Ask Kate

[katelynisspecial]

Hehe, some of them help me a little if I ask. But I've been learning a bit from my friend Saina that I actually go to school with, she was born in Japan, came here about five years ago. There are a TON of exchange students at my school, it's really neat. I have another friend who came from France a few years ago, and there's a guy in my History class who moved from Germany like a year ago. And then there's a girl in that same class who came from India a few months ago!

Well I went in today to turn in paperwork, get drug tested and stuff. Had to bring my passport for ID, etc. And then I go back Thursday for orientation and to get my picture ID and uniform. And then Saturday I go in for ride training and then work from 12:30 to 8 =O

[Yuuji]

Originally Posted by katelynisspecial

Hehe, some of them help me a little if I ask. But I've been learning a bit from my friend Saina that I actually go to school with, she was born in Japan, came here about five years ago. There are a TON of exchange students at my school, it's really neat. I have another friend who came from France a few years ago, and there's a guy in my History class who moved from Germany like a year ago. And then there's a girl in that same class who came from India a few months ago!

Say WHAT?
You have an actual, real blooded Japanese person at your school?
(admitedly, all the exchange people sound cool....what kind of school do you go to?? I was in a relatively affluent high school, and we had maybe 1, or 2 a year..for the whole school!)

When you say 'friend', do you mean aquaintance-friend, or more then that?
I mean, does she know your hobbies and plans?

Well I went in today to turn in paperwork, get drug tested and stuff. Had to bring my passport for ID, etc. And then I go back Thursday for orientation and to get my picture ID and uniform. And then Saturday I go in for ride training and then work from 12:30 to 8 =O

Don't get me started on 'drug testing'......I'm sure the administrators are all tested...blah. But that's a pet peeve of mine.

Passport??
Oh yeah...you don't have your license yet, ergo - that was the only ID you had, right?
*blinks*


Wait...
I thought you ....wait, you didn't say that.
I kinda thought you were going to work starting this summer.

You are going to work _immediately??_

[katelynisspecial]

Oh, Saina is a really close friend ^^
I sit with her at lunch a lot, and we visit each other's house.
She has all kinds of neat little things. Her brother Reiju plays the Final Fantasy games in Japanese, it's neat to watch xD
And once we had an onigiri making party at her house =D

Yeah, I interviewed Friday, turned in paperwork on Monday, have orientation Thursday, and my first day working is Saturday, 12:30 - 8. I work weekends until it opens fulltime in the summer ^^

[Yuuji]

Originally Posted by katelynisspecial

Oh, Saina is a really close friend ^^
I sit with her at lunch a lot, and we visit each other's house.
She has all kinds of neat little things. Her brother Reiju plays the Final Fantasy games in Japanese, it's neat to watch xD
And once we had an onigiri making party at her house =D

Wow, that sounds excellent!
(especially the onigiri making party!).
The group still enjoys curry and basic sushi from time to time, but none of it is made by someone who is truly Japanese - so in a way its not true cuisine.

Being that her brother plays FF games in Japanese - is Japanese their first language?

Yeah, I interviewed Friday, turned in paperwork on Monday, have orientation Thursday, and my first day working is Saturday, 12:30 - 8. I work weekends until it opens fulltime in the summer ^^

Never thought it would go...so quickly.

But in essence, that sounds good.

Do you have a comfortable pair of shoes? (The standing, y'know)

And being that:
A) You have initiated your own job at a place where you will enjoy (you didn't go fast food)
B ) You have a long range plan (Japan)
C) Willing to work/save for it.
D) It will be educational.
E) Will look great on a resume.
F) Will lead you to learn a second language.

How are you parents taking all of this?

[katelynisspecial]

Yes, Japanese is their first language ^^
Saina, her older sister Kai, and their little brother Reiju were all born in Japan and raised there for several years, obviously Kai the longest. I think Saina was around 10 when they moved to the US? She came here speaking almost no English, or none at all, can't remember. Would she have had any English classes at age 10? Either way, she had to learn our language, and take classes in it! Her grades didn't count for awhile though, hehe.

My school is a public school, but it's the only one in our area rated excellent, it's a very very good school ^^

Hehe, yeah I have comfy shoes!

As for my parents.. they're happy/proud I've gotten a job, but the whole Japan thing... I think they think there's NO WAY I'll be able to save the money =P
I've got $250 right now >_>
I'll get paid for orientation and then working, I get $7/hour.
About the language.. that's not a really big deal for them. Neither of them speak anything but English, and they don't see my passion =P
Techically, Japanese is my third language, haha. I consider myself nearly fluent in Spanish. Other than a few conjugation mistakes, I read, write, speak, and understand it very well =D

[Yuuji]

Originally Posted by katelynisspecial

Yes, Japanese is their first language ^^
Saina, her older sister Kai, and their little brother Reiju were all born in Japan and raised there for several years, obviously Kai the longest. I think Saina was around 10 when they moved to the US? She came here speaking almost no English, or none at all, can't remember. Would she have had any English classes at age 10? Either way, she had to learn our language, and take classes in it! Her grades didn't count for awhile though, hehe.

