OT - NO POLITICS Off Topic 2020 part XXI - Punxsutawney Phil says EARLY SPRING!!!!! ( We are doomed )

[Glove Malfunction]

nice, might you ask if I can forward my current resume via PM, having a bi*** of a time getting a sniff at a HR job in spite of working with "career counsellors" who literally put together my current resume

Sure. I'll have a look. Send me a PM. I'm more a format guy, but since I have to update my resume at the end of every contract, I've gotten a lot of practice. @Kate08 might also be able to give you some help on content, and what would make your experience stand out to an HR screener.

 

[Deleted]

It's amazing that someone who's supposedly "smart" enough to build a freaking rocket thinks the earth is flat and is stupid enough to climb into that 100% certified deathtrap

One of the more underrated downsides of the internet is the platform it has given to such morons as flat earthers, holocaust deniers, moon landing deniers etc etc etc... and allowing them to feel validated by other morons.

 

[Chief Nine]

One of the more underrated downsides of the internet is the platform it has given to such morons as flat earthers, holocaust deniers, moon landing deniers etc etc etc... and allowing them to feel validated by other morons.

Actually the Three Stooges were way ahead of the internet back in the 30's:



The video doesn't show a guy calling them morons

 

[Seidenbergy]

There are few things in the world I enjoy more than a well-executed meatloaf. Broadside Tavern, you did good. Solid effort.

 

[BostonBob]

In prep school, I took 4 years of Quebec French.

When I go to Montreal I just need to be in a Metro car or in a restaurant and it comes back. I can read a French newspaper but speak it?

As a former Quebecois living in Vancouver since 93 I can tell you this - as with any 2nd language ( and French was most definitely my 2nd language ) if you don't keep using it on a semi-regular basis most people tend to lose all but the basics. I now understand more of the language than what I can speak. I can still follow a French conversation or French TV broadcast for awhile but once something is said where I have to start mentally translating what it means in English I get completely lost. Although I can still remember all the good french swear words - I guess you never forgot those. Trust me - I wish I kept more of my French as it is a beautiful language. You can tell someone to f off and drop dead but it still sounds nice as you're saying it.

 

[Spooner st]

There are few things in the world I enjoy more than a well-executed meatloaf. Broadside Tavern, you did good. Solid effort.

Love a well executed meatloaf, strangely I never tried to make one. Best I've had was in Bergeron neck of the woods. Never had another one that came even close to it. Every Tuesdays it was on the lunch menu in a whole in the wall. Only missed a few for the 3 years that I lived there.

 

[Spooner st]

As a former Quebecois living in Vancouver since 93 I can tell you this - as with any 2nd language ( and French was most definitely my 2nd language ) if you don't keep using it on a semi-regular basis most people tend to lose all but the basics. I now understand more of the language than what I can speak. I can still follow a French conversation or French TV broadcast for awhile but once something is said where I have to start mentally translating what it means in English I get completely lost. Although I can still remember all the good french swear words - I guess you never forgot those. Trust me - I wish I kept more of my French as it is a beautiful language. You can tell someone to f off and drop dead but it still sounds nice as you're saying it.

French became my 2nd language when we immigrated from the Azores in feb 1968 I was 8 years old at the time. After a few years french became my 1st language, a few years later I started to learn English as a 3rd language. A few years later In my middle 30's I moved back to the Azores, I had to relearn the proper Portuguese language. Now I'm fluent in English and Portuguese. Came back to Canada in 2009 on the Quebec side across from Ottawa. Moved a few years later to Ontario. My French is still the language that I master the most, ever since it became my 1st language. I guess it depends on the age you learn it and keep using it.

 

[Spooner st]

In prep school, I took 4 years of Quebec French.

When I go to Montreal I just need to be in a Metro car or in a restaurant and it comes back. I can read a French newspaper but speak it?

