? Why does our social standing revert once we reached that fabled land of "teenagedom"? Expectations go from major leagues to back yard baseball (if that). Adolescences are expected to be a wast of space; only consuming, never producing. (Notice a difference in the pictures I chose?) Teens, myself included, need to seize this crucial period and use it to mold themselves into adults. Paul said in 1 Cor 13:11 "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things."

So what does this mean? "Teenagedom" does not exist! We are either children or adults. Society has only fabricated the "teen years" to validate laziness. It's the reason why we're stuck with "Kidults," adults that never grew up mentally. 

I really recommend, non-believers included, Do Hard Things. It's a fantastic look into this topic and worth every penny. The Harris twins also recently published START HERE, an idea booklet for beginning the life changing ideas discussed in Do Hard Things. Pick it up and tell me what you think. It definitely is great mind fodder.

Defining a Generation: As It Is

n memory of the 1765 Stamp Act - a monumental occasion in the history of America - and the equally revolutionary passage of H.R. 3962 into the Senate (whether you support it or not, it's a big deal... and that's an understatement), I wanted to do something a little different.  

Defining a Generation is a set of blog spots that I've had on my mind lately. Take a moment and watch this video:

 How finite do you feel?

One of the facts that stuck with me is the amount of information we consume and output. If we have five times the amount of words that Shakespeare had, why is it that our usage of them has been reduced to a few vulgar and trite mutterings? How is it that we have lost more than we have gained?

Can we blame this phenomena as "a product of circumstances"? Or would it be better described as a result of our laziness?

When I imagine an era I enjoy (Dynastic China/Turn of the Century America/Ancient Greece and Egypt/19th Century India and Arabia) I think of how hard life would be without the "necessities": air conditioning, electricity, internet, etc. Yet I also wonder how much happier and content I would be. Surely they lived more fulfilling and purposeful lives.

There is something in me that fights to be unique, a mover and shaker of the world. I have not been left here to fritter my existence...

Let him that would move the world first move himself ~ Socrates  

The Road Goes Ever On and On

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

~ "The Road Goes Ever On" J.R.R. Tolkien

Hello my lovelies. I've moved and am almost "settled in" to Wanderlust Charm! My last venture (Eating Cultures) was a dissmal failure due to lack of time, expertise, crashing computers, and a little quirk of blogspot (if you arn't the creator of the original blog, you can't recode the html.) So!

Anyway, I'm Lady Weaver - not because I spin thread, but words. I'm looking foward to blogging about my love of cultures, cooking,  clothing, and Christ.

Now that intros are finished with - let the blogging begin!