Rec contr' Amor non es guirens lai on sos poclers, s'autra.

If there is one thing I know, it's words. I know why anglophones use certain words over others - the inherent difference between "Copy this file for me", "Would you copy this file for me", and "I was wondering if you could copy this file for me". I know why we choose what we do - even if a person doesn't understand the analytic minute details, I know why they instinctively, as a native speaker, choose the option that they do.

So when I left that note for my neighbours that said "Did someone spill coffee in my car earlier today?" what I really meant was "I know someone did, but I'm trying to be polite and not say "Look, fuckers, if you spill coffee in my car, at least leave a note, rather than let me get in the car, put a bag down on the floor mat on the passengers side, only to see a puddle of hazelnut coffee already occupying that space, and rapidly soaking into my bag, mm-k?"

A.

I've had enough coffee this morning that I feel like I'm having a panic/anxiety attack. Isn't that odd? I actually thought I was, until I remembered that I was on my third cup of coffee in one and a half hours, and that that was probably the cause.

I've got a personal guarantee from my Luke that he'll sit down and have a beer with me after October 15. Sweet! Of course, this means within the next month I have to become a stunning conversationalist,but I figure 30 odd days should be sufficient for me to learn how to converse about non-grammar related items. Like, hockey. And....and...and....crap! What do people talk about?

I just want to point out that the "I before E except after C" rule is crap. Look at caffeine, rottweiler, weird, weigh, neighbour, etc. etc. Also - sufficient. There's an 'I' before the 'E', only it's after the 'C' so what gives? Why have the rule if the language isn't going to follow it? Seesh.

A.

me: Would you ever buy a condo?
student: If I ever bought a condom -
me: *snort* Uh, condo. Doe. Condo.
student: What did I say?
me: *muffled giggle* Not condo......
student: Wh - oh. Oh! OH!

Originally posted in linguaphiles by ignorant_bliss:

The Origin of Meme
Have you ever been curious about where the term "meme" comes from? I have, but never curious enough to actually look it up, I just assumed it was a very recent term introduced by the age of internet and specifically blogs. I was wrong, though. Recently, I've been reading Richard Dawkins' book The Selfish Gene (dating back to year 1976), and was surprised to find out he actually invented the term, first published in that book, to describe a cultural equivalent to "gene", a replicator of cultural information in the same way a gene replicates itself and spreads over a population. The examples of memes he mentions are tunes, catch-phrases and clothing fashions, among others. Sure enough, there is a very thorough Wikipedia article  explaining everything you ever wanted to know about "meme" but were afraid to ask, and probably more.

****

I thought this was really interesting, but then again, it deals with language and the meaning of words. But I never knew where "meme" came from - I understood it's underlying meaning, of course, but not the words entomolgy away from the internet.

A.

Not all English words are in the dictionary. Especially the English/French dictionaries that are in my classroom. Yes, they're thick books, but half of it is English, and there are many many many words missing. New words get added everyday. New editions come out every few years. These dictionaries do not look like they came out within the past 10.

I have a student who refuses to believe me on *anything* that is not in the dictionary. If it's not in there, it's not a word. And if the dictionary gives her a translation, and I say "We would never say that in English" she will argue "But that's what the dictionary says."

I've explained the whole "not all the words are in there, it's a British or American book (depending), it was put out by humans, and will therefor likely have mistakes in it, and yet.......

So today, my response was "You can believe me or not, but when it comes down to it, I'm the native speaker."

A.

My tinkerbell icon looks like she's about to sever your jugular. Ok, maybe not *that* angry, but she does look a little miffed.

Scariest words in the English language: We need to talk.

Gah! There is no reason that these words need to be said! Ever! As I was leaving today, one of the ladies from the front office said, "Oh, A, I need to talk to you! But tomorrow's good. Have a good night!"

After that? Have a good night after that?? HOW?? So of course I asked. Turns out it's just about scheduling next week (as in there are a lot more hours right now) so, indeed, it can wait until tomorrow, but phrasing! PHRASING IS PARAMOUNT PEOPLE!

*big breath*

On another note, "worm milk" is the phrase of the day. Pass it on.

S.

I found a Martha Stewart Living magazine on the bus yesterday, and I took it. I figure it's not stealing 'cause someone obviously left it on the bus for someone else to read.