In Paris last year I was glared at by an attendant in the Paris Metro who said

Sir please speak English - Quebec French is painful enough but added with a Boston accent is intolerable

I love when I meet those pretentious pricks, I always have a good antidote for their disease. My Quebecois has better French than a lot of those pretentious french idiots. If you can't appreciate and respect those trying to speak a foreign language, then you deserve the wrath someone will give you. And I love being that someone.

 

[Aussie Bruin]

It's funny how every country has the stereotype accent that non natives associate it with. I've heard more than my fair share of "diddly dee potatoes". For me when I think of an Ozzie accent I by default hear Alf Stewart from Home and Away saying "ya flamin gallah". Having lived in and travelled around Australia a little bit though I never really heard a huge difference in the Australian accent between say Sydney and Perth! Is that diversity there and I just didn't pick up on it or is there a fairly consistent accent across the whole country?

Given the size of the US and it's history of immigration it's understandable that there would be a huge range of accents there but I always find it amusing the sheer scale of the diversity of accents here at home in Ireland and also over in the UK given both are incredibly small countries compared to say the US. It isn't down to immigration as we were the ones supplying the immigrants back then so I often wonder where that diversity comes from.

Accent/dialect diversity in Ireland and Britain are mainly due to hundreds of years when no-one but the very rich travelled anywhere. Peasants and working people in Somerset, for example, had very little to do even with their neighbours in Dorset, while folks way over in Kent may as well have been in another country for all that anyone in Somerset ever saw of them. So quite small areas could develop distinct accents as most people never went more than 30kms from their birthplace. There’s a story that in around 1793, at the height of fears about the French Revolution, the Cumbrian poets William Wordsworth and Samuel Coledridge went on a holiday down to Devon. The locals soon reported them to the district magistrate as they thought they were French spies because they ‘talked funny’!

There are differences in the Aussie accent but they’re quite subtle and the bigger differences are between city and country people rather than from one state to another. On average Queenslanders speak more broadly and South Australians the most refined, and us Victorians have the flattest tone, but there’s not a lot in it. Being a young country, the accent’s also still in a state of change, and the biggest differences are probably generational. So compare Alf Stewart with fellow former Home and Away star Chris Hemsworth – both obviously speak with an Australian twang, but Chris’ is softer, and that’s becoming more the case as more people become city-dwellers rather than living on the land, and as our population diversity significantly increases.

But overall it’s definitely hard to differentiate. Having lived for 2 years in England and Scotland, plus watched a lot of British TV, I can pick out where someone is from there far easier than I can here at home. At the very least I can usually say whether an English person or Scot is from the north or south of each country from their accent, and some of them are really obvious – like folks from Liverpool, Newcastle and Glasgow. Ireland I’m not as familiar with. People from around Dublin I think are reasonably distinctive, maybe simply because there’s relatively a lot of them, and ones from down south around Cork, but otherwise I can sometimes hear the differences but couldn’t say who was from where.

 

[Glove Malfunction]

French became my 2nd language when we immigrated from the Azores in feb 1968 I was 8 years old at the time. After a few years french became my 1st language, a few years later I started to learn English as a 3rd language. A few years later In my middle 30's I moved back to the Azores, I had to relearn the proper Portuguese language. Now I'm fluent in English and Portuguese. Came back to Canada in 2009 on the Quebec side across from Ottawa. Moved a few years later to Ontario. My French is still the language that I master the most, ever since it became my 1st language. I guess it depends on the age you learn it and keep using it.

I loved the Azores. I was deployed to Iceland and detted to Lajes multiple times. Once we took cabs across the island (Terciera), had dinner and saw a bullfight in a public square, though it was really just a bull on a rope with teenagers trying to prove their manhood by taunting it. It was still a great experience. Until the bull jumped up on the raised front yard we were on about 15 feet from me. Looking back it's a lot more fun to talk about now than it was to live it then! HAHA.

