Sunday, August 24, 2008

40 verbs in 40 days



So...we have 40 days until we leave for France (and only 7 more days of summer camp and 7 more days of classes...just had to throw that out) and I'm starting to freak out. Not about the move, I'm super excited about that. I know that it's not going to be like spending a month there, where everything is seen through rose colored glasses. I know that there will be times where I'm homesick (maybe) and I know for sure that I'll be bitching and moaning because it's cold or rainy (oh am I not looking forward to the winter). I'm freaking out because I have been taking french for 3 years and it's still so freaking hard. Sometimes I wonder if I'll ever get it, you know, where it just comes flowing off your tongue, instead of the hesitation while you try and conjugate a verb in your head or decide if it's Passe Compose or Imparfait (which one is for a habit..I can never remember). I swear someone will ask me a question and by the time I answer them they will be long gone or off onto another topic and I'll be lost. I just don't have the confidence, yet.

So, I have decided that every day until I leave I will study 1 verb. And I figured I'd start from the beginning, with the 17 verbs and the first one is ALLER. I will focus on 4 tenses; Present, Passe Compose, Conditional and Futur. I will write down the correct conjugation for je, tu, il/elle/on, nous, vous and ils and then I will write a sentence for that tense.

Here's where my sentences today:

Je vais au marche' (how I wish I had the little accent on my keyboard) - Present
Tu es alle' a la campagne - Passe Compose
Nous irions a la plage si nous avions une voiture - conditional
Vous irez demenager en france dans septembre - futur

Each day I will review and study a new one. I also still have my weekly lesson with Sylvan our tutor and I'm doing 1/2 hour of Rosetta Stone each day too.

I think I have said before that I'm going to do all the shopping and will be taking some pottery workshops and cooking classes all in French and all without Mr. Smarty Pants, which is my new name for Bruce. He started at the same time as me (although he did know a bit of spanish) and he's advanced, I'm just moving into Intermediate. There are times he speaks to Sylvan and I have no idea what he is saying. He picked up the language so fast, all he has to do is read something and he remembers it, not me, I have to read it and read it again, and write it down, and read it, and use it and then maybe I'll remember it, but it's doubtful. If you have any tips...please pass them along.

Immersion, that's the best way to learn and I'll have a year to practice every single day. The fact that we will be in the countryside, near very small villages is good too, because most people don't speak english. Out of the 5 friends that we met last year, only 2 speak English and one not very well. I don't want to be around my native language, although I'm sure I'm going to be scared as hell when I'm out on my own and don't understand or can't respond. Mais, au moins j'essayerai.



Posted at 04:50 PM in France, misc, sabbatical, Travel | Permalink

8 comments:

eeyore said...

how fun you guys. it's not too far off, either. la belle france me manque beaucoup! a bientot, ton mouton fidele,
eeyore

Anne in Oxfordshire said...

Wow how exciting!!! You must be feeling very nervous, but excited at the same time. Oh how I wish that was me...my husband wouldn;t dream of it..

Today it is 38 days!!!! :-)

I will add you to my favourites, to follow your blog that hopefully you are going to keep up :-)

Bruce Anderson said...

E - it's right around the corner, kind of freaking out! I always miss france when I leave, especially this region/area we are moving too, we knew we had to come back for much longer. i'm better this am, no funky dreams.

Bruce Anderson said...

Anne - It's actually 34 days....yikes. I am a bit nervous, but really excited too. This year will be life changing for us.

I will be updating from France, so glad you'll be back to check in.

Hill Country Hippie said...

I don't know why I am adding another Euro-blog to my daily list. It just makes the urge to spend time there that much stronger! Well, if you meet anyone there who want's to do a temporary house-swap with a nice couple in the Texas Hill Country, just let me know!

Randal Graves said...

The accents are on your keyboard. The more you use them, the more you won't even think about which one is which. ;-)

Bruce Anderson said...

Randal - first I'm honored for the comment and you have changed my life my friend. My french teacher doesn't even know about these. Coolest thing ever! you rock.

Randal Graves said...

Glad I could help :)