This week is gonna be tough. It's full of tests, listening and written. Oral tests, I guess are a daily occurence since Klas, my teacher, speaks in nothing but Swedish and expects all of us to understand. But that is the best way to learn quickly and somewhat effectively I have found. And a good dictionary close at hand is crucial in class. I dunno where I will be without my trusty albeit tiny dictionary. I have a big, satisfying dictionary at home but I can't lug it to school everyday cos it's just too heavy.
So anyway, we had a letter writing test yesterday and this time I couldn't use my dictionary. Oi oi oi! (Swedish expression for alamak!). But I got through it and I must say my letter sounded pretty good too. But I did kick myself at home afterwards when I realised I had spelt lägenhet or apartment in english wrong. I had missed out on those 2 tiny dots on top of the a. Darn! For the sake of just 2 dots I have ruined my letter. Oh well, never mind. I am a lot more relaxed during these tests now cos I don't want to move to the next class. Not yet anyway. I just don't feel ready to move up yet even though Klas did mention to Mathias that he feels that I may be ready to move to the C class.
What?? Again?! No lah...don't want lah. Not yet. If I move again after barely 4 weeks in my B class, then I just feel like I haven't learnt enough. Not from Klas anyway. Plus I heard the teacher in C Class can be quite a witch. Ugh...not looking forward to that. And anyway, my classroom is so pretty, I really don't want to move. But I can tell that my class is getting full. When I started there, there were probably 6 or 8 seats empty and today there are only 2 empty. And that's cos some people are absent today.
Part of the test would include prepositions..and I HATE Swedish prepositions. I hate them almost as much as I hate onions! Actually, come to think of it, Swedish prepositions and onions share the same compartment in my heart. I hate them and I never want to see or taste them...but at the end of the day I know that life is just easier with them around. So I tolerate their existence and use them to the most minimum of my ability. And note that it is SWEDISH prepositions. even though English prepositons can be a bitch sometimes, at least they follow some sort of logic.
Yes, I said logic. Swedish prepositions follow no rule of thumb, logic or anything in between. There is almost no way of intellectualizing it. And if you try, as Knut will put it 'Katastrof!' and 'Hjärnan (brain) explodera!!'. I have tried asking Klas, Mathias and even come desperately close to asking the mother in law to tell me why you use this particular preposition here but not there even though it essentially means that same thing. Example, you ask? Sure! Plenty!
Take for example, Swedish preposition på (paw). It is supposed to essentially mean on. Like on the street, on the table. But it is also used to indicate location like at the library, at the disco, at the store..but not just any store. You have to indicate specifically the store name to be able to use på with it. If you're just gonna use the generic store...then it's a different preposition. Gosh, don't even get me started on that one. Oh yeah, på is also used to tell someone to come on around and say hi to me. And there is just no logical way of thinking when one can use på. One just has to know.
That is the one phrase that I keep hearing over and over here from Swedish speaking people. Some things in the language (esp prepositions!) you can't explain. You just have to learn it, remember it and regurgitate it when the time comes. Ugh!
So anyway, that is my nightmare with the Swedish preposition. But other than that, I think I've been doing quite alright. Except for the fact that I still have a lot of trouble understanding conversations in Swedish. It is really very tiring concentrating so hard trying to decipher and make out words. Especially when the Swedes are famous for either mumbling through words or shortening them. And a lot of words sound so similar that it can be pure hell just trying to figure out which topic of conversation they are on. Double Ugh!!
Tests, tests and more tests...I'm just looking forward to the end of Monday...my last day of all these tests. then it'll just be back to endless writing exercises.
Thoughts
10 years ago
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