Although I had some initial reservations about the change in hosts and format for Let’s Speak Korean, they have been thoroughly erased. I look forward to tackling a new lesson every day with Lisa, Steve, Miriam and Jason.
32 회 is my Let’s Speak Korean point of reference for the week. Lisa’s comment that 32 회 “was very simple” caused a moment of teeth-gnashing the first time I heard it, but after the thirtieth time, I agreed with her.
So I’m learning more Korean, but sometimes finding out what they’ll let them say next is worth my time.
For example, this week in 32 회, Stephen talked about his MT (membership training) experience with his salsa dancing club. He instructed viewers to be certain to pronounce 살사 correctly. Say it the wrong way (설사), and you’ll be...a writer stumbling over a...load...of easy jokes. Lisa then tied it neatly together with the 응 exchange. She was right...it really didn’t come out the right way, but it was entertaining nonetheless. You can watch 32 회 yourself by consulting the VOD list at the Let’s Speak Korean site.
Really, I’d rather know the meaning and pronunciation of 설사, because someday I might need it. I am reminded of an incident that happened shortly after I moved into a new apartment in 서울. There was an awful smell coming from the bathroom drain. I asked our maintenance man to take a look. He found that the drain was clogged, and I had to ask with what. He spoke English well, but when he said that it was “a man’s skin,” I knew that his vocabulary was missing a word.
32 회 may have been some kind of anomaly. Stephen’s closing (and probably unscripted) lines were “Somehow every time Lisa starts talking, it starts getting to alcohol.” Hmmm. It’s not every lesson, but I’ve noticed it, too. Because of my own bias, at first I chalked it up to TMI. However, a shift in perspective tells me that it falls in the same area as 설사 and “a man’s skin.” I might not ever use it, but it’s good to know how to say it.
Posted by kangmi on March 5, 2004 at 2:34 PM0 comments
Squeezing in an extra Let’s Speak Korean lesson last week got me nowhere...the VOD list now ends at lesson 30, which I studied yesterday.
However, it gave me an opportunity to review some of the early lessons. I don’t want to spend too much time there, as it’s easy for me to get caught up in the pursuit of perfectionism which has been known to derail my language study in the past.
I’ve also decided to spend another week studying lessons 17-21 in Korean Through English. I don’t feel as solid as I’d like to with those lessons. Another week should do the job.
What did I get out of my Korean language study this week? Although this week felt a bit of a slog, Korean has started to invade different parts of my mind. At the Korean program I attended this week, I found more words surfacing in my head that I thought were long gone. I’ve watched whole Let’s Speak Korean lessons and not realized until much later that I used to know those words. I wake up in the morning and find myself wondering if those shoes on the floor are 너무 높아요 or 너무 낮아요.
Like the rest of my life, change is incremental. One day, one word, one sentence at a time.
Posted by kangmi on February 27, 2004 at 7:32 PM0 comments
Another week of Korean language study is nearly at an end. I finished studying lessons 13-16 of Korean Through English Book 1...only two more weeks until I’m done! I’m planning to freecycle them (somehow along the way I ended up with two of copies of the book and audio tapes) when I’m done. They’re yours if you want to pay for the postage.
I managed to squeeze in an extra lesson of Let’s Speak Korean this week, thus closing the week with lesson 26, instead of lesson 25. I’d like to move a little closer to the actual air dates...moving put me behind. Besides, I want to find out about the wig!
Speaking of Let’s Speak Korean, I encourage you to visit their web site, inaugurated this week. We get our own message board!
Posted by kangmi on February 20, 2004 at 2:15 PM0 comments
It’s Monday...back to my Korean studies. Over the weekend, I dug through my collection of Korean language textbooks. Hard to believe that I have so many textbooks and so little knowledge. Once they’re all unpacked, I’ll make a list here of what I have. There are a couple years of study there.
This week I continue the study of Korean Through English 1, as well as lessons 21-25 of Arirang TV’s Let’s Speak Korean. In KTE1, I’m focusing on lessons 13-16 and should be finished with them by the end of the week. I’ll miss my goal of reviewing book 1 before the end of February, but the move got in the way. I’ll head straight into KTE2 once I finish.
Posted by kangmi on February 16, 2004 at 6:25 PM0 comments
Whew! After a week off (due to moving), I’m back at my Korean studies, and it feels good. Hello Stephen and Lisa! Nice to see you again!
Whenever I post from work, I’m at a disadvantage, because I am unable to type Korean characters in this blog. Still working on getting the IT department to change that...my request is obviously not their highest priority. I’d like to include some of the new things I’m learning and some of the old things I’m remembering. In addition, my Korean typing and spelling skills need a lot of work. Pecking around the keyboard when I’m composing in Korean induces a headache!
Posted by kangmi on February 10, 2004 at 4:14 PM0 comments
Learning to speak Korean fluently is one of my life goals. It would have been easier had I made this determination during any of the four and a half years I lived in Korea...but I didn’t.
Sure, I studied Korean, both formally and informally, off and on, but never enough to become fluent.
Last fall, I started to study again. It was a fitful but increasingly consistent start. Nowadays you’ll find me in my office during my lunch break watching Arirang TV’s new Let’s Speak Korean program. I study one ten-minute program per day. The VOD option allows me to pause and rewind when necessary. I watch the program as many times as necessary for it to stick, which means my language study actually extends beyond lunch. I wear headphones and continue to repeat the program throughout the afternoon. I will also preview the next VOD, so that I have an idea of what I’ll be facing the next day.
I also am reviewing what I already know by studying book 1 of the Korean Through English series. I hope to have finished reviewing this book by the end of February, when I will continue with book 2.
That’s all I do right now. There are other courses that I could study, but through some trial and error, I’ve learned that this is the right mix right now.
Posted by kangmi on January 31, 2004 at 11:59 AM2 comments
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강미 | learning korean