Trash has gone

A week ago there appeared a pile of letters, booklets, and scraps of paper in my father’s room.
Every time I saw it from the entrance, I tried to think out a best way to have my father to clean it.
My mother said that he became irritated when she mentioned the untidiness.
I was about to present him a binder and clear pockets to file the papers.
But I didn’t, because my mother said that it wouldn’t work.
Instead, I said to my father yesterday, “Why there is a pile of paper scraps in the floor of your room? I’m afraid important documents will be lost.”
Surprisingly, the pile of papers disappeared in the evening.
When I mentioned this to my mother, she showed me her palm, saying “it took five days.”

Job interview

I received the result of a job interview I took last week.
The job required PC skills and English ability, so it was a dream job for me.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the job.
Tomorrow, I will go to the public employment security office to follow the necessary procedures for unemployment insurance.

If I’m asked at the interview, “Could you please tell us a little bit about yourself?”

OK, I was working as a PC operator at an IT-related company.
However, the employment contract expired at the end of May.
At present I’m in the middle of job hunting.

Preparation for the second stage of EIKEN

Jitsuyo Eigo Gino Kentei (Test in Practical English Proficiency)

I researched on how to get to my test site at the Internet.
Surprisingly, it’s near the location of a company I worked for about 20 years ago.
I felt a bit relaxed and am looking forward to walking on the street where I commuted every day for several years.

I found an English website of EIKEN and learned in English about what I’m going through as below.

English interview (app. 10 min.)
1. Examiners engage examinee in free conversation (1 minute)
2. Examinee chooses 1 topic from 5 choices on Topic Card (1 minute)
3. Examinee prepares speech based on topic
4. Examinee gives speech based on topic (2 minute)
5. Examiners ask questions based on speech content and topic (4 minute)
Evaluation Categories:
Short Speech
Interaction
Grammar and Vocabulary
Pronunciation

In order to get used to the second stage of EIKEN, I will do shadowing practice, watching “Virtual speaking test”. It is an animated, easy-to-understand walkthrough of the Stage 2 Interview Test provided at EIKEN website.

New car

About a week ago, my father took his car to a garage for inspection.
He came back driving a white car one hour later.
He said, “When I said to the car dealer that I couldn’t wait at the garage while the car was being inspected, he told me to drive back home in this new model of car.”

I am not sure if that was the car dealer’s strategy or not, but my father decided to buy a new car of the same model.
He is as old as the Emperor and going not to renew his driver’s license in his birth month this year.
After he has his license canceled, I am the one who will drive the new car mainly.
I guess he wants to experience the new car before cancelling his license.

My mother is not happy about this purchase, but there is no way to change my father’s mind.
He is a stubborn man.
I’m a bit worried, but at the same time looking forward to driving a new car, which is bigger than the present one and hybrid.

Now I’m much more careful in driving our car because the dealer will take it as a trade-in at a good price.