 

[Glove Malfunction]

Accent/dialect diversity in Ireland and Britain are mainly due to hundreds of years when no-one but the very rich travelled anywhere. Peasants and working people in Somerset, for example, had very little to do even with their neighbours in Dorset, while folks way over in Kent may as well have been in another country for all that anyone in Somerset ever saw of them. So quite small areas could develop distinct accents as most people never went more than 30kms from their birthplace. There’s a story that in around 1793, at the height of fears about the French Revolution, the Cumbrian poets William Wordsworth and Samuel Coledridge went on a holiday down to Devon. The locals soon reported them to the district magistrate as they thought they were French spies because they ‘talked funny’!

There are differences in the Aussie accent but they’re quite subtle and the bigger differences are between city and country people rather than from one state to another. On average Queenslanders speak more broadly and South Australians the most refined, and us Victorians have the flattest tone, but there’s not a lot in it. Being a young country, the accent’s also still in a state of change, and the biggest differences are probably generational. So compare Alf Stewart with fellow former Home and Away star Chris Hemsworth – both obviously speak with an Australian twang, but Chris’ is softer, and that’s becoming more the case as more people become city-dwellers rather than living on the land, and as our population diversity significantly increases.

But overall it’s definitely hard to differentiate. Having lived for 2 years in England and Scotland, plus watched a lot of British TV, I can pick out where someone is from there far easier than I can here at home. At the very least I can usually say whether an English person or Scot is from the north or south of each country from their accent, and some of them are really obvious – like folks from Liverpool, Newcastle and Glasgow. Ireland I’m not as familiar with. People from around Dublin I think are reasonably distinctive, maybe simply because there’s relatively a lot of them, and ones from down south around Cork, but otherwise I can sometimes hear the differences but couldn’t say who was from where.

On one of my trips to Wisconsin for training, I met several women there from Scotland, who were presenting on their social work programs to the state. one of the women was from Edinborough, and her friends literally had to translate from English to English, because her brogue was so deep I couldn't make out a word she was saying.

 

[Fopppa]

On one of my trips to Wisconsin for training, I met several women there from Scotland, who were presenting on their social work programs to the state. one of the women was from Edinborough, and her friends literally had to translate from English to English, because her brogue was so deep I couldn't make out a word she was saying.

Scottish is a funny "language". Although I'm not a native English speaker I'd consider myself pretty well versed in the language but a broad Scottish accent is nigh on impossible to understand. I've been a Manchester United fan for a looong time and listened to countless interviews with Sir Alex Ferguson but I don't think I've ever really caught all he was saying without subtitles.

 

[Fenway]

I love when I meet those pretentious pricks, I always have a good antidote for their disease. My Quebecois has better French than a lot of those pretentious french idiots. If you can't appreciate and respect those trying to speak a foreign language, then you deserve the wrath someone will give you. And I love being that someone.

One thing is clear - Anglophones resist learning a second language.

The flip side is in Paris a stop sign says STOP not ARRET

Back in the late 1990's CBS 60 Minutes looked at Quebec

 

[Aussie Bruin]

On one of my trips to Wisconsin for training, I met several women there from Scotland, who were presenting on their social work programs to the state. one of the women was from Edinborough, and her friends literally had to translate from English to English, because her brogue was so deep I couldn't make out a word she was saying.

I lived in Edinburgh for 6 months back in 2009. Fantastic city. Accents there are definitely quite thick and it took me a little while to get my ear attuned to it. But head further north and they become even stronger. Aberdeen probably has the deepest Scots brogue of all. Scots English already has a few of its own words - 'bairn' for child, 'ken' for know etc. - but on top of that in Aberdeen they have their own dialect called Doric, which adds a few more of its own, spoken in an accent so heavy than even some folks from the other end of Scotland have trouble understanding it. This little video gives a nice taste of it:

 

[Spooner st]

One thing is clear - Anglophones resist learning a second language.

The flip side is in Paris a stop sign says STOP not ARRET

Back in the late 1990's CBS 60 Minutes looked at Quebec

Those were the same governments that wanted separation. Overzealous fanatics "avec des reves de grandeur."

