learning new things

How Not to Learn a Language

Within a month of moving to Valencia, Spain I was certain of one thing: I wasn’t going to learn much Spanish at Spanish language schools here. How did I know this? I tried. Twice. At the first school, thanks to my Pimsleur studies, I tested into level A2 (Advanced Beginner). I told the school I…

Learning Italian?

“My husband and I, for the month of August, are only speaking to each other in Spanish,” said a woman in my Friday walking group. “Well today is August fifth,“ one of the other women said. “How’s it going?“ “Well, we haven’t said anything to each other yet today!“ — I had heard before that…

They literally stopped me on my morning walk – the yellow daffodil blooms vibrant against a deep green hillside. I pulled my cell phone out of my jacket pocket to take a picture. I’ve wanted to take a photography class but haven’t made it a priority yet. In the meantime, I’ve been playing with the…

Learning New Things

Is it just me, or is everyone as stimulated as I am by making things? Whether it’s cooking or crafts, I’m just “in my element” when I’m making something. And if it’s something I’ve never made before, well that’s a whole other level of fun, mystery, and sometimes frustration. In the last three days I’ve…

All levels welcome

The class is called “Building a Garden Shed.” I don’t have a garden. Nor any property on which to put a garden. In fact, I’ll be living “on the road” for the next year, so it’s inconceivable that I will need to know how to build a garden shed anytime in the near future. Despite…

The Mother’s Day Shrimp

There is definitely some sort of brain growth that happens – almost palpably – when you’re learning new things. I don’t mean things you find in books – though perhaps you can feel it there as well. No, I mean things that you experience that you’ve never experienced before. And the great thing is that…