The Chit Chat Chit Chat Thread

[Songbird76]

I took French in 8th grade and then 9-12 in high school. I can read it, but am not at all fluent. I’ve never taken formal Spanish yet I speak Spanish better than French.

My kid has been taking formal Spanish since preschool.. I honestly could care less if he ever learns French.. pretty language, although not so useful.

I don't French to be a pretty language at all...I've never had a desire to learn it. I had to sing in it for my Senior Recital and hated it. But I know, many people consider it a beautiful language. Over here, schools all seem to require at least 2 years of it. DD will have to take it starting next year. She's been using Duolingo at school to learn Spanish while the rest of her class learn English, since she's already fluent in English. I think if she was given the choice, she'd continue that instead of taking French, but she doesn't, so I guess she'll just have to keep using Duolingo for the Spanish. French is more useful here than Spanish is.

 

[DryerLintFan]

You can get medication? Man...my doctor totally sucks. He told me he couldn't do anything for me with shingles, just get this spray stuff that had a pain reliever in it to lessen the itching and pain. Thank goodness it was a very mild case, but it took more than a month to finally clear up.

Yeah they give you the same anti whatever it is drugs that they give you for herpes. But instead of needing it your whole life, you take it for two weeks.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Agree! Thanks, I didn’t even know the “hashtag Stitch” was a thing until this past November.

Hashtag Stitch? Didn't know. I just think he is cute. DD7 has a Disney gift card and she wants to use it to get another Stitch. By the way you can learn Hebrew on Duolingo. It is a free app if you don't mind advertising. My kids use it on the computer and we have it on their ipads as well.

I don't French to be a pretty language at all...I've never had a desire to learn it. I had to sing in it for my Senior Recital and hated it. But I know, many people consider it a beautiful language. Over here, schools all seem to require at least 2 years of it. DD will have to take it starting next year. She's been using Duolingo at school to learn Spanish while the rest of her class learn English, since she's already fluent in English. I think if she was given the choice, she'd continue that instead of taking French, but she doesn't, so I guess she'll just have to keep using Duolingo for the Spanish. French is more useful here than Spanish is.

Dutch is similar to German, isn't it? Was it hard to learn Dutch?

 

[Goofyernmost]

When my kids were young we were told to always have them on their stomachs. Being on their backs really is counter-intuitive considering babies are little vomit machines. To me spitting up while on their backs was very dangerous from choking to inhaling into their lungs. But, I guess going on their back has eliminated a number of SIDS victims. Don't know how, but, if it works that is great.

 

[Songbird76]

Being immersed in a language is so much better than just learning grammar which is how we were taught in school. I like your Stitch avatar by the way.

See, I need the grammar. If I know the rules, I can learn it a lot faster. When I came here, I had to take a 5 part test to see how much Dutch I already knew (not much!) and how fast I learned (pattern sequence test). So there were Written, spoken, listening, and reading components to the test and then the pattern test. They placed you in a class that matched your level and tempo. So they threw me in a group that was already at Chapter 21 in the book, and did one chapter per week. (Fast track....the other groups did one chapter every 2-3 weeks) All the grammar was in chapters 1-19, so I missed the grammar by 2 weeks and what we did was mostly vocabulary and conversational Dutch, but no grammar. My vocabulary was increasing, but my sentence structure was not good...I didn't know the rules. I started in the middle of April, and I had a couple of months in that class before the Summer break. When I came back from Summer break, they had so many new students that the class sizes were getting too big. They re-distributed the classes and ended up needing to move 4 of us up to a higher level group that worked with a different book that was strictly vocabulary and my teacher chose me as one of the students to move up. I was terrified because I didn't feel at ALL ready to move on, but it ended up being the BEST thing that could have happened because I had 2 teachers, and one of them was very grammar oriented and gave us stacks of worksheets practicing grammar. The other was conversation oriented and we practiced almost nothing but talking to each other in Dutch. So half the time I got grammar and half the time I got immersed in Dutch...now I speak pretty well, but until I got that grammar, I was lost.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

When my kids were young we were told to always have them on their stomachs. Being on their backs really is counter-intuitive considering babies are little vomit machines. To me spitting up while on their backs was very dangerous from choking to inhaling into their lungs. But, I guess going on their back has eliminated a number of SIDS victims. Don't know how, but, if it works that is great.

That's why we were told to prop them on their sides.

 

[Goofyernmost]

You can get medication? Man...my doctor totally sucks. He told me he couldn't do anything for me with shingles, just get this spray stuff that had a pain reliever in it to lessen the itching and pain. Thank goodness it was a very mild case, but it took more than a month to finally clear up.

They now have a new, supposedly more effective, Shingles vaccine. It requires two injections instead of just one. I haven't had one yet, but, intend to do so on my next Doctors visit.

Is anyone else as old as me and remember going to public places and getting Polio Vaccine shots. I was young, but, it seems like that required more then one. I'm thinking three over a period of time, but, I really don't remember clearly. At the time, anyone coming at me with what seemed like a 6 foot long needle was one to many. Now needles are so small and sharp that you really don't even feel them, back then the technology was a lot more primitive and there were many dull ones (I think they reused them a lot too.) I even had one break off in my arm when I was about 10 years old. That wasn't pleasant.

 

[Gabe1]

Hey Figgy note the following:

They are extending the EMH at the Studios for the 1st Month, July, quite a bit. They are also tweaking the hours a little.

Note: Anyone who is holding Annual Passes with block out dates, they will be blocked out for the opening of Toyland. Quite a stir from those annual pass holders that Disney is waiting until Block Out time to launch a new land. They are conceding they know they but passes with black out weeks but are less than happy Disney is choosing those weeks to launch a long anticipated land. Maybe like Avatarland they will pop a little wiggle into that park for those particular AP holders cause the natives are getting restless.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Start your engines.

 

[Songbird76]

Hashtag Stitch? Didn't know. I just think he is cute. DD7 has a Disney gift card and she wants to use it to get another Stitch. By the way you can learn Hebrew on Duolingo. It is a free app if you don't mind advertising. My kids use it on the computer and we have it on their ipads as well.

Dutch is similar to German, isn't it? Was it hard to learn Dutch?

It is pretty similar to German...pronunciation and spelling are different, but the roots of a lot of words are the same, so I can generally get the gist of something in German. Ironically, that actually made it harder for me because I studied German in high school and basically had to forget everything I knew about pronunciation or I'd get it mixed up. But, no, I didn't find it particularly difficult to learn. I had some really good teachers, and as long as I get the grammar and am told how letter combinations are pronounced, I do pretty well. I'm better with languages and creative subjects than with things like science and math. I had to take 1 year of Dutch Language school and then take a test. I had to have at least a level 2 proficiency on the test or I would have to take another 6 months. But, the test through the school only goes up to 3.2, and I got a 3.2 on every section, which meant that my proficiency was at LEAST level 3.2. I CHOSE to take the national test II, which is a level 4 test...that allows you to study at a University if you so choose...I wasn't sure if I'd need to go back to school at some point and wanted to have the option, so I took the test and passed all 4 sections before my 1 year of school was done, so I was at a level 4, which apparently is the highest level they offer for foreigners. I was very very lucky with my school placement and the teachers I had. I've heard other people's stories and they didn't have NEARLY as good of an experience learning Dutch as I did and most of them are not very proficient because they didn't have the intense program I did. I was in school 5 days a week for 6 hours I think? Just like standard high school, but the only subject was Dutch. My husband's cousin's wife only got an hour or 2 class twice a week. Several years later, they checked up on her and made her take another course because her Dutch wasn't good enough. I had an interview a few years ago because we had moved and our city had no record of my having taken classes, so I had to show my diplomas and talk to them, and they gave me a certificate that says they don't need to check on me again. Most of my friends probably wouldn't pass that if they moved. They all needed the extra 6 month course and there's no test after that, so no one has tested them since they failed it the first time. So if they ever move, the new city would likely check on it and they'd be required to do additional classes. I'm the only one of my friend group who was moved up to the higher level class with the teacher that focused on grammar. I really truly believe that she is what made the difference for me. I don't think I'd have learned nearly as well or as fast as I did if it weren't for her, and it's so strange because I thought she hated me. She really pushed me and challenged me and I thought she was setting me up to fail and I would come home in tears because I looked stupid in front of the class when she asked me a question. It turns out, she was giving me the harder questions because she thought I would be the one to know the answer....she had more faith in me than I had in myself, and because she pushed me so hard, I practiced harder so I wouldn't look like an idiot in front of everyone. I really owe it all to her and ended up really liking her by the end of my course.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Wonder if they will have a passholder preview? Like maybe May 18-25? I figure we will probably just pop into HS just to maybe get a peek at ToyStory Land during the trip. Maybe make an ADR for Sci Fi. Haven't eaten there in years.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

Well, I just made an ADR for Sci-Fi. Looks like everyone can eat there without a problem. They have a falafel burger and for $14 that seems reasonable for Disney.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

We have no Chinatown here.
But, we do have Rednecktown...!!!!!

