Mi nombre es Jody, Yo soy de Canada...

And so begins Spanish lessons. Last night I eagerly grabbed a notebook and pen and set off to class with Wendy and Dave. The teacher, Ana, happens to speak Spanish as a first language and I was pleased to learn she comes from the Dominican Republic originally, as I have been there before. The class isn't really for beginners its basically a refresher course, however she thinks I will be fine as I know a few basic phrases. Yeah ok. I did alright with the 'my name is, where is stuff', but within the first hour my head began whirling around as she jumped to things like conjugating verbs! Wendy had previously warned me that this happens, and I figure it might be because Spanish is her first language. Maybe its not - who knows? I certainly have no experience of teaching a second language. I do believe that I will enjoy this class as she is a very easy-going woman. I think she is going to be a lot of fun!

The Shopaholic Series

I have finally just completed reading the first three books in the Shopaholic Series and am now almost finished the fourth, Shopaholic and Sister. I had heard about these books prior to moving to England, but have only just decided to read them recently. There was a little mix-up when I first went in search of these books as the titles in Britain are different from those in North America. Andy had tried to tell me there were more than four books (they were on my xmas list), but I was certain that there weren't. The confusion of course laid with the different titles. I caught on to this quite quickly as I've seen this happen with movies as well.

Any way, I'm digressing from my point. Although I love reading these books and am going through them at a very fast pace, I'm not finding them as funny as I've been told they are. Sure they have their quirky and amusing bits, sometimes I've even laughed out loud, but in actuality I find them a bit agonizing at times. Here is this girl who has no grip on reality whatsoever, she's making the most stupid mistakes ever and is constantly sticking her head in the sand to avoid the huge mess she ends up with. And time and time again she finds a way out of her mess with little repercussion, or ends up bailed out by someone else. When she does end up in a bind and obviously gets really stressed out or upset I find it hard to feel sympathy for her. Now in this last book her sister comes along and is one person that won't make allowances for her. She happens to be a spendthrift, and makes a lot of sense, but at the same time she goes a little over the top in the opposite direction. There is a scene in the grocery store where she tries to talk her sister out of buying a waffle maker because its an expense she can't really afford, which I was in total agreement with, however it was a bit bizarre when she ended up taking a box of bruised old bananas from the Manager just because they were free. Sorry, but unless I'm skint and there is no prospects of an income in the near future, I wouldn't be taking bruised bananas, not even if you can 'cut off the black bits'... UGGGH.

The sad reality of it is, is that there really are people out there who are in debt up to their eyeballs and just hide their credit card bills away without opening them in the hopes that they will disappear, or those that go out and buy something they don't really need (but want) rather than pay a bill. Its just sad and pathetic. I myself have made minimum payments on my bills from time to time so that I could spend my money on other things, things that I don't really need, even to the point of being further in debt. However I think that most of us have been guilty of this at some point in life, but to completely ignore your debt is just asking for trouble.


FOUR FOR FRIDAY

Q1: How has the advent of the Internet changed the way you get your daily news? Its been best for me due to my living circumstances i.e. email. It also lets me check on events that are taking place in Canada.

Q2: When you were younger, what were some things you dreamed about doing, and that you still think are possible to do today, but that you just haven't gotten around to doing or experiencing yet? Well I always dreamed of flying, but hey, that's never gonna come true is it? I did dream of travelling a lot, and although I've seen a few countries and am currently living on a different continent, I still dream about seeing so many other places. I think that together Andy and I will manage this. Learning to speak another language was something I always wanted to do, and I'm trying to achieve that on a small-scale level. Maybe someday I'll tackle the piano.

Q3: If you were forced to live on a deserted island for one year, what five things--aside from specific items of clothing--that you'd choose to bring? A toothbrush and toothpaste (for obvious reasons); My Watch (I don't imagine I'd be having to keep to any schedule, however I would like to know the time); A fishing rod/spear; Matches or lighter (all this is based on me being alone. I would have said a book first, but I'd have read it in the first 2 or so days so what would be the point?

Q4: Did any notable or high-profile person's death in 2004 have a dramatic or long-lasting affect on you? To hear of Christopher Reeves passing made me sad as I think he fought a long hard fight and didn't get to walk again, something he had wanted so desperately. However all those people who lost their lives in Asia hit me much much harder than any other one person in recent history (high-profile or not).