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Post by hermoine on Nov 5, 2006 4:14:31 GMT -5
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Post by Fluffy on Nov 5, 2006 10:18:50 GMT -5
Is it really that weird? We're social creatures who have adapted, very recently but still in a useful way, to a new "sense" we've developed that allows us to communicate with members of our social groups over long distances. Would we think it weird if bees got freaked out if their sense of smell flickered on and off? Or if whales were annoyed by ocean currents messing up their long-distance calls?
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Post by Will on Nov 5, 2006 19:29:51 GMT -5
Psst, just after the tornado when it took me like 2 days to get temporary systems online, I felt like someone had amputated part of my brain. I don't think it's weird at all - but you know me, loads of weird theories about what consciousness is and where it resides - so I've never had a problem, even on the philosophical level, with considering my computer to be a detachable extension of myself. I also use computer terms to refer to my biological processes ("Nialle, you okay?" "I'm fine, just have a lot in the system tray"), but that, I admit unequivocally, is weird.
Oh, and I sometimes refer to my photo album as one of my archival drives. And sometimes I distinguish between the people who come in to sell me books by referring to them as 'flash drives' (people who sell small quantities of really awesome books frequently), 'zip drives' (people who bring in everything and the kitchen sink once in a while) and 'CDRs' (people who bring in a box or two of topically-related books)... ok, so I'm weird. WEIRD?! You're like the coolest person in the world right now. Well, for me at least, and quirky = cool. But seriously, reading that just made my day. My spirits have been lifted.
Although I still think I should pull myself away from my laptop more often. Walk around, get some fresh air instead of sitting here in my room. [But then again I had to go three weeks without internet at all over the summer. Maybe that's enough of a break for now?]
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Post by Sphi on Nov 19, 2006 17:27:05 GMT -5
It's become very Christmas-y in here! Ah, I can't wait until winter break, when I can just do nothing for a couple of weeks. I know it's a little early, but anyone have any holiday plans in store? Or even for Thanksgiving? (Slightly more realistic. )
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Post by Will on Dec 3, 2006 14:52:28 GMT -5
Finals week is drawing near... I'm so scared right now.
But anyway, speaking of the holidays, I went to a Christmas parade the other day. It was amazing! And we were singing Christmas carols as we walked toward the downtown area where the parade took place. It was so much fun!
I'm sooo looking forward to my three week holiday, but I don't think we are doing anything special... aside from family dinners and such.
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Brielle/Missy
Slytherin Alumni
Come to the dark side.We have cookies.
Posts: 3,905
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Post by Brielle/Missy on Dec 12, 2006 16:39:34 GMT -5
Hey lovies..how are you all?
Haha yah..I tend to just poke my head in and out don't I?
Anyway I came by to wish you all a Merry Christmas and uh..well if you don't celebrate Christmas then Happy Holidays!
Im back in NY now..going to school & working full time. So my head is like swarming.
I should be stopping by more frequently now though..Im finding more and more free computer time at work.
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Post by Sphi on Dec 15, 2006 17:03:00 GMT -5
Hey, Bri Happy holidays to you, too!! It's been really quiet lately, so stop by whenever you can and chat.
I'm finally done with finals. This week has been so stressful. But now I get to look forward to relaxing and doing nothing for a while.
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Post by Will on Jan 17, 2007 1:48:01 GMT -5
I'm sorry Slytherins. So, so sorry. =[ Uni life is a bit draining. Most of the time I just want to sit around and do nothing. And this quarter there are two nights when I can't even eat dinner. So I snack on Cheerios when I get back to my room. Now I'm going to stop whining. :X
Mi dispiace! [I'm sorry in Italian. Sadly, I still can't say much else.]
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Post by hermoine on Jan 17, 2007 9:29:36 GMT -5
ZOMG! Dost I hear right? Will speaking Italian? Mia cara, e bello sentirti parlare cosi! (translated: My dear, it's beautiful/wonderful listening to you talk like this). Seriously, sometime you and I need to have an audio conversation so we can hear each other blabber on about Italian.
Cheerios are good! Oh oh you ever tried Chocolate Squares? The ones with the squirrell on the box? They are jummie in milk. *drools* And that's coming from someone who hates taking cereal and prefers to breakfast in a more English fashion...tea and toast please.
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Post by Will on Jan 17, 2007 14:08:00 GMT -5
I can hardly say I speak Italian, but I want to really, really badly! So far I can say a few phrases and I know a bunch of words. I think I just need practice and to study flash cards to build up my vocab. Plus, I'm better at reading Italian than having a conversation in it. It's so hard to follow what people are saying, well, what the professor is saying.
