linguistic hunger

Some people awake on Monday with a craving for coffee, an apple fritter, or perhaps a run through the park.  More often this craving may be experienced as an intense desire to return to one's pillow, and on many occasions I have satisfied such a desire.

This morning, I awoke with a different craving: the German language.  I realize this is not an oft expressed desire, and perhaps it occurs only rarely in the wild.  German is on my mind a lot lately.  Some time the previous weekend was spent in an impromptu German conversation with a friend as we prepared to dine at a German restaurant.  I liberally use the word conversation, as I employed more listening than speaking skills.  I studied German in high school under a wonderful and colorful instructor for whom I have great respect.  In college, my official minor was German.  Indeed, one of my college instructors attempted to persuade me to enroll in the German graduate program.  It is therefore shameful that my facility with the language has atrophied.

Of course, the primary reason for my renewed fascination with the language is an upcoming fall trip to Germany.  I suppose one would define the trip as a vacation, but I've been thinking of it more as a research expedition.  This should not, however, obscure the enjoyment of it.  I spent a good deal of time this weekend planning this trip and finalizing some details.  There is still quite a bit to do, but I'm on the downhill slide.  I've been reading guidebooks, searching internet sites, refreshing my history, and seeking out others with association to Germany.

An unfortunate casualty has been my knowledge of French, acquired from three semesters of college electives.  Friday was Bastille Day, and I had been looking forward to the now annual French email exchange with my friend S.  Both of us had busy schedules, so it was a short exchange.  Because of that, it carried over to the next day and intensified when S. discovered an old French phrase book.  I struggled to make a response, but could do little to communicate.  My knowledge of French is shuttered away behind the Deutsch mode of my brain.

From what source could I begin to sate this Monday morning hunger for die große Sprache?  I started out with news broadcasts, but then inspiration struck.  Podcasts.  There surely must be German podcasts.  Indeed there are; it is an incredibly popular medium in Germany.  I've found two very interesting series.  Conversational, friendly German.  I think this will do nicely.

Tchüß!