Tag Archive | James Heisig

Kanji Kanban #162

DSC07968額と絵

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H295, H1346)

Kanji In Context(KIC861, KIC617)

Kanji Kanban #161

DSC07849あなたがほしい!

消防団員募集

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this fire department recruiting poster.

This poster is a reference to a traditional children’s game and song that almost all Japanese know called はないちもんめ。The hiragana, which means ‘I want you!’ is called out in the game.  You can listen to the song on youtube here.  And here’s another video, of kids lined up playing the game, as in the poster.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H144, H1302, H582, H56, H861, H559)

Kaji In Context(KIC219, KIC781, KIC366, KIC395, KIC1155, KIC224)

Kanji Kanban #160

DSC07837みんなの町を美しく

フンお後始末は

飼い主の

責任です。

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H92, H548, H1379, H747, H217, H1866, H266, H1541, H1003)

Kanji In Context(KIC549, KIC, KIC673, KIC30, KIC129, KIC584, KIC1348, KIC70, KIC1180, KIC639)

Kanji Kanban #159

DSC07470缶も。

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.  Suntory’s  highballs(whiskey and water) are big sellers at bars, and they come in cans, too.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H1965)

Kanji In Context(KIC920)

Kanji Kanban #158

DSC07793

木村畳店

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.  The shop’s name is 木村,  one of the most common surnames in Japan.

As I was preparing this post just now,  I discovered that the character 畳 isn’t just used for tatami mats, but is also the kanji used in the verb たたむ,  meaning ‘to fold.’  As in 洗濯物を畳んだ(せんたくものをたたんだ)。I folded the laundry.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H195, H208, H1784, H588, H1784)

Kanj In Context(KIC20, KIC364, KIC1303, KIC55, KIC1303)

Kanji Kanban #157

DSC07706DSC07710

桜の木に毛虫がいます。

ご注意ください!!

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photos if you need help reading this sign. I saw it at Kyoto’s International Manga Museum this week.

Reading just the upper part in Japanese might have left me wondering exactly what it is that warrants the double exclamation point caution, as it simply warns folks to beware of the caterpillars in this tree.

But my friend told me that its meaning is clear to Japanese people, as it’s common knowledge here that hairy caterpillars sting, and that they can often be found in cherry trees like this one.

The museum staff have thoughtfully spelled it out in English. But what is it that’s ticked the little beasties off, when they should be merrily munching the new green leaves of spring?

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H1932, H195, H1913, H517, H267, H608)

Kanji In Context(KIC968, KIC20, KIC490, KIC466, KIC290, KIC291)

Kanji Kanban #156

DSC07702

自習室

受付は 脳ジムまで

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.  The cubicles in the photo are for rent as self study space as a quieter, more private alternative to cafes.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H36, H574, H754, H735, H1000, H1934)

Kanji In Context(KIC63, KIC201, KIC331, KIC269, KIC365, KIC1109)

Kanji Kanban #155

 

-2ソースの二度漬け

ご遠慮下さい

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this Osaka kushikatsu shop’s sign.

串カツ is deep fried, skewered meat and vegetables,  and along with the quality of the kushikatsu, the dipping sauce(ソース or たれ) can have a big impact on a shop’s popularity.

Though there are some upscale 串カツ places, this is by and large a cheap, casual dining experience,  with customers often elbow to elbow at a counter, sometimes standing.  Some shops favor a communal sauce that everyone can dip into rather than serving individual portions, and for the sake of hygiene, it’s common to see written reminders on the counter or wall about not double dipping the same skewer once you’ve bitten into it.

This shop takes that multiple steps farther with an impossible to miss, cheeky admonition on its sign which dwarfs だるま,  the joint’s name, making it   look almost like an afterthought.  It seems to imply that the sauce is so good that you’ll be tempted to leave your manners at the door!  Sounds like a place I should check out next time I get to Osaka.

When our friend Haruka showed me this photo,  I got a kick out of it and remembered a sitcom episode about the American version of this food faux pas,  double dipping with chips at a party.  A minute later I found the related Seinfeld clip here and we all had a good laugh.  二度漬けをしないでね!No double dipping!

The character 串 in 串カツ happens to be one of my favorite kanji because it’s one of those rarities, up there with 山 and 川, that faithfully depicts what it represents. In this case, a skewer.  If only they were all so user friendly!  Do any other such kanji come to mind?  Please post a comment and share them!  I’m sure we all have some common favorites, the low hanging fruit on the kanji tree.

The kanji component of 漬け also appears in the often seen compound 漬物(つけもの),  pickled vegetables, taking on a different, but related meaning.

Thanks a bunch for the photo, Haruka, hope you can come to Kyoto again soon!

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H2, H1194, H1545, H402, H1996 H50)

Kanji In Context(KIC2, KIC333, KIC1506, KIC110, KIC1377, KIC32)

Kanji Kanban #154

DSC02236

雑貨

フロム ワールドワイド

文房具 おもちゃ 食器 キッチェン用品 絵本 etc.

a little beaver

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign touting the selection you’ll find at a Kyoto 雑貨(ざっか)shop called ‘a little beaver.’

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H562, H1010, H1725, H1078, H74, H1472, H121, H1181, H23, H1346, H211)

Kanji In Context(KIC523, KIC857, KIC320, KIC1082, KIC720, KIC131, KIC682, KIC308, KIC683, KIC617, KIC37)

Kanji Kanban #153

DSC06593

安心 安全な

厳選素材にこだわった

風味豊かな洋食を。

Use the rikaichan popup dictionary or your favorite reference tool with my transcription below the photo if you need help reading this sign.

The numbers below refer to the kanji I’ve transcribed below the photo, and correspond to their order of appearance in both Heisig’s Remembering the Kanji and Kanji in Context.

To learn more about how to work with this information and get the most out of my daily Kanji Kanban series, please read this.

Heisig(H190, H595, H190, H263, H1936, H1804, H1532, H683, H524, ZH219, H1443, H549, H1472)

Kanji In Context(KIC84, KIC172, KIC84, KIC160, KIC1190, KIC264, KIC636, KIC740, KIC465, KIC311, KIC628, KIC917, KIC131)

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