Subj : Erratum...  2.
To   : Paul Quinn
From : Ardith Hinton
Date : Wed Feb 28 2018 00:15:40

Hi, Paul!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:

 [re "faux pas"]
 PQ>  I have to 'fess up and say that I knew the correct
 PQ>  spelling all along.  I didn't use it as I don't like
 PQ>  to fling such things in a 'mixed' company of echo
 PQ>  participants, knowing that it might distress some folk
 PQ>  to look it up.  (That worked out well, didn't it.)


           One of the challenges of adult ed. is that we do have a very mixed 
audience, but AFAIK everyone in this echo wants to learn more about English & 
knows how to read a dictionary.  Some folks may find it distressing when they 
encounter, e.g., non-standard spellings which can't easily be looked up.  :-)



[re "curb"]
 PQ>  I don't normally use the word, as it's typical of the
 PQ>  'flashy' English that I've tried to not use in life.


           What's "flashy" about it??  I've noticed various people using this 
word in exactly the same way regardless of how they spell it.  If you weren't 
clear on the definition, I wonder if you don't see many curbs where you live.


           In my experience places which don't have curbs generally fall into 
one of three categories:

               * arid & semi-arid regions, where the inhabitants have learned
    that if they can put their lives on hold for twenty minutes a few times a
    year they'll never have to go out in the rain.

               * sparsely populated areas, where it may be a fairly long walk
    from one residence to another & cars may get drowned in the ditches.

               * city neighbourhoods where the residents are unwilling to pay
    for curbs.  This may or may not indicate their socioeconomic level.  Some
    people "rough it" until the city's engineering department decides to make
    improvements, which in Vancouver at least means everyone shares the cost.
    Others see no need for curbs because they don't walk anywhere.  They just
    tell their chauffeur which of umpteen cars they'd like to use today.  :-Q



 PQ>  (I was 'diagnosed' with an "educated Australian" accent
 PQ>  in 7th grade,


           I don't know who said that... but I see nothing wrong with it.  In 
some situations it could be an asset.  You may have found it a liability when 
you were in grade seven & wanted to "fit in" with other kids, though....  :-(



 PQ>  my life has been akin to being 'a stranger in a strange
 PQ>  land' ever since.)


           What am I doing on this strange planet, with these strange people? 
You're certainly not alone in that.  I've heard others say they felt much the 
same way when they were kids... as did I... and some of us still do.

           Okay, I confess... as a divergent thinker who gave up trying to be 
like other people in my early teens, I focused on being myself & doing what I 
was good at.  One result was that I found a niche in this echo, e.g., where a 
person's accent is of little importance but where the insight you gained from 
being transplanted during your earlier years makes you a valued member of the 
team.  At least four of the Z1 participants here are also transplants.  But I 
depend on you to write coherent sentences in English & translate Aussie.  ;-)



 PQ>  As I initially indicated I always used the term gutter
 PQ>  for what you might describe otherwise.


           I suppose, technically, the curb is part of the gutter... it's the 
vertical bit which helps direct road runoff into the storm sewer & prevent it 
from flooding the sidewalk.  At one time the horizontal & vertical bits would 
have been constructed separately using whatever materials were available.  In 
the Vancouver area they're generally made of preshaped concrete nowadays.

           I make you think & you make me think.  Seems fair to me... [grin].




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+
 * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)

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