Spanish??

[Hungry For Cheese]

Originally Posted by da jammer

"You don't have to learn a stitch of Spanish to get by in CA"

you obviously don't make a living in the real world of southern California

My dad is a foreman for a large construction company and has been working construction for 25+ years. He knows no spanish and his workers are all hispanic who barely speak english. He may have a translator in some cases. He works for people who live in Bel-Air, Beverly Hills, Malibu and anywhere else there are multi million dollar homes. He takes in 6 figures easy. Not only does he not know spanish, he never got past 9th grade. San Fernando Valley born and raised.

This guy here, is going to have a degree. Listen, if youre gonna be working in a law office or something of the sort. English is still #1. You can make a living, get by or live the life of a "baller".

If youre going into construction, it would be best to learn english if you ever want to run the hispanics and make the bigger bucks. Otherwise you'll be digging trenches and other things as someone who speaks both languages passes you up "possibly".

[lolaaa]

Originally Posted by kgee

My dad is a foreman for a large construction company and has been working construction for 25+ years. He knows no spanish and his workers are all hispanic who barely speak english. He may have a translator in some cases. He works for people who live in Bel-Air, Beverly Hills, Malibu and anywhere else there are multi million dollar homes. He takes in 6 figures easy. Not only does he not know spanish, he never got past 9th grade. San Fernando Valley born and raised.

This guy here, is going to have a degree. Listen, if youre gonna be working in a law office or something of the sort. English is still #1. You can make a living, get by or live the life of a "baller".

If youre going into construction, it would be best to learn english if you ever want to run the hispanics and make the bigger bucks. Otherwise you'll be digging trenches and other things as someone who speaks both languI'ages passes you up "possibly".

I'm a girl! haha, just wanted to clear that up. Anyway, thank you (and everyone else who answered). I think I'll take some adult-ed Spanish courses while I prepare for my move. And if anyone else reads this, please tell me what you do about bugs! I live in Michigan so for a considerable amount of time (winter) we don't worry about bugs (and most pest problems are easily taken care of). While I'm not deathly afraid of critters, I don't like them - at all!

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by lolaaa

...please tell me what you do about bugs! I live in Michigan so for a considerable amount of time (winter) we don't worry about bugs (and most pest problems are easily taken care of). While I'm not deathly afraid of critters, I don't like them - at all!

Bugs are not a severe problem in CA, not compared to the Midwest and East Coast, anyway. Depending on where you go in CA, the most serious are Black Widow and Desert Recluse (cousin of the Brown Recluse) spiders. Certain times of the year ticks can be a problem if you like to hike. If hiking you should always be alert for rattlesnakes, though they’re reclusive and non-aggressive. You wouldn't want to startle one, however.

I've heard that CA has scorpions, and I did see a small one while hiking near Piru Lake, once. You may also encounter the occasional Tarantula, though their bite is not lethal. It's doubtful that you'd ever get close enough to one to get bit.

During summer in the hotter, low-elevation regions, like the San Fernando Valley, you might see Japanese Water Beetles. These are dark-brown cockroach-looking bugs about an inch or two in length that like ivy and other damp garden areas. They tend to stay outside. Ants can be a nuisance. Mostly you'll encounter small carpenter ants, and not Texas-style fire ants. Killer bees have found their way to CA's southern most counties, though I don't know to what extent.

In my experience, these are the worst of the bug problems in CA. Generally not too many bugs, thanks be the weather and lots of birds.

[Sorcerer68]

Although the Chilean side of my family is a little snooty about the quality of my Spanish, I'm fairly fluent. As with any language skills I've picked up, they've opened me to more cultural and business opportunities. I find other humans fascinating and have enjoyed having people educate me about their culture. Spanish and Tagalog speakers are the most helpful when learning the language, French speakers (I've found) least helpful. "Your Fwench is 'orrible!" I've heard time and time again...but I digress...why limit yourself? No, you don't have to learn Spanish. You don't have to learn anything. It's never, ever been a bad thing learning more foriegn language. Spanish yes, also polite phrases in many other languages and you'll do sensational.

