Tumgik
#duolingo teaching me all the important shit
Text
Tumblr media
5 notes · View notes
headcanonenthusiast · 3 months
Text
Tumblr media
Rodolfo Parra NSFW headcanons
This was made with gender-neutral readers in mind.
I kinda struggled with writing this ngl..as much of a Rudy girl as I am, I don't know why it took forever for me to come up with headcanons for him. But I was determined to finish these because Rudy needs more content out there. 
Enjoy!
(I completely understand that this type of content is not everyone's cup of tea, and that's ok! But, please scroll and ignore if this type of content isn't your thing as opposed to leaving any sort of negative comments.)
NSFW under the cut. 
-Being with Rudy, even in a non-sexual sense, is basically like being a God/Goddess with a loyal follower at your side, ready to obey and worship your every wish and whim.
-But in the bedroom? He cranks that worshipping up to 500. 
-Will get on his knees before you, hands gently grasping your hips as he kisses down your stomach, whispering the softest praises in Spanish. 
-"Oh, Dios mío, amor. This body..tan jodidamente increíble." 
-And on his knees he will stay until you're satisfied, either carefully jerking/fingering you as he admires your face and the reactions you make. 
-"There we go, moan for me, mi vida. Feels good, doesn't it?" 
-3 inches soft, 5 inches hard. (Normalize realistic dick sizes in headcanons please 🙏) 
-Whether he's dominant or submissive depends entirely on his partner. 
-If you prefer to be on top, he's happy to let you take full control of him. 
-But if you prefer to be on the bottom? He's more than willing to dominate you, albeit very gently. 
-Your body is like glass to him. An absolutely precious temple made from the finest sand that he has the pleasure of worshipping. 
-And to show his appreciation of your existence, he kisses you everywhere. Literally not a single spot on you goes untouched by his lips. 
-His greatest pleasure is when he's balls deep in you, slowly but deeply thrusting and seeing how you react to him. 
-Makes him feel confident, honestly, seeing the way he's able to make you completely melt and turn your mind to mush despite how gentle he's being. 
-"Shit..estás haciendo mucho ruido. I'm hitting all the right spots, aren't I, querido/a?" 
-Also, Rudy with a voice kink? Rudy with a voice kink. 
-A big fan of morning sex. He goes even gentler than he normally is, enjoying the sight of your messy hair. 
-And the fact that you're still half-asleep makes your moans more hushed and whimpery, which nearly makes him cum on the spot. 
-I feel like he enjoys the sounds you make. He needs a more vocal partner. 
-As such, he prefers intercourse in a private space, preferably at home, on the bed or couch. 
-Really isn't that kinky, but if there's one thing he loves, it's making you talk. 
-"Vamos, cariño. Tell me how good it feels." 
-Then, when you're in the middle of answering, he'll give a sudden harsher (but not too harsh, you're as fragile as glass to him, afterall) snap of his hips and smile innocently at your glare. 
-"Oh, I'm sorry, did I interrupt you?" 
-If you already speak Spanish, most of what he says will be said in Spanish. 
-But, if you don't, he basically becomes a living Duolingo and tries to teach you Spanish while fucking you. (Love a man who can multitask 💅)
-"¿Quieres correrte? Dime lo bien que se siente, entonces. En español. Vamos, amor." 
-And if you get something wrong or can barely respond, he'll frown in disappointment. 
-"No puedes correrte hasta que hagas lo que te pido, cariño." 
-But then when you do cum, he honestly doesn't punish you at all. That's not really his style. 
-Well, maybe a little overstim, but on very rare occasions and not for very long, either. 
-He'll also ask for your permission to cum in you, even if he's on top. 
-Its more of a consent check than anything, though. (Which is very important btw) 
-"Fuck, I'm so close. Can I cum inside, amor? Is that okay?" 
-And if you give your consent, he's cumming deep in your ass/pussy. 
-His main form of aftercare is cuddling and talking. Talking about what you liked, what you didn't like, etc. He just wants to hear your voice. 
-"Yeah? You liked me talking in Spanish? Suppose I'll have to do it more often, then. Necesito mantener a mi mujer bonita/hombre bonito feliz." 
-And I hope you like cuddling, because y'all are gonna be cuddling for the rest of the night, Rudy's voice going soft as he whispers praises in your ear and kisses the back of your neck and shoulders. 
Lord, do I love me some Rodolfo Parra 😫. He's so FINE and criminally under appreciated. Feels so nice to finally write about him, too. I had a lot more ideas for this one than I thought I would starting out. 
And here's the Spanish translations for stuff (forgive me if anything is inaccurate, the only Spanish word I can say correctly and with confidence is gato 🥲).
Querido/a = dear
amor = love
cariño = sweetheart/honey
Dios mío = my God
Vamos = come on 
Estás haciendo mucho ruido = you are making a lot of noise
Tan jodidamente increíble = so fucking incredible 
¿Quieres correrte? Dime lo bien que se siente, entonces. En español. Vamos, amor. = Do you want to cum? Tell me how good it feels, then. In Spanish. Come on, love. 
No puedes correrte hasta que hagas lo que te pido, cariño. = You can't cum until you do what I ask you to do, sweetheart.
Necesito mantener a mi mujer bonita/hombre bonito feliz = I need to keep my pretty woman/pretty man happy.
Hell yeah, another one down! Imma make another poll on who to do next. Hope you enjoyed! 
294 notes · View notes
fractallogic · 6 months
Text
so i realized that when I'm going through a medium-strength depressive episode, I want to learn languages and do vocabulary and stuff like that... so i turn to duolingo, usually
unFORTUNATELY, duolingo also makes me mad because everyone's like "oh duolingo is awesome, it's the best, you *really learn a language* with duolingo" and I'm constantly finding errors in the languages I know and inconsistencies with the languages I don't and it's only a small part of any given language pedagogy and it's just so FRUSTRATING, and possibly more so because they didn't fucking hire me to highlight and fix any of these problems any of the four times that I applied and did the initial interest interview
and now they're really going hard on "we teach ENDANGERED languages" when the navajo course is seven units long and the fucking high valyrian course is 29 units long. you don't learn shit in seven units. like idk if the hawaiian course is any better!! and there are, in all likelihood, issues with getting additional approval from tribes, etc. to share their language, and issues getting native or very good speakers to record stimuli, and honestly I started the navajo course because I wanted to see how they dealt with navajo morphosyntax (so far: not well) and that's probably also a stopping point... but you can't tell me you're going to Teach Me Navajo in any meaningful way, which imo is even more disrespectful than just like... not having it.
and THEN you even compare western european courses like french/spanish/german to, idk, finnish, and the former courses all have these extensive "guidebooks" for grammar, they include notes and conjugation tables, etc etc etc, and finnish has ... a list of some of the sentences and phrases that you learn. is it LIKELY that someone's learning finnish from english as their very first non-english language? no, probably not (and i KNOW duolingo's research scientists have the data that can back that up). would it still be USEFUL to have those same tables and notes and so on? ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY. is it useful to have cultural elements like a finnish instrument called a kantele and being able to say "matti is a finn with sisu"? YES. but do they fucking bother to explain what either of those things are? NO.
and like, the thing about duolingo is that they make these extensive claims and it's used in classrooms now (?!) and they're seen as this super high-prestige program among language nerds, and it's just WRONG, and it really pushes my buttons. memrise doesn't make the very strong claim that you use it to learn a language; it really bills itself as more of a vocabulary practice tool (which both of these are), and i'm happy with that. there are memrise-made courses and user-made courses, and they're like "here are certain guarantees we can make about the general quality of the memrise courses, which we cannot make about the user-made courses", which I am also very much fine with. memrise hides some of its stuff behind a paywall, which, fine (caveat: I paid for a lifetime memrise membership—which is a big reason why I'm so !!! MY ACCOUNT WAS STOLEN !!! about the whole thing), but there's so much free content that imo the paywall is really just a nice bonus and not actually the necessary things to have. more and more it feels like duolingo's paywall is blocking some of the necessary stuff (like a personalized practice session, which I feel like is simple enough to program in and not necessarily worth a whole-ass paywall) and is also really expensive, AND without any options for a lifetime membership/single-pay model, afact.
maybe I would feel differently if i worked for duolingo. i would definitely feel differently if i was just a language-learning enthusiast instead of a linguist who literally specializes in how people learn words and word pieces in languages that are different from their primary language. duolingo is just TOO BIG FOR ITS BRITCHES and self-important and it needs to be knocked down several pegs.
1 note · View note
menalez · 1 year
Note
how did you go about learning german? was any of it self-study or did you go straight to classes? and how important do you think living there has been to your learning journey?
i did A1 german classes in university which gave me a really good foundation. i would say that if you start learning a language, it would be good to invest in getting a teacher and going to a good course for it because a good foundation in the language can really guide you with learning the more complex and advanced aspects of said language. after that i hadn’t learned german for about 2 years and then covid hit, & due to the german classes in bahrain being shit and useless waste of money in my experience (& online classes being so expensive), i relied on reading basic stuff in german, using german songs & tv shows & movies as ways to learn bits of the language here & there. it mainly helped familiarise me with the language, improve my pronunciation, and learn a handful of words. i also did duolingo on the side which imo is mostly good for maintaining your language level and learning some new words and practicing your grammar, tho generally i think the stuff on there is pretty low-level stuff that i can complete with ease now (and just as a note, my german is far from perfect yet it’s quite easy for me so i tend to finish all the lessons perfectly now. it’s more helpful for people between A1-low B2 imo, if you’re in C1 it might be too easy but it doesn’t harm to practice using it). i also use an app called drops which reaaaaally helps me with getting a larger vocabulary, but it’s limited to 5 mins per day unless you pay which is annoying. i tried lingoda for a short time (free trial hehe) but i personally didn’t like it much since it’s not rly structured and people can sign into classes in any level they want, regardless of their own language level (my gf liked it tho and said it can be worth the money & u can find some good quality classes in there). besides that, i have taken online classes in german up until the B1 level, and at B1 i moved to germany and started physical intensive classes. i would highly recommend the intensive daily classes for learning the language bc 1. you learn faster 2. you’re practicing the language daily. also always do the hw provided bc it helps you practice at home + rely less on the teacher and learn from your mistakes.
moving to germany definitely helped with improving my language level and practicing my language. i live in a city where english is quite commonly spoken BUT i do encounter grumpy germans that refuse to speak english every once in a while. + i live in a working class area so people here generally only speak arabic (lots of refugees where i live) or turkish or german which is also great at forcing me to speak in german (arabic is often easier but sometimes the men harass me when they realise im arab lol so honestly german is safer for me). ordering food is one of the things i am rly good at doing in german now bc of how often i have to do it in german. also discussing my internet connection issues bc for some reason no one in the customer support of our internet service provider speaks english. also public transportation. besides that, i recall how helpful it was seeing signs in german all around bc it helped teach me terms that were almost never mentioned in german classes. visiting museums and getting tours and going to events are also all helpful bc there’s a lot of german in those settings. so id say that yeah, living in germany was a great help in learning german. my gf’s german is really good bc she learned it while doing an exchange program in germany & she became more or less fluent through speaking to germans at parties in german all the time. it’s rly rly good practice and also helps build a good foundation + improve your confidence when speaking the language. if i had stayed in bahrain, i wouldn’t feel confident to have even the most basic conversations i think but living here and seeing germans act shocked when i tell them i was A2 one year ago rly helped make me more confident and pushed me to try talking in german over defaulting to english/arabic. i highly recommend taking this kind of path if you have the means to do so. also id advise ensuring that whichever language school or course you choose is of decent / high quality bc some are just garbage and a waste of money.
3 notes · View notes
thekisforkeats · 3 years
Text
So a European told me today “must be nice to have a culture.”
And I... kind of lost it.
Context: we’d been chatting for a while, and I’d already had to deal with a couple of moments of... white people being white. Being clueless and talking over people, not being outright racist but saying clueless shit. The first couple of times I explained what was wrong and moved on.
To try to lighten the mood, I shared a video of the Métis jig that’s been going around. It’s a really great dance, and the video has some context on it--specifically that the dance had been suppressed for a long time.
I was talking about the Métis people, and how they had created their own unique culture, which I personally find really fascinating and inspiring as a mixed indigenous/Native person. It’s a hopeful thing--even if they wound up losing a lot of that culture, and having to fight to get it back, there was a time where people could create new things without having to burn down the old.
(And I am not Métis, so if I am misrepresenting Métis culture and history here please feel free to correct me.)
