Je ne parles Anglais.

I've begun learning two new languages in the last few days, and I must say, it's going rather well. The Rosetta Stone technology is a wonderful tool, and the image association instead of word association does make it a different approach than most language learning tools in my opinion.

I've begun to "learn" French, and I put learn in quotation marks because, as a Canadian citizen, even though I grew up in a completely English speaking province, French was a mandatory course from grade 3 until grade 9. So I have 6 years of "experience" under my belt. I used to be able to hold a decent conversation en francais, now I'm lucky if I can say "hello", "how are you", and "where's the bathroom?" It's been relatively easy to get back into the swing of this language, and I have a couple of french speaking friends, so it should be easy enough to become fluent in it over time.

The second language I've begun learning is a little more difficult. I've decided to learn, or at least, gain a basic understanding of, Mandarin Chinese. I'm not sure why, but the language appeals to me. The pronunciation of many of it's words is extremely foreign to me, which makes it more difficult to learn than French is. The basic syntax doesn't seem to be too far off from that of English or French, but unlike both of those languages, I've never heard Mandarin while growing up, so it seems... strange. I'll get the hang of it eventually though. After all, I am only one lesson in.

Wish me luck, and until next time,

Good bye!

Au revoir!

Zai jian!

Life, The Universe, and Everything....

Wow. I know it's been a while. I've had a busy schedule for the last few months, and it doesn't look like it's slowing down any time soon. Let's do the "New Years Resolution" thing, since it's what most people post in January blogs.

I suppose it's not really so much of a New Years Resolution, as it is me finally deciding I need to be back in shape. I know, pretty typical of a resolution, but as I said, it's not a resolution. :) It's been going well so far, I haven't lost much weight, but I feel healthier, and stronger, and that's what I was aiming for. Health isn't about being as tiny as possible, it's about proper nutrition and exercise. (Sorry anorexic teenage girls, you've got it wrong.)

I've also made a decision that I've been mulling over for a while, and it ties in to the getting into shape bit. I'm going to join the Canadian Army Reserves part-time. It's a good paying job, offers some good benefits, and is relatively flexible as far as hours go, since it's part-time. Also, it looks pretty darn good on a resumé. :)

The biggest decision I've made this year, however, is to go back to school. I've been looking into courses at the Universities in Atlantic Canada, and I've decided that I'm going to apply to every one of them that offers a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. I've also been looking at some careers after University, and I've narrowed it down to a few I think would be interesting, exciting, and fulfilling.

I would either like to work for a Canadian Federal position, such as an Intelligence Officer for C.S.I.S. or for the Department of Foreign Affairs. Another career track that's really catching my attention is serving in the United Nations.

I'll keep you posted on any developments. As always, post any thoughts or feelings.