There Was a Wall in New Orleans

A large scale art installation project has taken over a street corner in the Marigny, New Orleans, and the wall of a very condemned-looking building has taken on new life. I have been thinking about this wall a lot lately. I can't remember how I found out about it, and though it's a new installation, I imagine it's filling up. Wonder if there is still room for me! Down in the Marigny in New Orleans, there was this wall... that made me think about what I wanted to do before I die.... And, all you get is one line... Written in chalk, so you better take a picture and get it to a more permanent bucket list... And there is an app for that - actually, there are about 4,000 bucket list apps for that.

I imagine this comes easy to some people. John said, "to have a son" within about 1.2 seconds after I asked him what he would write. My dog would probably say "to have my own bed," and maybe, after much deliberation, mine will be "to learn a third language." Now, if only I could commit to which language (anyone who knows me, knows I need serious time to make this decision - and that it has been on my list for years now).

To be precise, and particularly honest, probably the actual morning I woke up in Madrid, Spain, and realized I had just had an entire night's dream in Spanish, I think I also had, as an after thought, the thought of "well, now that that's done, I can learn another!" Then, my brain hit the snooze button and went back to sleep.

The trick to learning another language as an adult -- besides the fact that you can never actually speak with a perfect accent due to some change in the brain during puberty and besides the fact that your ear will never truly recognize the slight inclinations and vowel sounds the brain and voice are missing when you speak -- the trick is pursuing the learning stage through years of plateau-ing. Years. The plateau I got to when learning Spanish lasted a good 2 years, and then suddenly, boom, you go to sleep one night and dream in Spanish and suddenly your brain's translating skills move from conscious (hearing in Spanish - translation in head in English - translation in head back to Spanish - then coming out the mouth in Spanish) to unconscious. There it is. Like your brain had it in there the whole time. It's the most liberating experience I had ever known up to that point in my life (age 20), and it is the kind of liberation that is wholly addicting. It's especially liberating because you can throw your hands about and yell at people in the street like a real Spaniard - finally, aahhh, finally. Eh! Eh! Hombre!!

I have read that bilingual people have different personalities in their two languages. I am very confrontational in Spanish. Maybe because there is a slight disconnect with my past there, or any old timidness, and I feel like I can just say anything. Or maybe because I spent a lot of time imitating my co-workers in Madrid who were very feisty, espresso-drinking, tan, cigaratte smoking (in the office back in 2004/5), wine-loving fools who talked alot alot alot and very quickly.

Is this what I'm going to write on the wall?


Before I die I want to: __________________ (ex: commit to this one thing I have written on the wall)

Here's the site:
http://candychang.com/before-i-die-in-nola/