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[theinevitable]

In the other direction, because I am a perpetual child, today I saw a woman/former student in my program who I had met when I came to visit. I walked over and informed her that she is the person who convinced me to come here, and it was clearly uncomfortable for her that she did not remember me. Oops! Don't sweat it, lady!

She has literally a job I would kill for, so maybe she should be a little uncomfortable. (bad joke? not OK joke?)

(dan is the guy who has weird ideas romanticizing working in a horrible government bureaucracy. I am the only human who thinks "NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development" sounds cool and fun.)

[wombat]

I am the only human who thinks "NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development" sounds cool and fun.)

Nope.

[Carlos del Vaca]

I guess I don't scare kids anymore because now I got a several little girls and boys who queue up for their morning Hi-5's before I leave. We have fun and they really go for it.

Just wear this:
http://www.topatoco.com/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=TO&Product_Code=WON-ACCEPTS&Category_Code=ALLSHIRTS

[AugustWest]

(dan is the guy who has weird ideas romanticizing working in a horrible government bureaucracy. I am the only human who thinks "NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development" sounds cool and fun.)

Bureaucrat for life, right here.

[theinevitable]

I am having culture shock moving from a household where we cleaned the kitchen maybe once a month if someone remembered, to a household where I clean the counter and stove after I cook but someone sends me a text message about missing a spot.

Someone in my program referred to my roommate as a drama queen and that is 100% accurate. If there's a spot you missed cleaning it's "filthy," if some cooking oil splattered on the tea pot it's "getting ruined." Gimme a break bro.

After my last class this week I'm getting in the car to drive to Boston and meet up with my family. That is going to be good. I can't wait. And tomorrow I'm going to see a movie in NYC with a friend from college I haven't seen in ages. Today just reading some research for a future paper.

edit: I think we had talked on here before about different ways of seeing messes-- "there's a cup half-full of water in the sink, there's a spot of soup on the burner, and someone left the paprika out" vs "this kitchen is messy right now."

[theinevitable]

I just cannot wrap my mind around the idea that some people strongly differentiate between a "bathroom" and a "restroom"/WC/Toilet room to the point that when I ask where the bathroom is they will think I need a bath. I need someone to find me an example of something Americans needlessly differentiate between so that I can feel less frustrated with this. I think I remember a frustrating argument with someone about freeway/highway/parkway

Yesterday on Duolingo I read a long comment thread about whether "to ride a bike" is the appropriate translation for "fietsen" (the action of biking). With some English-speakers claiming no one would ever say "to bike," others saying everyone says "to bicycle," and others that only "to ride a bike" is acceptable. One person was even saying that Americans assume "to bike" means to ride a motorcycle.

In other linguistic news, I read today about how linguists believe that German is moving, slowly, towards using a more English-like (Subject Verb Object) word order, and that it seems to be following a pattern similar to the pattern English followed back in the day. It is now getting closer, if I remember right, to the Dutch word order, which is S-V-O in main clauses and S-O-V in dependent clauses. I can't celebrate this one, "I have her in the kitchen helping needful" is way more fun than "I need her help in the kitchen."

Whoa: just learned that in Dutch "each" is elke, and "which" is "welke"... which makes me realize "which" is w+each.

[wombat]

In New Jersey there are people who think a bathroom means you want to take a bath? Or are you on a trip now that I missed?

I think there are definitely people to whom "bike" means motorcycle in contrast to bicycle. But only people who, like, actually have motorcycles in their life. To the rest of us it's short for bicycle. 

[theinevitable]

no, I just keep getting questions wrong on duolingo, and it is reminding me that I have had that issue when I traveled in the past.
Related: if your language is one of those languages, make this clear in phrasebooks for tourists.

[pmcd9]

On some television show the other day I saw someone get called out for calling a bathroom a restroom. The distinction I gathered in that context was that a restroom is in public and a bathroom is in someone's home. My reaction was aren't those two things the same, interchangeable words? I didn't know that this was a thing now.

[theinevitable]

Yeah, apparently a lot of languages make that distinction. When I was talking to that cute German girl she actually refused to believe that I used those words interchangeably, and got mad at me for not admitting I was "just teasing." Also when I was in Italy in high school I asked where the bathroom was and they always said there isn't one and looked perturbed/confused.

I also have this problem, no matter how hard I try, with "sweater" and "sweatshirt." Why is that the one item of clothing where what material it's made of matters? Or is it OK to call sweatshirts sweaters, like a jeans/##### thing?

Oh, better example: it seems like a lot of languages use the same word for "morning" and "tomorrow." Maybe we're the weird ones there.

[wombat]

On some television show the other day I saw someone get called out for calling a bathroom a restroom. The distinction I gathered in that context was that a restroom is in public and a bathroom is in someone's home. My reaction was aren't those two things the same, interchangeable words? I didn't know that this was a thing now.

Seriously, some people need to find better things to nitpick about.

[jaydub]

Maybe its because here we adopted daily-ish bathing and indoor toilets at about the same time.

[wombat]

By the way, in some places the distinction between "bathroom" and "restroom"/WC/Toilet room" isn't some kind of weird nitpicky language thing. In Japan they are always actually separate rooms.

[theinevitable]

Abruptly find that I have lost a lot of my focus/energy to deal with school. I find myself completely zoning out in class and suddenly realize I'm staring at the wall with my jaw hanging open. What gives? Come on dude, you mostly care about this stuff. I'm having this problem even in the classes I really like. Ugh.

And of course this is right when I suddenly have tons and tons of work to do.

[theinevitable]

Did research all day and was pretty reasonably focused, then went on a nice date and got an intense goodnight kiss. Everything's coming up Milhouse.

(damn this girl is smart and sweet and really cute don't screw this up inev)