Help Mato

Wait, what is this, you ask? Why donate to some random guy with a crappy blog?

This isn’t your usual “plz plz gimme money” sort of thing — I have a nice job that pays decently and puts food on the table. Instead, what this is about is a dream.

Like most college students (and maybe most adults), I didn’t know what I wanted to do in life, or what I wanted out of life. I was about to graduate with a degree I didn’t really care about and didn’t really want, and I didn’t know what I was going to do when I got out. This was pretty disturbing for me, but I finally worked up the courage to say, “Screw this, I’m doing what I really want deep down.” So I wound up dropping my major (computer science), and after some soul-searching, decided to study abroad in Japan for a year.

When I was studying in Japan, I finally made that realization. I knew what I wanted to do in life — to truly master the language, to learn more about the culture, and I don’t mean the geisha kabuki yakuza touristy stuff. I mean the stuff that’s hidden way deep down out of view. And on top of all that, I wanted to become an ever better translator. That feeling of improving one’s self is really nice and I’ve become addicted to it

So everyone’s got their dream, this one is mine. As lame as it may sound to others, this is what I want to do with my life. I figure I have only 30 or 40 more summers, springs, falls, and winters to experience, so I want to make the most of it. But to do what I want, I need to be in Japan, and not as an English teacher drone, but as something that’ll let me do what I want to do. And that’s what this page is about

Like most college graduates, I didn’t make it through school unscathed. I’m probably better off than most graduates, but I still owe a lot to the man. Between college costs, costs for studying abroad, and ordinary smelly debt, I owe a good deal. I absolutely can’t have it hanging over my head when I’m in Japan, so I’ve been chipping away at it diligently for the past few years, and I’ll keep on doing so for many years to come. But the shorter I have to wait, the better, of course

So that’s what this is. Maybe there are some kind, sympathetic souls out there willing to help me with my dream. Or maybe not. But if you’d be willing to help out this internet nerd, you can donate using the button down below. Even if it’s just a buck or two, it’d be incredibly appreciated and it’d help me out a lot. And who knows, maybe if karma exists, some good luck or nice people or something will go your own way someday

I do want to stress that if you decide to donate money, you do it ONLY to help out a fellow internet guy, NOT because of any projects I’ve worked on in the past. I can’t in good conscience accept money for things that are already in a gray area legally. So please keep that in mind. I know that probably sounds stupid, but I try to be an honest guy, even to myself. If it means anything, I do try to be helpful whenever I can, whether it’s with people asking for help with their Japanese, or people looking for jobs in the translation industry, or people wanting help with their own projects or whatever.

Anyway, enough mushy blah blah stuff. If you’re interested, here it is. If you’re not, then uhh go here instead.