But the key thing is that I mentioned being “cut off from everything.” Because I am. Because I cannot wholly embrace my European ancestry. Because I don’t know Kanien’kahe:ka or Choctaw. Because I am stuck between two worlds and sometimes it feels like a struggle to try to create anything new, any hopeful way forward.
And then they said “it must be nice to have a culture.”
This is a European. Living in Europe.
I lost it.
Any white person, and particularly any European, who thinks “I don’t have a culture”--don’t try to justify this stance. Stop and consider that you don’t feel you have a culture because your culture took over the world. Literally, Western European culture is everywhere.
And yes, I am lumping in all of Europe here, and no, I don’t care how different you all think you are, I was getting the same exact attitude from someone in France and someone in the UK. An attitude of “my specific experience is better than anyone else’s.” An attitude of “I don’t know about this so I will disparage it instead of politely asking questions.” An attitude of becoming defensive upon being called out. The same attitude I get from American white people. You’re not that different. You’re really not.
Culture is about food, and language, and art, and religion, and music.
I do not eat the food of my Native ancestors. I don’t even know what most of it was, and if I did, I couldn’t find it in a grocery store, and where I can it’s being marked up for white people to eat. (Wild rice, anyone?)
I do not know their languages, and I probably never will. There’s no Duolingo for Choctaw or Kanien’kahe:ka
If I use art or music of my ancestors I am derided and belittled or else white people come in to steal it and claim it as their own.
My ancestral religions were outlawed in the US until three years before I was born.
And before any European goes “well that’s the US, not me!” No. No. It’s you. It’s still you. The US just imported all the colonialist bullshit your ancestors put out there, and you’re still being isolationist and racist while the world is on fire.
The saddest part is, I don’t hate European culture as such. I am mixed! Many of my ancestors were from the UK or France or Austria! I love frybread, and I love soda bread, and I love strudel! I honor all of my ancestors, and the complex and difficult relationship I have with them. Some of my ancestors are the same people who did the colonizing and the genocide. I have to live with that. But many of them were good people living difficult lives, just like many of the people I know today.
I owe a great deal of my moral and ethical upbringing to my Oma, who was Austrian. She was 9 years old when the Nazis came--invited in, I will note, as she made sure we knew--and her family detested them, and she lost friends. She left as soon as she could. She taught me about her homeland, and she taught me about solidarity, and about the evils of sympathizers. She taught me about the Holocaust. She refused to let those horrible things go silent to her children and grandchildren. She did her best to teach us what she knew of my Opa’s culture, the few things he’d shared when their children were young, because she knew it was important. She was not perfect, but she tried.
White Europeans do not have to continue to be complicit in racism and colonialism and genocide. You can choose to do better.
The first thing to do? Shut up. Seriously. Stop talking. Sit down and listen. Maybe it’s hard, maybe you’ve come from an abusive background, maybe you’re neurodivergent. Maybe you’ve had to be quiet all your life already.
But I am all of those things, too, and I am a survivor of a very recent attempted genocide. Imagine how much time I have spent in my life being talked over. Being told to be quiet. To not make a scene.
Maybe you’re young, but I knew better than to say that sort of thing before I hit puberty. I had to, because to be a person of color--even a mixed one, even one with light enough skin to pass for white--is to be deeply aware of these things at all times.
Which is not to say I haven’t had my moments. I have. But dear gods am I aware of them.
And that’s the thing--the lack of awareness. The lack of consideration. The continual spouting of something clueless and hurtful and then “oh I didn’t know” as the response.
You should know. If you don’t, then go learn.
And for the love of all that is holy, if you read this in the tags and you’re some random person who didn’t already follow me, don’t come into my damn inbox looking for education, because I will kick your ass out so fast your head will spin. If you’re on the internet in 2021, there are so many resources about European colonization and white supremacy that you have no excuse not to at least try to learn things on your own.
The one lesson I will give? Stop talking. Start listening. I don’t need to hear your cutesy shit about how different France and England are from each other. You both did horrible awful fucked up things in the not-so-distant past. Stop talking about yourselves and start listening to the people affected.
64 notes · View notes
yomcloud · 2 years
Text
Remembers when we shared a bit of khmer writing to someone who probably didnt know what khmer was at all and said it looked kinda like gummy worms (they were /pos). Which we did find a little funny and can see why, especially with letters like ហ, ស, ល, etc.
but generally, its best to remember to not relate a foreign language that you especially had no idea about before and clearly from other poc cultures to something of a joke, game, or generally saying "it looks weird". Nor is it very nice to compare similar languages from the surface the level. (Ive literally seen people say "khmer is just thai but on dr*gs from people who don't have contact with these languages.) Especially when its coming from white folk. You all really don't know how harmful it is saying these things.
Theres a difference between not knowing either language and pointing out that they sound slightly similar and that one is "better" than the other compared to people who know/are learning the language and fairly exchange how things are alike or different in them. We enjoy chatting with our other poc friends about how words are written and such.
---
We've found its quite a different story though when we've been in more prominently white spaces. Even if some are learning another language. I cannot help but notice all the disinterest and even discomfort of sharing about the language for some reason.
I had heard them say "Dont learn your language online, learn your language from history books" when you and most people probably have no idea on the lack of history is written down about Cambodia here where we are, how we went to several libraries and not find a single thing on khmer or Cambodia except tourist shit, or the only thing most spoken about Cambodia and why our parents are even here in the US in the first place (Khmer Rouge, search it at your own risk.) Proceeding with them being happy to support someone else whos using duolingo to learn a language and mad that we were "attacking them" when we tried to explain all of this and forgot to put tone indicators (it was our bad that we forgot and we apologized, we usually use tone indicators) while they continue to ignore what we said simply because we forgot the tone indicator at the end. Not to mention we literally live in a khmer household with parents who frequently speak the language
I had white people tell us that we shouldn't mention something about our culture because it "sounds similar to a slur" when, if you've been in spaces that talk about foreign languages and words sounding similar to a bad word, you must take into account on how the word is used, the origins, and what it means. The word has no origins in English and was not used in a way that a slur would or throwing it around because it sounds similar.
English is not the only language.
And I didn't even realize it could've sounded like that in the first place as you would've had to say the word in a weird way to sound as close, It made us extremely uncomfortable that they told us something important to our culture sounded like a slur to them.
Shortly after it had people saying "you cant be racist to white people", having an absolute bloody breakdown other the thought, followed by someone who said "I don't agree that you cant be racist to white people" with "my friend is going to teach me Chinese".
How the actual fuck.
---
Languages shouldn't be gatekept and learning languages should be encouraged, even if you have a lack of connection to the culture because you're not from it, but you need to understand that language and culture are linked. If you disrespect poc and their culture, you disrespect their language. If you disrespect our language, you disrespect our culture. We are lucky to not be the many other poc who had their own language taken away from them, and effectively a part of them and culture, because of reasons out of their control. Many poc (including us) have trouble talking to their grandparents due to the lack of being able to clearly communicate, thus things may not be able to be passed down. (If you are someone trying to reconnect and learn your language, I wish the best of luck.)
If you are going to sit here and learn a language, you better fucking respect poc people and learn about their culture as well, even if its a little bit. Ever since leaving that majorly white space, we've felt very self-conscious talking about our language especially as we're still very much a beginner with writing it.
---
So, If your first thought of seeing a language you never seen before, or just any foreign language in general, and your first thought is "hey it looks like a game language, it sounds like x, etc.", please think first because most we've heard tend to be disrespectful. You can complement it without comparing it to something fictional or another language.
You need to remember that people actually speak these languages in everyday life and I'm tired of white people treating languages that they deem "not cool/popular enough" as some alien language, useless, be a weird authority on, or something to laugh at, or other dumb shit.
-🍞💥
10 notes · View notes
margridarnauds · 3 years
Text
a@fallenidol-453 and @any59
YOU ASKED FOR IT. 
So, first off: Let’s start off with a story. I’m in my flat in Ireland, doing....Celtic Studies things. Namely, looking at Quinn’s workbook, flipping between it and Strachan’s paradigms, crying. Okay, not really crying, more “knitting my brows and scribbling furiously, because WHY is this language like this?” 
My housemate comes in with a friend of hers. We have the usual smalltalk, you know “What do you do here?”  “Oh, Celtic Studies.”  “Celtic Studies!” *I tense as I prepare for the inevitable “So, do you have any family.........” question* “Well, we just so happen to be fluent in Irish!”
Now, this is much rarer than a lot of people would think in Ireland, because the Irish education system is.........shit when it comes to teaching Irish. I literally never had someone in Ireland tell me, “Oh, I LOVED studying Irish! It was my favorite class!” And the more someone loves the Irish language, the more that they generally hate how it’s taught. So, I’m like “Oh, cool! Here’s what it looked like a thousand years ago!” and I show off my paradigms, going to the first page, which is the section on definite articles. 
There’s this moment of silence as she looks at it, HER eyebrows knitting just like mine were a few minutes ago. “Is that....Latin? It looks like Latin.” 
Now, there are two options with this story: One is that she was lying through her teeth about knowing Irish fluently in order to impress the naive American. Problem with that is that, of course, you risk being called on it. BUT the second is what I’m going with, namely that the language has changed a lot more than people generally think it has. (There’s about the same period of time between Old Irish and Modern Irish as there is between the creation of Beowulf and the present day. Imagine trying to read Beowulf without knowing ANY Old English and you’ll see the problem straight away.) This is actually a problem, because a lot of the time, people will see foreign-born Celticists writing in Old Irish/Middle Welsh/etc. and instead of thinking of us as professional scholars who are taking advantage of a dead language in order to send what are essentially very niche memes (not necessarily even “meme” in the sense of joke), they think “Oh! The dumb foreigner’s mangling the language! So funny!” 
...and yes. This has happened to multiple people I know, including myself. It’s annoying. 
So, how much has the language changed? There are essentially five stages of the language that we are able to trace: Primitive Irish, Old Irish, Middle Irish, Early Modern Irish, and Gaeilge/Modern Irish + Proto-Celtic which is the sort of shared ancestor between all the Celtic languages and the reason why some of these words are confusingly familiar and my brain needs about twenty minutes to reboot when I’m going in-between Middle Welsh and Old Irish. 
Going back to our friend, the definite article: In the modern language, there are two forms of the definite article, as you’ll learn in your very first lesson on Duolingo: An (singular) and Na (plural). You can see this reflected all over the place, probably most obviously in the names for instutions like “An Post” (the post office) and An Garda Síochána (The Guard of the Peace, the police force). 
In Old Irish? There were multiple forms of the definite article, and they had to agree with the gender, person, and case. In the Middle Irish period, those distinctions gradually fall away, becoming even pronouned in the Early Modern Irish period, leading to the language as we have it in the modern day. 
Some other changes: 
- Loss of deponents. Old Irish used to have a system that was like the deponent verbs of Latin, where you had words that LOOKED passive, but were active in meaning. As time went on, they totally dropped those, taking different approaches to how to deal with the old deponent verbs. (Sometimes they’d use, say, the verbal noun form AS the verb, sometimes they’d apply deponent endings to verbs that hadn’t been deponents before.....it’s a mess.)
-Loss of the neuter gender. Gone entirely, save for a few fossilized examples, though with some efforts to bring it back in some form in the interest of non-binary people. In the time of Old Irish, however, there was a full neuter gender, complete with a neuter article. 
- The loss of declensions. “BUT,” you might say, if you’ve studied Modern Irish, “Modern Irish HAS declensions!” And you’d be right! It does! Five, in fact.  .......Old Irish had thirteen. 
What happens over time is that people look at all those declensions and are like “That is an ASSLOAD of declensions, let’s simplify!” And so they start treating some declensions like they’re another declension, so the number of declensions goes down over time as the others all get sorted into new categories. 
Also, the categorization is different. In the modern language, you just hear that the declensions are decided by the endings, which.....is probably one of the reasons why so many people hate learning Irish, because it seems arbitrary, when, in reality, it isn’t. In Old Irish, we actually go back even FURTHER in time, to Primitive Irish (which ended around the 7th century) and, even further back in time, Proto-Celtic, because that is where the declensions actually come from. Irish used to look quite like Gaulish or Latin, with similar endings - “Fer” was “viros”, which became “viras”, “ingen” was “enigenā”, which became “inigena”, “rígain” was “rígain��” in the Proto-Celtic, “athair” was “ɸatīr” in the PC, “túath” was “toutā”, “Día” was “Dewos”........etc.
