Watch the Walk

As you know, I used to live in a place we called Clove Island, and now I live on Volcano island. The languages aren't the same, but they're very similar. I could go on for quite a bit about the specifics of the differences, in accent, vocabulary, verb conjugations, etc, but chances are I'd bore you, so we'll skip over that. In summary for the paragraph I started to write and deleted multiple times: islanders can often understand each other, but it's not always easy. But the funny thing about understanding another person is that we sometimes think we understood when we really didn't. In English, we assume certain understandings based on what we know of someone's context. Take the following sentence, for example: "I went to buy tomatoes, but my buggy broke and I spent a long time fixing it."    If the person is Amish, we understand that they were driving their horse and buggy somewhere to buy tomatoes, the buggy broke, and in order to complete their ...

Having a new baby is, I'm sure, an adjustment for everyone. Even if you've raised many babies, there's something different about it being your own. Some people love getting advice on taking care of their baby, others would rather you zip it, shut it, and mind your own business.  If you do want to get advice, just have a baby in the islands. They have certain things that they've learned about how to raise babies, and there's not too much variation from person to person. So when they see someone going against general knowledge, they're quick to tell you the right way.  So, for your edification, here's some things you should know, especially as a foolish American raising their baby in the islands: Fans: are to be avoided. Baby's ears and airways are sensitive, don't you know. The baby will get sick, they'll get asthma, they'll be in pain. Oh, and the same goes for taking them out on a windy day. It may be warm as anything out, but the wind is st...

My baby is a social baby. She takes after her father that way, I suppose. He certainly is friends with everyone and everyone is friends with him. But as I said, Z is social. She's happy when I put on the baby carrier, because that means she's going out the door. If I put her in the carrier and don't leave right away, she starts fussing. "What's with the false advertising, Mom? I thought we were going places??" As we walk through our neighborhood, kids run up to grab Z's leg or hands and greet her, adults greet her by name and hold her for a minute or give her kisses. She graces them with smiles, coos at her favorites, and grabs for the noses of those who hold her.  Then there's the offices. She's known by name in the phone company's office, workers coming to take her from me and trying to get her to laugh and smile. Yesterday we went to the post office and, yet again, she was a crowd favorite.    But the refrain that I hear most often is "...

 Ever since learning the term "housewarming" I've been a bit curious about why it would be called that. Why would we call it a housewarming when we invite a lot of people over to the place we've recently moved into? Why not a "new house party" or a "snack and see", to borrow the "sip and see" of a baby shower? Of course, I've since looked up the origin of the word and it turns out that people would actually bring firewood with them to a housewarming party and work to warm up the new house for its owners. And then I spent a few months in Kenya. Where we were staying, in the Nairobi area, the nights are cool and the days are warm, and the weather is temperate enough that no one has central heating or cooling. In a place like the islands, on the coast next to the Indian Ocean, we might wish for air conditioning. There in Nairobi, however, a house that's been moved into recently is distinctly chilly.  And what better way to take the c...

Every language has words which, when translated into English, require a phrase instead. See the example below: Ruma - to send a person on an errand The struggle with this is, as you learn a language, you find these single words in replacement for an entire phrase to be convenient. "I want to ruma you" - wait, how do I say that in real English? "I want to send you on an errand." or maybe "I want to use your services for something." or "I want you to do something for me." But wait, in English it's kind of rude to just say "I want to..." Actually, you should ask permission. So now the Island-Language-Sentence actually has two adjustments needed to make it good English. "Can I send you on an errand?" Oh, let's consider that again. More natural English would be to change the subject of the sentence and put the hearer as the subject: "Can you run an errand for me?" Aha! Now we've landed on decent English. And I...

 I was visiting Clove island, walking through town, examining what had changed in the last 6 months. A few buildings painted, a couple of new walls. But what was really striking? The number of new shops that had opened!  A new shop for car oil. A new mini market. Another food shop. It seemed like the business district was booming, and when I arrived at the office I commented on it to my colleagues. But their response surprised me: "It's because of the economic crisis."  Wait, what? Evidently, when people are worried about where their food will come from, they look for a loan or a gift to get them started in business, with the thought being that, at least until inventory runs out, they'll have a source of income or food. Especially with food shops, you can eat your inventory until it runs out. Even if you don't have money to restock, it's a temporary fix. I was intrigued by their explanation, but still a little doubtful if theirs was the only interpretation. So...

I sat working in the office, typing away at my computer. Suddenly I started hearing shouting outside, along with the sounds of someone being kicked or punched. I wasn't so excited to look outside and investigate, but soon the other people working in the office were all looking and reporting what they observed: The police were beating someone up.  I don't normally notice the police offices next to our office building, but this last week they've been hard to ignore. It actually turns out that the police weren't beating someone up for no reason. The person was resisting their efforts to... ... give him a hair cut. Yes, the police seem to have decided to clean up the city by grabbing men and boys with hair they deem too long off the streets and forcibly giving them a hair cut! Beware to the youths with fancy do's that involve a lot of hair on top. Their hair isn't respectable in this conservative city. Men who work hard and don't take the time to go to the barbe...