Lessons From the Dojo: Commonly Used Japanese

When practicing Japanese martial arts, there are many phrases heard in the dojo. These phrases have meaning, and we use the Japanese instead of English to maintain the tradition of our training.

Before we begin, there are a few annunciations that are commonly misinterpreted. In Japanese there is no R or L sound. In Romanji, or Romanised Japanese, R and L make a D sound. The vowels all have specific sounds that do not change.

A - Ah as in father
E - Eh as in cake
I - Ee as in seek
O - Oh as in low
U - Oo as is lose

Tired of Snail Mail Spam?

We used to get about 2 credit card applications every day in the mail.  We would shred them, but they would always just send us another “invitation” the next week.  Finally we got sick and tired of them sending us junk, so I started writing with a sharpee over the application porting in big letters “NOT INTERESTED.”  Then, I tear it up, being careful that the part with my name and address is still in tact, and then pack it all back in the envelope and send it back to them.  Since the envelope’s postage is already paid for, you just help them waste their money.  I write over the application part both for emphasis and to make sure someone doesn’t try to take out a card in my name.  It’s quite calming to come home from work and release a little stress by tearing up an application and sending it back to them.  Since doing this, several companies have cut down on the number of requests they are sending us.  If they don’t stop, I am going to start filling the envelopes with shredded paper bits from my shredder, or just burn the application and send them the ash.  Try it yourself if you’re tired of all the spam.