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Hitchhiker’s guide to the Chinese Galaxy | ||
Tags: Mandarin | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| Duke100782 Bilingual Diglot Senior Member Philippines https://talktagalog.Registered users can see my Skype Name Joined 4483 days ago 172 posts - 240 votes  Speaks: English*, Tagalog* Studies: Spanish, Mandarin | Message 121 of 230 10 August 2013 at 6:08am | IP Logged |
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I like what you said about having tutor will accelerate your learning. I've been living in China for since April
last. I've been self-studying Chinese since I arrived, and I've progressed quite a lot. It was only very recently a tutor was provided free by my office (after 15 months in China, finally). After self-studying for more than year, I can see how having a tutor is a rocket booster to one's spaceship to the Chinese Galaxy! Keep it up outcast! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 122 of 230 18 August 2013 at 3:53pm | IP Logged |
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Weekly Progress Entry 22
8.16.2013 This was by far my least productive week since I began this log. I have not been able to advance on any of the courses. I had a very busy week at work with five days (lots of people on vacation to cover for), and I also had a bit of a cold again, this workplace is not really the best I am finding out with so many people and tourists. So I felt more tired than usual for a couple of days. What was very different about this week is that unlike all others, I had some personal matters to contend with, nothing terribly serious, but indeed it affected my rhythm a bit negatively in terms of studying. I won't get into very personal details but quite a few people have bitterly disappointed me with their behavior towards me, plus I just seem to have had a string of very bad luck this week, really very bad and in your face, yet very silly as nothing was terribly serious, just enough to put me in a very acrid mood last two days. Thus I spent most of my time musing over at all of this. The worst, but now perhaps best part, is that how people have acted towards me all followed a pattern, and it was younger friends, older friends, new acquaintances, and OLD time friends alike. That hurt at first, but now it has made something quite clear. In the end, I have decided that these events have once again highlighted my need to leave the United States, as I am finding some aspects of society here no longer bearable. What does all this mean for this blog and my language studies? Well, it has reinforced my resolve!! Now more than ever I want to reach my goals so I can set sail for new places, either to start new or as part of a career. All that said, my week was not entirely lost, and far from it. I have done so fairly decent amount of review of Unit 7 BSC, and also of Lesson 11 and 12 NPCR, which I seem to need. Because I was a bit under the weather I wasn't totally sharp so learning new stuff was a bit of a challenge, so I decided to just go over again some recently learned material. I admit my characters were totally set aside this week in terms of learning new ones, so I still have to finish my last 100 batch before 1000. I think this next week with much better health, lots of good sleep I've had, only two weekdays at work, and a much calmer personal situation plus my new-found motivation, it will be a MUCH brighter week for my studies. Till the next WPE on 8.23.2013!! Edited by outcast on 18 August 2013 at 3:55pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| kujichagulia Senior Member Japan Joined 4842 days ago 1031 posts - 1571 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Japanese, Portuguese | Message 123 of 230 19 August 2013 at 12:00am | IP Logged |
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I definitely know how it feels when problems in your life start to affect your language studies. That has happened to me on a number of occasions.
As an American living in Japan, I can say that, although there are some things I deal with here that I would never have to deal with in the U.S. (specifically when it comes to race), but there are so many good things about living here that I'm not sure I could become readjusted to American life should I ever have to go back. Motivation for you. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 124 of 230 26 August 2013 at 6:11pm | IP Logged |
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Unit Completion Entry 38
Cycle Two (Lessons 7-26) Book 1 Lesson 12 New Practical Chinese Reader 8.25.2013 Edited by outcast on 26 August 2013 at 6:22pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 125 of 230 26 August 2013 at 6:21pm | IP Logged |
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Weekly Progress Entry 23
8.23.2013 So this week in Chinese didn't pan out as I thought it would. This time it wasn't personal matters or work that got in the way, but just honest human nature. I felt far more exited about German and French this past week as I did Chinese, so I just decided to ride the wave, and that is not a bad thing. First, I did REALLY well in German and French, exactly because of this itching feeling to focus on these languages. While following a schedule is good and shows discipline (and I think I have shown that here for the most part), sometimes you do have to follow your heart a little. I'm not in a military camp, so why not. And this week I just felt like practicing extra-intensely in DE and FR. I also had a record number of meetings: four in four days! Two for French and two for German. And both at least 2 1/2 hours long. So I logged 5+ hours in French and 7 hours in German speaking practice. YAY! Second, sometimes you need a little time away from a language to rediscover the passion, or maybe to discover you lost the passion. Both outcomes are good because they are HONEST. And the best thing one can do in learning languages is to be honest, otherwise it is no fun and defeats the point. So I did a little of Chinese, even in this week. I did Lesson 12 NPCR and I did meet with my tutor and got decent practice. I also reviewed very early in the week a few hundred characters. So I was not totally off. The great news is that I am jumping at the bit now for my Chinese textbooks and audio, and a lot. The "not so total" break from the language I think did really good for relighting the kindles. I am having a great day today thus far, and my mind seems fresh and exited to get on with Mandarin once again. So thankfully, the passion was reaffirmed, not lost! My goals are the same as in last WPE's. Let's hope I make them! Till the next WPE on 8.30.2013!! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 126 of 230 29 August 2013 at 4:29pm | IP Logged |
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Unit Completion Entry 39
Unit 7 Lesson 3 Basic Spoken Chinese 8.29.2013 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 127 of 230 05 September 2013 at 7:44pm | IP Logged |
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Unit Completion Entry 40
Unit 7 Lesson 4 Basic Spoken Chinese 9.5.2013 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| outcast Bilingual Heptaglot Senior Member China Joined 4944 days ago 869 posts - 1364 votes Speaks: Spanish*, English*, German, Italian, French, Portuguese, Mandarin Studies: Korean | Message 128 of 230 05 September 2013 at 8:10pm | IP Logged |
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Weekly Progress Entry 24
8.30.2013 Way late as I was out of town for Labor day weekend till yesterday (wednesday), and I did not bring my computer... - - - - - - Weekly Progress Entry 24 8.30.2013 So last week I did lesson 3 of Unit 7 and reviewed some NPCR lessons. I am trying to focus on vocabulary retention as this is an important part to be able to speak with some degree of coherence. Retention of mandarin vocab is obviously a challenge given the lack of cognates or even near-cognates. This first period is also boring since oyu can't really use speech or reading or listening to reinforce this vocab, its just dull old rote review. The construction with 以前 / 以后 ("yi3chian2" / "yi3hou4") no doubt will prove a challenge. The word order is completely counter-intuitive to Indo-European word order, as they go at the end of whatever they modify. I have discovered three possible translations for them: 1. when beginning sentence = in the past, formerly / in the future 2. when conjunctions introducing dependent clauses: a. when preceded by dates or time periods = ago / in ("two months AGO" / "IN two months") b. when not (i.e. nominal or verbal phrase precedes) = before / after Now I could be wrong but that's what I have seen from the examples (the 2a usage was not described in any textbook, I just figured it out all my own). My characters have continued to struggle in terms of learning new ones, I am only reviewing. Again, I am somewhat consumed right now by learning low-frequency German and French vocabulary, which takes my time to learn characters in reading and other activities. Next week (the current one as I write this belated WPE), I just want to continue chipping away. I know I am not in my most productive study period in Chinese, but I just want to get my heavy German and French study out of the way by the end of the year, so next I just focus supremely on Mandarin (and Portuguese fluency). Till the next WPE on 9.6.2013!! 1 person has voted this message useful |
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