Say What?
A couple posts ago, I mentioned that I had undertaken a new endeavor. I hesitate to call it a hobby because it's much more difficult to me than a hobby should be. Difficult yet fun at the same time.
I've always been the kind of person that seeks out a challenge. Not that I want my life to be a challenge, just things I do in my free time. Even back in high school I tended to chose the things that most people didn't do because they were hard, and that didn't appeal to most kids back then. Back then I did things like taking Russian in high school because I didn't want to take French or Spanish. I figured those was too main stream and everyone did it. I was/am also a musician but I chose the violin because I'd heard it was one of the hardest instruments to learn to play well. I guess that's why I took up karate. All my friends were too afraid of it and said there's no way they would do it. So...I did.
Well, my new thing is that I'm learning Arabic, and I'm basically learning it on my own. I've always loved languages, mostly because learning them comes fairly easily to me and I wanted to learn one that not many people in this country study, mostly because it's hard. And it is very hard. I'm studying it from a CD rom and I'm amazed at how much I know after only studying it for about 3 months. I don't know how long it will take before I'm conversational. A couple years at least. Speaking it and understanding it aren't too bad...it's reading it. Yikes...that's the hardest part.
The only people who know I'm doing this are my family. I haven't told any of my friends because they might think I'm a bit strange.( No comments from the peanut gallery on that please). Strange or not, it's fun for me and I get a real sense of accomplishment doing it and I think that's really important since I'm a stay-home-mom. Not to mention it's great exercise for the brain.
I've always been the kind of person that seeks out a challenge. Not that I want my life to be a challenge, just things I do in my free time. Even back in high school I tended to chose the things that most people didn't do because they were hard, and that didn't appeal to most kids back then. Back then I did things like taking Russian in high school because I didn't want to take French or Spanish. I figured those was too main stream and everyone did it. I was/am also a musician but I chose the violin because I'd heard it was one of the hardest instruments to learn to play well. I guess that's why I took up karate. All my friends were too afraid of it and said there's no way they would do it. So...I did.
Well, my new thing is that I'm learning Arabic, and I'm basically learning it on my own. I've always loved languages, mostly because learning them comes fairly easily to me and I wanted to learn one that not many people in this country study, mostly because it's hard. And it is very hard. I'm studying it from a CD rom and I'm amazed at how much I know after only studying it for about 3 months. I don't know how long it will take before I'm conversational. A couple years at least. Speaking it and understanding it aren't too bad...it's reading it. Yikes...that's the hardest part.
The only people who know I'm doing this are my family. I haven't told any of my friends because they might think I'm a bit strange.( No comments from the peanut gallery on that please). Strange or not, it's fun for me and I get a real sense of accomplishment doing it and I think that's really important since I'm a stay-home-mom. Not to mention it's great exercise for the brain.
posted by Miss Chris | 9:11 AM
11 Comments:
Neat! Pardon my ignorance, are Arabic and Persian the same? I've always thought Persian sounds really nice.
I've heard that Farsi and Arabic are different but I don't know if there are any similarities. I have a friend from Iran so I should ask her.
I think that's fantastic! Good for you! And man, more power to you! I had a hard enough time trying to master Cyrillic for Russian class (got a D after one semester, then dropped out), but I've tended to like languages too, and these days, I do try to do something different too, even if it's a minor variable. Like with my first hand board break, I did a knifehand strike. NOBODY does that, so I am told, for their first. But I did. ;-) Wow, Arabic. Before you know it, you'll be working for the CIA! :-P I think it's great!
How fun! My applied ethics professor from a couple years back has the same hobby. :-) Keep us posted on how its going!
Brit
Halliburton will pay around $200K per year for Americans who can speak Arabic (check their website). I have tried learning French (two years of classes) and I have found the CDs to be very helpful.
Hmmm, I'll do my Cantonese, you do your Arabic and we'll meet on the Plains of Oddity. That, or we'll meet at Quantico (CIA) for document/signal translation training.
MDMHVONPA:
CIA...could be fun!
Wow. If you aren't careful you'll end up working for the CIA. (But try for the NSA. They have some really neat toys.)
COOL! :) Why not??? If I could hear I would learn it too. The demands for a good Arabic translator are good.
My husband's an Army Vet but when he was in the Army (somehow I think the boys in the Charlie Brown gang could shorten that sentence!) he was a Russian/Serbian Interpreter. He was in Bosnia most of our courtship which explains why it went so well! :-)
Can't ask him now as he's snoozing.
Ya know, I used to be like that.
I think I have a white blob of white matter sitting on the brain part that has dialed back the "thrill seeking" part of me.
AND....GOOD for you!!! I think it's great and I'd tell all your friends! Find out who your real friends are. Heh?
Upon reviewing my last post ye gads, it is too long.
Women do use more words than men!
You know you'll probably be recruited by the CIA. I hear that people with Arabic skills are hard to find. Good for you!
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