DAY 2: livemocha

I woke up at 11:38am. Yes, I was awesome, now, wasn't I? I then proceeded to have a headache of epic proportions, the kind that makes you want to split your head just so it'll stop the pounding. On a gross afterthought, splitting my head will probably make it hurt like crazy, not to mention kill me...so it's a no-go. So much for hyperbolism.

At any rate, I just recently dropped by Livemocha, this social networking site for people who want to learn foreign languages and connect with foreign people while learning foreign languages, to enroll in more language courses. So far, they've got 8.6 million users and 38 languages offered. Frankly, I don't have much use for the social networking aspect of the site, but the language lessons are great. I learned French sentence constructions from them, despite trying to learn it from different websites. What makes Livemacha unique is the different approaches they use to teach the language.

• First, they show you a slideshow (with audio) for each lesson. They start with words, then phrases, then sentences. There are pictures that help you visualize the word's meaning, and an audio of the correct pronunciation of the word. There are also tips from other learners, which is one of the only reasons I like the social-media aspect of LM. They give you some cheats on how to pronounce it by syllables, thank God.
• Second, they make you pronounce certain words, phrases, and sentences into your headphone's mic. They record it, and you can now play it back to hear how awful you sounded. People can comment on it, pointing out which words you pronounced right and which words failed to roll right off your tongue.
• For third, LM gives you writing exercises to practice your vocabulary, grammar, and sentence construction. Like the audio recording, Livemocha members can see it and read your words. Which scared me at first, except most comments were kind and constructive--if sometimes condescending.

Anyhow, I decided to learn two more languages this summer. On top of my French classes which go off and on and hibernate for months. Yeah, I'm crazy. But I just really want to finish two more languages in seventy days. It's like a sort of challenge to see how far I can discipline myself to stop procrastinating and start learning. SO I'm doing this. First language will be basic Greek, because I'll be writing something Greece-related for a novel sometime in the near future. Second will be something useless to my daily life but fun to add to my list of nonsensical knowledge. Right now, it's a toss up between Urdu, Esperanto, or Catalan. I'd probably pick Urdu, but I'll sleep first and make my decision tomorrow.

So after all that rambling and blatant advertising, have I convinced you to learn a new language? Yeah? Cool. Drop by Livemocha.com and enroll now!

Au revoir!