I do not know when the Japanese school system starts teaching English. I think it's in Middle school, and that's 12+ I think.

Interesting about how she had to learn English (and how she was graded) once she got over here.

1) How is her accent?
2) Do they plan to become US citizens?

My school is a public school, but it's the only one in our area rated excellent, it's a very very good school ^^

Ah, so ka.

Hehe, yeah I have comfy shoes!

Good.
I know it was something I had to deal with, when I started working the floor at an Electronic store.

As for my parents.. they're happy/proud I've gotten a job, but the whole Japan thing... I think they think there's NO WAY I'll be able to save the money =P

Hmmmm.
*scans back to see how much you have to get within 14 months*

$5,000.

At $7 an hour, that might be a little tough in only 15 months. Especially since most of it will be seasonal, and you'll only work part time.
Or do you plan to work full time over the summer?
And do they have an automatic pay raise, after a certain amount of time?

The good new is your parents will probably be thrilled if you put together $2,000 in a short period of time. And probably astounded if you get $3,000. (which has its own benefit - one of which will be one hell of a sense of accomplishment IMHO.)

Here's a suggested battleplan:
1) Don't think of the long-term yet, and just enjoy as long as you can your new job.
(I had a horrible habit of thinking waaaay too far ahead, and spoiling any enjoyment of what I was doing at the time...I was a clock-watcher at your age, and it SUCKED. And, of course, it tripped up my long range plans because I began to hate what I was doing)

2) If your pay can be direct deposited, ask your parents (or look for yourself) any bank advertising a bonus plan.
Back when the economy was doing good, I kept switching my bank every 4-6 months. Usually for $25-$75 dollars to start a free checking account (with free bank card) as long as I setup a direct deposit.
Hell, one place offered a free 1gb Ipod Nano (this was almost 2 years ago), so I turned to them (they were worth $100 back then), turns out the plan was so good they ran out of 1gb ipod nanos. So they shipped me a 2gb one instead (value: $150).
As a matter of fact, its not 12 inches from me right now, recharging.
Now the economy is not as good, but I did recently receive an advertisment from Chase bank for $75. Unfortunately I'm already signed up at Chase, so I cannot use it.

3) Next setup a free savings account (yeah, savings account and checking accounts are different)- try to do this only when:
a) It offers interest.
b) It offers a bonus of some kind to sign up for it.
(Again, for a $500 deposit I got an extra $25. So the interest rate is tiny, but its better then nothing. And your account will get to grow. Heck, I could have gotten an extra $15 if I setup an immediate deposit from my direct deposit into the account...but I couldn't do that as I need the money to live on. Think of the extra $40 as 5.5 hours worked (at a rate of $7 per hour). Plus it looks good on a credit report.

4) Again, take #2 and #3 with a grain of salt, because you don't want to ruin the fun you should have with #1. Don't do what I did. Besides, you have finals coming up soon enough.

5) Once you get up a good deal of savings (like $1500 or $2000), plus the added bonus of an account --- I bet you can start to sweet talk some of your older relatives to 'donate' into the 'Kate-Japanese-Trip-Fund': And *ploink!* in goes the money into that savings account. Take that Mom and Dad!

6) Yeah, #5 is a bit more of a political technique....but it kinda irks me to what your parents 'believe' (unless I've misread your comment, and that your parents do plan to give extra help if you say - pass the $4,000 mark)

I've got $250 right now >_>
I'll get paid for orientation and then working, I get $7/hour.
About the language.. that's not a really big deal for them. Neither of them speak anything but English, and they don't see my passion =P

Oh...*heh*
I can understand what you mean. But too bad....other then video games I was hoping they enjoyed their own original language more, and thus would be a good resource (fun too).

While I was over in Japan I ran into a bunch of elementary school kids....and a 6' blond(ish), BLUE-eyed American was almost like having an alien walk into the room. I got swamped, and for the first time in my life had people asking me for my autograph. It seemed a name written in cursive was the coolest thing for them. It got down to me signing napkins until my other half pulled me away. Then again, being that I had no idea where I was (it was a school she was working at) there really wasn't anywhere for me to go. But the kids loved it.
But for me, back then, I had no idea what the big deal was - and why those kids swarmed me.
Being that this was 8 years ago, I've grown older and have a better understanding.