That’s why “fer” and “Día” are both o-stems, despite looking almost nothing alike, it’s why they behave the same way - They shared the same endings back in the day. That’s why we call them o-stems in the first place, it isn’t because of what’s IN them, it’s what used to be in them. 
“Ingen” is an a-stem for the same reason. 
“Rígain” is an i-stem. 
“Athair” is a r-stem. 
There’s METHOD to the madness, I promise. 
- There’s a loss of distinction of sounds - Old Irish was very strict on “This is spelled with an A and THIS is spelled with an O and those are TWO DIFFERENT SOUNDS.” Middle Irish was like “Eh? Let’s make it a general “schwa” sound.” So the spellings vary a lot starting in that period, Early Modern Irish only adds to the confusion (a favorite Celticist Hobby is pointing out the sometimes flat-out *weird* Early Modern Irish spellings of Old Irish names because *oh, boy*), and by the time you get to the modern language, a lot of things are spelled quite differently from what you’d think. Some consonants also soften in their sounds - the preposition “Co”, for example, becomes “Go”, “ocus” becomes “agus”, etc. 
- Univerbation. Essentially, Old Irish had a LOT of compound verbs like do-beir, do-gni, at-tá, ad-cí, ro-cluineathar etc. And, in the modern language, “do-beir” becomes “tabhair”, “do´gní” becomes -“á dhéanamh”, etc. Essentially, they took what’s known as the protonic form of the verb, which is the version we would use following a conjunct particle like “ní”, which expresses a negative form of an action, and they made that the regular form of the verb. They were like “Nope, don’t want to handle it, not today, Satan.” And sometimes, those forms would evolve as well, so I could be looking at a verb in Early Modern Irish, go “that looks vaguely familiar” and then realize that it’s a VERY mutated form of an Old Irish word. 
- The ~copula~. So, the copula is....an alternative to the substantive verb used in certain circumstances, indicating a state of being. Which seems really....grammar-y, but all that really means is that it translates out to “is, am, are” in English. If you ever read any medieval Irish texts, you’ll notice a lot of syntax that’s like “Cold is the wind from Norway”, “It is not a good thing you have done”, etc. The reason is because, in the actual Irish, all this would have begun with a form of the copula. It was a VERY popular way of starting off a sentence, instead of the usual Verb-Subject-Object form. In the Old Irish period, the copula was inflected, meaning that, like the definite article, it changed depending on certain factors, namely person, number, and tense. “Am” would be “I am” (”Am rí” - “I am a king”) “At” would be you (sing.) are (“At gataige” - “You are a thief), “Is” would be “he/she/it is” (”Is lóech” - “He/She/It is a warrior”), “ammi” would be “we are” (”Ammi druíd” - “We are druids/magicians”).....etc. Now, once again, starting in the Middle Irish period, you have people going “............that is an ass-load of work, let’s just use the third singular and call it a day.” This is why, in Duolingo, you have to say “Is cailín mé” a thousand times. In the Old Irish period, you would just say “Am ingen”, but, with that loss of distinction of the copula, pronouns become increasingly important to the Irish language. Some of this was already present in Old Irish, with the 3rd sing. copula being used for the sake of emphasis, “It is I who takes Bres to the trash fire, where he belongs”, sometimes with an emphasizing pronoun for added drama, but it eventually gets to the point where the others are consumed entirely. 
- Independent pronouns also come into their own, being uniformly used after the copula, with the infixed pronouns that had been uniform going away. So, for example, if I wanted to say “I kill him” in Modern Irish, I would say “Maráim é” - if I wanted to say it in Old Irish, I would say “Nan-Marbu”, with the no being what’s known as a meaningless conjunct particle (it’s there to say “LOOK! AN INFIXED PARTICLE!”).
- A lot of the verb forms, like the nouns, get smushed together - There were at least three different forms of the preterite (in Modern Irish, known as the “Simple Past”) in Old Irish, in Middle Irish, the S-preterite gradually grows to dominate, to the point where now, there is only the simple past, with endings varying depending on if you’re talking first or second conjugation verbs. Likewise, the future tense goes from having five different categories of future tenses to being divided into first or second conjugation verbs in the present day. 
Overall, there’s more, there’s a lot more, but I think that you can get the gist. When I see primitive Irish, I’m like “Okay, it’s Old Irish - The Latin edition”. It looks WEIRD, but it looks OLD and, for the most part, fairly recognizable. We don’t see it that often, outside of an ogham stone, that’s why we make such a big deal when we do. Old Irish, I’m like “FRIEND....who sometimes scares me”, Middle Irish, I’m like “Okay, this is a bit weird, but I can understand most of it, especially if I’m reading an edition where the editor explains things”, Early Modern Irish looks, to me, like everything’s been tossed into a blender. I KNOW that some of the words look familiar, but it’s HARD and it kind of hurts my brain to stare at it for too long. Modern Irish actually looks better, because it’s streamlined, the spellings are consistent, etc., but it still looks......almost eerie, actually. It also shows in how these things are taught - If you’re in an Old Irish program, you’re taught Old Irish and Middle Irish; if you’re in a Modern Irish program, you’re taught Early Modern Irish and Gaeilge (or you’re expected to know Gaeilge off the bat.) And what should probably be mentioned is that, actually, there was likely only ever a brief period where “Old Irish” was actually spoken or written - Kim McCone pointed out in an article that, actually, in some of our oldest, most sanctified sources for Old Irish, the Wurtzburg Gospels, we’re already seeing traces of Middle Irishicisms. It’s likely that, among the general populace, they were already simplifying their speech, but that the scribes who wrote this stuff down, that literary elite, took a conservative approach to the language, essentially a medieval Irish Academie Francaise, and they tried to preserve the “pure” form, only to lose the battle as time went on and even they started using these forms of the language. It’s also why we put SUCH a massive emphasis on dating....(besides the fact that it’s the closest thing we can come to dating anything, *badum tss*): Scribes, along with copying old texts, would actually sometimes put older forms of the words in newer texts in the hopes of it looking older or more authoritative. There are some bardic poems in the 16th century that are actually EERILY good. Likewise, you have some scribes looking at an older text and being like “Oh, that doesn’t look how it should! I should fix it!”, only to drop a Middle Irishicism on an Old Irish verb. And sometimes a scribe will try to correct the correction and makes it even worse. We have to analyze the whole text, weighing all of it together to see when a text might have actually been composed. 
We talk a lot about how Irish has survived over the years in spite of everything, and that’s IMPORTANT, but I feel like it’s also important to say that it’s changed, it’s reinvented itself. It isn’t static and it’s never really BEEN static, and I think, my ongoing confusion aside, that that’s really important. I can’t translate an 18th century Irish text, at least not EASILY (even though I want to do my PhD on an Early Modern text so RIP me), but someone who got their PhD in 19th century Gaelic Literature also can’t translate Old Irish (and yes.....it has happened where people act like studying Irish literature = being able to “explain” Old Irish materials to me. Because, again, Dumb Foreigners Can’t Know What We’re Talking About) We’ve got to work together to get the fullest possible picture. The language had a past, it has a future. 
15 notes · View notes
ksyescribe · 4 years
Text
The Boys™ Speaking A Foreign Language (HQ Edition)
Tumblr media
Featuring: Oikawa, Osamu, & Ushijima
Warnings: Some slight manga spoilers!
A/N: This headcanon is centered around these bbs speaking Spanish but I think they can really be applied to any language! I hope you guys enjoy! Also thank you @cttnclouds​ for the Osamu fusion idea you’re literally an angel and i love you.
Oikawa Tōru
Why he learned: 
He moved to Argentina. It’s either learn or get really got at using hand signals.
Learning Process: 
Honestly? Probably tried the whole DuoLingo thing the first few weeks after he got the okay to move to Argentina. But after a while he burnt out.
He probably got up to like the introductory phrases and then fell off. Probably because he had to deal with all the logistical stuff that comes with moving.
(Someone help him cause he literally thought moving would be an easy one two three job :’) Iwa-chan help!)
The next time he remembers that he’s literally going to a new country with a new language is like a month before he moves.
He’s shopping with Iwaizumi for some new clothes and stuff when Iwaizumi just goes “So how’s your Spanish coming along?
freeze frame, his face looks like this: (∩╹□╹∩)
Anyways he really like stress buys like three different Japanese books that he then FORGETS ABOUT for the rest of the month.
He reads them on the flight to Argentina. The only things he learned were how to ask for the time and directions. 
Oh boy, Argentina’s going to be fun :’)
When he uses Spanish in front of you for the first time:
Right so, the first time you see him use his sorry excuse for Spanish is at the little corner coffee shop down the street
Of course everyone’s like eyeing him cause, why is a foreigner here in the hidden gem of the city? But also he’s kinda cute what?
Anyways, you’re minding your own business until you hear the heavily accented Spanish.
And pues, we’re all little chismosos so of course you pay attention to what he’s trying to do (order a coffee but he literally cant remember what the word for sugar is dear god someone help this man)
After cringing you step up with the translator app on your phone open and obviously help him out. 
He’s a little impressed because: 1. Your Spanish is so smooth and flowy it sounds like you’re reciting poetry and 2. Why didn’t he think of the translator app tf??
So you get his order shoot it back to Sandra over the counter in fast Spanish and then order your own stuff before moving off to the side to wait for your coffee.
Oikawa might be an idiot right but he’s not going to pass up the opportunity to ask you to teach him Spanish?? 
I mean you’re cute, you’re obviously a local from the way you were greeting everyone inside the shop, and well, you’re the only person who’s tried to help him out so far and that means a lot to him.
For some odd reason you actually agree? You still don’t know what caused you to say yes. Probably the pitiful look he had when he told you he had to move cause of work and he knew nobody else here.
How you help him with learning/bettering his Spanish:
Honestly, he bitched a lot at the beginning but forcing him to only communicate in Spanish really helped him out. 
So taking him on town trips and having him tell you about what he’s seen or what he wants to do in Spanish really helped him. Also having your friends come with is really fun cause he tries to teach them some Japanese words while they translate that into Spanish.
Also being immersed in the language is a big plus.
But I think the #1 thing that really helped him was watching novelas with you. 
Like he wants to understand what Gabriela is yelling to Sofia about in real time not through the subtitles. (But damn Gabriela really slept with Sofia’s fiance? Wack, that man is not worth it hun)
You know his Spanish’s getting better when you walk into a completely new bread shop that the two of you are visiting and he just goes ahead and orders in fluent Spanish.
Leaves both you and the attendant in shock. But he just comes back and asks you in Spanish too, “Lo hice bien? No me trave verdad?”
The woman literally swoons from the whole encounter. He is now a danger to any woman within five miles of the vicinity. Gets all cocky about it.
Favorite Spanish Word: Alborotar - Disturb? That’s what google says but it’s more like mess up.
Miya Osamu
Why he learned:
Honestly? This Mexican-Japanese fusion place opened up and he just wants to talk to the chef about where he gets his ingredients from because this shit tastes amazing!!
Learning Process:
Went home the first night after eating at that restaurant and bought a year subscription for Rosetta Stone. 
He’s kind of regretting it because like, maybe he should’ve gone with the monthly plan? Fuck he shouldn’t have gotten ahead of himself.
He tries to do an hour of the program a day minimum. There’s some days where the hour like drags on and other days where he’s so pumped that he does more than one hour.
His max was one day where it snowed so hard that nobody could go out so he spent like 10 hours doing Rosetta Stone.
He tried going to like one of the Brazilian stores around his house to try out his Spanish with them but was sorely disappointed to learn that Brazilians do not speak Spanish.
Still got some bomb ass brigadeiros though so who’s the real winner here huh? 
Actually put up a craigslist ad for a Spanish partner. 
It’s up for a whopping 5 minutes before he promptly deleted the ad. 
Instead!! This man signs up for one of those international pen pal services and gets matched with someone fluent in Spanish (it’s you hello).
And it turns out said person is coming to Japan soon for a year abroad?? And they have a basic Japanese foundation?
Yeah dude he lucked out.
Out of all three boys, his alone learning goes pretty well. Gets a good foundation of Spanish.
When he uses Spanish in front of you for the first time:
This one’s so cute!! He actually does it sort of by accident?
He’s made friends with everyone at the fusion restaurant including the chef because he actually managed to hold a decent conversation in Spanish.
His brain just automatically switches to Spanish when he enters the restaurant.
So when you hear him bust out into a full fluent Spanish conversation with the waiter you kind of sit there like: (・о・)
This man even orders and asks you if you want to split a bottle of wine in Spanish.
You could only nod because holy shit. 
Like yes you’ve heard him speak it over the discord calls before but in person?? That’s a whole nother story.
