Renting a Room Part 1

I finally moved into my new apartment in Tokyo. I moved 8 times in the last 10 years, but this move was the most costly.

The move-in process for Japanese apartments requires the renter to provide his own refrigerator, laundry machine, and microwave ($700). Fluorescent ceiling lights are also another must (free because my mom stole them from her previous house). I even had to buy my own gas stove ($250).

What you do not see is the gas stove. I will install it myself shortly; the "faucets" are actually the gas line leads.

Japanese people love rice. We also love our rice cookers. A 5.5-cup rice cooker ranges anywhere from $75 to $500. I went conservative and spent less than $200.

All this amounts to an initial investment of $1,100.

I am not quite sure how this system developed in Japan. It's certainly a far cry from renting a room with a beat up gas stove, leaking refrigerator, and having your clothes pulled from the dryer because you were 3 minutes late.

This system is somewhat confusing to foreigners. It is less confusing than the security deposit (shiki-kin) and thank-you money (rei-kin). Perhaps I will write about this next time, because it is an interesting system, and might help explain why Japanese room rentals adopt a "bring your own appliances" mentality.

Vegetable Soup #1 - Burdock Root

Burdock root is a good source of Vitamin B6, Magnesium, and Potassium, among other nutrients. Japanese children use it to play burdock swordfighting until they are scolded by their parents.

The downside to burdock is its slightly bitter taste. It is known that sweet, bitter, and umami are used by the same taste receptors in the tongue, so I figured adding sweet elements to the soup would counter this bitter taste. I caramelized the onions in a pot before adding anything else to the soup, which enhances the onions' natural sweetness.

750 mL water
250 mL milk
Enough bouillon for 500 mL soup
2 large potatoes
1 large carrot
3 celery sticks
1 long burdock root
2 large onions
3 green onion sticks

Put the vegetables in the pot in the following order, with a minute or two between each ingredient:

onions -> carrots -> green onions -> celery -> burdock root -> potatoes

Simmer in low heat for 20 minutes, and then add milk.

Simmer 20 more minutes in low heat and serve.

Grammar Books in Japanese

I am currently reading a book on Japanese grammar （24週日本語文法ツアー、益岡隆志筆） . It is a complement to a comprehensive grammar book by the same author in that he focuses on sample sentences rather than grammatical theory.

Despite many attempts this past winter break to obtain such a book in a retail bookstore, I was unsuccessful and relied on the seller of last resort -- Amazon Japan.

Now, I am relearning ideas about various verb tenses, rules on how to use particles, and other minor facets of the Japanese language, all illuminated by clear examples. I am sometimes unclear or unsure about certain particles, so in that sense I am glad I spent 2000 yen on this book.

It took much effort to finally obtain this book. There were myriad books in retail bookstores on correct usage of polite Japanese (keigo), but virtually nothing on other topics.

Sure, the most difficult part about Japanese is keigo, often referred to in English as honorific form. There are two sub-categories of keigo; one way shows respect for the person being addressed (sonkeigo) while the other is polite and places yourself below the party you are speaking to (kenjougo). Verb conjugations between the two forms sound nothing like each other. Iku (to go) becomes irassharu in its sonkeigo form and ukagau or mairu in its kenjougo form.

Most Japanese grammar books deal with correct usage of polite Japanese. Young Japanese employees are often scorned by their elders for improper use of keigo, and honorific Japanese misuse is more common than misplaced apostrophe's in the English language.

I have enough keigo books to last a lifetime, and was not interested in adding another to my collection this time. My questions about 'basic' Japanese grammar books, however, were countered with confused or scornful looks. I felt like a circus clown who had trouble communicating with his audience.

Not that Americans are any different. Our computer screens littered with typos and incorrect grammar usage, and there is little impetus for people to polish their mediocre English grammar. Amazon user reviews for most English grammar books are filled with errors ("The index is very thoroughly laid out. I had seen this book on my writing workshop.")

As a side note, I was less successful in finding books on effective ways to write. Strunk & White's Elements of Style is required reading for all American schoolchildren, and every adult should take the time to re-read this book once in a while. I could not find such a book for Japanese, but I will continue to search for one.