Techically, Japanese is my third language, haha. I consider myself nearly fluent in Spanish. Other than a few conjugation mistakes, I read, write, speak, and understand it very well =D

Ah, congrats.
Language and me never matched...yet....
When I have more time, I still hope to truly become fluent in Japanese.
(I took Spainish for 4 years, but other then counting, I remember very little)

[katelynisspecial]

1. Her accent is.. noticeably foreign, but she's totally understandable.
2. I actually have no idea about that!

Well the entire money plan is...
The trip costs $7300. I have to get $5000 + spending money (allegedly.)
So that means I have to raise $5500.
I hope to get $1500 from holidays/babysitting/odd jobs/etc
So that's $4000 from my job.
At $7/hr, that's about 571.5 hours I need to work. Add more because they do take a tax on my earning.
So say.. I need to work 600 hours.
I'm starting now, working about 8 hours per weekend (I hope)
Then when they open full time in June, one of the supervisors said that I could get up to 40 hours per week. Since I'm 16, there's not really a limit =P
And then I'll also be working on weekends again in the fall. So I'm hoping to be able to make $4000 through my job.
And I'm sure if I'm close, my parents will help.. and relatives. It's a lot of money xD
And I get a tiny allowance >_>
Seriously. Like... four dollars a week. Better than nothing but..
Well technically I get $10 a week, but I have to put half in the bank and one dollar to offering at church. My parents don't believe in free money >_>

I already do have a bank account, but I'm not allowed to use the money from it yet ><
My mom just deposits half my allowance there.

Oh...*heh*
I can understand what you mean. But too bad....other then video games I was hoping they enjoyed their own original language more, and thus would be a good resource (fun too).

I think that you thought I was referring to Saina here, but I was talking about my parents. Saina and her family do love their language, and she teaches me a ton of random vocab. Colors, numbers, phrases, etc. Enough so that I get my languages a bit confused already!

Someone in Spanish class asked how to say "Wait!", and I told them "Matte!" without thinking! =P
Or today when I was trying to think of "dream"... "sueno" in Spanish (with a ~ on the n), but all I could remember was "yume"!

On the other hand, my parents know nothing about languages. Though I talk to my mom in Spanish a lot since she grew up in Southern CA, so she knows a TINY bit xD!!

"Donde esta mi gato...?"

Rawrrr! I love languages, culture, and travel so freaking much ._.
I want to visit: Japan, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Greece, China, Australia, South Korea and Germany...
And I want to learn like, all of their languages =P
I will be... decilingual! Or something >_<

[Yuuji]

Originally Posted by katelynisspecial

1. Her accent is.. noticeably foreign, but she's totally understandable.
2. I actually have no idea about that!

Understood.
And yeah....I don't think they will mind, and it might be fun to discuss (they probably have a to take a test harder then what you have to take in High School on American History)

Well the entire money plan is...
The trip costs $7300. I have to get $5000 + spending money (allegedly.)
So that means I have to raise $5500.
I hope to get $1500 from holidays/babysitting/odd jobs/etc
So that's $4000 from my job.
At $7/hr, that's about 571.5 hours I need to work. Add more because they do take a tax on my earning.
So say.. I need to work 600 hours.
I'm starting now, working about 8 hours per weekend (I hope)

Ah, good.
You've done the basic planning (and in this case, that's most of the advance planning too)

When you break your first $1000, you might want to let it slip about how you planned this out. Should get your parents to acknowledge your forethought.

Now, please remember: I really do NOT know what relationship you now have with your parents. I'm still working off of 2006's version, back during Kate 14.0 (tm)
And the last thing I remember is that your parents are having a tougher time dealing with your teenage-turning siblings.

So if the relationship with your parents has improved greatly...well, I'm gonna be a bit clueless on that. (lack of info, y'know?)

Then when they open full time in June, one of the supervisors said that I could get up to 40 hours per week. Since I'm 16, there's not really a limit =P
And then I'll also be working on weekends again in the fall. So I'm hoping to be able to make $4000 through my job.

Cool!

And I'm sure if I'm close, my parents will help.. and relatives. It's a lot of money xD
And I get a tiny allowance >_>
Seriously. Like... four dollars a week. Better than nothing but..
Well technically I get $10 a week, but I have to put half in the bank and one dollar to offering at church. My parents don't believe in free money >_>

*nodnods*
Rgr that.
At least you have more foundation then most 16 year old I know/knew (also relating it to my own cohorts).

I already do have a bank account, but I'm not allowed to use the money from it yet ><
My mom just deposits half my allowance there.