Specially because his pronunciation is so good?? And he has the right accent? It’s so smooth like it just flows naturally from him.
And he can actually roll the r’s god damn sir
How you help him with learning/bettering his Spanish:
So he has a pretty good grasp on the language which means he doesn’t need much help with learning.
But you can help expand his knowledge. Like teaching him about how in some countries/dialects things might be said differently. (Like how there’s 17 ways to say straw. Hondurans say pajilla and that’s all I knew for a bunch of years)
He’ll also need help with learning about a lot of food names. He only knows the basic names, not any special fruits or like combination dishes so that’ll be fun. 
You actually start cooking new latin recipes every Saturday so he can familiarize himself with the cuisine.
Some ingredients are hard to come by but the adventure in finding them is so worth it.
His favorite recipe so far? Making Pollo con Tajadas from Honduras. The Bandeja Paisa from Colombia is a close second.
Favorite Spanish Word: Popote: Straw (in Mexico)
Ushijima Wakatoshi
Why he learned:
His last current concern is literally “he would like to work harder at studying languages”. 
Fair, makes sense. 
But instead of going with a familiar language he just says fuck it time to learn the latin alphabet with Spanish. 
yeah okay why not
Learning Process:
Ushijima is more of a visual learner. 
Which in it’s own makes sense. He’ll probably get a book that has like those floating numbers over items and it tells him what it’s called in Spanish right?
Wrong.
You know what he does?
This man. This 24 year old man. Goes home, opens up Netflix, and puts on... wait for it... DORA.
I kid you not!! Ushijima Wakatoshi will always begin learning a new language by watching children’s shows.
You know why? 
Because he read an article a while back where it said that the best way to start learning languages is by watching children’s shows due to the fact that the shows are literally tailored to teach kids the language.
See what he did there? Y’all thought he was a big dumb dumb but in reality he’s a big smart smart.
Uh, anyways.
He will sit down to watch the children’s shows with a notebook. He takes very good notes, has a Japanese translation for everything.
His show watch list: Dora la Exploradora, Plaza Sesamo, Maya Y Miguel, Go Diego Go, and Handy Manny.
The crazy thing? It actually works. He literally gets his Spanish base from these shows. 
Crazier thing? HE LITERALLY PICKS UP THE CORRECT ACCENTS.
I kid you not bro, he literally somehow managed to sound like a FLUENT speaker. I-
But from there he picks up some more books and audio files to try and increase the complexity of his knowledge.
He’s the best speaker out of the three.
When he uses Spanish in front of you for the first time:
Honestly? He’s been looking for a Spanish partner for a while and he genuinely doesn’t know how to go about it. 
One day though, he overhears you on the phone with your mom. 
He’s seen you before. You’re one of the girls working under the main manager and you’re actually really helpful. If he remembers correctly, you’re the only co-manager that can wrap the compression sleeves just how he likes them.
Anyways, not uh, important.
He’s not one to eavesdrop but, well you’re in the equipment room and he needs to grab one thing. Just a quick in and out. He’ll even turn off his ears.
But then you start speaking like fluent Spanish? And suddenly his ears are very active. 
He doesn’t harass you while you’re on your call. Instead he waits until after practice.
Then he just comes up to you and goes, “Perdóname por molestarte pero, estabas platicándo en Español anterior?”
Kind just sat there like: ◉‿◉ - ( ̄ー ̄) - ⚈ ̫ ⚈
You can’t even speak, you’re still processing that he just spoke Spanish like a natural??? So you just nod.
He launches into a whole talk about how he’s been learning but he needs a speaking partner so that he can get better.
At some point during his whole speech you sit down because your brain IS NOT CATCHING UP.
In the end you agree to become his partner. He’s paying you in food how the hell can you say no?
How you help him with learning/bettering his Spanish:
Like I said before, he’s already good.
You mostly help broaden his knowledge about the culture from Spanish countries and their cultures. A lot of it is through food and the small glimpses of hispanic life from Japan. 
Can’t really teach the customs and traditional stuff unless it’s in person.
You’re actually getting ready to go back home for your once a year family reunion when suddenly this man invites himself to your trip?????
I mean, it’s not a bad idea in the first place but then he offered to pay for your trip and well...
You’re kind of broke and he’s rich so it works alright?
God but going back home? Ultra boosts his spanish.
Not sure if it’s the atmosphere, your family, or just the fact that the country is now in a whole nother language, but this man just adapts. 
It’s really uncanny. 
While he’s here, your family teaches him a lot of Spanish idioms and phrases that don’t translate over well and he starts incorporating them into his every day usage.
Someone on the team got hurt and he literally walked over and rubbed their wrist and went “ Sana, sana, colita de rana. Si no sanas hoy, sanarás mañana.”
When you leave his apartment? “Te veo Mateo”
But he also gets to see how unique and beautiful the culture in your country is. 
His favorite part of the trip? Probably your family’s land that’s just surrounded by nature.
He also really liked the traditional shops that the old ladies from the village ran. (They also liked him and pinched his cheeks and called him a big strong boy so maybe that has something to do with it.)
His favorite Spanish word: Topogigio (to-po-i-yo): In Honduras, frozen ice cream (? not really but don’t know how else to describe) that is typically sold in a small bag. Flavors: Fruit juice or traditional ice cream flavors. 
101 notes · View notes
serendipitous-magic · 4 years
Text
Why Don’t We Read: An Impromptu Essay By Me Because I’m Mad
You know how everyone is always saying “oh, I was such a big reader when I was a kid but I just don’t read books anymore, I don’t know what happened”? And how old people are always griping about “This is called a BOOK, it has no commercials and no loading screens, hardy har har har snorf har”?
What if it’s because we just don’t have time anymore?
Think about it. More and more and more of our time on earth is eaten up at our jobs just trying to survive in an economy where “minimum wage” covers maybe 1/3 of bare minimum expenses. And not only that, but we’re expected to juggle more and more and more things every single day. Long, uninterrupted hours simply... do not exist anymore.
Every day you have to not only commute to work, and then work, and then commute back, plus all the little chores and mundanities that make up every day life, cooking food and then eating food and folding laundry and cleaning and putting gas in the car and don’t forget that dentist appointment and better call Mom and if you have a lawn you have to water it and weed it and you have to figure out if you have enough to pay rent this month and you still have to call FedEx about that missing package and now you have to cook again and now there’s more laundry and so many emails to respond to and it’s been months since you washed your sheets hasn’t it and
BUT THEN
You are expected to do and be and keep up with so many things.
You’re supposed to work out, or jog, or do yoga, and you’re supposed to meditate or do a breathing exercise daily because it’s good for you, and while you’re at it, make sure that your living space looks like a magazine or an Instagram post, you need X minutes of sunshine a day to be healthy and Y minutes of exercise and Z number of steps, and you need to be an environmentalist and make sure you’re doing your part to save the planet, and you need to be constantly self improving, you need to be learning a language on Duolingo and doing projects like crocheting or writing or antiquing, you have to be completely unproblematic and constantly monitor everything you do and say and post because one tiny little thing can have the internet jumping down your throat, you’re supposed to be a nutritionist and a fitness nut and an expert on everything you talk about because society has become so black and white that saying “I don’t know” or “I didn’t know that before” is looked on as unacceptable,  you’re supposed to know what’s in your coffee and where it came from, you’re supposed to be a son a daughter a sibling a parent a student a mentor but also you’re supposed to be an interior designer, a small business owner (if you do any kind of Etsy or commission thing), a revolutionary (you’d better care about every overwhelming, exhausting injustice in the world and you’d better take action against it - see below), a curator (if only of your own blog), a rhetor (you’d better damn well know how to argue or you’re screwed in this society), a teacher (because school districts don’t teach anyone shit), a negotiation expert because it is car salesmen and insurance agencies’ job to fuck you over as hard as they possibly can.
Oh and don’t forget, you’re supposed to simplify your life and live in the moment. That one’s very important.
All of this is most likely while you’re already working anywhere from 20-40+ hours per week.
Keep up with your friends on Facebook, spend time to see what they’ve been up to, spend time posting your own pictures, catch up with your Instagram and Twitter and Tumblr feed, and for fuck’s sake you’d better make sure you’re reblogging all the right things about current social events, and you’d better also be caught up on the news, which all happens and changes so fast now that communication is instantaneous, keep up with all the politics, know every new outrage and be outraged about it, keep up with the politicians, the scientists begging us to listen, the latest news about the celebrity outed as a bigot, the latest shooting, the latest bombing, the latest protest, you’d better keep up with all of that and know what’s happening in the world, every minute of every day, and oh don’t worry about having to seek the news out, it comes to you. Every little ping on your phone is a new piece of news.
And you’d better care about it all. You’d better have enough energy in your body and mind to care about all the politics and all the injustice, and be rightly outraged every single day by the state of the world and every new horror, but you’d better also care about the dying planet and the burning rainforests, the oil spill, the glacial melt, you’d better be outraged about that too and you’d better be able to act on that outrage because those are all so important, and they are, but then you also have to care about insurance companies ruining people’s lives by making it impossible to afford healthcare, and you have to care about how agricultural companies have made cruel and byzantine webs of laws to drive farms out of business and make food, a basic necessity of life, a business, and one that’s designed not to feed and nurture people but to make money. And then while we’re on the topic of money you’d better care that the top 10 richest companies in the world create 70% of the world’s pollution, and you’d better care about how billionaires could fix most of the world’s biggest problems and they simply choose not to, and how Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos and everyone like them have an amount of money and resources that no single person could ever come close to earning, and how if that wealth was fairly redistributed and recirculated into the economy then maybe minimum wage would actually earn you a living and that’s not even to mention the other systems of brutality and cruelty and injustice in society, the racism, the homophobia, the ableism, the ageism, the sexism, the -ism -ism -ism on for infinity
So you’d better buy and use reusable straws and reusable coffee cups, you’d better cut down on your CO2 emissions, you’d better take shorter showers, you’d better recycle your plastics and spend time at the store thinking about how you can buy things with less plastic wrapping, while you’re also thinking about those big agriculture companies, oh and by the way your eggs? The chickens they came from live in cages, barely being allowed to move for their entire lives, and you’d better be outraged about that too. Where do you think that milk came from? What does that cow look like? How about those peas, were they picked by someone being paid $1 an hour? Every single item on the shelf has some deep horror woven into its backstory. 
You’d better sign every petition you can and you’d better reblog the right things about taking action against injustice and you’d better be vocal about it, you’d better buy your soap and your clothes from small businesses instead of supporting the big evil ones that are much easier to access and much, much cheaper (because somebody suffered, somewhere along the line, to make it that cheap), you’d better remember to save your pasta water to water your plants with instead of wasting it, you’d better make your gifts by hand (if you have the time, which you don’t), and 
And then there’s the beauty industry.
You cannot go a single day without seeing something about “lose weight fast!” or “The Skinny Girl Cookbook!” or “This Weird Thing Burns Belly Fat!”, and everyone you see on screen is twig-thin or muscled, and don’t forget that you’re supposed to take the time to love yourself and practice body positivity too, oh wait no it’s too late, now body neutrality is the right thing to say and think. Every part of your face and body has some malady and you can buy a cure! Spend this much to get rid of acne, spend this much to wax your legs, buy this for wrinkles and that for stretch marks, this cream smooths out your skin to look like an eggshell instead of human flesh, that cream “fixes” those bumps on your arms that apparently aren’t allowed to exist, a basic face of makeup is at least 5 products if not 10, there are countless tutorials on how to make yourself better, because you aren’t okay as you are and you never will be as long as somebody can sell  you something to “fix” yourself. 
Oh, and that’s more time spent, too. Take the time to shave, to moisturize, to do your 3-step skincare routine, to slather all different kinds of goops and goos on various parts of you, take the time to pluck your eyebrows and exfoliate your feet and
Everything wants your attention, every second of every day. Because attention is money. Netflix Hulu Youtube watch this ad look at this ad Twitter Disney+ Twitter again Facebook more ads look at this ad sign up for this subscription package watch this new season of this show, watch this new movie, watch this watch this watch this watch look at this this watch this watch this look at this look at this look at this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this look over here look at this look at this look over here watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this watch this look at this
And then at the end of the day you still have to reserve time for the people in your life that are important to you, and leave time for those long conversations with your sister or time to bond with your kid or time to go on dates with your S.O.
And then you’re supposed to take time for yourself. Self care. Like social media is always saying to do. Take a bath, drink some tea, relax. If you have time.
