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Old 04-27-2009, 11:37 AM   #501
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Because my current pair of well-worn military boots are getting too small, I've finally gotten the pair of paratrooper jump boots that I've been drooling over for years. They're awesome. In an cool bit of trivia, these are the same boots that the American paratroopers wore in World War II.
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Old 04-27-2009, 01:04 PM   #502
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Because my current pair of well-worn military boots are getting too small, I've finally gotten the pair of paratrooper jump boots that I've been drooling over for years. They're awesome. In an cool bit of trivia, these are the same boots that the American paratroopers wore in World War II.


The same boots? Ewww, they must be really stinky from all the sweaty paratrooper feet, then.


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Old 04-27-2009, 01:44 PM   #503
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I guess that's why he was drooling over them for so long before he bought them: To clean them!

Are they as comfortable as they look?
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Old 04-27-2009, 05:18 PM   #504
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They look very stylish. I never knew they had time to do some aestetic design back in WWII .

Edit: BTW, hi Trumgottist! Nice to see you back on the forums again!
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Old 04-27-2009, 05:32 PM   #505
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The same boots? Ewww, they must be really stinky from all the sweaty paratrooper feet, then.


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Witty.



They are nice looking, aren't they? I can't say whether or not they're comfortable, though, because they haven't arrived yet. However, all the pairs of military-issue combat boots I've ever owned have been the most comfortable footwear I've ever worn, and I expect these to be even better.
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Old 04-28-2009, 03:17 AM   #506
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Witty.



They are nice looking, aren't they? I can't say whether or not they're comfortable, though, because they haven't arrived yet. However, all the pairs of military-issue combat boots I've ever owned have been the most comfortable footwear I've ever worn, and I expect these to be even better.
Thanks.

And it would even have been completely justified if you had been using German and had said "Die selben" (= "the same" in the sense of "The very same shoes that guy is wearing" or "I want the shoes that guy is wearing, not just the same type." Basically it means the identical same item. Not just identically looking. It's the same item.) instead of "Die gleichen" (= "the same" in the sense of "The same type of shoes that guy is wearing". Basically it refers to a similar item.). Sadly, many people don't realise there is a difference, these days.


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- "esc(x) cot(x) dx = -csc(x)!" Dennis added, and the wizard's robe caught on fire. "Gosh," Dennis said, "and some people say higher math isn't relevant."

>>>Inventor of the Mail order-Assassin<<<

And *This*...is a Black Hole - BYE!
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Old 05-01-2009, 11:14 AM   #507
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So I got the boots today.

These things are beasts.


First of all, it's like having a massive iron shroud on your ankle and foot. You don't wear these things; they wear you. But yet they're still incredibly comfortable.


Best footwear. EVAR.




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And it would even have been completely justified if you had been using German and had said "Die selben" (= "the same" in the sense of "The very same shoes that guy is wearing" or "I want the shoes that guy is wearing, not just the same type." Basically it means the identical same item. Not just identically looking. It's the same item.) instead of "Die gleichen" (= "the same" in the sense of "The same type of shoes that guy is wearing". Basically it refers to a similar item.). Sadly, many people don't realise there is a difference, these days.
Don't worry about it. I know languages other than English are flawed and confusing.
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Old 05-01-2009, 12:35 PM   #508
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I know languages other than English are flawed and confusing.
You're right. English isn't the only one. I know languages other than English that are flawed and confusing, too.
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Old 05-02-2009, 03:58 AM   #509
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I'm Dutch, and many people are surprised that my German is almost nonexistant despite having had German at school for a long time and living almost next to the German border. But German is the most nasty language in the world if you ask me. Exactly as described in the article you linked to. Even French has more logic to it. But we digress and I will fix that by posting a picture of what I bought yesterday:
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Old 05-02-2009, 04:41 AM   #510
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Oh, it's the best thing since… I don't know.
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Old 05-02-2009, 06:12 AM   #511
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I'm Dutch, and many people are surprised that my German is almost nonexistant despite having had German at school for a long time and living almost next to the German border. But German is the most nasty language in the world if you ask me. Exactly as described in the article you linked to. Even French has more logic to it. But we digress and I will fix that by posting a picture of what I bought yesterday:


