What's your goal in life?

[Cdr. Sigma Skye]

My goal, is to create the most creative PC game imaginable, both to devs and players. In short, to create a clone of SPORE.

 

[ReeSquidGig]

I hope that Nintendo's next goal for a game is to make splatoon for the 3ds.:) (hint-Hint!);)

 

[ReeSquidGig]

My Goal is to Stay in America!

 

[ReeSquidGig]

I am actually allergic to the sun in real life. I get a rash when exposed for prolonged periods of time and it does not matter what season it is, as long as the rays are on my skin.

http://www.drugs.com/health-guide/sun-allergy-photosensitivity.html

Well, no one is living on the sun for a reason. :);)

 

[birdiebee]

firstly, i hardly watch anime at all
secondly, ive been to japan and encountered no racism. the whole 'racism' thing comes from japanese not wanting to rent apartments to foreigners due to them being unable to understand the terms of the agreement(language barrier in other words) and generally being less trustworthy(that's why they often ask for a guarantor). It's like a bank refusing to give a loan to somebody because of bad credit history. Not racist at all.
The Japanese definitely live up to the stereotype of being polite though from my time there. They will do their utmost to accommodate and serve you even better than they would themselves.
Nobody is calling japan a paradise, like every country there are problems. However it's a country that many foreigners including myself would love to live in because they love the culture and have a passion for the language and people.

That is not the only place the "racism" thing comes from.

And I guess to be clearer, while both racism and xenophobia exist in Japan, a bulk of what white foreigners experience is xenophobia, not racism. Awkwardly backhanded racial assumptions are abundant as well. Any foreigner who has eaten with a Japanese person is sure to encounter "ohh, you're so good at using chopsticks" the assumption being that non-asians are inherently inferior to using them. Sometimes I have to quip back "you're pretty good with a fork, too." just to illustrate how odd it sounds.

If you make a reservation at a restaurant, sometimes waitresses will feel very reluctant to entrust a foreigner to discuss what will be ordered. Several times I've been the host of large groups at dinner parties, and they will ask me "is anyone here japanese?"

Often foreigners will only be sat next to on public transit if there are no other open spots. On some occasions, that spot will be left open as they would prefer to stand.

Spoiler: ranty anecdote

On one very particularly uncomfortable occasion, I was at a formal dinner party (bounenkai) with co-workers (I'm on JET program at a high school). All of the staff knows that I speak functional -- not fluent, but functional -- japanese. I can discuss basic topics and conduct lessons with some Japanese. At this dinner party, we did bingo for receiving christmas gifts. The principal in my school insisted that the announcer call out the bingo numbers in both Japanese and English to accomodate me. It may sound like not a big deal, but I felt like they thought I was a complete idiot. Can't understand simple numbers in the language of the country that I live in. I was conversing with my principal in Japanese prior to the bingo game. And I was singled out as being a stupid gaijin in front of the entire staff.

I guess the point is that most of the time these microaggressions come from a place of good intent, but on the whole, Japanese people assume that foreigners are really goofy, difficult to understand, and in need of accomodating. They believe their country, culture and customs to be impossibly arcane to outsiders, and they wear it as a point of pride to treat outsiders like children learning how to walk when they live in their country. No matter if you've been living in Japan for decades, you will never be a Japanese citizen. Not in the true sense of the word.

I realize that this is a very cynical point of view. And to be completely fair, these microaggressions are just that, micro. It doesn't disrupt the functioning of my daily life to an extent that makes me feel unwanted, hated, begrudged for who I am. My co-workers are mostly very kind, and you're right that in general, you will encounter politeness everywhere you go in a degree that America could only dream of. But there are deeply rooted issues. It's not enough to write them off as language or culture barriers. By principal, you are predispositioned to be an outisder, and to be seen as an enigma. It's a paradigm shift.

I really enjoy living in Japan, despite all of my ranting. I plan to live here for quite awhile longer. All I'm saying is be aware and be critical! Japan is slowly, very slowly becoming a more foreigner-inclusive place. But always turning a blind eye to their well-intentioned ignorance is regressive.

 

[ReeSquidGig]

I sung outloud at school today, and now, I am so proud! (though, I think I am famous now, and I'm not,) but, at least I think I am something now. :) that was one of my goals that I accomplished.

 

[Elecmaw]

Why not to live to see a hundred (100) years old,? I'd love to be the oldest person in the world anyways.

My greatest dream is to become cryopreserved so that many years from now I'll finally be able to witness the great rise of the squidkids with my own eyes.

Either that, or the world still sucks balls.

 

[ReeSquidGig]

MY extra goal is to learn another language.

 

[ReeSquidGig]

My goal is not to have any more f's in my classes.