Anyway, I've leaved through it, and there's some interesting things. But the real reason I took it, is to bring into my classroom. I'm trying to get a bunch of different magazine's together for students to look at/take home/read whatever. I just don't want to pay full cover price for one, you know? If people are going to be borrowing them, then most likely they won't get returned, so.....spending a lot of money on something that's going to disappear into thin air in mere moments doesn't make much sense.

Now that it's garage sale season, perhaps I'll be able to find a few cheap-like.

S.

Last week, in one of my classes, we discussed abbreviations, acronyms, and the like. At the request of one student, we went over "Mr., Mrs., Ms., and Miss" -- what they each mean and when to use them.

So I just got an email "Hi Ms Barrett....."

I'm trying to decide if I should teach the word "cheeky" tomorrow or not.

S.

"memo to me, maim you later."

I hand felted a strip of knitted wool earlier. Actually, two days ago I felted it, today I merely re-felted it. So I have "dish-pan hands" without the dish-pans. But felting hands really doesn't have the same appeal, verbally.

Speaking of verbal appeal, I taught the strangest class today, and I don't mean because we had a discussion regarding how "hot" panty-hose are. (and I don't mean "hot" as in the "whew, turn on the AC" kind of way.) It involved a lot of laughing, and me shouting out "fish? Is it fish?" Which is appealing enough, even if you don't like fish.

Don't you love it when I type like I speak? Yeah.

So, it was a busy full day of teaching, then coming home and finding out that when I say "no worries, I'll sew that for you" means that Murphy will rise again, and he will inhabit my sewing machine, and gnaw on the thread like an insane rabbit, or like a rat from NIMH on an electrical wire. This all means that tomorrow I'll be sewing. This sounds like an ok plan, though, because tomorrow is to be full of rain.

S.

Tidbits from today:

high-intermediate class

Student A: What's a sentence?

low-intermediate class

Me: How do you say "hello" in English? What other words can we use? What different ways can we say "hello"? What about "hi"?
them: blank stare
Me: Ok, well, X, why don't you say "hello" to Y, using one of the forms in the book. On page 115 holds up book, points to page
X: blank stare
Me: Ok, well, how would you say hello in French? How would you introduce yourself?
them: blank stare

and this was after 2 hours of "getting to know you" talk and questions.

Bring on Tuesday.

***

In good news: I got two extra hours today. I might have two more students, at 2 and 6 hours respectively. Other than a few hiccups today, it went well. I think a few weeks in, things will move more smoothly. All the other teachers would happy to see me, but I should I be worried that one said:

HEY! You're back!

in a surprised voice?

A.

Old English rhyme -- about crows,magpies, or ravens.

One for sorrow
two for mirth
three for a wedding
four for a birth
five for silver
six for gold
seven for a secret
not to be told.

This is a wild goose chase if ever I heard of one.

Search out English songs that use conditionals, and find someone who has a copy of it in their possession (must be either CD or tape), for use tomorrow in an ESL classroom, at StatsCan.

The students are apparently sick of "If I had $1,000,000" by the Barenaked Ladies.

A.

I've got a bagel and coffee, but I want a liquid that isn't water, but won't dehydrate me. I'm quite demanding today, aren't I? I'm working both my jobs today (who's idea was that?), which is why I'm up at this ungodly hour. Anyone who knows me knows that I don't deal well with 6:30 am. Either I'm up too early, or I'm up to late. And don't get me started on crossing borders at this hour.

I just put "the" between crossing and borders -- signifying that I'm talking about a particular border. For me, "the border" is still Austria/Slovakia, not Canada/US, which is what I thought everyone else would think of when reading that sentance, so I changed it to no "the" and just pluralized "borders" instead. I'll end the linguistics lessons.

Back on track.

After work number two, I'm going out with a co-worker of mine. She was the other person in my BA program back in the day. It's actually not too odd that we work together -- I got the job because of her. (Well, because I knew her, at any rate.) I always enjoy going out with her 'cause I can a)talk linguistics and b)talking in Russian and c)she's a cool person. Tomorrow night, she and I are going to see an Irish band play at the Gap of Dunloe -- an Irish (duh) bar nearly downtown (but not quite.) 

A.