Aww, German isn't that hard if you're used to it. Though I admit you really have to be used to it for it to be really easy. And I can imagine that the whole gender thing is a horror for all native English speakers, since they don't have different pronouns for it, and the gender of words (yes, even in English words have gender. It's not as obvious with the lack of different pronouns, but it is shown in some rare cases. Like poetry. I am not sure, but I think the Moon might be female in English, and the Sun male. In German it's the other way around, so if it is that way in English, you must have adopted that from somewhere else. Like France, or something. Though I do not disapprove, the moon should be female. ^_^ ) can usually not be told from anything for most words (except for example "Frau" which is German for "Woman", which is obviously female. Another case where you can tell easily is the word for "Cat" as used when described the species in general. In German it is "Katze". Now, with that information alone you can't really tell either. *BUT* if you also know that a male cat is called a "Kater" [which is also a term for "Hangover", by the way ], then you can figure out that "Katze" is a female word. For the word for "Dog" it's the same, as a female dog can be referred to as "HĂĽndin", meaning the general term "Hund" most must be male. Similar things work for Chicken and Horse, which are both neutral too. For example, Chicken is "Huhn". You can call a female chicken a "Huhn", and no one will complain - you can even call a male chicken one, though it is less common. But there's also specific terms for each gender in this case, namely "Henne" [female chicken] and "Hahn" [rooster] - and from that fact you can tell that the word "Huhn" is neutral. And horses are similar. You can't tell the Gender from calling a Horse "Pferd". You're just saying what it is. There are specific terms for each Gender - "Stute" for the female, and "Hengst" for the male. [And there's even a term for a castrated male horse, namely "Wallach", but no one is going to be angry if you're calling a "Wallach" a "Hengst" in the sense of telling that is male. If you want to breed it though, you should be sure it's a real "Hengst", though. ]. So yeah, there are some ways to tell the gender without looking it up. Of course, there are exceptions, like Mark Twain said, and "Regen" is as good as any. Objects are usually the culprits here.).


But really, once you've gotten used to it, it becomes second nature. You learn vocab words with the pronoun in school to start with, so you rarely have to look it up - you would never learn only the word "Regen" as a vocab word, it would always be "der Regen". Also, you rarely hear a word used without some kind of pronoun defining its gender, so even if you never learned it in school you likely won't have to look up its gender. In fact, I can't remember me ever having to look up the gender of a word in German in my entire life. Its similar with french vocab words. You always have a "la" or "le" in front of it.

I say, French is much more evil than German to learn. Because not only do they have as many exceptions if not even more in their language, but they also make exceptions for even the most important grammar rules so that it sounds more beautiful! How demented is *THAT*?

Oh, and German has no neutral possessive pronoun. So you can't say "Google and its money". You have to say "Google und sein Geld", which is basically "Google and his money.".

(By the way, if I used any terms like "pronoun" incorrectly here, please forgive me. I always had trouble remembering the terms. I had no trouble with grammatics apart from when they asked me to form, for example, the Dativ. Because then I had to remember what the term "Dativ" referred to. I had no trouble forming the Dativ, but I'd


By the way, the thing with "Wegen dem Regen" and "Wegen des Regens" is a typical case that is used in German communication. The first case, the Dative, is what you will usually hear. The second case, the Genitive, is what is correct, but most people neglect that fact. There's a funny little book about common errors or misunderstandings in German language that I can highly recommend to anyone learning German, and is not opposed to laughing a bit in the process. The book is called "Der Dativ ist dem Genitiv sein Tod meaning "The Dative is to the Genitive its Death", with the title being a prime example of what it is saying (It's Dative. The correct Genitive form would be "The Dative is the Death of the Genitive"). Seriously, you should read this books and its sequels. They are excellent, and you even learn something from them.


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- "esc(x) cot(x) dx = -csc(x)!" Dennis added, and the wizard's robe caught on fire. "Gosh," Dennis said, "and some people say higher math isn't relevant."

>>>Inventor of the Mail order-Assassin<<<

And *This*...is a Black Hole - BYE!
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Old 05-02-2009, 07:53 AM   #512
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That's what makes linguistics fun!
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Old 05-02-2009, 09:12 AM   #513
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When I was in high school, I studied both French and German, not unusual in itself, since quite a few other kids like me really loved learning languages. The fact that the same teacher taught both languages is probably more amazing! Other students always asked me how in the world I could juggle two languages in the same year. Luckily, the classes were usually in different semesters, so I could keep them separate in my mind. This same teacher would always chuckle if I mistakenly slipped in a French word in German class, and vice versa! In my last year of high school French, we had to do a project on a francophone country or region... Naturally, I chose Alsace-Lorraine, a French- and German-speaking area!