Makes sense.
And besides, my idea should only be researched--
1) Once a decent sum has been saved.
2) When you have the time. (Again: Thinking about the money will most likely drain the intrinsic enjoyment you probably have with your new employment. So, just put these ideas on the backburner...being that you'll probably discuss this again in the next 6 months, I'll be around to remind about these types of banking 'extras' anyway - so no rush)

I think that you thought I was referring to Saina here, but I was talking about my parents. Saina and her family do love their language, and she teaches me a ton of random vocab. Colors, numbers, phrases, etc. Enough so that I get my languages a bit confused already!

Oh!
Oops....didn't realize you meant your parents. Now it makes a lot more sense.
And it sounds like Saina is already a great resource! (and probably even better, once you continue to learn more Japanese. Fun too.)

*thinks*
Does Saina still have blood relatives back in Japan? Ones she has contact with, I mean?

Someone in Spanish class asked how to say "Wait!", and I told them "Matte!" without thinking! =P
Or today when I was trying to think of "dream"... "sueno" in Spanish (with a ~ on the n), but all I could remember was "yume"!

*ROTFL*
Oh, I can sooo see that!
I do not even want to think of such tri-linqual problems like that!
Let me just learn Japanese from now, and only have an English-slip, now and then!

On the other hand, my parents know nothing about languages. Though I talk to my mom in Spanish a lot since she grew up in Southern CA, so she knows a TINY bit xD!!
"Donde esta mi gato...?"

Ergo, I can probably only inquire to your maternal unit about the coordinate localization of your domisticated feline?

Rawrrr! I love languages, culture, and travel so freaking much ._.
I want to visit: Japan, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Greece, China, Australia, South Korea and Germany...
And I want to learn like, all of their languages =P
I will be... decilingual! Or something >_<

I think that is the first time I have heard the word: 'decilingual' - but it makes sense!

And when you get to Greece, make sure to say 'hello' to my ancestors there.

Otherwise...I think Kate's passport should be getting some good use in the next 10 years.
And I hope you have fun doing it!

[katelynisspecial]

My relationship with my parents is pretty good right now actually.
A few occasional arguments, but nothing major.
I get frustrated because they show favoritism to my sister and make the entire family schedule around what she wants to do.

Haha, Saina is interesting. Some days she's willing to teach me any new vocab or phrases I want to know, other times she refuses to even acknowledge me speaking to her in it.

My other friend Christy that is friends with her is also taking the class with me, and so we both ask her about things =P
We tease her that "Oh, you're going to accept your culture today?" When she does tell us things :3

She does have relatives there, she goes to visit every other year, and brings me candy~!

And now my friend Camille, who came from France, is teaching me some French! =P
So it's even more things to keep straight X_x

I can count and say colors in four languages now XD

[Yuuji]

Originally Posted by katelynisspecial

My relationship with my parents is pretty good right now actually.

Hey, that's great news!

Probably old news...but it was new news to me!

A few occasional arguments, but nothing major.
I get frustrated because they show favoritism to my sister and make the entire family schedule around what she wants to do.

*heh*
Is it the 'squeeky wheel' syndrome?

Haha, Saina is interesting. Some days she's willing to teach me any new vocab or phrases I want to know, other times she refuses to even acknowledge me speaking to her in it.

Hmmm, admittedly not all is stable when one is a teenager, but taking this information into account (and what you say below) there might be reason...a personal reason...behind her behavior.
Whether its conscious or not, I have too little information to guess.

My other friend Christy that is friends with her is also taking the class with me, and so we both ask her about things =P
We tease her that "Oh, you're going to accept your culture today?" When she does tell us things :3

Careful....I have yet to meet someone who takes jokes against their culture in stride, _unless_ they iniate it (my jewish friend was good at that, while my other jewish friends it was a big 'don't-go-there'.)
Especially since she IS that culture. American jinai.
(the teasing I was refering to was of American's ancestors)

She does have relatives there, she goes to visit every other year, and brings me candy~!

Sweet!
Ask her to stuff you in her baggage.
...or not.

But perhaps her family (or her) can help you save $100-$200 when you have to shop for an airline ticket.

And now my friend Camille, who came from France, is teaching me some French! =P
So it's even more things to keep straight X_x

Another language???
One of these days you are going to know the answer to something, and only have 3 out of 4 languages to say it in...and the missing language will be English.

I can count and say colors in four languages now XD

I await the day when you'll coun while changing languages, like: Ichi Two Tres Yon Five Seis Shichi, etc etc etc

But if your brain explodes, you can't blame me!

On another note, my father was supposed to go in for an important surgery. He only told me two days ago that most likely he'll have to stay in the hospital for almost two weeks after.
But his doctor feel ill, and had to cancel.
It's almost waiting for the big ball game, and it gets canceled due to the rain.