Thursday, May 29, 2014

Études Françaises

Studying for our French meetings (which is everything but the KM) takes quite a while, but it’s getting a little easier.
For our Wednesday night meeting (TMS), I read the Bible reading for the week in English, and then try to prepare at least 2 comments for the Bible Highlights in French.  That takes anywhere from 15 – 30 minutes, just preparing the comments (not including the reading).  I read both the RS and Insight book parts in English.
For the Draw Close book, I study the English and French at the same time.  I read my English one, but mark up my French copy (which is electronic on my Notability app).  I do it paragraph by paragraph.  Then I look up EVERY scripture that is listed in the paragraph in my French Bible.  I never know what scriptures the conductor is going to ask to have read, and if I look them all up, I can mark the ones I feel comfortable reading at a moment’s notice. 
I try to have a comment ready for each paragraph.  Some of them are just straight from the paragraph, and some of them are in my ‘own’ words (that I have written off to the side of course).


The Watchtower I do very similarly to the Draw Close book.  I try to have a comment for every paragraph (we have between 25 – 35 people at our meetings, and not a lot of commenters).  Again, some of them are straight from the paragraph, but I really am trying a lot harder to come up with them on my own.  We study out of the simplified Watchtower.

 So….here’s how I come up with my own comments and talks.
I use a combination of things.  Google Translate is very helpful, but it’s also VERY wrong a lot of the time.  Having taken 3 years of French in school I have enough of a background where I can kind of tell if something is not right.
My tips to ANYONE using Google translate are this:
Don’t do more than one sentence at a time, and even then try to break the sentence down into two or three parts.  And if you already know the translation, don’t plug it into Google Translate.  If you KNOW the phrase “we have to pray” (nous devons prier, or ‘we must pray’), then use it.  Don’t plug something into Google translate that you already know (this is something that my ‘mentor’ told me…she said translate what you can on your own, then go in and fill in the blanks because you will learn so much faster that way).
My next resource is an app called 'Word Reference'.  This has been a HUGE help in learning what phrases and figures of speech are just not used in the French language.  For example, a few weeks ago my husband had highlights and he wanted to say 'Pharaoh was irritated.'  Well, if you plug that into Google Translate, it comes out "pharaon était irritée'.  Now, I knew the first two words were correct, and it would seem that 'irritée' would be the correct word to use in this sentence, but I had NEVER heard that word used before.  So I looked it up in Word Reference, and 'irritated' in French (irritée) actually means 'feeling inflammation' (as in a skin rash or something).  Which would explain why I've never heard it.  Word Reference than gave some suggestions.  The word that the French use for irritated (as in annoyed or infuriated) is 'furieux'.  So we chose that one because my husband was not implying that Pharaoh had an inflamed skin rash (I suppose he could have, but that's not the reason he was irritated ha ha).

When I was helping my mother-in-law this past weekend with her French talk, we used a combination of Google Translate, Word Reference and a good old French Dictionary.  I told her to make her talk as simple as possible in English.  That helps greatly.  In Google Translate, if you type in something like ‘what we can see from this….’, it will use the word for physically seeing something with your eyes (not learning, which is what we want to convey).  So  because Google Translate takes everything literally, you have to take that into consideration when using it.  Instead of saying ‘what we can see from this…’, I had her simply use ‘What we learn...'  Keep it simple and your translation will come across so much clearer.  Plus, it will be much simpler for an audience that is learning French as well to understand.
Another thing that Google Translate does that drives me bonkers is when it comes to formal vs. informal words.  It makes everything formal.  Always.   And as witnesses, we are very informal with each other.  We are family!  The formal word for 'you' is 'vous'.  The informal for 'you' is 'tu'.  I'm sure everyone knows the phrase 'Comment-allez vous?'.  This is the way you would ask a complete stranger how they're doing.  So at the meetings, we NEVER use this phrase.  We say 'comment ça va' (how's it going?).  Google Translate apparently assumes you know no one, so everything is formal.  ‘Do you want to read’ comes across as ‘voulez-vous lire’.  The ‘vous’ in this sentence being formal for ‘you’.  The informal (and more common) way to say it is ‘veux-tu lire’.  Tu is the ‘informal’ you.  This is a new concept to English speakers, because we don’t have formal and informal words.  And the ‘voulez’ and ‘veux’ are different conjugations of the same verb (‘vouloir’, which means ‘to want’).  Google Translate will not let you change it to ‘informal’, so this is one of those things that you just have to know.  Or you have to have this:

Ha ha.  This book is awesome.  It lists all of the conjugations for just about every verb out there.

