Phonology is fabulous!

Yes, I like words. and spelling them. and phonetic structure. And Southern American English is NOTHING like "received pronunciation," which is the standard of spoken English based upon the accent from the southeast of England. My pronunciation of the word "ten" elicited smiles and chuckles in class today. But this class is definitely going to be my favorite! The phonetic alphabet involves fun-in-drawing, too :)

Note: American English is "rhotic" -- therefore, we pronounce our "r"s.

Have recently become obsessed with spotting a badger. This is a result of a road sign warning drivers to "Watch for Badgers" -- so, today on the BBC-Wales website, I was excited to see an article on species of animals in Wales (http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/nature/sites/wildlife/species.shtml)! Sadly, there is no section on badgers, as I suppose that are not exclusively Welsh-speaking. But there are some other fascinating creatures like Black-tailed godwits, polecats and Sika deer. Adders, though, I will not be seeking out.

Here is a helpful site on Badger-watching for those whose interest may have been piqued -- http://www.badgers.org.uk/brocks-world/08watch01.html. There is a live badger-cam, but this is only on at dusk here; there is also a page of instructions for badger-watching for the visually impaired. I am confused.


And now, a portion of a poem that was emailed to me today by a dear friend.

Understanding is the ultimate seduction of the mind,

go to the truth beyond the mind

Love is the bridge.