Back on topic:

Since I wisely sent in my income tax return more than a month before the April 30th deadline and received my refund only two weeks later , I (almost unwisely ) decided to go on a bit of a spending spree this past month!

PC games (from eBay and elsewhere):
The Orion Conspiracy, The Legend of Kyrandia Book 1, Nikopol: Secrets of the Immortals, Dracula 3: The Path of the Dragon, Dark Fall 'Pins & Needles' Edition, and the Sam & Max Celebration Special (Sam & Max Seasons 1 & 2, plus their respective CD soundtracks, the Sam & Max Freelance Police DVD box set AND a limited edition signed hardcover edition of Surfin' the Highway! )

DVDs:
The Big Bang Theory Season 1 Box Set
Rahxephon v. 4 - Dissonance (the only volume I was missing)

And a nice, comfy pair of red and grey tiger-striped Zubaz pants for lounging around at home.
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Old 05-02-2009, 09:41 AM   #514
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Aww, German isn't that hard if you're used to it. Though I admit you really have to be used to it for it to be really easy.

Lots of text about how difficult German is...

But really, once you've gotten used to it, it becomes second nature. You learn vocab words with the pronoun in school to start with, so you rarely have to look it up - you would never learn only the word "Regen" as a vocab word, it would always be "der Regen". Also, you rarely hear a word used without some kind of pronoun defining its gender, so even if you never learned it in school you likely won't have to look up its gender. In fact, I can't remember me ever having to look up the gender of a word in German in my entire life. Its similar with french vocab words. You always have a "la" or "le" in front of it.

...goes on about how easy German is compared to, say, French
Thanks for the explanation Jaz. But you're a language-nut, while I am a nanotechnology nut. So for me languages are quite complicated. Are you in for a short, unscientific but fun test? If German is (allegedly) easy for Dutch people, then Dutch should be easy for German people, right? So can you read the Dutch part of my website? You can check wether you understand it by reading the English part. They're mostly identical.
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Old 05-02-2009, 10:20 AM   #515
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Thanks for the explanation Jaz. But you're a language-nut, while I am a nanotechnology nut. So for me languages are quite complicated. Are you in for a short, unscientific but fun test? If German is (allegedly) easy for Dutch people, then Dutch should be easy for German people, right? So can you read the Dutch part of my website? You can check wether you understand it by reading the English part. They're mostly identical.

After a bit of thinking I could figure out what is was about. Of course I know approximately what you're talking about, so it's a bit easier. If I had no clue what the approximate subject is, it would be more difficult. Let's see:

Quote:
Boeken en verhalen


Ik schrijf boeken en verhalen voor zowel kinderen als volwassenen. Mijn verhalen over Sophie zijn inmiddels bekend in heel Europa en daarbuiten en ik heb een aantal internationale fans. Hieronder ziet u een kort overzicht van de verhalen die u op mijn website kunt vinden.

Mijn boeken en verhalen zijn allemaal te koop bij Lulu!

Books and Stories

I write books and stories for [zowel? Maybe "small"?] Children as [volwassenen? I at first read this as "Vollwaisen", which would be orphans, specifically ones that have neither mother or father. Orphans which still have one parent left would be "Halbwaisen". I am not quite sure if this is really the translation of "volwassenen", though... ]. My stories about Sophie are by now known in all of [or maybe "half of"] Europe and beyond [not sure about "beyond"] and I have a percentage/a few [German "Anteil", though one would rather use "Ein paar" in this case] of International fans. Following you'll find (literally "Below here are") a short overview of the stories you can find on my website.

My books and stories are all for purchase from Lulu!



As you can see, it works pretty well. I do understand a bit when I hear the language spoken, but not everything. If I have time to analyse a text, and have context, it's always easier. I didn't check what the text above is on the English version of your site, as I wanted to see how well I could translate it without help. Reading it first I had translated it into German in my head, because it's closer to Dutch than English is, I find. Though I take bits from here and there. Some of the words I only later figured out what they *might* mean, like "Verhalen", which I actually checked from the English link on the left, before I decided I'd first post here before checking the English version.

