Terremoto en Chile

For this week, please do a reading post, following the directions below.

Go to one of these sites to find an article:
1. http://www.bbcmundo.com
2. http://www.elpais.com
3. http://latino.msn.com

Read the article, using the following strategies:
1. Figure out the meaning of the title (and subtitles, if applicable) so you know what the article is discussing.
2. Look for cognates. (Words that look the same in English and Spanish.)
3. Guess at word meanings based on context and your knowledge of the topic being discussed.
4. If you get stuck, go to this site and paste the URL of your article in the text box and click "Read!" This will open your article in a web-reader that will provide you with translations and pronunciations as you mouse over words.

For your post, do the following:
1. Post the link to the article (use the link button right next to the italics button to create a hyperlink).
2. Write a brief summary (one or two sentences) of the article in English.
3. Give your opinion about the article in English. (100-150 words)
4. List five words you didn't know with their definitions.

1. http://www.bbc.co.uk/mundo/america_latina/2010/02/100227_video_terremoto_sismo_chile_mr.shtml

2. The articles discusses the effects of the earthquake that hit Chile early this morning. The earthquake's magnitude was an 8.8 on the Richter scale. Authorities are currently assessing the damage and figuring out their next steps.

3. It's interesting to me how, despite the greater magnitude of this quake compared to the quake in Haiti, the devastation seems to be a lot less. I don't mean to minimize the lives lost or the damage to personal property, because it is extensive, but it doesn't appear to be as crippling as the situation in Haiti. I was reading another article where they interviewed people, and they said basically that because Chile has severe quakes on a regular basis, a lot of their buildings are prepared for high-magnitude earthquakes. The next concern appears to be the possibility of a tsunami; a warning has been issued for the entire Pacific region because of the magnitude of the earthquake. The first waves of the tsunami are expected to hit Hawaii about half an hour from now; they started evacuating coastal areas early this morning.

4. There were no words I didn't know.

En el futuro

For this week, please talk about the things you're going to do in the next 1, 5 and 10 years (write a minimum of 75 words). What expression do you need to express this?

El año que viene
Voy a ir a muchas conferencias y enseñar muchas clases. Necesito publicar artículos, también, pero no puedo controlar eso. Pero voy a escribir artículos, y esperar que se publiquen.

En cinco años
En mi trabajo, voy a conseguir tenure (¡espero!). Voy a asistir a muchas reuniones y servir en muchos comités.

En mi vida personal, no sé exactamente, pero mi esposo y yo queremos tener hijos. Si tenemos dinero, vamos a ir de vacaciones a otro país. Si no tenemos dinero, vamos a hacer camping para nuestras vacaciones. :)

En diez años
En mi trabajo, todavía voy a enseñar muchas clases, asistir a muchas reuniones y servir en muchos comités. Quiero empezar un negocio pequeño, pero para hacer necesito dinero, y no sé si voy a tener dinero suficiente.

Si mi esposo y yo tenemos hijos, vamos a tener mucho sueño porque no vamos a dormir mucho. :) Pero vamos a estar felices de tener una familia.

10 cosas que haría si tuviera más dinero/tiempo

(10 things I would do if I had more money/time)

This week, you can choose your own topic for a blog post. You can do any of the following kinds of posts:

• audiovisual post (as long as you record yourself speaking)
• instant messaging post (containing a conversation in Spanish between you and someone else...make sure the other person is OK with the conversation being posted to your blog)
• reading post (following the model from Jan. 22)
• regular blog post. Stick to words you know, and pay attention to verb forms if you choose this one. If you have trouble coming up with a topic, feel free to use mine.
  

Note: To make a verb conditional [would], add -ía to the end of the infinitive for the yo form. Here are the forms:

yo hablaría nosotros hablaríamos
tú hablarías vosotros hablaríais
él/ella/Ud. hablaría ellos/ellas/Uds. hablarían

Si tuviera más tiempo/dinero, yo...

1. ...pasaría más tiempo con mi esposo, mi familia y mis amigos.
2. ...¡iría de compras!
3. ...viajaría por todo el mundo y aprendería a hablar más lenguas.
4. ...escribiría un libro.
5. ...estaría menos estresada. :)
6. ...visitaría a mis amigos que viven en otros estados/países.
7. ...asistiría a más conciertos.
8. ...renovaría mi casa, especialmente la cocina y el sótano.
9. ...practicaría el piano.
10. ...tomaría lecciones de violín.

Mi familia

For this week, please describe your family. You can either write a description or do an audiovisual post. Remember if you do a video, it has to include you speaking in Spanish (describing your family).