You forgot "mas camarones por favor" .... :)

JoeA

When I was 12 my family moved from Kentucky to Long Beach, Ca. and I didnt know once ounce of Spanish. Not even uno. I took spanish in class the first year I was there and continued through high school. My parents bought a house on the beach in Baja, Mexico and we went almost every weekend for about 7 years. I tried to speak to anyone who would talk to me in Mexico and picked it up pretty well. I think the best way to learn is take a class or get a tutor to converse with.

Thanks guys, just a few points.
Yes I live in San Pedro (Los Angeles) so there is no shortage of TV, radio, magazines, newspapers, in Spanish. It is also very easy for me to have a quick trip south of the boarder (3-4 hours by car) to do the immersion thing. Add to that I have plenty of friends/co-workers who are "English as second language" types, biggest problem there is they seem to think you can learn a language in a few minutes and want to have a full on conversation in Spanish.

The books from the library are a good start, however they don't do much for pronunciation, however having been born and raised in S. Cal. I have pretty much heard it all.

I definitely want to take a class, where else would I look other than a community collage?

The girlfriend thing is a great idea... however that Anglo girl I have been dating pretty regularly may not like the idea.:D

get a job as a busboy in any restaurant, your co workers will teach you spanish, but beware..."Maricon" does not mean
"you are a genius with a nice smile and all chicks dig you";)