mercy_angel_09 (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mercy_angel_09) wrote2011-08-05 10:44 am
mercy_angel_09) wrote2011-08-05 10:44 am
Entry tags:
Writer's Block: Parlez-vous francais?
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Hm. I have a passable grip of Spanish. I lovingly refer to it as "combat Spanish" in that I really only end up using it in tight pinches where I need to get something said, and while it's no where near perfect, it's enough to get a point made. Further more, said Spanish is Cuban Spanish versus the Mexican Spanish that dominates the area. Confused the hell out of my Spanish teacher in high school because while she was teaching everyone to speak Mexican Spanish with the Mexican accent, I spoke Cuban Spanish with a Cuban accent (with the lightest traces of Dominican, or so I was told), which is what I grew up hearing. After a while my teacher gave up trying to correct my accent after she listened to an interview with Gloria Estefan in Spanish and realized that my accent was Cuban and therefore technically not wrong. Something I haven't lost from my Spanish classes, though, is my ability to sing Christmas carols in Spanish. I can still rock "Noche de Paz" like no one's business, thank you very much (also this is much to my father's amusement).
I also had a basic grasp of German AND Russian at one point, though since I learned that back in middle school, I've lost pretty much everything excepting knowing how to count to nine in German and how to order beer in Russian (long story on how I remember that tidbit). I've learned a few key phrases in French, but those are just humorous phrases.
I would like to learn American Sign Language. I remember in kindergarten we had weekly lessons in ASL, but I hardly remember any of it. And what I can sign is "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" (at leas the main verse) which I learned in elementary school and do it often enough that I can still do it. And I can still sign the alphabet. That's about it. I don't know if I want to be completely fluent in ASL, but I do remember a deaf customer at the store where I used to work and I could sign "hello" and "thank you" (and that was it) to him. I would have liked to do more, but alas, I've long since quit that job.
I'd also like to start learning Japanese, especially since there is a very strong possibility that my husband may end up working there next year. I'd like to be able to function in town without the constant need for an interpreter, but we'll see how that pans out. It's possible that he'll also end up in Australia - in which case I'd probably force myself to learn the basics of Australian slang and whatnot.
Ultimately, my goal is to learn how to say, "Where is the bathroom?" (or "Where is the toilet?") in as many different languages as possible.
Hm. I have a passable grip of Spanish. I lovingly refer to it as "combat Spanish" in that I really only end up using it in tight pinches where I need to get something said, and while it's no where near perfect, it's enough to get a point made. Further more, said Spanish is Cuban Spanish versus the Mexican Spanish that dominates the area. Confused the hell out of my Spanish teacher in high school because while she was teaching everyone to speak Mexican Spanish with the Mexican accent, I spoke Cuban Spanish with a Cuban accent (with the lightest traces of Dominican, or so I was told), which is what I grew up hearing. After a while my teacher gave up trying to correct my accent after she listened to an interview with Gloria Estefan in Spanish and realized that my accent was Cuban and therefore technically not wrong. Something I haven't lost from my Spanish classes, though, is my ability to sing Christmas carols in Spanish. I can still rock "Noche de Paz" like no one's business, thank you very much (also this is much to my father's amusement).
I also had a basic grasp of German AND Russian at one point, though since I learned that back in middle school, I've lost pretty much everything excepting knowing how to count to nine in German and how to order beer in Russian (long story on how I remember that tidbit). I've learned a few key phrases in French, but those are just humorous phrases.
I would like to learn American Sign Language. I remember in kindergarten we had weekly lessons in ASL, but I hardly remember any of it. And what I can sign is "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" (at leas the main verse) which I learned in elementary school and do it often enough that I can still do it. And I can still sign the alphabet. That's about it. I don't know if I want to be completely fluent in ASL, but I do remember a deaf customer at the store where I used to work and I could sign "hello" and "thank you" (and that was it) to him. I would have liked to do more, but alas, I've long since quit that job.
I'd also like to start learning Japanese, especially since there is a very strong possibility that my husband may end up working there next year. I'd like to be able to function in town without the constant need for an interpreter, but we'll see how that pans out. It's possible that he'll also end up in Australia - in which case I'd probably force myself to learn the basics of Australian slang and whatnot.
Ultimately, my goal is to learn how to say, "Where is the bathroom?" (or "Where is the toilet?") in as many different languages as possible.