 I love it.  Especially for irregular verbs, such as vouloir.  If the verb ends in ‘er’, than the conjugations are pretty much the same.  But the irregular verbs like ‘être’ (to be), or ‘vouloir’ (to want) are the ones that will get you all confused.  Especially être.  Geez.  Être is just a mess.  Ironically, that was the first verb I learned in the 7th grade and it was drilled into my head every day for the entire school year.  Which is good, because I remember every conjugation of that word to this day (Je suis, tu es, il est, elle est, nous sommes, vous êtes, ils ont = I am, you are, he is, she is, we are, you are).  And it's one of the most commonly used verbs.
 Anyways.  I'm getting off track.
The things that I am trying to learn now is when to use certain words that are the same.  Like the word for ‘when’.  It’s either ‘quand’ or ‘lorsque’.  ?  And I’ve heard them used both equally.  I’m trying to make a note of these types of things as they pop into my head to research later or ask Nicole (my most favorite French lady in the world….well, actually she’s Canadian, but she speaks French and I love her to pieces). 
So....there you have it.  A small glimpse into my French studies and why it takes me so long.  Confused yet?  Me too!  Prayer helps ha ha.

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Random


*Reason #12,347 why I love Target.  See this:


It's a gift card that we received from my brother and sister-in-law for our anniversary AND.....it doubles as a bookmark!!!


Is that adorable or what???  I love Target.  We used the gift card to buy a few boxes of these:


I'm hoping hubby can hang them up out on our back patio tomorrow.  I love them!

*Speaking of hubby, he conducted the Draw Close book in FRENCH a couple weeks ago!


He did great.

*We got this awesome card from my niece:


It makes me smile each time I look at it.  ps...have you seen Frozen?  If you haven't, please watch it.  It's so cute and funny.

*See this smiling guy?  He is 100% kennel free.  We now trust him on his own in the house while we are at work.  It's still a little scary, but he's done so well so far.  He is just such a sweet dog.  He sleeps in our room every night.  He starts off on the bed with us for maybe 30 minutes or so, then hops down and gets on his bed (which is fantastic for us!).  He's definitely a keeper.  As long as we keep him supplied in chew toys, he seems to be fine unattended.


*I have officially been at my job for four years now.  Here's my desk (it looks clean, but the left side, which is not pictured, is a little messy):


And here is the view from my building:


Not too shabby!  It's about 7 minutes from home.  I love it!

Since I passed my CCA test, I've been using this almost daily:



My boss is having me write all of our coding related appeals.  I'm a geek...I love it.

*I helped my mother-in-law with her first French talk today.  She's giving it on Wednesday.  I am so excited and nervous for her!  She'll do great though.  She's a natural.  

*Why can't we have every Monday off?

*We watched 'The Monuments Men' last night.  It started off slow, but it got better.  It helps that both George Clooney AND Matt Damon are in it.  And Bill Murray.  And Hugh Bonneville (Lord Grantham from Downton!).  It's a great cast.

*My husband makes GREAT White Russians.  He made me one tonight.  Before tonight, the last time I had one was when my sister-in-law was here back in January.  They are tasty!

*We were short on brothers for our French meeting on Saturday, so guess who got to run the sound booth?  Yours truly.  Ha ha.  It was kinda fun though!  Although VERY hard to comment while running the sound booth.  Oh well. 

*That's all for now!

Book vs. Movie

I really wish I had more time to read.  My ‘to be read’ stack of books is not getting any smaller, and every now and then I will still add to it!  I used to read during my 30-minute lunch break, but since we moved to our new building, I use my 30 minutes to run home for lunch to let the dogs out.  So reading during lunch is over for me.  
I try to avoid reading in bed before sleep, because lately I’ve found that it keeps me awake instead of helping me fall asleep.  So I play Candy Crush or some other mindless game on my ipad instead.
So that leaves reading for random times during the afternoon after I get home from work.  I get home around 3:45 each day.  Mondays are out, because I start cleaning when I get home in preparation for Tuesday (the day that my mother-in-law comes over for dinner each week).  Hubby comes home around 5:30, and that’s about when I’m starting dinner.  By the time dinner and kitchen cleanup is done, it’s 6:30 or so.  Then we take the dogs outside to play for at least 45 minutes.  It’s now 7:15.  From 7:15 – 8:30 is generally ‘free’ time.  But anything that needs done for the day (paying bills, writing notes, laundry to be folded, put away, etc.) needs to be done during this time as well.  At 8:30 we attempt to start getting ready for bed.  Hear me out….we have 3 medications to give one cat, a shot to give to another cat, a baby-wipe bath to give to one dog who has bad allergies (the wipes help get all of the dust and pollen off of her from being outside and low to the ground), two lunches to make for the next day, gym bags to pack, dogs to take out for one last pee, etc.  And then we still have to do OUR bedtime routine (brushing teeth, etc.).  So we get to bed around 9:30 or so.  That’s just Monday.  Tuesdays are completely out because that’s when momma-in-law comes over.  Wednesdays are out because that’s a meeting night.  Thursdays are probably my best shot at reading a little each week.  Fridays are usually out because that’s when I get groceries and prepare for Saturday and Sunday (French studying takes FOREVER....like hours.  I'm not exaggerating). 
So now that you’ve heard my little pity party on why I don’t have the time I wish I had to read, I’ll get on with my story here, ha ha.
I recently watched two movies that I just happened to have read the books they were based on (it took me a few months though).  Here are the reviews:
 The Book Thief


I bought this book a LONG time ago (I think I bought it in Nebraska like 3 years ago when I was with my mom at Barnes & Noble)  I started reading it and honestly I lost interest.  It was very long.  But the story was good.  But sad.  But LONG.  When the movie came out though, it looked really good and it inspired me to pick up the book again and finish it.  Except I had to start over completely because I had forgotten everything that I had already read, ha ha.  But I got through the book this time.  And then watched the movie.