And all of that. ALL of that. Most likely happens in the small slivers of time before and after your work day, or on the weekend in the small sliver of time before or after you fold that laundry and cook dinner and attend to your personal matters and maybe hang out with a friend if you’re lucky.
And I just described a fairly privileged, not-on-the-brink-of-poverty, not-in-and-out-of-the-hospital, not-constantly-targeted-by-violence-or-oppression life. I just described a cushy life.
Is it any fucking wonder that we all feel shattered? Like our time, even on free days with absolutely nothing scheduled, is made up of tiny pieces? Is it any wonder that it seems like nobody can sit down with a book anymore?
I’m so fucking tired.
130 notes · View notes
sssquide · 4 years
Text
Tumblr media
Hey there friends! I’m currently working on creating a language routine for myself to study Spanish, and I know how crucial it is to have a variety of activities that help in different areas when you’re learning. I am currently enrolled in a Spanish 1 class, and I am very active on my Duolingo, but I’m also a big advocate for immersion learning. I want to be using the language while I’m learning it, rather than reading over notes and whatever. I’m also a fan of mixing active and passive forms of language use. Here are some of the ideas that I’ve compiled so far that I’m going to start trying to implement:
Talk to yourself. I don’t know about you, but I talk to myself a lot anyways, so why not do it in your target language? Narrate what you’re doing. Bonus points for trying it in different tenses!
Keep an audio journal. Then transcribe it. Speaking is where I’ve always struggled the most when it comes to learning a language, and that is the primary reason I decided to take 3 years of Latin in high school instead of continuing the French I learned in middle school or the Spanish I learned in elementary school. I hate feeling dumb, and trying to speak when I know I’m going to mess up makes me feel dumb. But if I ever want to reach fluency, I just have to suck it up. The good thing about recording yourself is that you don’t need to share it with anyone. But I firmly believe it’s super important to listen back to it and transcribe it, because you will totally notice the mistakes you made when you do so. Then maybe try rerecording it?
Teach the people around you, even if they aren’t particularly interested. When I learn new words/grammar structures, they are staying in my active memory. So, when I’m talking to my partner, sometimes I’ll use the Spanish I’m learning instead. He is not learning Spanish, but he is a very good sport, so he lets me explain to him, in great detail, what I was saying to him and the grammar structures involved. I’m not saying to do this with everyone (some people will find it annoying), but if you can find someone who doesn’t mind it, take advantage of it.
Search for listening practice on Youtube. Try to find different accents in your target language too. At least for Spanish, there are tons of people who create listening practice for all levels. Find them! Make a habit of actively engaging with this material. Repeat what they’re saying, look up words you don’t know, rewind if you didn’t get something. I try to find native speakers from both Spain and all around Latin America, because there are many different accents in Spanish, and I don’t want to limit myself.
Find music you actually like to listen to. Even if you don’t understand what they are saying. This is made 1 billion times easier if you know what kind of music you like. You will not get far if you just look up “music in Spanish” because you “just listen to everything”. That’s a lot of music to sift through to find something you actually enjoy and will want to listen to again. If you have a genre you like though, you can easily find playlists on Spotify or Youtube that Spanish speakers who like the same genre as you put together. I, for one, listen to a bunch of Spanish punk bands, because that’s the music I like. I also like indie rock, and I have some bands in those genres that I will put on even when I’m not actively studying Spanish, because I actually like to listen to them.
Watch children’s cartoons. Bonus points for animation that you dig. As a beginner, there is a shit ton of stuff you’re not going to understand, even in cartoons made for 5 year olds. Don’t worry about it. Actively hearing the words and trying to follow the story WILL help, and you might pick some stuff up along the way too. The reason I say find stuff with animation you like is the same reason I said to find music you like: it will make you actually want to come back for more, rather than feeling like a chore.
These are the ones that I plan on trying to implement into my life. What do you do for practice? What else should I add to the list? Let me know!!
102 notes · View notes
Text
Surveys #447-448
(one from yesterday, one from v early this morning)
How did you and the last person you kissed start talking? By both being meerkat RPers on YT back in the day. Do you think someone is falling in love with you? Definitely not. Do you have a bad temper? Nah. What was the last song you listened to? SOBS "Suteki Da Ne" from FFX. If your mom was a teacher, would you want to be in her class? Hell yeah. She actually has been my substitute teacher before, as she worked at my elementary school with the special ed kids. Are you comfortable with people going through your phone? No. I have nothing to hide on there at all, but still... I just don't like it. Do you really care about what toothpaste you use? So long as it's mint-flavored, no, I don't care. Would you like it if the whole world spoke one language? I mean, I think it's pretty inarguable that that would be a beneficial thing. For all humans to understand each other, like in dire situations where information needs to be brought across. However, I don't believe we should actually try to change that now with so many languages already developed. That would be way, way too big a task and not that important. Would mind-reading really be a blessing or a curse? I'd find it more to be a curse. Would you ever get a pet turtle? Why or why not? Nah. They just don't interest me as pets. Do you tend to daydream a lot? If so, about what? Yeah. .-. About a lot of stuff... How I want my future to be, things I wish would happen, how I'd change past errors... What shop/store/brand would you model for, if given the choice? I would 110% model for Cloak if for whatever miraculous reason they wanted me to because a bitch supports her favorite human asdkfajkwle. I'd totally do some goth modelling for Rebel's Market, too. Do you actually read your friend’s surveys, or do you just copy and paste them and fill them out yourself? I read my friends' answers, yes. I like learning obscure things about them. Which is your favorite episode of I Love Lucy? Bar none, the "Vitameatavegamin" one. It's fucking hilarious, man. I love that show. Do you consider yourself a deep thinker? WAY too deep. Name two people who you are closest with? My mom and Sara. Which one of those two people would you eat first, if you were starving? Neither. I would absolutely rather die. No one cares whether or not you believe in love at first sight… but, do you believe in hate at first sight? Well, let's be real. If you witnessed someone being abused or raped or something like that, wouldn't YOU hate the villain immediately? I sure as hell would. When you were a kid, which comic strip was your favorite? I didn't care for those. How do you feel about fake plants? They can look good, they can look tacky, and they make great additions to some animal enclosures, like reptiles and bugs, for cover and new textures. Does it make you uncomfortable when people ask you your shoe size? Er, no? Would you feel guilty about cheating on your taxes if you got away with it? Yes. I tend to have a guilty conscience. Are you happy with your weight? NO. Do you go to church? If so, do you actually pay attention? No. When I was forced to go as a kid, I never paid attention. As a very young adult when I super rarely went, I would try to, but my attention definitely wavered. Would you rather have your nose or tongue pierced? Tongue, if it just didn't damage my damn teeth. :( I miss my snake eyes. Ever peed in your pants after the age of 10? It's very embarrassing, but yes. A few years ago, I had this very strange period of premature incontinence when I slept. I had to be put on some medication and a schedule to wake up in the night to use the bathroom. It oddly just... vanished as randomly as it started. Had any surgeries? What kind? I had tubes put in my ears as a baby, and then at the start of 2017 (I think), I had to have a cyst removed from my butt. :^) Ever told your parents you hated them? I've told Dad that, yes. Are you sober? Yeah. Do you have a crazy side? Not really, no. I'm boring. Do you have siblings over the age of 18? All of my siblings are. Do you think that downloading music illegally is immoral? Yes, and yet... I do it anyway. :x Have you ever sworn at a policeman/woman/cop? No. How far do you agree that the mother is more important in a child’s life than the father? I Don't agree with that. Would you ever let one of your children enter a beauty pageant? If they were old enough to make their own decisions, I'd have no say. But as a little kid, no. I do not support those damn things. What was your favorite Pokemon as a child? Charmander! :') Do you have a favorite name? What is it? Alessandra. It's so beautiful. What was the topic of the last assignment/essay you wrote? Toxic masculinity. I got SO into that essay. What’s your favorite type of juice? Probably peach mango. What was the hardest language you’ve ever tried to learn? LATIN. Like holy shit. What’s your younger sibling’s name? Nicole. What kind of cookie is your favorite? Chocolate chip. What would you do if your ex contacted you? I would just be... so happy. But also scared of where it would lead. What age would you like to have a child? No age, because I never want any. Are your parents wealthy? Definitely not. My dad SEEMS decently well-off, but he is most certainly not rich. Have you ever asked someone out? Yes. Your ex tells you they want you back, what do you say/do? I know I'd say yes, very quickly. -_- Do you know anyone that smokes weed? More like she's addicted to it. Is there one person you look at and automatically smile? Oh, that's Mark for sure, ha ha. Especially if he's laughing. It's game over for me if he's laughing. What’s your favorite hairstyle on a guy? Don't even fucking @ me, I love the emo hair swoop alskdfjalkwje;kjrwklejarwe Do you know anyone who’s won the lottery? No. What’s the name of the last cat you pet? Roman. What have you been up to today? Anything interesting? The only thing I've done today that deviates from my normal routine is I had to get blood drawn for some tests for my upcoming check-up. I don't know what was up with that needle, but it hurt this time. Are you the type of person to dwell on the past? I live there. Did your grandparents teach you anything? Not really, no... besides being old-fashioned is not an excuse for being an uptight... er... this answer is so mean, given the grandmother I'm talking about is dead, oof. Do you want/have a Bachelor’s degree? I wanted one... but I don't have one and never will. Are you a fan of penguins? Yeah, they're mega cute. Who do you think about most constantly? Why? Anyone who reads these can answer that very, very easily. Have you ever considered yourself to be something other than heterosexual? Yeah; I'm either bi or pan. I think pansexual as of very recently, but for simplicity's sake and also for almost all of my family to not think I'm crazy, I really just say bisexual. Have you ever been in love? With who? Yes; Jason and Sara. Dolphins, whales, sharks, or narwhals? Dolphins or whales. Have you ever gotten anything amputated? No. Have you ever tied your tooth to a door to lose it? No. What do you do on the computer? Oh jeez... I'm pretty much, well, always on the computer, so I do a whole lot. I watch/listen to YouTube, write, clean out my dA notifications and browse artwork, scroll through Facebook, play World of Warcraft, edit the Silent Hill wiki, do way too many surveys, talk to Sara on Discord... Anything your parents should know about? No. Do you have a life? It sure as hell doesn't feel like it. I do nothing noteworthy. Do you have a microphone on your computer? It's built-in, but it doesn't work. Does your mouse light up? Yeah; red normally, blue when it's charging. Then it's also purple sometimes??? I have no idea what it means. Were you ever physically abused? No. Verbally? No. Sexually? No. Do your teachers like you? Not to brag or anything, but all my teachers loved me. Do your parents like you? I know they love me. Do your siblings like you? I don't feel like they do half the time. :/ It's my own fault for not knowing how the fuck to interact with them. Did you have a tail when you were born? At first I saw this question and was confused as shit, but then I remembered this was actually a thing, ha ha. But no, I wasn't. Do you enjoy school? I hated it. Are you shallow? No. Greedy? I don't think so, no. It feels good to share. Do you have a piercing in an inappropriate spot on your body? No. A tattoo? Well, I have a tattoo over my heart, so it's on my breast, if you wanna count that? Are you stubborn? God, am I. Are you incestuous? Fuck no. Do you respect your body? Meh... Yes in some ways, in other ways no. Have you ever been to therapy? Did you like it? I've been in therapy for most of my life, and yes, I find it helpful. Have you ever used Duolingo to learn another language? No. Are you unhappy at the moment? Yes. I usually am. Do you have any gay friends? Yes. Have you ever watched iCarly? Yeah, I used to enjoy it. Who’s your favorite Disney character? Probably Dory. What was the last thing you wrote in a word document? This survey, actually. It's how I format it and save my progress. What did you last take painkillers for? A headache. Are there any hobbies you want to get back into? Drawing. :/ Have you ever been on a date with someone you met online? How was it? Yeah; when Sara and I were together and I went up to visit her, we had a breakfast date once. :') Do you find it difficult to get rid of material possessions? Yeah. I hold a lot of nostalgia in many items. What sort of games do you like to play? Horror and fantasy, mainly. They need a story, too, and I ESPECIALLY enjoy games with multiple endings. Then I also play WoW, which is an MMORPG. Do you know anyone who is deaf? No. Have you ever been married? Nope. What is your favorite thing to dip fries in? Ketchup. Do you still talk to anyone you went to high school with? Just Girt, really. Have you ever had to dispute a charge on your credit card? I've never had my own credit card. Quick! Choose pink or purple. Pink, duh. What's your favorite book genre? Fantasy. Would you say you’re generally fit and healthy? Why/why not? No. :/ I'm trying to change that though by going to the gym. Would you ever want a job working with animals? My main aspiration is to be a wildlife photographer, if that counts? Sara also wants to be a ball python breeder, and we talk all the time about it and how I'd love to be like an assistant and help with my own future snakes. Most recently, I will definitely have to have experience with them as pets first and see if I can handle it, but I've considered breeding tarantulas on the side. The hobby could ALWAYS use more breeders to prevent wild-caught specimens being taken from the wild, and it would help lower their prices. I've gotten so passionate about those furry bastards that I would really enjoy helping out with that. Do you believe in your horoscope? Even if you don’t, do you still read it? Not at all. I don't, because it feels like a waste of time if I don't even believe in it. If a couple is married, do you think there should be any legal punishment if one person cheats? No... I am firmly against cheating, but that sounds extreme. Do you enjoy Tim Burton films? Which one is your favorite? Of course! My favorite is Corpse Bride.
