I mean, I can imagine me learning French (better than *I* did in high school) or Italian or Spanish, but anything with a completely different alphabet? Probably out of my reach.

Yeah, I feel the same way. In Mexico, I found that I have pretty decent restaurant Spanish, but that's as far as it goes. But I at least feel like I could get better. A new alphabet? Brand new sounds? Forget it.

This woman (my step-cousin-in-law. really) was overall kind of a tragic person. She told me that the only time she smoked in the house was when she was on bedrest, pregnant with her son. But only a couple a day!

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With my brother trying to talk his boss into sending him to Prague for a conference (I'd so sneak along) and mom wistfully wanting to go to the Christmast markets in Germany with me...I'm wishing my language skills stayed current.

In the midst of a laundry blitz. Had a very nice weekend and as soon as I slow down from it, I may be an inarticulate(-er) puddle of goo. Out of practice for conversing all weekend, no matter how fun. To my great amusement we were ready to crash by 10 each night. Woohoo grownuphood!

I do have to lodge a complaint with the Weather Department: Saturday's SUCKED.

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My brother went to language school when he joined the Navy right out of high school, and learned Farsi. Did the whole total immersion thing and all, which was very impressive.

Especially since he failed French in high school.

Some kids just are not ready for high school, or are only borderline ready, and don't end up with teachers with whom they click, so they don't fall in love with subjects.

I mean, I can imagine me learning French (better than *I* did in high school) or Italian or Spanish, but anything with a completely different alphabet? Probably out of my reach.

Yeah, I feel the same way. In Mexico, I found that I have pretty decent restaurant Spanish, but that's as far as it goes. But I at least feel like I could get better. A new alphabet? Brand new sounds? Forget it.

This is me. At some point after all my children are in school full-time, I'll probably return to school, and I've flirted with taking stuff like Hebrew and Greek, but I think it's just beyond me to learn the sounds and the meanings AND all new symbols.

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I always wanted to learn Latin, to tell the truth. I don't know if I'd make the effort now, since it would be nicer to learn a language I could speak if I went abroad. And I'd stick with French, since I took starting in seventh grade, and through two years in college.

The sad thing? I can conjugate a handful of verbs, and I retained some nouns as vocabulary, but that's about it.

Some kids just are not ready for high school, or are only borderline ready, and don't end up with teachers with whom they click, so they don't fall in love with subjects.

In his case, it was more of a "not turning in homework" thing, I think. When it became something he could choose, and part of a career, he excelled.

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Amy, one of the nice things about Latin is, as it's never really spoken (outside of Mass, where you start picking up the repeated stuff right fast), there's no problem at all with learning it from books.

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I always wanted to learn Latin, to tell the truth. I don't know if I'd make the effort now, since it would be nicer to learn a language I could speak if I went abroad. And I'd stick with French, since I took starting in seventh grade, and through two years in college.

I took a year of Latin in the 8th or 9th grade, and another year in the 11th grade. It's very regular, so it's pretty easy to learn. And you'd be able to associate the words from related words in English. I don't remember much, but for example, 'agricola' is farmer. See (Agriculture)?

The sad thing? I can conjugate a handful of verbs, and I retained some nouns as vocabulary, but that's about it.

That's me with Spanish, and I took it from the 8th grade, all the way through high school, and somewhere in my college years, I took a semester or two, but it felt like a quantum leap in comparison to what I'd had in an honors level high school class. The teacher was Cuban or at least of Cuban ancestry. I don't know if that was the difference (my high school teachers were all Gringos).

In his case, it was more of a "not turning in homework" thing, I think. When it became something he could choose, and part of a career, he excelled.

He probably needed it to matter to him. I hope I can keep this perspective when my own kids are that age, but ahahahahahahaHA. I doubt it.

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It probably is part of it, Cindy. If you take Latin, it impresses Pembleton fans. Hearing Braugher speak Latin makes me want to speak it myself.

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I don't remember much, but for example, 'agricola' is farmer. See (Agriculture)?

See, that's what I always thought about Latin! (That, if nothing else, it would help me in Scrabble and crossword puzzles when it came to word roots and such. Signed, So Not an Academic.) One day when I have loads of time...

::falls over laughing::

there's no problem at all with learning it from books

As long as you don't speak it in front of them, right?

::rim shot::

I have to reiterate what a hotly contested commodity my blanket still is. The kids all claim it's theirs. I have to sneak away with it when I want to wrap up and be snuggly.

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It probably is part of it, Cindy. If you take Latin, it impresses Pembleton fans. Hearing Braugher speak Latin makes me want to speak it myself.

Oh, I bet. You know, Latin is so rule abiding, you could probably teach it to yourself.

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#1 Single: there was a marathon on Style. The last one had Lisa meeting Michael's parents, Michael telling Lisa that he got a recurring role on a tv show and is moving out to LA and then asking Lisa to move out to LA with him.

It felt kind of like a last episode. Of course, I ran to the IMDB to see if I could find out what show Michael (Panes) got that recurring role in. And had no luck. Oh well.

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