I suppose persistence is a virtue...

Next Sunday I'm going to try to take the Japanese Language Proficiency Test.

Again.

Last time I didn't have so much success.

It's worth noting that in my entire career of tyring to learn Japanese, I haven't had so much success. Even though I took five Japanese classes in university, two of those were classes I had to repeat because I didn't pass the first time. The first time I tried to make up a sentence of my own, I was told by my teacher that I was not understandable and "please not trying to speech freely again in class." My attempts to make jokes, give directions, order food and pick up girls have all generally met with polite silence, circuitous cab rides, mistaken orders and giggling but firm refusals.

In that order.

But for some reason I feel the need to keep trying to use this language that I really don't seem to have an aptitude for.

I dunno. I mean, if I couldn't communicate with people in my native language, it would have to be something about me, right?

Unless I'd just been trying to talk with dimwits.

("Didn't you used to live in Los Angeles?" "Why yes, I did...")