Hola amigas.  Otra semana, otra vídeo — “Estés Donde Estés” (wherever you are).

This is a song I first encountered about a year back, when I first discovered Ha-Ash.  It is the 2nd track on their latest album, Primera Fila — Hecho Realidad.  But it debuted 11 years before as the sisters’ second single in 2003, and as the 4th track from their 1st album, Ha-Ash, released the same year.

I am a sucker for melancholy mixed with a driving rhythm, and this number has that in spades, right from the start:

Recuerdo tus besos…
Y en la distancia puedo oír tu voz…
Diciendo que esto no eran una adiós

Pop that into Google Translate and try not to cry, I dare you!  And these chicas’ voices… well those of you who’ve been with me for any time at all know what a sucker I am for their sound, esp. when Ashley starts pounding it home with those magnificent pipes of hers!

49% Fluent

All right, bueno, let’s move on from the week’s music and address what’s going on with training.  I am currently on Day 35 of a non-stop streak of 15 minutes of practice a day using Duolingo.  I’m hitting some road bumps now.  I’m not interested in stopping my streak, because I believe that the drill method does help me in some ways.  That said, I need some “why”.  Or even some “how”.

A while back, I started a blog post on verb conjugation.  It’s still in draft form, because I… well, there are many reasons, really.  But while I am impressed with the complicated labyrinth of conjugation Español utilizes — tenses, mood, number, familiar-vs-formal, etc. — I am also quite overwhelmed with it.  It’s time I started hitting the books again, in addition to the drill.  And, thanks to my wife’s generous Christmas present — a gold iPhone with plenty of storage space — I am able to carry said books (as well as plenty of MP3s downloaded from Rocket Language’s site) with me at all times now.

Will I take advantage of that?  Remains to be seen.  There are, as there have been for some time, plenty of other subjects vying for my study time.  E.g., I need to be learning more advanced Linux administration skills for the job I now have, as well as the one I so desperately want.  I am also attempting to improve my health somewhat, as well as trimming my waistline for aesthetic purposes, if I’m honest, by including a little more exercise in each day, even if it’s only a brisk walk at lunch.

But know this:  I’m encouraged by Duolingo’s assertion that I am 49% fluent.  I don’t know that I agree with their assessment, but I’m encouraged, nonetheless, and am excited about the prospect of passing the half-way mark.

¡Hasta luego, amigas!