[Christine Joan]

Smaller law offices where the paralegal will be expected to communicate with clients to gather information (Personal Injury law firms, Criminal defense law firms, consumer Bankruptcy, Family law) will almost always want the paralegal to be able to speak and understand Spanish because so many of the clients only speak Spanish. Larger law offices or offices that deal with issues not involving the general public (real estate, patents, corporate law offices will likely not consider Spanish essential to the job. These are generalilties and depending on location, the office could be located in a communicty where Korean, Chinese or another language would be required to perform the job. If you are out of state now, you should check which version of Spanish you will be taught because I have heard that there is Castillian Spanish (Spain's Spanish) and Mexican Spanish, which is generally spoken here, and sometimes it is difficult for someone who knows Castillion Spanish to understand the Spanish spoken here. Also, you might want to check Craig's list in the area where you will be moving to for the types of jobs you will be seeking when you get here and see for yourself how many require Spanish.

[RudyOD]

Yeah, it doesn't hurt anyone to learn another language, nontheless a few phrases. I came from Mexico when I was 7, so I easily speak Spanish fluently. Though English is now my first language. Currently I'm learning mandarin and tagalog because I plan on residing in San Francisco/norcal after I finish medical school (many years from now, haha).

Though if I decide to stay close to my family and stick to my local area (cerritos-la palma-fullerton-buena park), I know that I definitely have to start learning Korean. I haven't had a single doctor who wasn't Korean since I moved to the U.S. What's great is that they all have some understanding of Spanish, and some speak it very well. I just know that if I want to have a successful practice, then I must be able to attract the large ethnic groups of my area: Koreans, Mexicans, Gujarats (Indian), and the new up and coming Taiwanese community who speak mandarin (as oppose to norcals older, Cantonese speaking, Chinese.)

You can do well in any career in California by just knowing English, you're just going to have to find other ways to be more attractive competitively. And, like an earlier poster mentioned, it doesn't hurt to learn another language or two, or just a little here and there. Many Americans, and British for that matter, seem to have an ego about their language and don't care for learning others. Yes, English is the international language of business, and yes, immigrants definitely should learn how to speak English, especially if they live in America or England. It doesn't mean that English is, in any way, superior to any other language, or that immigrants should stop speaking their mother tongue. The fact is that even when immigrants know how to speak English, they still feel more comfortable doing business with people who can relate to them culturally. Language is a huge part of culture.

Plus French is a latin based language, which means that you're transition to Spanish shouldn't be as difficult as others...though Portuguese is much more like Spanish. But yeah, as a fluent Spanish speaker, I can get away with reading French even though I've never studied it before. I'm sure the same could be said with French speakers reading Spanish.

Buena suerte! (Goodluck) x]

[Stang66]

Look! I speak spanish and live in the San Fernando Valley and only use it when I WANT to "connect" with other spanish speakers. Trust me, you don't have to learn spanish to live in LA. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Ok,maybe ignorant is a better word.

[scottie]

Originally Posted by Stang66

Look! I speak spanish and live in the San Fernando Valley and only use it when I WANT to "connect" with other spanish speakers. Trust me, you don't have to learn spanish to live in LA. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Ok,maybe ignorant is a better word.

Give her a break lady, she was just trying to get some insight knowing she was coming to a pre-dominantly Hispanic culture if it would be helpful if she learn a few phrases. Chill, I think you took it totally the wrong way

[mhoang]

It depends what area of CA you plan to move to. You definitely do not have to learn Spanish to move to CA, but some jobs in areas such as education, nonprofit or social services either require or pay more for Spanish skills, so knowing the language is definitely helpful in that aspect. I imagine the same would go for states like Arizona and New Mexico, not just California. If you live in San Francisco, learning Cantonese is not a bad idea either. In fact, I saw some job postings looking for candidates fluent in Japanese or Mandarin for international companies that do business in Asia. It all varies on the type of job you'll be looking for.

I work in a law office in Northern California, and since you plan on becoming a paralegal, I can tell you that Spanish is very helpful in legal areas like immigration, criminal, personal injury, or family law. If you are going into more transactional areas like corporate law, intellectual property or tax/real estate, bilingual skills don't really matter.

Learning another language for personal enrichment is always a good thing to consider. We had the option of French or Spanish in middle and high school and I chose Spanish. I've forgotten most of it by now.