learn italian

Yes, I’ve dropped the class. With a few days of thinking, after realizing I certainly could do the work and learn the language, I came to the conclusion that I would be taking on more than I should at this point.

There are a number of home projects to complete, and I need to apply myself to going out and shooting photos.

I’ve come to a conclusion about going back to school, in general. When I first went to the junior college, there was a great deal going on in my personal life. As I didn’t do well and apply myself as I could have, my transcripts suck rocks. Subsequently, I have realized there are are unresolved feelings about failing to live up to my ability and to my own expectations.

Rather than stress myself out at this time, I’ve dropped the class in order to commit myself to photography and working around this old house to make it work for us.

In the mean time, I want to attempt memorizing vocabulary on my own and watching Italian cinema to get the language rhythms. It all builds to something…

I say “Eek!” I know that learning a language is not easy; I’ve studied a couple languages already. But to sit through the first class and listen to the instructor’s expectations put me into a minor tizzy. When I last studied a foreign language at the millennium’s turn, Waterfall Nymph and I were only dating and the chum was not even a thought.

Now I have a nearly two year old boy, and supposedly am working towards a new career in photography. There are posts about that I should make. Then there has been talk of all the projects around the home we’d like done this year- big items. And then I’m picking up an entire catalog redesign for the in-laws business, which includes rephotographing all products (good work when you can get it).

So I panicked at the thought of all the language work: four hours of class per week; two hours of lab per week; twelve hours of outside study; and a semester project.

I know I can do the work, I got A letter grades in three semesters of college Latin, which is the language I studied last.

Am I biting off more that I can accomplish?

I’ve signed up for beginning Italian at the local Junior College, and am getting excited. We’ll see how it goes studying and attempting to learn another language with a toddler around.

But I’ve taken a year and a half of college level latin about five years ago, so I hope to pull from that with vocabulary absorption.