-I focused on long vowels and moras much more this time, but while I think my pronunciation of long vowels improved a bit, i don't seem to be hearing and recognizing them any better.
-I'm also starting to forget which words have long vowels, which is particularly problematic when I write them (admittedly, not directly related to this pronunciation exercise, but I thought still relevant)
-I listened to some of the old textbook dictations on my ipod en route to Cyprus and found myself writing with an odd mix of uncharacteristic accuracy and uncharacteristic stupidity. Perhaps working on a plane after many hours of not sleeping is the cause: I'd miraculously remember something that I usually forget, and then I'd forget something that I always remember. I think i'm just going to pretend that didn't happen and try redoing the dictations (again) this PE cycle.
PE3 Goals
-know when I'm hearing long vowels and glides (I have difficulty distinguishing -yu glides in particular). i'll listen to the textbook recordings of all the vocab lists so far when i'm not exhausted
-listen to some popular japanese music with lyrics to improve intonation (I figure intonation is frequently exaggerated in songs, so that maybe it will be a little easier for me to detect the differences between tones). when my sore throat goes away, I'll probably try singing for one of the PE recordings. apologies to Shibata sensee in advance for my terrible singing
-attend Japanese language table again! These past few weeks I've either had orchestra conflicts or just been weighed down with the general horror that is midterms, but I enjoyed the Japanese table when I went and I miss the adorable Makino sensee. I'm not sure what specifically I'll gain from going, but I know it definitely can't hurt.
Where I'm meeting tonight with my group to work on the video project:
