1.24.2011

Instant Cure

I have a cold.

Being the daughter of a pharmacist, this is the first time I have had to deal with illness apart from the aid of medicine. In suffering from a head-cold-induced migraine, I stumbled upon the perfect "natural" cure.

Instructions:
Down 12 ounces of corn syrup laced coke while taking an excessively long, excruciatingly hot shower.

Side Effects:
You will probably deposit little, dried flakes of what used to be your skin all over the house while your insides suffer untold damage from the corn syrup, the full extent of which only your grandchildren will truly understand. Also, your husband may come home from work with inquiries as to how the bathroom paint peeled off of the walls and ceiling in the course of one day.

I deem these side effects as minor sacrifices in the name of instant gratification from pain. Attempt this cure at your own risk.

1.16.2011

The Way We Talk

I have thoroughly enjoyed the class I am taking on the orthography of the English language. The material has expanded my view of literacy, and the discussions have kept my brain sharp. We are at the point in the curriculum regarding phonology (units of speech that construct meaning).

Our teacher emphasized the point that many spelling errors are problems of orthography, not phonology, with this story. A fellow doctoral student is teaching a college level English 101 class. In an assignment, some of her students wrote the following phrases:

from the gecko

hammy downs

While we may laugh at these errors that seem like cards in Mad Gab, phonemes are rarely pure. Which just reinforces the truth I have firmly come to believe- in English, we spell things the way they mean not the way they sound.

1.12.2011

Baby Blog

I am a terrible scrapbooker. Piles of cute paper, adorable stamps, and rolls of acid-free tape sit unused in a dusty corner of the basement.

I am a terrible photographer. Not only do I not know how to use the limited advantages of my Nikon point-and-shoot, I never have the camera within reach at those "Kodak moments".

In an effort to change these shortcomings, or at least adapt to them, I have begun a "baby blog" to chronicle all these new and exciting changes. Click here to check it out!