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French Friday…Parlez-Vous Français?

August 14, 2010 By Deanna Piercy 2 Comments

For as long as I can remember I have loved the sound of the French language.  Because of that, and because I’ve long nurtured a dream of going to Paris, I ignored everyone who told me to take Spanish (I grew up in Southern California so that would seem to be a reasonable suggestion) and chose French instead.  I started taking French in 9th grade and continued throughout high school.  In college I skipped the first two courses offered and then took Intermediate French I and II.  Sounds impressive, right?  And like I should be able to speak it fairly well, right?  Uh, not so much.  There was a time I could read and write French reasonably well.  I was the top French student in high school and had “A”s in my college courses.  Unfortunately I never had a teacher who was totally fluent so my accent and auditory comprehension were never great.  Still, I had a good foundation and if I had had the opportunity to continue my study of the language I think I could have done well.

It’s now been more years than I care to admit since my last French class and I’ve forgotten so much of what I once knew.  Oh, I can still read a French menu, which is ever-so-handy here in rural Oklahoma.  Let’s see…how do you say, “chicken fried steak” in French?  And I remember a fair amount of basic vocabulary and common phrases.  But I would be hard-pressed to write a coherent paragraph or short essay anymore.

I was thinking about taking a class at our local university but apparently they are having a hard time finding a French teacher right now.  I do have several French textbooks which I could start reviewing and I have the demo cd of the Rosetta Stone computer language program.  What I seem to be lacking is the self-discipline necessary to study a language on my own for any length of time.  Still, hope springs eternal and I have high hopes that a hefty dose of self-discipline will descend from on high and in no time at all I will be parlez-vous-ing Français like a native.  And since we are currently in fantasy land, I will also become slim and gorgeous like all those iconic French women.  Hey, it could happen. 

“French is soft and intimate, almost like a kiss.”~ Josephine (member of the French Chic yahoo group)

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Filed Under: French Friday, French Inspiration, French Inspired Living Tagged With: French Friday, French language, French women

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Comments

  1. Cherie says

    August 14, 2010 at 7:41 pm

    Deanna, we have a similar history as I also was encouraged to take Spanish since I lived in Southern California. But I was stubborn and insisted on studying French. I was always a top student when it came to reading and writing French but my skills in speaking and comprehending were awful! I've retained some French and even hired a private tutor last year but ended up giving it up.

    There are several podcasts on iTunes that you can download and listen to at your leisure. One I liked was Coffee Break French. Although taught by a Scottish man, he has lived in France and seems to have a good comprehension of the language.

    Reply
  2. Deanna Piercy says

    August 15, 2010 at 2:58 am

    Thanks for the iTunes suggestion. I need to get back to daily treadmill time and French podcasts would be a good thing to listen to while I walk. I'll look for "Coffee Break French".

    Reply

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I’m Dee, a Francophile with a hippie heart, trying to create a beautiful life in the country while dreaming of Paris.

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