-------
Was the last book you read for fun, or was it for some type of assignment? It was for fun. Do you think you would be a good match for your celebrity crush(es) assuming you have one? Why? If you don’t have one, who was the last person you saw that you found attractive? No, honestly. He really doesn't like seeing people not pursuing their utmost potential, and, uhhhh, look at me, lol. I'm in no way good enough for that god of a human being lmao. How old were you when you had your wisdom teeth removed? I still have them. I only have two, and my mouth has enough room for them. Do you wish you were taller or shorter? My height's fine. Where was the last job application you filled out sent to? Food Lion. Have you ever been fired from a job? No. I quit way too early for that to ever happen. .-. What poster is hanging closest to you? My big Metallica one. Which cuisine do you like the least? I honestly haven't experimented enough with foreign foods to decide on one specific cuisine I really don't like as a whole. Are there any foods you dislike because of the texture? There are A LOT. I am very, very sensitive to textures. Which type of chocolate do you like best? Milk chocolate. Do you let your pets sleep in your bed? Absolutely. Well, obviously not my snake Venus, but Roman? Yes. This is his house, too, and he deserves a comfy space to sleep. If you wear makeup, what are your preferred brands? I don't have one. Have you ever made sun tea? I have no idea what that is. Do you prefer powdered or liquid coffee creamer? I don't like coffee. Did your school have somewhere for girls to get emergency pads/tampons? Yes. Do you think they should make a movie about Hatshepsut? Now here's a question I haven't heard before, ha ha. I actually think that would be quite interesting and certainly empowering to women. Do you like to go to the movies alone? I actually did that for the Warcraft movie, and it was pretty chill. I prefer going with others, though. Have you ever dried down any flowers to keep them? No. What is your favorite thing that you have made by yourself? Probably my Pyramid Head/Halo of the Sun drawing. I worked my ass off on that, and I love how it came out. Do you like using clay and/or peel-off masks for skincare? I don't use those specifically, no. Have you ever made a pillow out of an old T-shirt? No. If you want to be cremated, do you want your ashes scattered anywhere? I haven't really thought of this, but I know I want them to be scattered somewhere. I don't wanna be cremated and have no lineage to cherish the ashes so I just end up thrown away or scattered in someone's backyard or something like that. I guess the desert would be pretty cool, if it was one with meerkats. Would you ever have a deceased pet stuffed? No. I have mixed feelings on taxidermy, but doing that to your pet just... seems wrong somehow. Like I feel that there'd be an unhealthy attachment to a dead body, and it feels like you're not allowing your beloved pet to truly, fully rest. Even if there is nothing beyond death, it's just a respect thing to me. Would you ever have a pet cremated? Teddy was cremated, yes. I WANTED to cremate my first ball python and Chinese water dragon, and both were in the freezer for a long time, but it just... never happened. It's not cheap. Mom also had Cali (her dog) cremated, but didn't keep the ashes herself because of it, once again, being expensive. Personal cremation costs more than a group one. Do you believe in the existence of parallel universes? Nah. How many times a day do you brush your teeth? Once. Collect anything? Any and all meerkat stuff and Silent Hill merchandise. Can you stick your fist in your mouth? ... I'm not about to try that. When was the last time you were high on anything? Never. Ever had a bloody nose? Yes. Have you ever caught a fish? Yes. Ever been up a mountain? Ugh, I wish! What are you listening to right now? I'm watching Gab Smolders play Amnesia: The Dark Descent. Do you have any birthmarks? Yeah; it's on my right forearm, near the elbow. Have you ever been slapped? I've been spanked and slapped on the arm by my mother when I was younger. And sometimes not so young. What do you want pierced? My collarbones, nostril, way more in my ears, and possibly my back dimples if I shrink down to a size where you can actually SEE them clearly... Do you like taking pictures? Of nature and animals. Sometimes people. Do you like getting your picture taken? Hell no. Have you ever started a rumor? No. Do you have your own pool? No. What do you want a tattoo of? You're asking someone who wants to be COVERED in tats, ha ha. I have a billion ideas. Have you ever been skinny dipping? Nah. Have you ever been chased by cops? No. Do you ever wear shirts do show your belly? OH FUCK NO. What about cleavage? I wear tank tops more than anything, so some. What theme does your room have? It doesn't have one. Do you like cows? Awwww, I love cows. :') <3 Which slow animal is your favorite? Sloth, turtle, or snail? Turtles aren't that slow; it's tortoises you're thinking about, so I'll consider them instead. Regardless, I think I find snails the cutest. If you had to create an app, what would it be for? I have zero clue. What is one television finale where you were upset with how it ended? I don't know. Other than mandatory lockdowns, have you had to quarantine at all for CoVid? No. What steps would you take in order to track down a thief? ... Not many, tbh, given JUST how afraid of confrontation I am, ha ha. What is something that one of your family member collects? Dad collects Cleveland Browns and Carolina Hurricanes sports stuff. What are some questions that you would ask your favorite celebrity? I've... never thought of this, believe it or not. I'd be too busy blubbering about how important he is to me and thanking him for everything he's ever done alskdjfkla;wje Have you ever legitimately forgotten to do homework? Yes. That was very, very rare, though. Depending on where you live, why might a day of school get canceled? If there was a 1% chance of half an inch of snow. :^) Everyone flips their shit here when that happens. Also, hurricanes. What types of transportation do you think we will see in the future? Besides possibly flying cars, idk. Which freaks you out more - clowns or porcelain dolls? aklsdjflajdsALSKDFJA;LWJE D O L L S. Porcelain dolls creep me out, man. Do you like salami? Yeah. Do you know your mum's first pet's name? I actually don't, no. Do you like car racing? No. I think it's stupid, honestly. People can get and have gotten seriously hurt, or worse. Who hugs you the most often? My niece and nephew, probably. Has your favorite actor ever been stuck to a project you dreaded watching (e.g., stuck on a bad TV show for years)? No. When you were a child did you wish you were named something else? What sort of fantasy life did you imagine for yourself if you’d only had this other better name? Bro I shit you not, I wanted to change my name to "Dory" because of Finding Nemo, lmao. I never thought about how my life would be different, though. Are you a plant person? How do you feel about the trend of owning many, many houseplants? Nah, plant maintenance isn't for me. I don't care how many plants you own so long as you care for them. It seems pointless to buy plants and just neglect them. What are you sick of hearing about? Anti-vax bullshit. Do you wish that you had more followers on any platform? Do you even pay attention to how many likes/comments/followers you have? The only places I really care about that are my photography Facebook page and deviantART because ffs I TRY to make progress as a photographer lasdkfj;lawe but neither move very fast at all. Are you currently working on an art project? No. :/ I need to draw something for once. If applicable, what color are you planning to dye your hair next? I have three in mind: lilac, pastel pink, or silver. Do you have a sibling who looks like your twin? No. My older and younger sister look remarkably similar, though. People have confused them a lot. Do you think you'd make a good actor or actress? God no, I'd feel far too awkward. Do you believe you have a lot of potential? Ugh, I don't know, dude. Would you like to be rich and own a vacation home? Who wouldn't? Have you ever walked through a labyrinth? No. What eyeshadow color do you think looks best on you? Black. I only wear black. Do you shop in the girls, juniors, or women's section at the store? Women's. Do you play video games? I haven't played a game other than WoW in a long time. :/ I only have a PS2 and Wii, and most of the games I want to play are for newer generation consoles. Is your house more than two stories tall? It's not even two stories. Have you ever had the flu? No. *knocks on wood* Have you ever been unfaithful in a serious relationship? Nope. Would you ever get a lip tattoo? No. I want tons of tats, but that sure isn't one of 'em. Has any place hired you underage for a job? No. Have you ever carried a concealed weapon? No. Does eating breakfast make you sick? No. I'm one of those people that wants to eat right when I wake up. What four states in the USA would you most like to visit? Which four countries would you most like to visit? States: Alaska, Utah, Wyoming, and some southwestern state where I can visit the desert and maybe see wild tarantulas. Countries: South Africa, Germany, Canada, and uhhhh idk. Would it bother you if your boyfriend hugged other females (think hypothetically if you don’t have one)? Why or why not? No? Hugs can just be a friendly gesture. They don't have to have underlying romantic implications. If you had snow-days as a kid, how did you spend them? Do you like the snow, in general? Oh man, snowy days were the epitome of joy when I was a kid. The #1 thing I wanted to do was make a snowman with Dad and my sisters if the snow was the right texture to pack. We loved snowball fights, making snow angels, watching the cats play... and you CAN'T forget making sugary snow cream. Do you know anyone who does hard drugs? Would you ever befriend someone that did? No one that does hard drugs now, no. I honestly don't know how I'd respond to wanting to befriend a hardcore druggie... Like I'm totally aware drug addicts are not innately bad people, but it can be dangerous to associate with them. So idk. Do hospitals make you nervous? Why or why not? Do you have any bad hospital experiences? Yes. I do NOT like being in hospitals. I've never been treated badly in one or anything, but I just have way, way too many ER memories from being suicidal and just stripped of everything that could somehow be interpreted as a "danger." Even books had to be approved. Technology of all kinds, forbidden. All I did was sleep on that godawful bed and wish I was dead. But I'm rambling; point is, I really don't like any health care establishment just because of negative memories. Do you still talk to the first person you ever dated? If not, would you want to? Why or why not? No. We just don't. I wouldn't be opposed to knowing what he's up to. What do you like most about your favorite animal? Their loyalty and bravery are purely astonishing. Do you need a job? Yes. I'm a leech in my house. I serve no financial purpose to assist my mom in paying bills and all of that. I'm a full-grown adult that should be benefiting humanity. Who do you love the most in your life? My mom, cat, and best friend probably top the list. What is your mom doing right now? I hope she's asleep, but she tends to sleep very badly and is frequently tossing and turning around this time. Where does she work? She's on disability. For the type of cancer she had, she automatically got it with her diagnosis. It's recently been a year since her last chemo session, but let me tell you from witnessing it: It takes A LOT out of you. It was actually torturous for her. She's still regaining her strength and healing before she can wisely get another job. Do you have Netflix? Yeah. What was the last thing you quit doing? I don't know. Have you ever read a book that changed your life? No. Who did you last talk to before you went to bed last night? Sara, if through text counts. Have you ever taken Xanax before? Yes; I was prescribed it for quite a while. Have you ever suffered from anxiety or depression? Try both, buddy.
3 notes · View notes
Text
Savage
Tumblr media
10 notes · View notes
chaotic-twin · 3 years
Text
When I feel too lonely, I like to remember all my cousins :) SO HERE I'M GONNA TELL EVERYONE ABOUT THEM BECAUSE I LOVE THEM A LOT AND THEY ALL ARE CRAZY TALENTED.
Let me start off with my youngest cousin, who is a year and a half old. I really hadn't met her until a while ago, AND SHE'S SO FRICKING CUTE. Like I know babies are usually cute and stuff but she was adorable and seeing her running makes my days. AND SHE SCREAMS WHEN SHE'S HAPPY!!!!! the first time I heard her scream I was like oh shit what's wrong then I see her smile and realized she screamed because she was happy and it was then I decided I'm going to love this girl for the rest of my life.
Then comes her older brother, who is almost 2/3 years old. He's pretty smart for a toddler, and he kept involving me in stuff like oh hi there you seemed kinda lonely so here have a duplo block. And obviously I always very courteously said thank you and then he'd get me even more stuff!!! He is also protective of his sister, he kept coming to me if she was in trouble or if she was about to do something that might hurt her (which happened a lot honestly like wow you have to always have someone supervising that girl) and it was so precious.
