Epiphany

It hit me today while reading an example in my Linguistics textbook. The band "Ghoti Hook"...not called "go-tee" hook but FISH hook. man, that could have been embarrassing. This represents a good 10 years of confusion explained.

If this doesn't make any sense, allow me to explain. English is a language that has an alphabet that is terribly unsuited for its job. Not only that but some crazy nuts who started spelling things really did a royally poor job. One dude who was kinda peeved off by this the inconsistency in English spelling proved that one could spell Fish "ghoti" if spelling from other word are applied.

Ie. the 'f' from enough, the "i' sound from women and the 'sh' from nation. Clever, no?

here let's do my name.

the 'k' in chameleon. The 'a' from hey. the 'tie' from "tea"
you get: Cheytea, the new spelling of my name. Its easy, anyone can do it!

Not a rant

I just need to prequel this with: it isn't rant about political correctness.

When riding the bus my mind wanders and I often find myself reading anything and everything in sight. I noticed a sign that stated: These signs are reserved for seniors and persons with disabilities and ...sont reserve por les agees et handicapees. (excuse the lack of accents)

Notice a difference? Depending on the language used there is a politically correct term. Is this an anglocentric phenomenon? If you're english and 'disabled' you are "a person with a disability" or now at guelph "differently abled" but if you're French you're still handicapped.

Who was I?

I have to write a presentation for Spanish and in an effort to procrastinate I have been reading my very earliest of blogs. (you would avoid a presentation if you had to talk about *in spanish* the role of money in war and marriage and draw other comparisons between material and spiritual topics)

Normally I avoid my old writings because I inevitably end up wondering what i was thinking at the time and how I managed to retain friends (I suppose that will but this very blog in that category in about a year).

I started the blog when i was in second year, just 19 years old. I am about to turn 22 and it is interesting to see things that have changed. For one, I took a long quiz-thing and apparently I wanted to be married by the age of 24. Don't get me wrong, that would be great and all but it's looking less realistic now.
Apparently I also considered myself to be significantly right-leaning politically. Wow, things have changed.

On another topic here are some fun cultural tidbits from Linguistics class (inspired by Beth's cultural facts post I suppose).
1. both French and Spanish have no word for generic term 'sibling' like English does
2. Spanish has a word for 'your child's-spouse's-parents' ; consuegros
*lots of praise and may a bit of chocolate for anyone who can identify another language that has a term for the above relationship
3. the word belly originally referred to all the skin covering one's body

Down Down in an Earlier Round

I am a lyric snob. I always try to know the correct lyrics of a song because it bothers me when words are ambiguous while i'm trying to sing along. I even laugh a bit when someone else is just singing it and obviously does not know the correct lyrics. Yes, I realize it is of no importance and I am officially going to stop being a lyric snob.

Also, it is quite difficult to be a grammar stickler when trying to follow the "one cannot end a sentence with a preposition' rule. Sometimes it just sounds ridiculous!
por ejemplo, Who is this for? What would I say in regular everyday conversation: For whom is this? This is for whom? Naw, i'll keep my 'poor' grammar. But the benefit of the linguistics class is that I'm finally being taught the intricacies of grammar that were denied of me in elementary school. A world of knowledge is opening up.