I just hit 50 hours on Dreaming Spanish, so I guess that officially puts me at Level 2. I took two years of Spanish back in high school (over 10 years ago now). At the time, I didn’t feel like it stuck at all, but honestly, I think it actually helped a little now that I’ve started again.

I know DS recommends not using subtitles, but I have profound hearing loss and reading the Spanish subtitles really helps me keep up. I also haven’t had the luxury of holding off on speaking. My job kind of forces it. I work as a tree climber and run a crew where nobody speaks English, so I have to communicate in Spanish every day. I usually keep what I say short and direct unless I’m really confident it’s correct.

Outside of work, I’ve been listening to podcasts like Cuéntame, and I’ve also been reading A1-level stuff. I’ve always been a huge reader and I devour books, so reading feels important for me, even if it’s not the “official” DS way.

To be honest, a lot of what I’m doing goes against the strict DS approach, but I feel really good about my progress. It can get frustrating sometimes—especially because I want to do more but I work 14-hour days, so time is limited. And conversations can feel one-sided: I can say what I need, but when native speakers respond, half the time I have no idea what they said. Some of that is probably the speed/accents, and some of it is definitely my hearing loss.

All in all, though, I’m very happy with how things are going so far. Excited to see where I’ll be at 100 hours.

Just hit Level 2!