Hamster

Hamster: "This lively pet hamster will keep you company throughout the day. Watch him run on his wheel, drink water, and eat the food you feed him by clicking your mouse. Click the center of the wheel to make him get back on it."

English 101: How we REALLY talk

As summer comes to an end and school creeps closer, one thing has been on my mind lately: summer school work. I began writing an essay that's due on the first day of school while IM-ing a friend of mine. As we chatted nonsense I completely lost focus on my paper and thought 

"Ya know, the way we talk is way different from how we write formally. That must be a huge pain for people trying to learn english."

And ya know, it's kinda true. Think about it: when we write letters or essays, everything is grammatically perfect, because it has to be. But when we talk, there's no spell check or little paper clip guy popping up and saying "It looks like you're trying to present an idea." We just kinda ramble on and on, not always using the best grammar, but everyone understands what you mean.


Imagine not knowing english and talking to anyone who uses slang (which is basically everyone)... what a nightmare!!! So this next part of my blog is dedicated to the crazy stuff english- speakers say that really don't really make any sense.


1. Squishing things together.
We tend to turn individual words and individual phrases into big monster words, or things, when written out, that don't even resemble words any more!

• I am going to want to go eat later = I'm gonnawanna go grab a bite.
• What's up? = Wazzap
• What do you want? = Watcha want?
• Going to = Gonna
• Have to = Hafta
• Would you..? = Wouldja...?

2. Weird Phrases. 
There are some seemingly normal phrases in English that make perfect sense to us, but imagine figuring these out when you take them literally.

• Let's leave = let's hit the road! = smacking pavement??
• It's raining really hard! = It's raining cats and dogs! =  Animals falling from the sky?
• That's ridiculous = that's whack! = ...?

3. Dialects.
Sometimes it's not our fault if we don't speak "perfect" English, it is usually a regional slang.

• Urban: Ew! You're disgusting! = YO! Ya'll nastay!
• Urban: I'm going to = ima
• Southern: you all = Ya'll 

*Ironic note: Both southerners and urbanites use ya'll, huh*

• Pennsyltucky (western PA) the milk is empty =  the milk'sall
• Pennsyltucky antsy = rutchy
• Massachusetts/ north east soda = pop
• Boston food = noms

4. Instant messenger 

I think there should be a separate dictionary for online speak, because sometimes it's nearly impossible to decipher. But it does make typing faster. (If it wasn't for the judgement of online readers, I would totally use AIM slang right now, but it makes stuff look sloppy.) But here are some "words" we use everyday online that if shown to a foreigner, or an English teacher would make no sense at all.

• Be right back = BRB
• I'm laughing because that's funny, but you can't hear me through this dang computer = LOL (laughing out loud)
• I'm laughing so hard that I just fell off of my chair and am on the floor rolling around = ROFL (rolling on the floor laughing)
• I have to go, sorry = G2G, :/
• Okay, thanks = K thx
• Okay = KK
• I'll be back later = BBL
• What??? = ??????????
• Definitely = Def
• By the way = BTW
• WTF = Whales that fly
• Going to = gonna
• Probably = probs

There are tons more where those came from, but that would be über boring to read, so I'll skip to the crazy part: some of these abbreviations are used so much, that now we SPEAK them!! People say "lol" and I just want to say "I'm right here! I can hear you laugh for real!" 

The whole "saying IM slang" really bugs me, because it's actually shorter to say "By the way" than "BTW" (bee- tee- double-you). But I hafta be honest, I am guilty of saying "Bee-tee-dubs" and "BRB" and who isn't? But as a true hypocrite, I do think it's annoying, but hey, I can't control how the world talks. :)

I'm not saying everyone should stop the slang and straighten up, it's just funny to think about and listen to when you're with people from different areas.

One last note on grammar: 

there: describes a place/ "there are"

they're: they are
their: possessive (belonging to them)


your: possessive
you're: you are
ur: you're an idiot




:D

My First Post! WOO!

Hey! Welcome to my blog! Thanks for reading, if there is anyone reading... That's the one thing that always freaks me out a little about blogging, and Twitter and Facebook updates: is anyone actually reading? Does anybody really care? 

Yet despite the fact that no blogger really knows if anyone reads their posts, we post stuff all the same. We have no idea if anyone will read it or not, but it's out there, our thoughts, our funny ideas, our complaints, everything is out there for the world to see...or not see. This idea is kinda what inspired the name of my blog; "Adding to the Noise" is a song by the band Switchfoot (Their Website: GO THERE!!!). Not only do I love this band and this song, but I love the message behind the song. The chorus goes: "If we're adding to the noise, turn off this song" and that just makes me think of the thousands of people who write on blogs such as this one, and just add to the noise of the world, maybe without ever even being heard. 

Now I'm one of the people making noise, and let's face it there are TONS of people adding to the noise of life. But the beauty of life is that when we begin to go deaf and can't stand it any longer, we can just turn off the song and let everything settle down. 

The one visual I get when I picture blogs and anything else that can be posted to the web is millions and millions of people, typing furiously away at their computers and sending their heart-filled blogs and videos off to a huge, space-like tunnel, where their work travels along until it is clicked or viewed or whatever. In that massive tunnel, there are billions of posts and videos, but only  some stuff ever gets looked at, a handful get viewed regularly, and a tiny smidgen of them get big publicity. 

This, to me is what blogging is, sending out ideas into the world and praying someone notices it, and maybe even leaves a comment, even though the odds are greatly stacked against you. 

But ya know what? 

I don't care if no one ever reads this blog. 

It's fun to think someone will, and that someone I've never met is reading my ideas, and in a way "listening" to me, but really, it's fun for me. When it comes down to it, I am adding to the noise, and you can turn off my song if you want, but I don't care, I may not even know that you've done it. So continue to do as you please, and I will do what I like, which is ADDING TO THE NOISE.  :D