The verdict?  The movie was SO MUCH BETTER THAN THE BOOK!!  That’s a rare thing to say, but it’s true.  I thought the book was just too detailed and too long.  But the movie?  Perfect.  The acting, the story, everything.  In case you haven’t seen it, it’s about a German girl (Leisel) living in Nazi Germany.  Her family decides to hide a Jew in their basement in the height of World War 2.  Leisel befriends the Jew and he teaches her to read and write.  And once she learns how to read, well….she starts stealing books.  She gets them from various places, the most interesting is when she saves one from a book burning.  Risky!  She is such a lovable character and while it is a very sad story, it’s amazing how she is able to overcome everything in her hard life.  I will definitely watch it again.
Next up? 
Labor Day

I heard about this book before I heard about the movie.  It’s about a single depressed mom, her pre-teen son, and the escaped convict that comes into their lives over a long Labor Day weekend.  The book was good, the movie was just as good as the book.  The movie stars Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet, and I love both of them, so I might be a little biased.  It’s a nice unconventional love story.  I will watch this one again too.

Apparently I am on a ‘book to movie’ reading kick, because I am now reading ‘Divergent’ (the movie has already been released).  I’m also reading The Storyteller, The Goldfinch, The White Queen and one other one I think.  I’ve never been a ‘read one book at a time’ gal.  Maybe that's why it takes me months to finish one book!  Ha ha.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

Random

*Busyness ensues.  Sigh.  Sometimes I think how nice it would be to not be so swamped all the time, but then other times I think I wouldn't want it any other way.

*I have a French talk on Wednesday.  I REALLY struggled with this one, to the point of tears.  Not the French part....that was easy.  It was doing it in English first that was the hard part.  The Ten Commandments - ceremonial vs. moral law, etc.  A topic that is generally not going to come up in everyday conversation.  But my husband helped me with it and I got it done.  I was totally over thinking it and making it more complicated than it was.



*I just watched the movie 'Labor Day' with Josh Brolin and Kate Winslet.  It was just as good as the book.  I am a huge Josh Brolin fan though, so I may not be the best critic of this movie.  I loved it.  And now I want to bake a pie.  (which will make sense if you've read the book or seen the movie).

*I bought the above mentioned DVD at Target today for $4 due to my mad couponing skills!!!  Much cheaper than going to see it on the big screen, even at the cheap-o theater!

*Today I washed Watson's bedding and wiped down his kennel and gave him a new blanket to chew on.  He's a blanket chewer.  He usually falls asleep with his blankie in his mouth.

*I said a prayer for all of my Nebraska friends and family who are dealing with tornadoes tonight.  As much as I love thunderstorms, tornadoes are scary.

*I am addicted to Crystal Light packets that you mix with water.  My favorite is the Peach Iced Tea.  I have a box at work and a box at home.

*Speaking of work, I had my yearly review.  It went very well.  I MIGHT get a promotion, but it's kind of out of my boss's hands.  Because she's new, she didn't do the budget last year for this year (it was done by her boss's boss, who doesn't really know anything about our department).  So it may or may not happen.  Either way, I'll still get a raise.

*We've been watching a lot of hockey around here lately.  My husband even pronounced that he is starting to like hockey more than baseball, or at least just as much.  He is a huge Blackhawks fan.  Football is still his all time favorite, but now I think hockey has replaced baseball as his #2 favorite!  (He doesn't like basketball that much)

*We watched Round 1 of the NFL draft  I got all weepy when I saw the huge football players crying and hugging their families.  We didn't watch past round 1 though, because what a snoozefest!!  

*I've been watching 'Bates Motel' on Netflix.  It is a contemporary prequel to "Psycho".  It is creepy but oh so good.  Both Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore are excellent.  And creepy.  And crazy.  And yes, Freddie Highmore is the kid from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (the one with Johnny Depp).  He grew up.  And became creepy Norman Bates as a teenager.  


*I'm happy that it's watermelon season.

*Watson and Hannah are getting along better and playing even.  And just a couple days ago, I saw Hannah standing underneath him.  I almost started crying because she used to stand underneath Max all the time.  This is progress!  So cute.



*I think that's it.  I'm tired and not at all ready for this week.  But we had a good weekend and got a lot done at least!

20 Years of Reading

20 years.  TWENTY YEARS OF READING. Okay, so technically this isn’t true.  I’ve been reading since I was 5.  So (here’s my age)…I’ve been re...