We made the news again! The gypsy moths made it a week ago, but this week … the town water is polluted! So exciting! And here we are, outside of town and we have our own well water. Our water is fine, though who know how much the flushing of the city tanks is going to affect water pressure all over the area.
Oh, update. They fixed it. So you can drink the water again. Yay.
And now, to the main event:
SHARE YOUR WORLD – 2016 WEEK 25
How many languages do you speak?
Define speak. Fluently? I speak English. American English. Regionally northeast U.S.A. with strong overtones of New York and Boston.
I used to speak Hebrew with a grating American accent. The accent was bad enough to make people say “Speak English, please!” I am living proof that being musical and having natural aptitude for languages are not the same skill set.
I still can speak Hebrew a little, but I understand a lot more than I can speak. I also understand a good deal of spoken French (all those years of schooling had some effect, however minimal), but when I try to speak, Hebrew comes out. My language buffers are insufficient and need a serious upgrade.
What are some words that just make you smile?
Wicked which, in New England, means “great, terrific, fabulous.” Wicked good is about as good as it gets.
If you were the original architect of one existing building, which building would you select?
I think I’d go with the Boston Statehouse, which is very similar to the Capitol building in D.C. Same architect, same general design, but the one in Washington is much larger. I rather like our comparatively intimate edifice. Once, when I was new in Boston, Garry took me in, introduced me to one of the “old guard” people who worked there … and I got the absolutely best tour of the building you could imagine. And a lot of anecdotes to go with it.
Bill Weld was governor then and I remember Garry asking “is Himself in? I’d like him to meet my friend.” Sadly, The Honorable Governor Weld was not in attendance that day. I would have like to meet him. I’m told he was a big Pink Floyd fan.
Would you rather have telepathy or telekinesis?
Actually, I’ll hold out for teleportation. I want to take my whole body to other places. I can walk to the kitchen and get a coke without special powers, but getting myself across the ocean to Switzerland, England, France … or Australia? That might need a more powerful magic.
Barring teleportation, I want to be a full-fledged superhero … or a powerful wizard. Or both, please.
As for telepathy? I hate eavesdropping.
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Categories: #gallery, #Photography, Archeology, Humor
SERENDIPITY: SEEKING INTELLIGENT LIFE ON EARTH 
The state house looks a little stuffy but attractive as a whole. And about your water situation.., I picture Garry settin’ on the front porch, shot gun in hand, keepin’ out the water well poachers. There’s a picture in there somewhere, or maybe a movie starring “Uxbridge Blackie” Mild Mannered Rancher, just doin’ what’s right by what’s his’n?
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I wonder what happened to teaching French in school between my generation and the one that came before me. It seems all my elders took French in high school, yet the only two languages my class was offered was Spanish and German. I took the Spanish, and remember almost none of it which was a waste of two years of schooling, but a requirement to graduate….
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The Boston Statehouse is none too shabby, Marilyn. I would be elated to have designed that one too.
Leslie
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It’s a lovely building. Elegant, not excessively ornate, and a nice, human size. There are other nice buildings from the same period, but that one’s my favorite.
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I think it possess a balance and symmetry, a true classic.
Leslie
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And it is lovely inside (mostly) also.
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Thanks Marilyn for sharing this week. 😀
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You are very welcome, Cee.
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And don’t forget the late great Wicked Wilson Pickett or simply Wicked Pickett!
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It’s all the fault of LL Bean and their “Wicked Good Slippers.” They’ve exported our best slang all over the world 🙂
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We have “wicked” here too. It started as kids (you know the ones – baseball caps and trousers slung under the bum) and became “normal”. The kids were upset at this and started using “sick” instead.
No wonder non-English speakers have such a hard time with colloquial English. You have to know the context and read tone of voice and body language to work out if someone means “good” or “bad”.
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Apparently wickedness has spread throughout the English-speaking world. “Sick” is common here, too. Let’s blame it on the Internet. It’s totally ruined the uniqueness of our regional slang.
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Who poisoned the water? Is there a list of suspects? learnt Arabic for a year once, but decided it was a little too much with Russian as a side dish. I believe there are similarities between Hebrew and arabic.
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I’m suspecting the crews rebuilding the water mains in town. I don’t it’s a coincidence. Messing with water mains always stirs up problems.
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Round up the usual suspects!
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I remember “wicked” being used in that way here in Australia. You don’t hear it so much now. It seems to have been overtaken by “sick” as the word for something great. That must be a younger generation thing although I’m not sure if that is still the trendy word. I like your Statehouse but then I am a sucker for anything with a dome.
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Domes were very IN during the late 1700s. Which was when our countries were doing massive public works projects. I’m betting your public buildings look like ours. Those architects got around 😀
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We do have some very nice domed buildings in Australia although from a slightly later period. The parliament houses in each state were built in either the Georgian or Victorian periods. None of them have a single dome like your Statehouse or the Capitol building however.
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The late 1700s and early 1800s here are known (architecturally) as “Federalist Period.” Probably because that was the reigning political party. Of course, all the architects were originally British, which is why you will find similar stuff in a lot of places. Apparently you had to travel around to get those big projects 🙂 And they all influenced one another.
I like single domes and the relative lack of ornamentation on building from the Federal period. Victorian stuff was often a bit too gingerbread for me, though the houses are wonderful, especially inside. They are the most comfortable houses for living … if you can afford to maintain one.
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