I got a job! I got a job! I got a job! I said 3 times because it is important.

I’m really really delighted to hear from the company. The news filled me with emotion. I’ll start my full-time job on November 1st in the customer care department at the office.

Looking back on my job hunting, I applied to about 160 companies in total and had 6 interviews until getting the job which took 4 months. I changed my desired position three times due to the lack of an overall number of positions. It was really terrible.

What I learned during this period is that Canada is full of talented people, and if you do not have experience in the same position, you will not even meet the application requirements. In other words, the application requirements are so full of bilingualism and many qualifications that it is very difficult for young and inexperienced international students.

I’m not a young and inexperienced student but my English is not fluent. That’s why it took me much time.

Unlike in Japan, the contract states that the employer can lay off the employee without cause. Even after getting a job offer, I would keep my restaurant job for at least 3 months because I could be fired in an instant. Thus, I will be working at least 6 days a week for a while, and another 50+ hours. It is going to be much harder than before. I’m really excited and will do my best.

Give me a lot of cheer and power. Whenever you feel tired or want to give up something, I would be happy if the fact that there is someone fighting the threat of being fired today would inspire you to do your best.

Transcript↓

Sometimes we meet something strange. I've been trying to get various idioms because these days I get stuck studying English. As I’m looking for idioms on the internet, I met some interesting ones. Especially idioms that mean differently from the original words are very interesting. For example, being under the weather means feeling bad because of some illnesses. Who can predict the meaning of this idiom without any explanation? “Under the weather” sounds like things that are changeable or things we can’t control. I looked up the origin of this word and the article said “There is one popular theory about the origin of under the weather that connects it with sailing. Supposedly, when a sailor wasn’t feeling well, he would retreat below deck, out of the “weather” above, where he could be described as under the weather.” I still can’t understand the reason why under the weather means feeling bad after reading the article.

The other interesting idiom is “Break a leg!” It sounds terrifying. But incredibly, This idiom is not at all threatening. Often accompanied by a thumbs up, ‘Break a leg! ’is an encouraging cheer of good luck. So no matter when you want to say Good luck, you can say “break a leg!” instead. It is really weird. For me, if it is the first time to meet this idiom, “Break a leg” should have been similar to “go to hell”! It originates from when successful theatre performers would bow so many times after a show that they would break a leg. It doesn’t convince me at all. I still can’t understand the reason why “break a leg” means “good luck”.

Do you have any ideas of weird idioms that can’t imagine the meaning?

I’m pleased with your ideas about that.

良くない朝の挨拶がBad morningにならない理由がわかった

Script↓

Today I was surprised by something. I happened to watch a video on youtube and it said there is a different meaning between “good morning” in English and in Japanese.  We were told “good morning” meant おはよう(Ohayou) in Japanese when we were children even though “Ohayou” literally means “you are so early this morning.”  I haven’t cared about the exact meaning so far, today finally I realized that the words “Good morning” are originally from the sentence “I wish you good morning”. So whenever we say “Good morning” in English culture, we are always supposed to pray to have a good morning with each other! That’s why even if I don’t have a good morning today, I mean, some bad things happened and felt bad,  we can say “good morning” to others. Also, even if it rains heavily and is not a beautiful day, we have to say “good morning” because we just pray to each other “I wish you good morning”. Finally, I understand what the truth is. It’s really interesting for me. I would say what a beautiful custom!

By the way, sometimes Japanese people dine in the restaurant where I’m working. In that case, I have to speak the Japanese language to take care of them. But sometimes I get confused because there is nothing to say after their payments instead of saying have a good one. “Have a good day” also comes from the sentence I wish you have a good day. literally there is nothing to say except “thanks for your payment”.

It is because we Japanese don’t have any custom to pray or wish for something with each other. Now I understand.

At the same time, I realized we Japanese has ねぎらい(Negirai) for example おつかれさま(Otsukaresama) instead of praying each other. Negirai is an expression uttered when Japanese people want to show their appreciation for the other person's efforts. It is kind of the same thing because whenever we are not so tired, we always say “otsukaresama” with each other because we just want to say something in sympathy.

English greeting is a prayer, and Japanese greeting is a sympathy. It’s very interesting.

What do you think about greeting in your culture?

私のお友達はGoogle

Script ↓

Today, let me introduce the tips for good job interviews that were given yesterday by my friend Google as usual because having interviews are always very very hard for anyone. Obviously, there are always more candidates for positions than there are openings. That means we must be chosen as the best candidate in order to get a job. Literally, we need to “stand up from the crowd!”

By the way,today I had an interview and did much better than before. I wanna compliment myself. It was still far from my ideal game but did my best and was not so getting nervous. Also, My English was not so broken today. haha. Hopefully, I wanna hear from the company.

Looking back to the tips, there are 3 things that I feel it is important.

First, this article said that clarify your "selling points" and the reasons you want the job.

Prepare to go into every interview with three to five key selling points in mind, such as what makes you the best candidate for the position. Have an example of each selling point prepared. And be prepared to tell the interviewer why you want that job. For me, I tend to forget to prepare for the examples. That’s the really important thing.

Second, anticipate the interviewer's concerns and reservations.

Interviewers look for ways to screen people out. Put yourself in their shoes and ask yourself why they might not want to hire you (“I don't have this,” “I'm not that,” etc.). Then prepare your defense: “I know you may be thinking that I might not be the best fit for this position because XXX. But you should know that [reason the interviewer shouldn't be overly concerned]." I actually used this sentence today it was very useful.

Lastly, the article said that Line up your questions for the interviewer.

Interviewers always ask if you have any questions, and no matter what, you should have one or two ready. If you say, "No, not really," he or she may conclude that you're not all that interested in the job or the company. A good all-purpose question is, "If you could design the ideal candidate for this position from the ground up, what would he or she be like?"

日本人だけがマクド的な感じでティムホって呼んでる気がする

Script ↓

If you have a chance to visit Canada, where would you like to go?

When I arrived here, on the first day, I asked a driver where to visit to feel Canada most.

He said have you heard of ”Tim hortons? It is said that there are more Tim hortons than traffic lights here! “ Now I realized it was just a joke but many people even in Japan who has been to Canada recommended me to visit Tim hortons.

According to Google, Tim Hortons is a Canadian multinational fast food restaurant chain. Established in Toronto, which serves coffee, doughnuts, and other fast-food items. It is famous because it is Canada's largest quick-service restaurant chain, with 4,949 restaurants in 15 countries as of March 2, 2022.

To be more specific, as some Japanese people might feel, it is similar to “Mister Donut” in Japan because it is not expensive and we can eat not only sweet donuts but also meals like sandwiches, salad even soup.

It is not so clean or particularly tasty, but I like it because it's very convenient and affordable.

What I like about Tim Hortons the best is I can choose the kinds of milk based on my preference. For me, I always order the same thing like a “large iced latte with Oat milk”.

I think we have 5 options 2% milk, skim milk, soy, almond and oat as long as I know.

It is not so common in Japanese cafe chains that’s why I was surprised. That’s Canada which is typical of a health-conscious country.

By the way, if you order “Regular” in Tim Hortons, it means coffee with 1 sugar and 1 milk.

For me, I don’t need sugar at all and rather prefer black coffee to a sweet one, so I was depressed when I happened to get a sweet one called Regular coffee for the first time.

Anyways hopefully you can visit Timhortons and like it.

がんばれとしか言いようがない月