About the Project
Her name is Miyo Yamauchi (Mee-yo Ya-ma-oo-chee). It’s a pretty standard name in Japan, but unusual in America. People constantly butcher her name; Miya, My-oh, Yamaguchi, Yama-whatever. According to studies, misnaming people is not about having a memory problem or aging. The human brain catalogues names – we place them in mental file folders based on how well we know people. The folder could be a family folder, neighbor folder, or similar spelling folder. When we mess up a name, it’s typically because we pull a name from the wrong folder. The concept makes sense, but c’mon! Her first name has only two syllables! Don’t put her name in the wrong folder!
Her tendency to mispronounce English words is not about the wrong folders though. Speaking English may be nothing special for native speakers, but have you ever thought about how much you’re abusing your mouth and tongue to pronounce these words properly? Round your mouth, open your mouth, close your mouth, bite your lower lip, tense your tongue, relax your tongue, curl your tongue, put your tongue between your teeth…preposterous! How much abuse can your mouth take? Your R’s and L’s are killing her! Her mouth and tongue are exhausted after speaking English, and she’s still not making the right sound!
She’s pretty normal in her little world, but maybe not in your world.
Unless . . .
You find an intruder in your room and don’t scream because you don’t want to disturb your neighbors;
You get a red light camera ticket and get excited because you love Judge Judy;
You don’t remember what happened yesterday because you drank too much, so you drink again to find the lost memory.
What is your normal?
Production Team
