Hi folks! I’m Sydney (しどに?). 22 year old native of the southern US, fresh out of a New England college and looking for a job.

I decided I needed to learn Japanese mostly because I hope someday to study my favorite martial art, aikido (合気道?), in Japan as an uchideshi (内弟子?). (It’s hard to describe what aikido means to me — I credit it with getting me through college in one piece and making me a way, way more sane and compassionate person.) I am also hoping to become an architect (or an urban designer or an architectural historian or something along those lines), and I have a lot of curiosity and admiration for Japanese architecture.

I have never attempted to learn Japanese before, mostly because I try to focus on learning one language at a time — I have been studying Spanish for the last four years and after a semester in Andalucía, I finally have a strong enough grip on it that I can move forward without getting confused. (Before that I studied Latin for about 5 years and got quite good at reading it, but unfortunately maintaining Latin is tricky.) I have learned firsthand how many new ways of thinking you run across while learning a new language, and I am looking forward to having that experience again with Japanese!