11/04/2007

Fear and Scheming towards España


Alguien está vestido de amarillo


Note to self: You just finished Level 1: Unit 4: Lesson 8

A month behind schedule but I finally made it back to Español-land. No trouble getting back in the swing of things with Rossetta Stone, but I bet it was designed so the easy steps of each lesson work together so you end up remembering it as if by magic. In fact I'm positive only studying once a month is not good, for any learning (magical or not).

But one does what one can. At this time I'm promising myself to get back at it. In fact I dug out some old Spanish tape and today I started listing to them in the car as I drive.

Side note- I sure have a problem saying Alguien. I don't know if it is me or Rossetta Stone, but I had to repeat it a ga-zillion times and I still rarely satisfied the computer.

I have a little more motivation now since my sister invited me on a week long family vacation they are taking to Spain next spring. Given that something always seems to come up, at best I think there is a 50-50 chance it will actually happen for me. I have to balance the anticipation of something arising the requires me to stay here against the requirement to buy a ticket early enough, since otherwise I couldn't afford it. But in any event this week I'll get the passport thing going, first with a high quality $8 passport photo from Walgreen's Drug Store.

I really want to go, but I can be a bit of a “gloom and doom-er” and I fear my yet laid scheme to get to Spain will likely “Gang aft a-gley”

But, Mousie, thou art no thy lane
In proving foresight may be vain:
The best laid schemes o' mice an' men
Gang aft a-gley,
An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,
For promised joy.

Still thou art blest, compared wi' me!
The present only toucheth thee:
But, oh! I backward cast my e'e
On prospects drear!
An' forward , tho' I canna see,
I guess an' fear!

Robert Burns (1759-1796)

No comments: