Saturday, January 30, 2016

バイリンガルの落とし穴

海外で子育てするってさ、日本語をどう教えるかが結構重大なのよ。
両親とも家で日本語だとわりとすんなり覚えるわね。
小さい時は!
学校に入って英語に触れ始めたら一気に日本語を忘れるわよ。

私だって幼少の頃は英語ペラペラだったらしいわよ。
記憶に無いけどね。
3、4歳くらいにお友達が出来て公園とかで遊ぶじゃない、で通じないのよ。 英語。
当たり前だけどさ、知らないわよ。そんなの。近所の子供に笑われたらしい。からかわれたね。
で、両親に英語封印を宣言したらしいわ。 マミーとか呼んでたのにその日を境にお父さんとお母さんよ。

そのままアメリカに住むまで英語は話せなかったわ。
こんなに濃い顔してて英語話せないなんて、だいぶ世間の期待を裏切ってきたわよ。 本当に悪かったわ、見掛け倒しで。
今はちゃんと話せるからやっと世間の認める「正しいハーフ」になれたかしら?

小学校に上がる歳になったらやっぱりちゃんと学問として日本語を教えるのは必要ね。
読み書き出来ない、敬語出来ない、テレビがわかんないっていう海外に住む成人日本人を散々見てるわ。

そう思って日本語ばっかりにしてたのよ。 5歳まで。

そんな努力も水の泡になりつつある9歳児の英語力は私の幼少の頃の真逆。

やっぱ 使わないと忘れるわね。

Friday, January 29, 2016

バイリンガル は必ずしも通訳にはなれない

バイリンガル なら楽に通訳 または英語の先生 になれるなんて安易に言わないで!

それって真剣に通訳や先生してる人に失礼だから。
だってさ、私さ、日本の学校は小6までしか行ってなくて、アメリカの学校は中学からしか行ってないのよ。

ちょっと想像して見てよ。
小学校の低学年で日本の地理を習うでしょ?
アメリカでも同じよ。 だけど私は習ってないのよね。アメリカの州。
だから未だに自分の住んでる東海岸北部以外はわかんないわよ。 
いちいち調べないと特に真ん中辺なんて適当よ。  地図見てて、シカゴ州が無い! とか言って大恥かいたわよ!

反対に日本の中学以降で学ぶべき知識が無いのよ。
もう何を知らないかさえわかんないわよ!

圧倒的にボキャブラリーが足らないの。 英語と日本語2つの所をどっちか1つだけだから。

今までどうやって生きてたかというと、都合よくその時によって自分の知ってる言語にすり替えるのよ。

人間って大半は楽な方を選ぶわ。幼少からわざわざ自主的にちゃんと二つの単語を覚えよう! 何て考える物好き早々いないから!

だけど勉強は何とかなったわけ。
辞書で調べたらいいし、英語の本が難しいと思ったら日本語訳のを探したわよ。知らない漢字だってパソコン様さまよ。
友達だって同じ境遇だから英語と日本語乱れまくりのちゃらんぽらんなのよ。ジャパングリッシュよ

だからさ、成人するまで母国に住み続けて一つの言葉をちゃんと学んだ人には敵わないわ。

聞いた直後に訳すなんて並大抵の努力じゃできないから。

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Plant Killer

I'm a plant killer.  

What can I do to save this one?

What is this called anyway? 

Hawaiian Clay Cruise with Christi!!

http://www.christifriesenart.com/product-p/aloha-cruise.htm?utm_source=aloha+cruise&utm_campaign=alohacruise&utm_medium=email

save up your pennies everyone!  
How fabulous will this be???

I cant wait to get there.  this is going to be awesome.

I'm going to be there no matter what.



私の師匠であるクリスティー先生のワークショップがクルーズで、しかもハワイで行われます!
うれしすぎて信じられない。

今からバケーションファンド始めます。

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

華氏

華氏の簡単な覚え方。
100度は暑すぎて市長が外に出ないで! って警報を出す気温。
50度を下回ったら暖房入れて冬のコートが必要。
0度は死んじゃう。
...
今朝は10度しかなかったから命がけの出勤よ。

Sunday, January 17, 2016

Expressions!!

I was making a face a day for a while in December.   
And once I got a bunch, this is what I've done. 