So, how did I do?



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- "esc(x) cot(x) dx = -csc(x)!" Dennis added, and the wizard's robe caught on fire. "Gosh," Dennis said, "and some people say higher math isn't relevant."

>>>Inventor of the Mail order-Assassin<<<

And *This*...is a Black Hole - BYE!
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Old 05-02-2009, 10:36 AM   #516
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Not bad at all Jaz! I will walk you through the things you had troubles with.

"Zowel ... als" means "as well as." So I write stories for children as well as "volwassenen". "Volwassen" means something like "fully grown," as in grown-up. So I write stories for children as well as adults.

You were right about "all of Europe and beyond" .

"Een aantal" means literally "a number of". So I have a number of international fans.

I would translate "below here are" with "below you find" or something like that, but your translation is good enough.

Edit: I also bought milk yesterday.

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Old 05-02-2009, 11:08 AM   #517
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Not bad at all Jaz! I will walk you through the things you had troubles with.

"Zowel ... als" means "as well as." So I write stories for children as well as "volwassenen". "Volwassen" means something like "fully grown," as in grown-up. So I write stories for children as well as adults.

You were right about "all of Europe and beyond" .

"Een aantal" means literally "a number of". So I have a number of international fans.

I would translate "below here are" with "below you find" or something like that, but your translation is good enough.

Edit: I also bought milk yesterday.

Ah, so "Een aantal" would be translated as "Eine Anzahl" or maybe "Eine Zahl" (both work) in German. That makes more sense too. For some reason I read the "tal" long, so it sounded more like "Anteil". Had I read it as it was "aantal" with the first two "a"'s long, I would probably have immediately realised it should be "Anzahl".



Ah, ah, ah! But isn't "kunt vinden" "can find"? I was trying to translate the first few words, but I just realised I messed that up without checking. Silly me. Would the first few words be (without paying attention what the proper English Grammar would be): "Below see you a short overview of the stories that you on my website can find."?


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- "esc(x) cot(x) dx = -csc(x)!" Dennis added, and the wizard's robe caught on fire. "Gosh," Dennis said, "and some people say higher math isn't relevant."

>>>Inventor of the Mail order-Assassin<<<

And *This*...is a Black Hole - BYE!
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Old 05-02-2009, 11:17 AM   #518
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Ah, so "Een aantal" would be translated as "Eine Anzahl" or maybe "Eine Zahl" (both work) in German. That makes more sense too. For some reason I read the "tal" long, so it sounded more like "Anteil". Had I read it as it was "aantal" with the first two "a"'s long, I would probably have immediately realised it should be "Anzahl".



Ah, ah, ah! But isn't "kunt vinden" "can find"? I was trying to translate the first few words, but I just realised I messed that up without checking. Silly me. Would the first few words be (without paying attention what the proper English Grammar would be): "Below see you a short overview of the stories that you on my website can find."?


-
You're right, I forgot to put in the 'can' in "Below you can find". In Dutch the rules of what to put where in a sentence are either very complicated or nonexistant. You can say "Hieronder ziet u een kort overzicht van de verhalen die u op mijn website kunt vinden," but you can just as well say "Hieronder ziet u een kort overzicht van de verhalen die u kunt vinden op mijn website." The English translation, if done correctly, has the same grammar as the latter sentence: "Below see you a short overview of the stories that you can find on my website."

And to keep on topic: there was something else I bought yesterday, but I can't for the life of me remember what it was .
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Old 05-02-2009, 12:56 PM   #519
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Luckily, the classes were usually in different semesters, so I could keep them separate in my mind.
Pft, I took English, German and French both semesters for three years in a row.
Not having English as first language does that to you.

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Old 05-02-2009, 04:13 PM   #520
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German, French and English? Wow, I'm impressed, Jelena!

I did juggle both French and German in my first year of university too, and it was quite a challenge. Both courses were full-year courses, so they covered two semesters. German class (11 am) was mostly a breeze, studying mainly grammar and vocabulary, and reading very short stories. French class followed immediately at 12 pm, but it was also a literature course in addition to being a language course! After having to analyze and write papers on existentialist works such as Jean-Paul Sartre's Huis clos and Albert Camus' L'exil et le royaume, I figured I'd had enough of French (9 years!) and dropped it for good!
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