Let's see... << I understood most of that sentence except for "sentirti" and the only other time I have seen "cosi" used is when you say "Cosi cosi" after someone asks "Come stai". But that's with the accent mark on the I so it's probably a different word completely?
Maybe you can help me. We can have silly conversations consisting of itty-bitty sentences. I don't even know most of the colors. My professor keeps bringing up "vino rosso" so I know what red is. ;D
Aaaaand, I have not tried Chocolate Squares. It sounds good though! Mmmm, tea and toast. That's the kind of breakfast I like as well.
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Post by hermoine on Jan 17, 2007 17:22:48 GMT -5
Try and see if you can find simple comics in Italian and stuff like that. They're generally pretty simple to read and fun at the same time. And of course we can have conversations! Whenever you want my dear. If you have MSN it would be even easier, or the latest version of Yahoo Messenger(the one which lets you see Windows Live Messenger people).
Teehee you can have vino bianco as well you know that ey? That would be "white wine" peeps. I'm a wine person, so I know. Some of them are pretty easy though. Like "blu" for "blue"...personally I find them easier because Italian "blu" is the same word we use in Maltese because a lot of Maltese vocabulary is of Romantic origin. Knowing French or Spanish tends to help as well because they're all Romantic languages.
And by the way, "sentirti" is derived from the the verb "sentire", to listen. As for "cosi", yes it's the same one with the accent but I couldn't do it with the accent here. XD
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Post by Sphi on Jan 17, 2007 18:39:18 GMT -5
Hi, Will! Good to see you back. Hope you'll drop by ore often!! I admit I like to sit around and do nothing once in a while too. Anyways, other than draining, how is college so far?!
Oooh, Hermy. Can you teach me some Italian/French too? I'm planning on taking a semester of French next year, but Italian seems like such a lovely language too.
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Post by Will on Jan 19, 2007 15:13:20 GMT -5
Italian comics. Okay, gotcha. Do you happen to have an recommendations? And I love the idea of buying HP books in a different language to help build vocabulary. I think I'll try that method as well. Oh, how about music? Do you have any favourite Italian singers or bands I can look up?
My biggest problem is conversation though. I get so tongue-tied and stumble when I don't know what I want to say, or how to say it. So yeah, it takes forever for me to respond because I have to think of what I want to say in English first and then attempt to translate it. But before that I have to translate what the person is saying to me and... ACK. You get the picture. Sadly, I don't have either MSN or Yahoo Messenger, but I'll definitely look into it.
The order of words also throws me off too. But I'll get better! Yes I will!
Hi Silver! We can learn Italian from Professor Hermoine! ;D College is college, I suppose. I'm enjoying the majority of my classes, but it's still a lot of work. And since I live off campus, it's a lot of running around... back and forth.
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Post by hermoine on Jan 20, 2007 8:29:46 GMT -5
Personally I find Italian and French to be pretty similar languages in terms of vocabulary. The trouble comes when I need to conjugate a verb in French and it comes out in Italian. Yesterday I was in French class and had to conjugate the verb "to take" as in to take someone somewhere. The sole word which came to mind was "porter" which is of course derived from the verb "portare" (i.e. to take in italian).
But I'd be more than happy to help you ladies! We just have to devise a way to do it. Hmmm...
Unfortunately I don't read Italian comics so I can't suggest any. But with French I used to get these very thin magazines suitable for teenagers who are learning French. Each article explained to you the more difficult words too. As for italian music...I love it! Personally my most favourite Italian singer is Eros Ramazzotti but if you tell me what kind of music you like maybe I could help you a bit more.
That's the point of having the conversation then my dear? Because if you get stuck it's easy to just ask and you'll be sure you're getting it right and everything. We all have to start from somewhere don't worry. I was in a similar state when I first started learning French, gosh a good 6 years ago. XD Time does fly...
Do you live very far away from college Sphi? Personally it takes me about 20-30 minutes by bus and then a 10 minute walk to get there. With University it's different because there's a bus which takes you there directly. Hopefully I'll be going there next year heh...
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Post by Sphi on Jan 20, 2007 15:03:19 GMT -5
Can you teach us the present verb tenses for French and Italian? I think that's what language texts usually start with.
I live on campus, so it's pretty convenient. I'm within walking distance of most the buildings, although I do need to take a bus to the other side of campus every once in a while, too. But I'm thinking about moving off-campus next year, mostly for cost reasons.
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