I live in Rednecktown.... Hubs and I are one of the "outsiders" here.

 

[Gabe1]

They now have a new, supposedly more effective, Shingles vaccine. It requires two injections instead of just one. I haven't had one yet, but, intend to do so on my next Doctors visit.

Is anyone else as old as me and remember going to public places and getting Polio Vaccine shots. I was young, but, it seems like that required more then one. I'm thinking three over a period of time, but, I really don't remember clearly. At the time, anyone coming at me with what seemed like a 6 foot long needle was one to many. Now needles are so small and sharp that you really don't even feel them, back then the technology was a lot more primitive and there were many dull ones (I think they reused them a lot too.) I even had one break off in my arm when I was about 10 years old. That wasn't pleasant.

By the time I was receiving polio vaccines it was a series of 3 months, 3 times but it was a liquid you swallowed. It was in a doll house sized little tiny clear jar about the size of a thimble. It tasted like sugar water. A friend of mine that is 2 years older than men came from Puerto Rico and had polio as a young kid that affected one side of his body, limp and a semi useful arm/hand.

When my son was in that 8-10 range all three grades in that building were given vaccinations (parent choice, they could go to doctor) and I believe it was for meningitis. It had to be 3 shots and one every 3 months to count as immunized for admittance to school. I had about 6 months to have him immunized. He was going to miss the October one 'cause we were going to be at Disney so I took him for that one at the Board of Health clinic before we left. The board of health came to school and they'd line them up and harpoon them all after school. Parents were welcome to be there if they wished. It was a very pricey vaccine that wasn't covered by health insurance at the time our law makers in Illinois made it mandatory, I think over $100 per shot so most of us took them up on the free one at school.

By the time my DD needed the vaccine it was covered and doctors offices just plopped it in with all the other routine vaccinations.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

Wonder if they will have a passholder preview? Like maybe May 18-25? I figure we will probably just pop into HS just to maybe get a peek at ToyStory Land during the trip. Maybe make an ADR for Sci Fi. Haven't eaten there in years.

I'm hoping they will have passholder previews in June, I'm going to be there with my friend on the 20-23 so I could pop in for a little bit. But if not hubs and I will be there a few weeks after the opening. I like that they are doing more magic hours for the Studios this summer because of the opening like they did for Pandora. And if Toy Storyland is super crowded I'll just head to Tower of Terror! Or maybe the Brown Derby Lounge...

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

My niece has gone home, we all had a fun weekend but I'm exhausted! Plus I think I picked up a little bug, so nap time for me. I will post some pictures later.

 

[MySmallWorldof4]

My niece has gone home, we all had a fun weekend but I'm exhausted! Plus I think I picked up a little bug, so nap time for me. I will post some pictures later.

The like was for the good weekend.

 

[Gabe1]

I live in Rednecktown.... Hubs and I are one of the "outsiders" here.

Yeah, a Minister and a Teacher you'd never be welcomed into the fold.

Jeff Foxworthy does a stand up comedy routines about Rednecks and has written a few books on the subject.

We are in our town for 30 plus years. My kids raised here. We will likely always be outsiders if we stay put. Maybe my children's grandchildren would be accepted into the fold. Maybe. In certain residential areas homes are kept in the family for generations. Been here long enough to see which cousin gets Grandma's house or which sibling inherits Daddy's title of President of the Family Business when he dies or retires.

 

[Figgy1]

It's a sad morning at our house. Our society finch "Mo" died overnight. We lost his mate "Miney" about 6 months ago, and now he is gone. Wondering if the shovel can break the sound under the snow, so Mo can be buried near his mate. My heart is breaking a bit this morning. Mo was a real songbird. How he loved it when we put his cage near the window in the nice weather. He would sing all day long, and hop from branch to branch. Or perch to perch in his cage. We had 6 finches, and now we have three left. Eenie, Meanie, and their baby Dottie.

{{HUGS}}

 

[Figgy1]

Blah! That is how our roads are now. Only 2 inches last night but heavy, wet snow. Nobody has done anything, it is Sunday, also it is to reach 40 so they likely figure it will melt eventually. Starting tomorrow 60 degrees and constant rain for Monday, Tuesday-inches they say. Then COLD again by Wednesday. I'd like to know where the rain thinks it is going to go?

Hope this helps