How come we're so simpatico on classic movie viewing?

Oh, that. I used to sneak into the living room (after everyone fell asleep) to watch badly-dubbed late-night old movies on my parent's tiny black and white TV all the time. Like, since I was 6. The selection was somewhat broader once we came to NA. I had a very special relationship with the classic section of the local video store. And Elwy Yost from "Saturday Night at the Movies".

TV to the rescue!

Oh yeah. That first year was great. "Mom, I MUST watch more TV, to improve my English!"

Also, I am once again amazed at how articulate people (Vonnie) can be in a second language.

Seconded massively. Vonnie just joined Nilly in my pantheon of "buh-buh-buh....how can you DO that???!!!??!?!?!"

Said as someone who has totally failed when trying to learn a foreign language, I must add. I dropped French after less than a quarter of a quarter (despite the Franco-American ethnicity) and barely remembers rudimentary elements of Spanish despite six years (fucked up my GPA and Honors, it did - FUCKING LANGUAGE!!!!).

All I retained from 2 years of high school German was the "Nicht Verstehen" song and the fact that Patricia Smith's German cookie recipe could serve in a pinch if one developed an urgent need for concrete.

eta: heads up for the 8-page Matthew Fox fashion layout in the new GQ magazine.

I took 2 years of Spanish in highschool and another year in college and I can't remember much of anything. I got okay at reading it, but I never had much luck speaking or understanding it.

On the flipside, I can't read any written Japanese, but I know a handful of words and phrases from years of anime watching. Nothing that would be remotely useful, though, as things like "Prepare to launch" and "Die!" are only going to get you confused looks at best on the average day.

The basic music of the languages, Korean and Spanish are different. Spanish is a 'romance' language and all of them have the same roots. I can't speak Spanish, but after a couple of days in Mexico I can speak English with Spanish music and can be understood. I very much doubt I could learn the music of an Asian language that easily.

I learned enough Japanese from going to Samurai movies constantly a few years ago, and my mother made a Japanese/English dictionary about 50 years ago. For a while I could read the kanjii pretty well, but that has all slipped away.

I feel certain Jin has some English but is much too shy about it to use it. A bit of usage will perk him right up.

Sun, btw, will have learned to lie as easily as breathing from her father. She doesn't even have to realize it.

I flunked my year of Spanish in high school and my semester of French was mostly spent drawing maps of Paris.

but I lived in Heidelberg for a year and by the end of it I could get around on trains, order food and shop a little in German. I think living a language makes it easier to learn vs sitting in a classroom.

"Zwei bier, bitte!"

Three years. Nurnberg.

"Mine got im himmel" "Wasser" "Emmer Essen" - Movies and TV.

I totally sympathize with all the people who have attempted to learn a different language and failed. I suspect a lot of it is because we don't really learn English properly anymore. It wasn't until I took German in high school that I even learned what direct and indirect objects were, we weren't taught that stuff in English classes. Same with the subjective case, not only are we not taught what it is, but it has virtually disappeared from usage in (American) English, I don't know about UK English. Other languages, such as Spanish, function almost solely in the subjective. I understand Argentina is particularly known for that. So, if it's not a case we're familiar with using, we can't always judge when it's appropriate to use in a foreign language. It became nearly the default for me by the time I finished my 5th semester of college Spanish. Yet, now, I can barely remember any of it. It truly is a case of use it or lose it when it comes to languages. While I was living in Spain, I never become fully fluent, but I could definitely get around and flirt with the locals in Spanish when I really wanted to. Now, I feel like it's all gone, except for when I'm drunk. Then, I speak it fluently.

While I was living in Spain, I never become fully fluent, but I could definitely get around and flirt with the locals in Spanish when I really wanted to. Now, I feel like it's all gone, except for when I'm drunk. Then, I speak it fluently.

Wow it's like you're in a movie or sitcom.