 

[Bruinaura]

Dropped my car off to get something worked on, and got a ride from their shuttle service. The driver was a nice lady but a little on the odd side. In the course of our three mile trip, I learned that she didn't think we ever put a man on the moon, because how could we have done that fifty years ago but can't get the timing right on traffic lights?



Well.... Okay then.

She also thinks her dog committed suicide. Oh wait, no, her ex husband let him out on purpose so he'd get killed.

I was ready to get out after one mile.

 

[Kovi]

I met several women there from Scotland,

I met her at Niagra Falls; you wouldn't know her.

 

[BNHL]

I lived in Edinburgh for 6 months back in 2009. Fantastic city. Accents there are definitely quite thick and it took me a little while to get my ear attuned to it. But head further north and they become even stronger. Aberdeen probably has the deepest Scots brogue of all. Scots English already has a few of its own words - 'bairn' for child, 'ken' for know etc. - but on top of that in Aberdeen they have their own dialect called Doric, which adds a few more of its own, spoken in an accent so heavy than even some folks from the other end of Scotland have trouble understanding it. This little video gives a nice taste of it:

My parents and 2 of my older siblings are Glaswegians,and my parents immigrated here when they were 35,so they lived here for 50 years and retained that accent. I have many cousins in Glasgow and have visited 10 times and will be returning in May. Out of all of them,only 1 is quite difficult to understand as his accent is thicker,laced with slang spoken very quickly. Why? I have no idea. I remember 25 years ago we were going to see Joe Cocker backed up by someone named "Shel Crew",who turned out to be Sheryl Crow.

 

[rfournier103]

One of the more underrated downsides of the internet is the platform it has given to such morons as flat earthers, holocaust deniers, moon landing deniers etc etc etc... and allowing them to feel validated by other morons.

Honestly, I think you understated this.

Once upon a time, before the internet and smart phones, every village had its handful of merry (and sometimes not so merry) “idiots” that were considered to be anywhere from a little odd to batshit crazy. These people were either loners or, on occasion, might find a like-minded loon somewhere and pair up. Most of the time, they were relatively harmless, and troublemakers were dealt with accordingly.

Life went on as usual and most of us went about our daily lives with varying degrees of sanity and serenity.

Then the internet. Chat rooms. Social media. Group texting.

The village “idiots” can now seek out other like-minded “idiots” from thousands of other villages throughout the land. Rather than their “idiocy” being diluted by the “regular” people around them, they isolate themselves from everyone except their new like-minded friends. Whatever lunacy they cling to is only deepened and strengthened by their online brethren who often encourage and validate sometimes very bad behavior that would never have happened without encouragement from their “friends” from the internet.

Honestly, even with all the good the internet has brought - and I love this forum - I have wondered more than once if humanity would have been better off without the internet and if it is really worth it. It seems to bring out the very worst in some people.

Yes, I know it’s not going anywhere. I’m just wondering “aloud.”

 

[Chief Nine]

Honestly, I think you understated this.

Once upon a time, before the internet and smart phones, every village had its handful of merry (and sometimes not so merry) “idiots” that were considered to be anywhere from a little odd to batshit crazy. These people were either loners or, on occasion, might find a like-minded loon somewhere and pair up. Most of the time, they were relatively harmless, and troublemakers were dealt with accordingly.

Life went on as usual and most of us went about our daily lives with varying degrees of sanity and serenity.

Then the internet. Chat rooms. Social media. Group texting.

The village “idiots” can now seek out other like-minded “idiots” from thousands of other villages throughout the land. Rather than their “idiocy” being diluted by the “regular” people around them, they isolate themselves from everyone except their new like-minded friends. Whatever lunacy they cling to is only deepened and strengthened by their online brethren who often encourage and validate sometimes very bad behavior that would never have happened without encouragement from their “friends” from the internet.

Honestly, even with all the good the internet has brought - and I love this forum - I have wondered more than once if humanity would have been better off without the internet and if it is really worth it. It seems to bring out the very worst in some people.

Yes, I know it’s not going anywhere. I’m just wondering “aloud.”

