Tan...Como

When you want to say that two things are similar ( such as - you are as mean as me.)  Use TAN (put the adjective here) COMO.

It looks like this: Tú eres TAN cruel COMO yo.

Tan makes me think of suntan lotion.

Como makes me think of a comb.

I just picture two equally goofy guys ( each one is as goofy as the other) packing their bags for a trip to the pool. Of course, the only things they need are sunTAN lotion and a COMOb.

Más Que/ Menos Que (more than/less than)

To say that something is MORE than another thing, you say, "Bla bla bla is MÁS (adjective goes here) QUE Zubba zubba zubba.

This is what it looks like in Spanish: A mí gato, soy más interestante que tú. ( To my cat, I am more interesting than you . )

To say that something is LESS than another thing, you say, Bla bla bla is MENOS (adjective goes here) QUE Zubba zubba zubba.

This is what it looks like in Spanish: Casi todos son menos interstante  que mí gato. (Almost everyone is less interesting than my cat.

It is likely that the phrases like less than and more than make you think of math. ( you know like the  < less than and > more than sign.)
 With this in mind I have made a simple math-like looking  formula that you can scribble anywhere so that you can remember  remember.
+ (adj.) K ( formula for Más (whatever) que  [ more than] )
- (adj.) K (  formula for menos (whatever) que or less than [less than] )

The Personal A in Spanish

In Spanish, if you have a sentence where the direct object is a person, put an a before the direct object.

This is called the personal a.

This is what it looks like:  Yo oigo a Mr. Whiskers grita. ( I hear Mr Whisker scream)

I deliberately picked a  name that is not species specific to point out that the personal a is only used in front of the direct object when the direct object is a person or a pet -but not a thing (unless it is your fluffy kitten). To be clear cut, just use the personal a in front of anything that you would have a funeral for.

 This all comes together when you notice that the personal a looks a bit like a toe tag.

Toe tags and funerals go together...right?

Por and Para (part 2)

POR

Use Por to mean for when you want to say:

What is being picked up (I am going for veggie burgers.)

Because of ( I know a restaurant famous for  veggie burgers)

By way of ( I am going to call first by telephone.)

For how long ( We will eat for 3 hours)

Through ( We drive through many streets.)

An exchange for ( We pay $6.00 for two veggie burger)

To put Por in your head forever imagine that Por looks like a veggie burger.

 This should remind you of lunch. If your place of work is like mine, there is always a vegatarian ( at my office, it is me) who states loudly what they are going to have for lunch (Voy a ir POR una hamburguesa vegana). I may add some more details ( Yo sé un restarante famoso POR sus hamburguesas). There is only one friend who is on board and she might say, "Voy a llamar POR telefono." We tell work how long we will be gone ( Vamos a comer POR tres horas). We get in the car and drive through many streets (Manejamos POR muchas calles.) Finally, we pay for the veggie burgers ( Pagamos $6.00 POR las  hamburguesas veganas.)

The P represents THROUGH.  The O represents FOR HOW LONG. The R represents an exchange.

Por and Para (part 1)

Por and Para both mean "for" ( and "to" and "by") And if you think about it, for has a lot of meanings. 

PARA

Use Para when you mean to say:

A point in time (I need to land by [for] nighttime.)

A point of view ( For me, this is very fun.)

A point, purpose or goal ( I use a helmet to [for] protect my head.)

A destination ( I am going to [for] earth)

For whom something is for ( This vacation is for me)

For what category ( for a cat, I am brave.)

To bring this all together, first look at the word PARA and then think of Parachute. Now imagine that you are parachuting with two cats and the 3 of you are going to land on 3 different points ( point of view, point in time, and the point).You tell the cats where you are going (destination) while they answer back in typical cat fashion. It might look something like this:
(The English translation of the following sentences are above.)

I tried to draw the points to look like little landing targets to fit in with the parachute theme.

Click Por and Para for more Por and Para practice.
Great Por and Para explanation

Grande and Gran

Or how to say that something is great or great big.

Both Gran and Grande mean Grand.

 Gran means grand in the sense that something  is super duper. Gran comes before the noun.

Grande means grand as in big. Grande comes after the noun.

All of this can be kept in order like this:

Gran practically looks like the word Grandma...who you should always  let go first at everything because she is so grand.

Grande means big which is something that they need to tell a famous coffee shop because their smallest drink is called a grande. Perhaps the grande part is referring to the price which is so high that you can only go  there after payday.

Buen, Bueno, and Buena

Buen, Bueno, and Buena all mean good. 

Buen is used before a masculine noun.

Bueno is used after a masculine noun.

 The coolest adjective of the three of these is the feminine adjective Buena which can come before or after the feminine noun.

This  can all be kept straight if you consider brownies. Brownies are good. Buen, Bueno, and Buena all mean good. After you eat a brownie, your stomach looks like you swallowed a big O.

As for Buena, being the lady boss of this lesson, she can show up any time she wants ( before or after the noun).