A language decision has been reached, at least for the moment. I am going to try and hit Chinese hard for the spring. After all, I'm living on the West Coast and in San Fran and its deservedly famous Chinatown. Stop the excuses and at least scrape off some of that rust. Then, come summertime, try and find an opportunity to start learning the new language (currently determined to be some form of Arabic).

relevant questions:
1) What is the most standard form of Arabic, or most widely spoken/understood? Is there one?
2) How easy is it to find a class on this? Community colleges or private tutors or ???
3) What is a recommended Chinese primer for me at this point? I had great success with this Spanish primer book but it is easier to puzzle out unknown Spanish words than Chinese. Although I am willing to bring my many dictionaries to bear, never fear.

On top of this, I need to stay up with some science reading (including much delayed post on Titan) and I would like to do some philosophy and Chinese culture stuff. Time, time, time. Well, that's enough self-pity. I'm trying just to look at it as things to keep me busy not as an onerous burden. These are, after all, things I ENJOY.

Personally, this fall was a blast and I was juggling a new girlfriend, indie rock, Spanish, and two jobs. Surely, I can manage this paltry new assignment. Enough self-motivation, eh? More later today and then the wall of silence as I pack up and lug my stuff out to the coast.

Thanks for dropping by Ben and any others who stumble in here.

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