RSS
« Better than “Blast from the Past” day in high school | Home | Techjunk »
Just in time for the Olympics. Oh wait.
August 25, 2008
You need at least two semesters of a language to graduate from my college. So I’m taking Chinese.
I started learning Spanish in eighth grade, and although I continued through my senior year of high school, I doubt I could talk my way out of a plastic Taco Bell bag.
Even after all that time, I still can’t roll my r’s. When my teacher said hamburguesa, prompting me to repeat it, her r would spin perfect cartwheels into the g, and my earnest response would sound something like “hamburLUHLUHguesa.”
The Chinese man teaching this course was so determined to illicit the correct pronunciation of the phonetic alphabet, sounds that my mouth in conjunction with my voice have never made before on purpose, that he would not shy away to avoid the certain embarrassment of a student until they got it right. And after every mistake, he would lean a little bit closer to my desk, drastically contorting his lips back to the correct shape, pointing and gently arcing a piece of white chalk in the air like a conductor.
“Please say, dddjjjzzz.”
“Ssshhhzzz.”
“No, dddjjjzzz.”
“Dddaaacccchhh.”
“DDDJJJZZZ.”
“JJJUUUZZZ!”
Of course, in the car on the way home, it came out perfect. Because no one could hear me.
I haven’t been this intent on studying something since fifth grade geography.
Categories: Daily
August 26th, 2008 at 12:36 am
You can do it! Though I wonder if the rolling R’s is a genetic thing, about half my siblings don’t seem to have the ability.
August 26th, 2008 at 1:19 am
good luck with the chinese. I should be great at it considering I grew up with my parents speaking it but I don’t know that I really am. pathetic!
August 26th, 2008 at 6:10 am
Chinese, eh? I will never complain about my German classes again. Now that’s tough!
August 26th, 2008 at 11:11 am
I have to have 1.5 semester for my English degree. Why they make us learn a foreign language for an English degree, I’ll never know.
August 26th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
So what’s the capital of Nebraska?
August 26th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
I’ve never been able to roll my ‘R’s either, even after 7+ years of Spanish classes. I think it’s a short-tongue thing…
And after all that, the only Spanish I really still know is restaurant-Spanglish. You win some you lose some.
August 26th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
I was never able to roll my Rs. Did pretty well in all other Spanish pronunciation, though. The kitchen guys seemed to get the hint when I begged them for rolls and french fries and please, for the love of God, medium-rare!
Good luck with the Chinese. I would never be able to manage anything but a Romantic language. Even German is beyond me.
August 26th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
That’s ALWAYS how it is. You’re always better when no one is listening. Boo!
August 26th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
I have the same damn problem - both rolling the R’s and the inability to grasp even a LITTLE bit of another language. Thank God I live in America so I’m allowed to be dumb.
August 26th, 2008 at 4:46 pm
you’re welcome to come over and talk baby talk chinese with my wife…she speaks at about a 3-4 year old child’s level.
August 27th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Chinese is not a language, white girl.
If you’re studying Mandarin, we can practice with each other — as long as we keep the conversation about “dog” and “cat”, because I didn’t study for very long.
August 27th, 2008 at 1:25 am
A friend of mine from China was teaching me a few phrases, and she said my pronunciation was very good. But maybe she was lying.
I think being able to roll Rs is genetic, so don’t feel so bad.
August 27th, 2008 at 10:42 am
You didn’t pay attention in class, did you?
August 27th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
LivitLuvit - Maybe that’s my problem too.
Chris - That was 6th grade.
John - We can invite neill’s wife and write a children’s book.
August 27th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Chinese?? Impressive. I took five years of Spanish in high school and 2 semesters in college,and I still can’t roll my R’s.
August 28th, 2008 at 10:08 am
i can still roll a joint but was never able to roll an r.
August 28th, 2008 at 10:33 am
mdp - Ah HA! Then it is genetic!
August 31st, 2008 at 8:25 am
This is why I don’t attempt other languages.