THEN WE HAVE MY FAVOURITE COUSIN SISTER (on the paternal side, the baby cousin sister is from the maternal one). She's gonna be 8 in a while and she is also very precious and adorable and naughty. She. Loves. Interacting. With. You. AND I LOVE IT TOO. She's really shy when she first gets to know you, but since I'm (hopefully) her favourite cousin, she always ends up hanging out with me at the end. Also, you know, girl solidarity stuff since I'm the only other girl on her and my paternal side. It takes her a bit to open up, but once she does, she's a complete cute little package of happiness to be with. Fun fact: she learns French on duolingo for fun.
And then we have my older cousin brother, who's 3 years older than me and is entering college soon. He produces music which is top tier in my extremely biased opinion. He is also very smart, much smarter than me, and is supportive when it comes to LGBTQ+ and the whole community. He is also very affectionate, probably the most out of all of my cousins. He's also cool and him and my brother get along like gasoline and fire. He has also taught me the art of vibing to songs, and mostly has the best edm and pop recommendations, especially ones that are in my native language (I suck at finding good songs in hindi so).
AND LAST BUT DEFINITELY NOT LEAST MY ELDEST COUSIN BROTHER. He's gonna be 22 and we have a huge age gap but since we both are the older and more immature siblings, we get along well. He's graduating soon and is studying cinematography which isn't very accepted in society (cuz only doctors or engineers are important, the rest are disappointments) His work according to me is chef's kiss and I'm sure that he'll do great because he actually loves his stream. Also fun fact: he's the one who first taught me how to click a proper picture and he's always ready to teach me something new about photography :D
So this has been a cousin appreciation post and a reminder for those of you who have loving cousins to appreciate them thank you very much have a good day
5 notes · View notes
hms-chill · 4 years
Note
Secondly: Alex always saying sweet things to Henry in Spanish but won't tell him what any of it means, and he's always google translating them and awe-ing at how cute Alex is and then like maybe he learns how to say something adorable to and says it to Alex and Alex just like melts or something
I present to you: “Speaking My Language”
“¿Lo amas, cierto?”
“Por supuesto. Lo amo más que a nada.”
Henry, resting his head on his boyfriend’s lap, blinks up at Alex and hums a question. He’s too jet lagged to be paying attention to the Diaz conversation happening above him, even if it was in English, but Alex sounds so happy. Henry isn’t used to that tender tone being used for anyone or anything other than him, but Alex just strokes his hair and says, “It’s nothing, baby.”
“Are you talking about me?”
“Nah; we’re talking policy. Boring American things. Sleep, Corazón.”
That hadn’t sounded like Alex’s politics tone, but Henry is too tired to care too much in the moment. Instead, his brain sticks on the last word, and he asks, “What’s that mean?”
“It means I love you.”
“I love you.” Henry turns his head to kiss Alex’s wrist, and as he closes his eyes, he hears Alex say, “Papá, lo amo tanto. Más de lo que nunca pensé que podría amar a nadie en el mundo.”
“Y yo los amo a los dos, mijo. Mis hijos.” Oscar comes to sit on the couch next to Alex, pulling him into a hug, and Alex is so full of love he thinks he might burst. Henry feels Alex’s hand stop moving through his hair and presses a kiss to his boyfriend’s jeans, and Alex squeezes his shoulder gently before going back to playing with Henry’s hair. Just before he falls asleep, Henry hears Alex start to sing in Spanish, Oscar joining him. The last thought that crosses Henry’s jet-lagged mind is that he should learn Spanish.
-
He starts with Duolingo, just like anyone else who wants to learn a language, building his vocabulary in pieces on the way to the shelter or in other stolen moments. Some of the kids at the youth shelter speak Spanish, or are taking it in school, and he practices with them, fumbling his way through sentences and making sure they take him off any princely pedistels they might have him on. When he can, he’ll get lessons from them or, occasionally, from June over the phone. He holds onto the things that made Alex happiest, and once he figures out which kids will tell him the truth, he asks one of them what “Corazón” means. She grins.
“That means ‘heart’. It’s a term of endearment sometimes, like ‘sweetheart’, but without the sweet part and more personal? So more like 'you’re my heart’? It means the person who said it loves you a lot.” Henry smiles, and she asks, “Where’d you hear it?”
“My boyfriend. He and his dad were speaking Spanish, and I asked what they said. He said it was nothing, but I’m not so sure. I think he’s just shy. What about “amo”? I heard that a lot; what does it mean?“
"That’s 'I love’,” the girl says, smiling at him, and Henry blushes. He’s heard that word quite a bit in Alex’s Spanish conversations.
“One more? What… what does "hijos” mean? His dad called us that, and it made him really happy, but I think I keep spelling it wrong when I try to translate it.“
"That’s… 'sons’, translated literally. Or like… 'boys’? But not like 'those boys over there’, more like 'kiddos’ sort of? Did you hear any context?”
“I think it was just 'mis hijos’.”
“'My sons’ or 'my boys’, then. What?”
“It’s… thank you. You’re the best,” Henry says past the lump in his throat.
“Henry? You okay?”
“I’m fine; thank you, really. How’s your homework coming? Want me to proofread your essay?”
“Sure. Then you should tell me more of the things your boyfriend says about you.”
Henry laughs, turning to her essay. Still, there’s a warmth in his chest that he hadn’t expected.
Mis hijos. My boys.
-
Bea finds out what he’s doing, probably from June, and she’s the one who gets him connected with a tutor. It’s a birthday gift, and she makes sure to find someone who can be flexible and chat when Alex isn’t around. Somehow, the lessons feel like something Alex doesn’t need to know about. If he knew, he might stop murmuring Spanish phrases before they go to bed. He might stop talking to his family or the kids at the shelter in Spanish, or at least, it would feel less secretive. Plus, personally, Henry wants to wait until he’s conversational to reveal his newfound ability.
The bonus of Alex’s not knowing Henry can speak a bit of Spanish is that Henry gets to hear his say things he’s too embarrassed or shy to say in English. “Te amo”, I love you, is a common one, murmured before bed or in response to a morning coffee. “Dios mio”, my god, isn’t rare, and neither is “puto/a/x” (fucker/bitch). But then there are things like “me encantas”, which his tutor translates as “you enchant me”, or “eres mi mundo, mi cielo, y todas mis estrellas”. That one comes late enough that Henry can translate some of it on his own, and he makes sure to google “cielo” and “mundo” on the way into work the next morning. He melts in the back of the car. Apparently, he’s Alex’s world, his sky, and all his stars.
-
He’s thought about when to reveal his new talent. He’d considered proposing in Spanish, but being married to a prince could be detrimental to Alex’s career, and they’ve already promised each other forever. They’ve talked about it, but no matter how desperate the world is for another royal wedding, neither of them feel the need to jump through every international legal hoop. They love each other, and besides, Henry’s already given Alex a ring. It hangs around his neck every day, a constant reminder of their promise. Alex had noticed him rubbing the skin where it used to sit and picked up a simple gold band, just big enough to fiddle with, so perhaps they’ve already gotten accidentally engaged.
Instead, he considers Alex’s birthday, waking him up with kisses and Spanish terms of endearment. It would make a nice gift, and it’ll give him time to clean up his conjugation a bit.
As it turns out, he slips up well before March.
Henry never celebrated Thanksgiving before he started dating Alex, and last year, he had to be in London so he could be in DC for Christmas. He knows about the holiday and its turkey-based chaos, of course, but they don’t celebrate it in England. So when he and Alex get dressed up and board the train to DC with a big plate of biscuits and David in a carrier, he’s not entirely sure what to expect. They’re supposed to be meeting Oscar at the train station, then going to the White House for some sort of family dinner tonight and a public appearance or two tomorrow, but beyond that, he’s unsure.
“Henry? It’s going to be fine. My family loves you; there’s no reason to be nervous.”
“I know. I know it’ll be fine; it just feels a bit weird. I’ve never celebrated Thanksgiving.”
“Right, well, I got you something for that.”
Alex pulls out a gift bag, and Henry takes it with a slight frown. “What’s this?”
“Open it.” Alex’s grin is shit-eating, and he beams when Henry sees what’s inside. It’s a tiny t-shirt that says “My First Thanksgiving!”.
“Thanks.”
“There’s a bib too; it came as a set. And as a bonus, I commissioned one in your size, and you’ve got to wear it tomorrow.”
He’s pulled out a crew neck sweatshirt with the same design as the baby shirt, complete with a cartoon turkey holding a knife and fork. It says “Stuffing” on the back, and when he flips the smaller one over, it says “Cornbread”.
“It’s after the turkeys who made me call you that first time. But for real, I thought maybe David could wear the baby one, since it’s his first Thanksgiving, too. And you don’t have to wear it if you don’t want; Nora and I were on Etsy together and–”
Henry cuts him off with a kiss, then says, “I’ll wear it. Es perfecto.” It’s perfect.
“¿Te gusta? ¿De verdad?“ You like it? Of verdad?
"Um, sí?” It comes out more of a question than he was anticipating, and Henry gets the distinct joy of watching Alex’s brain catch up to the rest of him.
“Wait, you know Spanish? You don’t speak Spanish. Do you?”
“Un poco.” A bit.
“You son of a bitch. How long have you known Spanish?”
“Um, a few months? Maybe? I wanted to learn after that night you called me 'Corazón’. Your… you sounded so happy, and I wanted to know what was happening.” And your dad called us his boys. I wanted to know what he said that made you so happy, and it was that he called us his boys.
“You little shit. I love you so much.”
“Te amo,” Henry says, watching Alex’s smile shift into something quieter, more personal. More full of love.
“Te amo para siempre.”
“I… you love me forever?”
“And ever and ever and ever,” Alex says. After a moment, he adds, “Does this mean we can talk shit in public now?”
“I’m not very good yet, but maybe? Right now, I can tell you I love you more publically.”
“That’s more important. Holy shit, now I can tell you how much I love you in front of your family. Henry. Te amo. Te adoro. That’s 'I adore you’. Um, let’s see, what else.” And for the rest of the train ride, Alex teaches Henry the basic Spanish he needs to know, which consists of a lovely mix of insults and terms of endearment.
When they get off at the station, Oscar is waiting for them with a massive grin, big hugs, and a cheer of, “Mis hijos!”
Henry feels Alex tense up for a second before he’s swept into Oscar’s hug, and he makes a mental note to ask about that. But then he’s getting a hug, too, and Alex is opening David’s carrier and getting his leash on, and they’ve got an excited beagle to deal with, and they’re all piling into a van to the White House. Things are equally hectic there, down to the two new turkeys (Potatoes and Green Bean) who’ve taken up residence in Alex’s room.
It isn’t until they’re in bed that night, trying to ignore Green Bean’s stare, that Henry gets a chance to ask, “Everything alright?”
“Everything’s perfect. Tomorrow I get to watch you wear a stupid sweater and eat loads with my family. Why?”
“You… you tensed up when we met up with your dad.”
“Oh, uh, yeah. I… it’s just… he called us hijos, and you… do you know that one yet?”
“Yeah, I… one of the kids explained it to me.”
“I just… I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about it. I know he’s used it before, but I also know you miss your dad a lot, and I didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable. You don’t have to be okay with it; I can ask him to stop if you want and he’ll get it. He doesn’t mean to replace your dad or anything; I know he doesn’t. But he loves you a lot. They all do. We all do. Them not as much as me, obviously, but seriously. You’re… we all think of you as family.”
“I… I know. And it makes me happy. When your dad calls us hijos, I mean. It… it’s nice.”
Alex grins at that, cuddling in closer. Then Green Bean gobbles, and Alex lets out a quiet, “Dios mio.” Henry laughs.
“You sure you don’t want to sleep in my room?”
“I think that might be wise. I thought I could beat them this year, I really did.”
“Hold on a second; get the lights on?” Henry asks. Alex does, and Henry opens his instagram stories.
“So, I’m in the White House, it’s around midnight, maybe? We’ve got to be up for an appearance around nine tomorrow morning, and I’m going to show you all my very favorite Thanksgiving tradition. It’s when this one,” he flips the camera to Alex, who’s eyeing Green Bean suspiciously, “insists on keeping two live turkeys in his room instead of letting them spend a night in a hotel. Then, he gets scared–”
“I am not scared! I’m wary. Intelligently so; I’ve seen Jurassic Park.”
