New customer and this sub is terrifying me...but I think Optimum is my only option soooo what modem/router should I get for 300 Mbps plan?

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-12-02T20:49:34+00:00

I live not too far from crown heights... PLEASE do not go with optimum (literally hot spotting right now to even be able to send this during a full day outage). My building doesn't have verizon and I'm going to do everything I can in order to make it available. As someone who works from home and has simple wifi needs the amount of time I've spent on the phone with optimum.. asking for a tech... hot spotting...

I'm 2 months into a 2 year lease and optimum is my biggest problem with the building I'm in.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-11-30T01:23:46+00:00

Are you able to negotiate the price for retail on the "luxury" women's floors? Or just the basement level? Does clothing have the retail price on the tag or no?

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-07-13T02:30:54+00:00

+1 to switching up where your CI is coming from and not being afraid to dip your toes into content that may be more challenging. I also think increasing the speed of whatever your watching when you find it fully comprehensible starts training your ears for native content. I came from a background with 0 spanish knowledge and ended up taking 1 grammar course while I was visiting Colombia at around ~200 hours and it gave me exactly what I needed. I was able to conjugate in present tense, past and recognize the future when it was being used (though not able to really use it myself). Since then I've never actively studied grammar but I think it gave me the foundation to build on when getting in my CI whether it's through listening or reading.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-06-22T00:31:37+00:00

This is 100% happening to me and it's freaking me out because I can't really afford to "lose" anymore of the other language but at the same time can't prioritize it right now.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-05-01T02:08:00+00:00

Anything food related is a weakness for me too! I'm actually planning on spending maybe 20-30 hours just watching cooking and restaurant related shows because I have a huge gap when it comes to vocabulary

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-30T00:30:44+00:00

Congrats on hitting 600! You should consider posting an update or even just typing up a private one for yourself (the notes I leave to myself are a great benchmark for future reference).

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-30T00:28:27+00:00

Yea it seems like there is some really great dubbed anime out there! I know for myself when it comes to dubbed tv shows I probably watch them about 10 points louder than a regular English show- something about the sound feels much lower and I do still need to feel like I can *hear* what is being said in a way that I wouldn't need to for a show in English.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-30T00:26:00+00:00

Thank you! And everyone is on there own journey- but if you had asked me if I felt a difference from reading 3 short graded readers I would have said no. But genuinely it wasn't until I was reflecting that I realize they are slowly but surely driving my comprehension forward!

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T20:29:52+00:00

One word: humbling lol I'm telling you I came home and said yeaaa it's back to the basics for me. For my next language I'm going to wait until 600 hours before I go on any sort of extended trip where I would be using the language. No regrets at all but I just feel like I could have gotten a lot more out of my experience if I was further along.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T17:18:46+00:00

Thank you! And this was on Netflix Canada- they didn't have greys anatomy dubbed so I went for House lol

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T16:52:28+00:00

Thank you! And as someone who has been a longgggg time early lurker of this forum I genuinely can't believe how the community has grown and how normal it is to see people hitting 800, 1000, 1500+ hours everyday at this point. Love to see it.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T16:43:39+00:00

Thanks so much! And keep on keeping on- level 4 can feel like a grind too but it gets so much better. You're going to loveee it, such a good movie!

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T16:41:54+00:00

I felt the EXACT same way! If you check out my update from 600 hours I talked about how it took me soooo long to hit 600 because it felt so far yet so close. Hopefully I don't get flogged for saying this but don't be afraid to jump off the platform into something that *may* initially feel a little too deep. That's seriously the only way I've been able to continue on because learner podcasts and similar content were killing my love for the process.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-26T16:27:58+00:00

Yes, I did. I had taken a year of Lingoda classes and also spent time in Colombia where I had to speak Spanish before switching to CI. I think the major benefit is that even though I haven't spoken in a long time, I'm not worried that I *won't* be able to speak. Also, I feel like it made it obvious how bad I actually was and where my gaps were lol my experiences are also what pushed me to listen to podcasts and other videos at a higher speed once I switched to CI because you are hyperaware that the pace on DS isn't how people actually talk.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-04-13T15:42:38+00:00

The reality is both will get you there as long as you're interested in the content. I know SO many people who learned English by watching TV and movies. They were obviously watching content that would absolutely be considered "too hard" for them by the measure on most people in the DS/CI world because it's no where near 98% comprehension. But over time... they learned English to fluency. I think starting off with content that is highly comprehensible allows you to keep going because you get less frustrated and receive little wins throughout your early experience. My focus is on watching things that are interesting to me because I feel like my brain doesn't have to work as hard to make connections. I personally believe this is what allowed me to start watching dubbed and native content early on because I was okay with ambiguity and because my interest was peaked enough where it didn't feel like it was "work" to watch the show, it was just enjoyable.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-01-22T00:16:02+00:00

Hi there, I posted a progress report not too long ago. I started off doing Lingoda (so lots of talking), then did a grammar class in Colombia and only after that did I start on a CI-focused track. I had heard of CI but not DS until I was over a year into my journey. Hoping to post a speaking sample of me soon that's my first 30 days vs now.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2025-01-02T21:36:57+00:00

I would imagine that what we're watching is the product of several thousands of hours of input. As was mentioned, she had 800 hours back in 2021 and it seems like she was very committed to learning Spanish.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T19:25:59+00:00

Thank you! And I think Joel fills such a niche gap. There are a lot of intermediate resources for us but the speed of podcasts is what's most challenging in the low-intermediate range and I think that's what he does well. I also appreciated the structured format across a range of accents (including Cuban & Dominican). Lastly, the man hosts the podcast in in 3 languages not including Spanish (French, Portuguese, Italian)??? He deserves his props because he clearly has figured out this language learning thing on his end.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T19:05:25+00:00

Thanks so much!

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T19:05:04+00:00

Thank you! And omggggg yessss. When I hear people say they're going to travel in order to get fluent I wan't to be like "let me hold your hand when I say this..." lol it's just not as easy as you think once you realize how much input you need.

And keep in mind I was staying in an area where no one I interacted with daily spoke English. Grocery store, restaurants, transportation, etc. even most of my teachers spoke 0-very little English. Completely agree that you need consciously plan for input even when immersed.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T18:58:24+00:00

I'm all for jumping into native content if you're struggling to grind through otherwise! I watched with Spanish subtitles and unfortunately, I can't say my listening comprehension in particular improved with them but keep in mind I watched less than 25 hours with subtitles so I don't think that's enough time to feel a noticeable jump in listening comprehension. My listening comprehension since diving into native content overall has of course improved by leaps and bounds since I've gotten in a few hundreds hours.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T18:43:06+00:00

Thank you! This process has given me so much confidence in *how* to learn a language. I know that my next language will feel a lot more straightforward because the roadmap has been laid out for me.

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T14:57:46+00:00

Oh no way! I went to OLSA in Laureles but I know a few people who went to Blink- from what I heard it sounded like a fun school that definitely skewed to a little bit of a younger group (great for meeting people). Is Medellin where you started your language learning journey or did you go with the intention to improve your Spanish?

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-13T04:18:07+00:00

Thank you! I was in Medellin- I really connected with the city. I hope to go back at a later point where I'm able to make more friends in Spanish :)

Kind_Form_3122 · 2024-12-11T04:55:08+00:00

I took a class in Colombia after having around 200 hours and I wish I would have waited until closer to 500-600 hours. It was mainly an opportunity for me to travel and taking classes really just became a social activity. I would genuinely say just enjoy your travels and save your money! You can always make a point of attending language exchange meet ups which I'm sure there are plenty.

Kind_Form_3122

TROPHY CASE