What’s your learning edge?

Garnet of Glittering Muse tagged me for a meme, “What’s Your Learning Edge?” Here’s the original description of what we’re supposed to be doing:

Write a post about your “learning edge” and what you’re into these days. Feel free to mention any books you’re reading, classes you’re taking, people you’re learning from or collaborating with, etc. Tell us about the gems you’re picking up, the fun you’re having, etc., especially if they’re shifting the way you look at what you do.

Well, let’s see.

Languages

I’m still studying languages a lot. Currently, I’m actively studying, every day, German and Russian. For German, I’m mostly trying to enlarge my vocabulary, so the primary books I’m using are dictionaries. I’m most often using Langenscheidt’s Größwörterbuch Deutsch als Fremdsprache. In the Russian department, I’m using the New Penguin Russian Course, along with Kenneth Katzner’s English-Russian, Russian-English Dictionary. I’m thoroughly enjoying Russian; the beginning stages are much less painful than my first steps with German were. Not because Russian is easier than German (quite the contrary, actually), but because I have a clue as to what I’m doing. Not much of a clue, but more of a clue than I had when I started learning German.

Whenever I talk about studying languages, the question generally comes up, “Oh, that’s interesting, why are you learning [German, Russian]?” In response: the same reason some people knit, or collect stamps. Languages just interest me in general. I’m not studying them for any particular reason (school, money, etc.)

History

As always, there’s a bit of history on my radar. I’m not reading any history books right now, but I have a few awaiting my attention. I’m probably going to start reading A History of Russia when I’m done with my current library loans (The Mote in God’s Eye and the first Harry Potter Book). The Celts by Gerhard Herm is also calling to me.

Spirituality

I’m hesitant to label it as spirituality, but I’m not sure of what else to call it… Anyway:

I’ve been listening to some new (to me) podcasts about Buddhism. The podcast is called Zencast. It’s done mostly by Gil Fronsdal, who teaches at the Insight Meditation Center in California. I’m not sure how much overlap there is, but there’s also this page full of talks by Gil. I’ve previously listened to the 21st Century Buddhism podcast, but I’ve given it up after finding Zencast. Zencast is far better. Ethan of 21st Centry Buddhism gives his best, but Gil clearly knows more about Buddhism; considering he has a PhD in Buddhist Studies, that’s to be expected. Gil also stays on topic a lot better.

In particular, I’m really enjoying Gil’s Introduction to Meditation episodes. They’re quite helpful for a beginner. He talks about many of the problems beginner meditators face: what do I do with thoughts? What do I do if I have an itch? Should I change positions if my legs fall asleep, or stay still? I have been very slack about my meditation practice, but I’m going to make it a habit to sit everyday.

I’m also reading a book on Zen, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. It’s a short book, but I’ve been reading it off and on for a while now. Being about Zen, it’s - well, to be blunt, a bit confusing. It’s one of those books where you can spend hours thinking about a chapter, paragraph, or sentence. Brain food, I suppose.

Other Stuff

Ah, yes. The “other stuff.” I might as well fess up: I’m a learnaholic. I thrive on learning new things, and devote a large portion of my day to doing so. Here’s some other learning I’ve been doing:

• English words. A few days ago I signed up for a couple “word of the day” emails, to expand my English vocabulary. (For those interested, I’m signed up at wordsmith.org and Merriam Webster.com. If you know of some other good ones, let me know.)
• Knots! I’m learning a variety of knots that I need to know for boating. Being out on a big lake, with lots of wakes tossing the boat about, is not the ideal time or place to discover you have no idea how to tie off the yard. It is also not an ideal place to discover you’re not sure how to uncoil the sheet / brace lines for the sail.
• Organization. I’m extremely disorganized, and I’m trying to learn how to be better organized. Streamlining my life - what I do, how I do it, where I store all my junk - would make things much easier. I’ve had a go at this particular task previously and didn’t have much success with it. Maybe I just need to throw all of my stuff away…
• Cooking. I’m trying to learn how to cook, so if the women of my life suddenly leave, I won’t starve or have to live on Ramen noodles. Not burning stuff up is also a bonus.

Tag, You’re It

Just kidding. I don’t tag. However, if you’re interested in doing this meme, feel free.