Having a conversation with a local. While I was working at a food court, a guy who sat on a seat in front of me talked to me. He said he saw me doing workout at a gym in this morning. It seemed that he also used the same gym as mine. We talked about our countries, getting green card, and so on. I have been often surprised that people in Hawaii talk to others very casually, whereas Japanese people rarely do it. Since I am foreigner in Hawaii, I tend to be vigilant. But we had a good conversation today.

Aloha greeting I met a guy who was in Aloha shirt this morning. We talk a little bit. He said he came to Hawaii 30 years ago and he still likes the island. I was happy to hear that. We said "Aloha," after we said "Have a good day" to each other. It was very peaceful moment to me.

Eating snacks during my work time I often eat or drink something sweet while I am working on my PC. Yesterday, to cut the cost of those things, I tried to stop eating and drinking during my work time, except water. Since it had been my long term habit, I thought I couldn't do it. But after a few minute starting working, I realized that I didn't crave those sweets at all. It was amazingly easy to do. Also, I was able to concentrate on my job more than usual. This experience taught me that sometimes our actions might be informed by our assumptions.

Cultural behavior Watching American TV series, I found that there are a lot of common expressions in people's conversation. Reactions, phrases, actions...etc My husband is American, and he also does the actions that are similar to them. Likewise, my action must be similar to many of Japanese people. I thought our behavior is made by what we've seen. Learning those conversation patterns might help learning a language.

Writing a notebook This is my 15th notebook in English. To continue to do something is not the thing that I am good at, but so far, I write a notebook on italki everyday. I am really thankful to people who read, correct or/and comment on my notebooks. It motivates me to keep doing this.

One year in Hawaii It's been a year since I came to Hawaii. So far, I like my life in here. Although there are some issues that I need to deal with, such as a language and cultural differences, these are great opportunities for me to grow up. In this one year, I've learned both good sides and bad sides of America and Japan more. People in Hawaii are very kind, and they give me to learn new perspectives. I am grateful to them, my family and friends who support me to be here.

Understanding a different culture Talking to my American friend, I realized that learning a literal language is not enough to build a good relationship. Sometimes his normal behavior is my abnormal, and vice versa. Understanding the culture that a person grew up is also important to know who the person is. Marie Iida, who is Konmari's interpreter, said "Understanding not only specific words but context, both linguistic and cultural, is so crucial when interpreting and translating". I think understanding a different value from me might takes longer than just learning a language. Meanwhile, the difference gives us the chance to think outside of the box and learn new things.