Progress Report #2 I've decided to change the name of thsee entries to Progress Report #__. It's just easier. Plus, I really love Flowers for Algernon. I'm beginning to focus my learning on kana and grammar/particles. I just began to break the surface yesterday, and I can already tell that it's worlds easier than English. I mean, one single verb covers past, present, AND future?! And they ALL end with -masu?! That's so simple!! Why can't English have that??!! I also figured that the best way to learn kana was just to read out texts in Japanese (Nihongo). Even if I don't understand the meaning yet, it would help warm me up to reading at a normal pace as well as help really stick the pronunciation of all the kana into memory. So now I'll actually have my first use of all the entries in here that are completely written in Japanese! :D No doubt that I'll recognize words and phrases in the process, and may even extend my vocabulary. Though I consider my grasp on slang words pretty decent, those words being quite popular to anime/Manga fans like me, I might pick up more slang! I consider it important because they help you sound like a normal person instead of constantly formal, which a lot of textbooks could end up doing to you. I also discovered a series of audio recordings on YouTube called Michel-something's method for learning Japanese. The videos are pretty long (over an hour each) but they really know how to move things into long-term memory without you actively trying to memorize. I'd definitely recommend it to novices like me! Well, have a nice day!