Estudiando español

Ahora cuando me hablo en mi apartamiento, en el invernadero, o mientras de andar en bicicleta, me hablo español. Creo que es una buena señal. Quisiera hablar español como una latinaamericana un día. De verdad. Esto es el comienzo. Puedo entender y puedo escribir, pero hablar... Pienso que tengo un oído para los idiomas -- ¿es posible de decirlo en español? -- pero puedo sentir la diferencia entre aprender un idioma el la escuela secundaria y aprender un idioma cuando tiene casi treinte años. Que me gusta aprender lenguas todavía.

Même en français, je crois que je parle comme une americaine. La forme de mes phrases trahissent toujours un cerveau qui pense en anglais. Mon accent et mon intonation pas résister. Je n'ai pas assez lu pour être une vrai française -- même si des français me demandent si je suis française. Si j'avais dit plus qu'un mot ou deux, ils ne l'auraient pas dire.

Agus tá mo chuid Gaeilge an-beagán.

Caravan Palace

Gypsy jazz + swing. I like.

Garble

It's either the last day before the onslaught, or one of the last days of the onslaught, or I suppose it could be an ordinary day mid-onslaught. In any case, I am busy. School starts tomorrow, and I'm already thinking of dropping classes. I am still working on this summer research project. I still need to apply to graduate school, and, before that, to research graduate schools to apply to. Next week will be all experiment harvest, all the time, followed by a whirlwind trip to Los Angeles for a wedding.

Have been keeping to myself with a cold this last week and some. Reading, reading and reading. Getting some things done. Feeling the dwindling of the piggy bank creeping up. Not really having enough time to think anything fully through. Still hearing good things about my performance from the lab folks, for which I am grateful.

My sister moved here yesterday, which is highly exciting. I just wish I wasn't so tired so I could revel in the excitement. It's been oddly quiet lately, partly à cause de la grippe, partly because summer is such a good time for getting away, mais tout le monde reviendra cette semaine des vaccances que je n'ai pas pu faire cette année, et c'est bien ça. En même temps, I'm feeling a hint nervous about it all -- surtout la retour du Canada de ce mec à qui Sarah m'a présenté. Pas de raison, mais le voilà. J'ai appris comment ne pas avoir besoin de rien. I really need to learn to speak better French.

I do like being busy and being productive, and I feel I've been both most of this summer, but nothing takes the place of a good mental holiday. Def missing that right now.

Oh my god.

Two things:
1. This three year old badass recites poetry better than most adults. Is this what it will take to get into college in the future? Thank god he's not applying to grad school this fall.
2. I really need to read more Billy Collins.

Upon having discovered that I truly am a nerd

I am really, really enjoying reading this Primer of Ecological Statistics. There's no denying it now. Will I ever be invited to cocktail parties again? Wait, have I ever been invited to cocktail parties? Gasp.

Medium

I am sometimes confused about medium. It's not because of the colored synesthesia that words remind me of painting. This week, though, I feel like I'm dancing. Ballroom dancing with a good partner. With the right words, I can feel that perfect pressure on my back, and I don't step on any toes.

Writer's block

Further evidence that bicycles are sexy

A man in a black Volkswagon nearly hit me trying to hand this little slip of paper to me while driving yesterday. I wonder how often he tries this tactic and what his success rate is. Also, does he carry pre-written slips of paper with his phone number on them just in case? Or did he somehow manage to also tear off a bit paper and write his information out, also while driving? As Matt would correct me, there is at least one way to find out.

1906

Someone found these old glass negatives of the 1906 San Francisco shake down. Pretty crazy. It kind of makes me want to read history books.

Lydia the Tattooed Lady

I'm kind of in awe of these lyrics...

My life was wrapped around the circus.
Her name was Lydia.
I met her at the world's fair in 1900,
marked down from 1940.
Courtesy of YouTube, watch Groucho Marx singing 'Lydia the Tattooed Lady

Ah, Lydia.
She was the most glorious creature
Under the su-un.
Guiess. DuBarry. Garbo.
Rolled into one.

Oooooooh
Lydia oh Lydia, say have you met Lydia,
Lydia, the Tattooed Lady.
She has eyes that folks adore so,
And a torso even more so.

Lydia oh Lydia, that encyclopidia,
Oh Lydia the Queen of Tattoo.
On her back is the Battle of Waterloo.
Beside it the wreck of the Hesperus, too.
And proudly above waves the Red, White, and Blue,
You can learn a lot from Lydia.

La la la, la la la, la la la, la la la

When her robe is unfurled, she will show you the world,
If you step up and tell her where.
For a dime you can see Kankakee or Paris,
Or Washington crossing the Delaware.

La la la, la la la, la la la, la la la

Oh Lydia oh Lydia, say have you met Lydia,
Oh Lydia the Tattooed Lady
When her muscles start relaxin',
Up the hill comes Andrew Jackson

Lydia oh Lydia, that encyclopidia,
oh Lydia the queen of them all!
For two bits she will do a mazurka in jazz,
With a view of Niagara that nobody has.
And on a clear day you can see Alcatraz.
You can learn a lot from Lydia.

La la la, la la la, la la la, la la la

Come along and see Buff'lo Bill with his lasso.
Just a little classic by Mendel Picasso.
Here is Captain Spaulding exploring the Amazon.
Here's Godiva but with her pajamas on.

La la la, la la la, la la la, la la la

Here is Grover Whalen unveilin' the Trilon.
Over on the West Coast we have Treaure Island.
Here's Najinsky a-doin' the rhumba.
Here's her social security numba.

{whistles}La la la, la la la, la la la, la la la

Oh Lydia, oh Lydia that encyclopidia,
Oh Lydia the champ of them all.
She once swept an Admiral clear off his feet.
The ships on her hips made his heart skip a beat.
And now the old boy's in command of the fleet,
For he went and married Lydia.

I said Lydia
{He said Lydia}
They said Lydia
{We said Lydia}
La La!

The way everything is made that much better with a fleur de lys

I was terribly pleased with the quiche I made with Matthew when we had our tiny dinner party on Friday. Such a lovely evening.

Accept the mystery

It has been a crazy few weeks. Everything that could have been wrong has been right. And now, listening to discussion of the nuclear holocaust on the radio, the last connection between reality and my feet has been replaced by space. The next two weeks should be quieter, and I'm looking forward to just letting it all sink in.

Section quartet

So good. Black Hole Sun is even better than the original. Swoon. I love me some string section.

Were you aware of it? vol. 32: Sibs

It's still just a factor, obv, but I find the explanation of how birth order affects IQ fascinating. It really is important to expose kids to sophisticated conversation. So true for my family, in any case.