Great post. This sums up a lot of our first world issues very nicely

 

[ODAAT]

Sure. I'll have a look. Send me a PM. I'm more a format guy, but since I have to update my resume at the end of every contract, I've gotten a lot of practice. @Kate08 might also be able to give you some help on content, and what would make your experience stand out to an HR screener.

much appreciated, thank you

 

[ODAAT]

Sure. I'll have a look. Send me a PM. I'm more a format guy, but since I have to update my resume at the end of every contract, I've gotten a lot of practice. @Kate08 might also be able to give you some help on content, and what would make your experience stand out to an HR screener.

just PM`d you, not a clue how to attach a file in PM mode, while I`m strong with most Microsoft programs, I`ll be damned if I can figure this out

 

[Deleted]

Honestly, I think you understated this.

Once upon a time, before the internet and smart phones, every village had its handful of merry (and sometimes not so merry) “idiots” that were considered to be anywhere from a little odd to batshit crazy. These people were either loners or, on occasion, might find a like-minded loon somewhere and pair up. Most of the time, they were relatively harmless, and troublemakers were dealt with accordingly.

Life went on as usual and most of us went about our daily lives with varying degrees of sanity and serenity.

Then the internet. Chat rooms. Social media. Group texting.

The village “idiots” can now seek out other like-minded “idiots” from thousands of other villages throughout the land. Rather than their “idiocy” being diluted by the “regular” people around them, they isolate themselves from everyone except their new like-minded friends. Whatever lunacy they cling to is only deepened and strengthened by their online brethren who often encourage and validate sometimes very bad behavior that would never have happened without encouragement from their “friends” from the internet.

Honestly, even with all the good the internet has brought - and I love this forum - I have wondered more than once if humanity would have been better off without the internet and if it is really worth it. It seems to bring out the very worst in some people.

Yes, I know it’s not going anywhere. I’m just wondering “aloud.”

What's more worrying is that it is no longer just loons on forums or chatrooms but rather loons with good vocabularies and editing skills and money who are writing articles or essays and making videos with a relatively high production value that makes it seem like what they are selling has some sort of credibility. Present that to a generation of kids who seem to learn as much about the world through the screen on their phone as they do from books in school and it becomes apparent how these sort of crazy beliefs gain traction.

Throw in lazy parents who just shove that screen in front of their bored kids face and assume that their responsibility for their child's education ends at the school gate and it's easy to feel more than a little pessimistic about what lays ahead.

 

[jgatie]

What's more worrying is that it is no longer just loons on forums or chatrooms but rather loons with good vocabularies and editing skills and money who are writing articles or essays and making videos with a relatively high production value that makes it seem like what they are selling has some sort of credibility. Present that to a generation of kids who seem to learn as much about the world through the screen on their phone as they do from books in school and it becomes apparent how these sort of crazy beliefs gain traction.

Throw in lazy parents who just shove that screen in front of their bored kids face and assume that their responsibility for their child's education ends at the school gate and it's easy to feel more than a little pessimistic about what lays ahead.

This is those "Loose Change" 9/11 Truth morons in a nutshell. 3 teenage idiots with a Macbook put up an easily debunked video and then get some of the other idiots to actually believe them. So glad that nonsense has faded.

 

[Aussie Bruin]

My parents and 2 of my older siblings are Glaswegians,and my parents immigrated here when they were 35,so they lived here for 50 years and retained that accent. I have many cousins in Glasgow and have visited 10 times and will be returning in May. Out of all of them,only 1 is quite difficult to understand as his accent is thicker,laced with slang spoken very quickly. Why? I have no idea. I remember 25 years ago we were going to see Joe Cocker backed up by someone named "Shel Crew",who turned out to be Sheryl Crow.

My heritage is similar although a little more remote - one of my grandfathers was born in Glasgow. Celtic FC is my football team. Weegies are wonderful people and I also find the Glaswegian accent pretty easy to pick up - it's also easy to explain to people what it sounds like because you just have to point them to Billy Connolly!