about six weeks ago, i got a student straight from M-i-s-s-i-s-s-i-p-p-i.
well, not straight from Mississippi. he caught a few rides with some semi-trucks with people he semi-knew and came semi-straight here--just a slight detour through North Dakota.
sort of like a Southwest flight.
i can semi-understand him. but thanks to my Philly language training plus my many conversations with Dawgs fan Matt Murray, i figured Girek out pretty quick.
another student of mine, David, who is White Hispanic, often quips to me, "you don't like me cuz i'm Black." it is usually easily ignored.
except that he said it to me on Girek's second day.
David: "you don't like me cuz i'm Black."
Miss Bankhead: "you're not Black."
Girek: (to David) "who you callin' Black?"
David: (with chin buried in chest) "me. sometimes i say i'm Black."
Girek: (confused) "but you not Black."
Miss Bankhead is getting uncomfortable.
David: "but i want those bunnies."
Girek: "what? you think all black people got bunyons?"
David: "bunnies."
Girek: "cuz i don't got bunyons! my grandma--she got bunyons."
Miss Bankhead: "David, what the crap are you talking about?"
Girek: "don't go around saying all Black people got bunyons."
Miss Bankhead: "david are you talking about legs?"
Girek: "you don't get bunyons on your legs! you get 'em on your feet! it's that bone that sticks out."
David: "bunnies."
Miss Bankhead: (who is deducing from the students around that "bunnies" means calf muscles somehow) "no, Girek, calf muscles."
David: "yeah. bunnies. for jumpin'."
Girek: "oh yeah. white boys don't jump. I can jump."
David: "bunnies."
translation successful. problem solved.
*special thanks to Kaylee for the Mississippi spell check
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
business
these are a few of the things that have been going on lately: zach is getting really good at spitting in a straight line and hitting the garbage can. mani was in a car accident. cutting the left side of her face up pretty badly. she still has her sight, but quite a few deep scars. _____ lost a baby. ______had an abortion. _______fell of the wagon, which she has been on since she was 14, after being an alcoholic for two years before that. anna has a new boyfriend and is quite excited. _____ was hospitalized for depression. _______'s father was deported. raymond dropped out, but then came back, much to my delight!
keanu has been finishing his assignments lately, and now has a C+ in my classes; i am taking ben out of his world civ class, in which he has a 10%, and making him do the work in my class, since i can command him and he obeys. until he reads this. my blog is really ugly. the soccer team is playing Highland tomorrow. they whipped Cottonwood last week. receipts are due for any expenses we've spent on the classroom. we get reimbursed here--can you believe it?! whoop for Utah.
a Cottonwood Heights cop was in the parking lot today, causing quite the stir. Camille won a car from Ken Garff, it was most deserved. Manases and i got into an debate about the reality of zombies, he won due to his proof via Wikipedia of the toxoplasma gondii parasite. blast. ritchie rarely comes to school anymore, so i sent him a note on a hot-pink piece of paper. the next day as i was practically tripping down the stairs carrying a box of books, he was at the bottom waving it at me. awesome. _____ just found out he's going to daddy. he's 16.
meanwhile, we are learning about commonly confused words. behold:
Name____________________________________
Commonly Confused Vocabulary Words
affect/effect
affect—verb, to influence something else. The bad weather will affect her illness.
effect—noun, a result of something. The effect of the bad weather is that she got sick.
between/among
between—use it when you are talking about two things. I am choosing between a Toyota or a Ford.
among—use it when you are talking about three or more things. I am deciding from among all the cars in the lot.
either/neither
neither—use it to reject only two things. Neither of those shoes gives me blisters.
OR—use it to agree with a negative statement. She doesn’t want any soup and neither do I.
either—use it to mention only two things. I have a blister from either my flipflop or my sandal.
OR—use it to agree with a negative statement in a different way. She doesn’t want any soup. I don’t, either.
fewer/less
less—use when you are talking about one item. I would like less cheese.
fewer—use when you are talking about two or more items. I would like fewer onions and tomatoes.
good/well
good—use when you are describing an object. That burger is good!
well—use when you are describing an action. She swims well.
irregardless/regardless
irregardless—no such word! Don’t use it! It’s like saying “I could care less.” It doesn’t work.
regardless—not paying attention to a possible problem. He is not going to do his homework, regardless of his grade.
waste/waist
waste—lots of meanings. Stuff you throw away. Stuff you needlessly use up. Slang for kill. You got it. Don’t waste your talent.
waist—that body part that girls want to be small and boys don’t really have. When a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist and a….
NOW:
Write a sentence, using each word correctly.
keanu has been finishing his assignments lately, and now has a C+ in my classes; i am taking ben out of his world civ class, in which he has a 10%, and making him do the work in my class, since i can command him and he obeys. until he reads this. my blog is really ugly. the soccer team is playing Highland tomorrow. they whipped Cottonwood last week. receipts are due for any expenses we've spent on the classroom. we get reimbursed here--can you believe it?! whoop for Utah.
a Cottonwood Heights cop was in the parking lot today, causing quite the stir. Camille won a car from Ken Garff, it was most deserved. Manases and i got into an debate about the reality of zombies, he won due to his proof via Wikipedia of the toxoplasma gondii parasite. blast. ritchie rarely comes to school anymore, so i sent him a note on a hot-pink piece of paper. the next day as i was practically tripping down the stairs carrying a box of books, he was at the bottom waving it at me. awesome. _____ just found out he's going to daddy. he's 16.
meanwhile, we are learning about commonly confused words. behold:
Name____________________________________
Commonly Confused Vocabulary Words
affect/effect
affect—verb, to influence something else. The bad weather will affect her illness.
effect—noun, a result of something. The effect of the bad weather is that she got sick.
between/among
between—use it when you are talking about two things. I am choosing between a Toyota or a Ford.
among—use it when you are talking about three or more things. I am deciding from among all the cars in the lot.
either/neither
neither—use it to reject only two things. Neither of those shoes gives me blisters.
OR—use it to agree with a negative statement. She doesn’t want any soup and neither do I.
either—use it to mention only two things. I have a blister from either my flipflop or my sandal.
OR—use it to agree with a negative statement in a different way. She doesn’t want any soup. I don’t, either.
fewer/less
less—use when you are talking about one item. I would like less cheese.
fewer—use when you are talking about two or more items. I would like fewer onions and tomatoes.
good/well
good—use when you are describing an object. That burger is good!
well—use when you are describing an action. She swims well.
irregardless/regardless
irregardless—no such word! Don’t use it! It’s like saying “I could care less.” It doesn’t work.
regardless—not paying attention to a possible problem. He is not going to do his homework, regardless of his grade.
waste/waist
waste—lots of meanings. Stuff you throw away. Stuff you needlessly use up. Slang for kill. You got it. Don’t waste your talent.
waist—that body part that girls want to be small and boys don’t really have. When a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist and a….
NOW:
Write a sentence, using each word correctly.
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