Date: 2-4-2014

Due Date: 2-4-2015

Resolution: It started as a joke that I made in response to a post about the outrage over a multilingual America the Beautiful Coke commercial that aired during the Super Bowl, but then I got to thinking about and figured... Why not? I'm going to learn Dutch.

How you can help: I could use a study partner or someone to speak Dutch with.

Result #35: I Tried… But I’m Considering This A Failure… Until I Get My Hands On A Copy Of Rosetta Stone…

Update #1: Let The Learning Begin!!!

Date: 2-6-2014

The other day I was looking into free software to learn Dutch when I found this. If you don't click on the link don't worry about it. The link goes to what I thought was software but turned out to be the audio version of, Book2 English - Dutch For Beginners: A Book In 2 Languages.

When I discovered this I instantly thought this was perfect. Since one of my other resolutions is to go on walks I figured that I could listen to this while I hunt down lettering for my Walking Alphabet Game.

I don't really expect to learn the language this way, but I think it's at least a good way to get myself familiar with the sounds of this new language. I also find myself repeating after the guy who is speaking Dutch whether or not I was paying attention to what the guy was saying in English.

Here are a couple of things that I found.

At one point it sounded like the Dutchman was saying something about Joe Biden.
There was a chapter on drinks that I found interesting. They gave several examples of questions asking about alcohol and which drinks you like. It then goes on with examples of how you say drinks that you don't like. It seemed to me that all the questions about what you like were traditionally masculine drinks (ie: beer, whiskey, whiskey, and coke...) Then all of the drinks that they said they didn't like were traditionally feminine drinks (ie: champagne and wine...)

So that's what I learned about Dutch today.

Update #2: The Conclusion…

Date: 2-9-2015

This is another one of those resolutions that when set I had fantasies where I'd be making enough money from the blog, or (more likely) from a stable day job to where I would have a disposable income that would allow me to afford the supplies needed to complete the challenge.

I planned to get a copy of Rosetta Stone because I was just as interested in testing the software's claim to teach new languages as I was in learning the language itself.

Unfortunately… I've never been able to figure out how to monetize anything that I've ever done and even with a "stable" job, I still ended up living paycheck to paycheck barely able to pay bills at times, let alone frivolously spend my earnings on these experiments.

At this point… I doubt that I'll be able to afford anything but I hope to find a new way to make money where I can afford to both live and finance these projects of mine. If I do figure it out and can afford it, I will definitely revisit this resolution and learn Dutch.

Here's to daydreaming!