“He gets wary, and he calls me to protect him. That’s right, Alex. Let the motherland look after you. I’ll keep you safe from these vicious American monsters.” He stops the recording on a shot of himself hugging Alex protectively, and Alex agrees to let him post it on two conditions: “You wear the 'my first Thanksgiving’ sweatshirt on live TV, and I get a recording of you speaking Spanish.”
“I’ll butcher the Spanish.”
“It doesn’t matter. If you post that, I get a recording of you speaking Spanish.”
Henry agrees as they make it to his room, falling into bed together, happy to be out from under Green Bean’s watchful eyes. Alex falls asleep first, and Henry reaches for his phone. He’s not sure how often Alex uses voice memos, but there’s a recent recording, so Henry starts another titled “Corazón” and says, softly enough not to wake him, “Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz, eres mi mundo, mi cielo, y todas mis estrellas. Me encantas, y te amo. Te amo muchísimo. Eres el novio de mis fantasías, y soy la persona más feliz del mundo contigo. Te amo, corazón.”
Alexander Gabriel Claremont-Diaz, you are my world, my sky, and all my stars. You enchant me, and I love you. I love you so much. You are the boyfriend of my dreams, and I am happier than anyone in the world with you. I love you, my heart.
On AO3
Notes:
Please excuse my Spanish; I was mediocre four years ago and haven’t practiced since. But here are some (intended) translations for the first conversation, which I believe is the only untranslated bit:“You love him, yeah?”“Of course. I love him more than anything.”…“Dad, I love him so much. More than I ever thought I could love anything in the world.”“And I love you both, son. My boys”
Edit: A massive shoutout to @felinarealista for fixing my Spanish; you’re an angel
263 notes · View notes
alarajrogers · 4 years
Text
I’m going to rant about learning languages here
, To begin with, Rosetta Stone and my issues with it.
So when I was a young woman, if you wanted language learning software, there was no Duolingo, no cloud. There was Rosetta Stone, which was very expensive and I lusted mightily after it, and there were $20 CDs of “Instant Immersion” which I kinda suspected were probably crap.
It wasn’t until 2015 that I actually got the software. I did it for like an hour and then lost it until this year. So I decided to hunt it down and re-install it. Now, I pick what language I want to learn on the basis of very important criteria like “I think this will be important in my future career” or “it was the only other language available at my high school when I wanted to take two” or “I really want to understand these cartoons.” On the basis of “I want to understand the lyrics of songs I like”, I picked German. 
So Rosetta Stone’s thing is immersion learning, where they teach you entirely in the target language, rather than telling you things like how does the grammar work or what do these words mean in English. And for building vocabulary, I think it’s a pretty good method. But for learning the grammar rules of an absolutely psycho language, it is really not enough.
See, German does the gender thing. No prob, I’ve covered that in French and Spanish. German adds neuter gender. Hey, that’s actually cool, nonbinary people could describe themselves correctly in German. German makes the word for “female child” into a neuter word.
whaaaatttt?
The definite article (”the” in English) changes based on gender. I’m used to that. It also changes depending on whether it is the subject or the object. Uhh... And it repeats itself with words that meant the opposite gender the last time you saw them. Gaah!
For example, “the dog is under the table” is “Der Hund ist unter dem Tisch.” Both of those are masculine words. But what if the table is under the dog? “Der Tisch ist unter dem Hund.” Note that “the” changes depending on whether it’s the subject or the object.
Now let’s have it be a cat, which is a feminine word. “Die Katze ist unter dem Tisch.” Good so far. “Der Tisch ist unter der Katze.” Uhhh... wasn’t “der” the masculine “the” a moment ago? How the fuck am I supposed to keep track of this?
Also “in dem” (in the, masculine) contracts to “im”, becoming a perfectly normal contraction that leaves out consonants from the middle, you know, like contractions do.
But wait, there’s more!
“Er” is “he”. “Sie” is “she”. “Sie” is also... they? Uh... “Sie” is also polite you, like Spanish Usted or French vous. So when someone says “Sie” you have to tell from the verb whether it’s she or they, but “they” is exactly the same as the polite you so you’re gonna have to use context to figure out if “Is this their hat?” is  really “Is this your hat?”
By the way, all plural nouns take the feminine forms. So “the dogs are under the table” would be “Die Hunde sind unter dem Tisch” because apparently the dogs all changed into bitches the moment you added more than one.
German, why do you even pretend this is a “gender” if little girl is neuter and actual men change sex as soon as there are more than one of them? Why don’t you call it something else? Call it “small”, “medium” and “large”. That wouldn’t have anything to do with anything but neither does calling it gender.
Oh! And there is no rhyme or reason to the plurals! So dogs is Hunde, eggs (das Ei) are Eier, son (which is Sohn) is Söhne (meaning we stuck an e at the end but also we change the sound of the vowel!), cats are Katzen, and apple (Apfel) is Äpfel (so we didn’t do a damn thing to the end of the word but we changed the vowel) and I’m pretty sure there are some words that don’t change at all?
Also. I speak English. Rosetta Stone knows I speak English. So why did they need to tell me that the word for computer is Computer? And German, what the hell, why is your word for baby Baby? Does that look like a German word to you? 
And I am supposed to figure all this out from nothing but pictures and a mean-sounding “bzzt” sound if I guess wrong. No actual explanations of anything.
Eh. I’ll continue with the program but I need to back it up with studying the grammar rules because this shit is nuts. 
36 notes · View notes
pandjseetheworld · 3 years
Text
Getting Out the Door!
Together we made the decision that NOW was the best time to travel, but to actually get out the door there is a ton to do!
Things to figure out before leaving.... 
1.) Loki 
2.) Our Jobs
3.) Our Condo 
4.) Our Financial situation 
5.) The Route 
5) Our Future 
There is probably a lot more, I just can’t think about it at the moment. 
_________________________________________________________
1.) Loki 
People keep asking, “why did you  get a dog if you knew you were going to travel?” Well, nunnnya biiinazzzz first off but in all seriousness because I did my homework. 
We got Loki August 1, 2020 during the pandemic. Pearce didn’t think it was a good idea knowing that we had aspirations to travel but being all cooped up because of COVID I needed something to keep me busy aside from work. I KNOW and I ADMIT, getting Loki was not the best decision BUT it has been 100% worth it and I’d do it again if given the opportunity. 
Before getting Loki, Pearce gave me some restrictions. One, the dog had to be a rescue and two, my parents had to commit to taking him if we traveled. So in July 2020 we called up my parents and had a very serious conversation about getting dog and if they would take him while we traveled and they said YESS!!! So, on August 1, I woke up at 4:00am and drove to PawWorks in Camarillo. I was the 15th person in line looking to adopt and thank goodness for that. By the time it was my turn to look at dogs all the puppies were gone and there were only 2 one year olds left. I looked at Loki, he looked at me, and the rest is history. 
I would definitely NOT recommend getting a dog if you plan on traveling  to anyone else though. He is expensive, National Parks aren’t dog friendly so the hunt for dog sitters isn’t going to be easy, and he’s probably going to be the smelly guy in the car BUT I made a decision, he’s my best friend, and we will make it work!  Also, he’s part of the family so he comes!! :) 
Tumblr media Tumblr media
2.) Our Jobs 
Well, as a Special Education teacher it was easy for me to end the school year as it typically does and then just not return. I knew leaving wasn’t going to be easy emotionally, I have been at Mar Vista for 4 years and I will probably never work at a school this amazing buuuuuuutt sometimes you have to be grateful for the opportunities you have had and then keep going. Ocean View is also a very small district and it is hard for me to move up or even laterally having such little opportunity with in the district. When I return I would like to try a larger district where I could potentially teach an autism class, special day class, or even an ED class and these opportunities just aren’t available in my district. It was time for me to move on regardless of traveling or not but MVS will always hold a very special place in my heart! 
Tumblr media
Pearce on the other hand, has a lot more at stake. As an environmental engineer and the only civil engineer at his small consulting firm (where he’s been working the past 7+ years), leaving was a much harder decision. So difficult that we has decided he should continue to work but in a part time position.  We’re going to purchase a hot spot so he can work on the road and see how things go. He loves where he works and I’m sure he could get another engineering position when we returned but there’s something to be said about working with a small local company where everyone knows each other. Leaving for this sabbatical is hard for him and his company as well but I’m glad he’ll still be engaged and hopefully when we return he can find his place in his old company again. 
Tumblr media
3.) Our Condo 
Since we knew we wanted to travel for the past couple years, when COVID hit we took it as an opportunity to update our condo and get it set up for a renter. It has take a lot of time, energy, and money to complete all of our home improvement updates but it’s been a really fun turning our little condo into our “home” and making it our own. 
We took some time to compare local property management companies in the area and when we found the right one (we hope) we set up all the paperwork for them to take care of things. They will be our middle man while we travel, taking our condo off our hands!!  Oddly enough, COVID is acting in our favor and the market is very hot right now. We are hoping to at least break even with our mortgage being covered by the renter and hopefully the property management company as well. With them taking care of things, it makes traveling much easier!! It also helps that Pearce takes lead on most of these big jobs so I can sit back and help when/where necessary!! It helps to be married to someone so savvy! 
Tumblr media Tumblr media
4) Our Financial Situation 
Having known we wanted to travel for sometime now, we have been saving for the past couple years. Pearce said at the start that we each need a minimum 25K travel expenses (JUST TRAVELING) per person.  That doesn’t include a lot of other expenses and the biggy hoping to come home and continue living a comfortable life style. We have had to be extremely frugal, invest money, save money, have backup safety money, open different accounts, and just be smart about things. Money is such an uncomfortable conversation with most people but when it comes to Pearce and I things are very open and fluid. We are realistic about our expectations, honest with our goals and travels desires, and willing to make sacrifices for each other that financially we are on the same page. Now..... I’m not talking about our income because dear God a teacher will never make what an engineer makes, but when it comes to life styles, travel needs/desires, and adventures we are on the same page. I think this is a very VERY important thing for us to agree on because it sets the tone for the entire trip. If he’s looking to travel and stay at 5star hotels and I’m all about that hostel life, things might get ugly, fast! So I’m grateful we agree on the same page about finances and travel expectations. 
5.) The Route 
Where the hell are we going!? Great freakin question! Well, we are hoping to explore America for a bit and end up on the East Coast. We have 1 solid plan for our entire trip thus far, by the way - we leave in 7 days as I type. We are going North to hike the Lost Coast Trail. It is roughly 5 hours North of San Francisco and is a 4 day backpacking trail along the coast. It’s supposed to beautiful!! Other than that, we have ZERO things planned. Yupp, sorry people who want to meet up! We have no idea when we will be anywhere and it’s kind of liberating not having a set itinerary (like the rest of our lives). After our backpacking trek, we want to continue to head North into Oregon and Washington hiking and camping along the way. On June 21 (the day after we leave) we will find out if Canada is opening up to outsiders because COVID is still a thing even though a lot of people have changed their ways. So, if Canada opens up we will 100% be visiting and going to Banff and if it doesn’t open we will head East on along the North America. We plan on stopping to camp and see as many of the national parks, state parks, and cool shit as possible. We may stay a week in some places and a day in others. We may stop at friends places for a night and others for a beer, who knows and who cares! We are just going to go with the flow and enjoy the ride. 
We do plan on eventually making it to the East Coast and landing in Rockville, MD where I grew up. This is where my friends and some family will actually get to meet my husband. It’s crazy to think that a lot of my friends and family still don’t know my husband because we had to cancel our plans do to COVID and go tiny. We hope to spend some time there, see friends, relax, and investigate the international travel situation. Due to COVID, we are hoping that in late August a lot of international 3rd world countries are open to travelers and we can head internationally. 
I really want to go to India and Nepal and Pearce really wants to go to Patagonia and South America. If I could become fluent in my Spanish it would benefit my job in so many ways. That is for sure a goal of mine and I really need to get back into my Duolingo lessons. Everything international is entirely COVID related though but I am very optimistic that in a few months more of the world will be open and we can leave the car and Loki at my parents and head out further into the world. But we aren’t going to make any plans until we get to Maryland and assess the situation so until then we shall life in the moment!! 
6.) Our Future 
Who the hell knows what tomorrow will bring. We may last a 2 weeks, we may last a month, maybe a year, maybe 3 years traveling- WHO KNOWS! What I do know is that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed so we had better make the most of today! At the moment, our future has a general direction but where that direction is heading....well, I guess we’ll find out when we get there. I am just so excited to be on a journey with my two best friends, Pearce and Loki, that I don’t really care where we go! I know it will be amazing no matter what!
Tumblr media
7 days until we depart and head towards the Lost Coast!! 
1 note · View note