Monday, January 11, 2016

Live as an Artist

I was asked to make a list of what I plan to accomplish for 2016 at my office.
I honestly have nothing. 

All I can think about is what project to make next.   So I know I will be much happier planning a life as an artist.  
Yet there's the little problem of bills and my child's education.... 

How am I going to pay for college??? 




Sunday, January 10, 2016

Polymer Clay Retreat 2016 has started!

Laurie Mika was the first instructor and this year, she has shown a way to reuse the Altoid tin cans!!!!

I have so many of them.  and have covered it in clay but it's always nice to have another way to up-cycle them.

http://www.onlineartretreats.com/polymer-clay-adventure-2016-retreat/

this is the sight to join the online retreat.  
You will be so busy that you may not get to do all the projects.

Instead of making a tiny shrine, I think I will create a memoir for my mom's chicken.
We shall see how it turns out.

what you need to do first is to distress the tin cans to erase the words and the red color.
also so it looks old.
The easiest way is to torch it.  I don't have any blow torch, so I just let it burn on the stove top.

It releases such a stink that you have to have all your windows open.
all you need to burn is a minute or 2 and it's nice and black.


I also decided to add some Swellegant to further distress it.
I happen to grab the green dye so they are greenish.


Thursday, January 7, 2016

New Found Drama

I recently started watching the 朝ドラ "朝が来た!Asa ga kita"  which is a Japanese morning 15min drama that runs for about 6 months.
It's traditionally about a woman's life from various period of time.
From her birth to death.  Usually an influential person.

This time they are doing the Bakumatsu Era.  That's my favorite!
It's about 150 years ago when Japan opened it's port to the world and the Edo period ends to move on to the modern Japan that we know today.
so much has happened and it's fascinating.

http://www.nhk.or.jp/asagakita/

Not only the history interesting but the costumes of those lost times are all so gorgeous!!
Back then, in Edo (Tokyo today) people dressed in more muted toned down natural colored clothes, but in Osaka and Kyoto, women dressed in bright colors.
The main character of the story was upper middle class, so she had money to dress up!

I think I'm getting inspired.


Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Making your own stamps

I saw the free tutorial on Craft Art Edu site.  It's taught by Anke Humpert on how to make your own little stamps.

http://craftartedu.com/customer/account/view/id/573

I think I want to try this next.
But I'll make my own unique designs.  I've searched for some symbols and shapes and doodled it.

when will I have my studio time???



It all depends on how much homework my daughter brings home, but I hope soon!


Tuesday, January 5, 2016

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

 Since  I live in New York City, I go to the met a few times a year. 
I should go more often, but my daughter is into animals so I spent more time at the Zoo or the Museum of Natural history.
Which was also lots of fun since as we all know, they move at night...

After the Christmas week, I had some time off, so we decided to go to the Met.
Which was a crazy time to go since all the tourists were there as well.
so we quickly passed the Egyptians, special Costume exhibit, and went into the Medieval arts.

By this time my daughter is in tears.

Why???

She says looking at all these master piece is making her upset.
Because she thinks there's no way for her to do what she sees.

she's only 9!!

So we sat down on a bench, faced back to the arts and drew the circles from the wall impressions, and triangles from the columns.
We looked at the light and shadows and shaded the sphere to make it look round.
and then we went to see the Japanese prints to observe that those were drawn with lines and not so much shadows....
these people spent a lifetime mastering the technique.  a 9 year old girl has a long way to get there...

She crumbled up the piece of her art and trashed it at the end, but was not crying anymore.

I do hope she's not discouraged.


Monday, January 4, 2016

Happy New Year!

I will try to post more this year.  

That would be the new year's resolution.  
I have joined the Polymer Clay online retreat since last year that Ilysa and Kira runs. 
Since I had some free time over the holidays and finally sat down to watch a few of the videos.
I really liked Lisa Renner's class and would like to try making the female busts.

But I think I won't do a bathing girl.  I'll make it me.  I will post them once I get it going.

her technique is very interesting and the video was very detailed.  but it was long!!
5 hours total.

anyway, I got curious to know who she is and visited her website.
Found a lot of images to enjoy.

check out  www.lisarenner.com  


I am turning all those faces into 1 sculpture.   coming soon!