remodel #1

Since we moved in to the little white house in Orem, our life has been filled with wallpaper, plaster, spackle, dust, (and more dust), popcorn ceilings and paint. We've basically been living in squalor. But the end is in sight! For now, at least.

Here's our dining room before:



And after:


Pictures of the study and living room are soon to come!

I have class in 27 minutes. I should be grading an unfortunately hefty pile of papers sitting in front of me...but I can't convince myself that it's a good idea. Instead I've been sitting here wondering about something linguistic (which is kind of related to grading papers, right? They're both language related...) and I have a question: how do you pronounce the word mountain? Do you pronounce the t in the middle as an actual /t/? Does it sound more like you catch the air in the back of your throat and ignore the /n/ (like mou (air stop) in). Does the t sound like something else? What about in these words: center, cater, rotten.

It would make my day if you could post a comment with your approximate pronunciation of those 4 words (mountain, center, cater, rotten), along with your age and where you have lived for the majority of your life. Thanks!

Oh. And in order to get a more "accurate" description of the word, trying saying these sentences.

1. The mountain is turning white with snow.
2. She lives on Center Street.
3. I'd love to cater your wedding.
4. Please toss the rotten salad.

What did you hear?

wanted: your fashion advice

I have a quandry. Cold weather is fast approaching, and I find myself without proper foot attire for school. I often just wear my converse, but the sole is falling out, they are stained from the last time I went to Holi at the Hare Krishna temple, and I feel kind of crusty teaching with them on (and I feel like a student). But. I have absolutely no idea what kind of shoes I should get. I have 1 pair of boots, but I can't wear them every day (and they become awfully tight when I try to stuff both my beefy calves AND a pair of jeans in them). I need something warm (ish), something nice (ish), and something that doesn't make me look like I've just come down from the mountains of Montana. Any suggestions?

My grandpa is very ill and we are flying to Denver in 4 hours to see him in the hospital.

Trav bought me the most beautiful yellow tulips that look extremely nice in our newly painted green dining room.

In a moment of irrational desire, I spent $20 in Harmon's (which is almost an acceptable substitute for Wegmans) yesterday on challa bread, goat cheese, and orange-fig jam. It was delicious.

I wish I didn't always feel irrational and unstable these days. Perhaps if I bought more bread and cheese my mood would even out...

cheater!

I have never had so many cheaters in a class as I do this semester. They cheat on their tests, on their workbooks, on their in-class and out-of-class assignments. And the worst part is, even though I know they're cheating, I rarely manage to catch them in the act (which is so dang frustrating). Here are a few samples of their cheating:

Yesterday, a girl I'll call Sun, was absent. During class, we did a listening activity where the students had to write down their answers and turn them in. Miraculously, Sun managed to turn in both her homework and her answers to the listening part, which were suspiciously similar in correctness to all of the Koreans' answers. Hmm.

Can 4 students really all manage to misspell rehearsal in the exact same way? Really?

It's interesting that all the Koreans in class have all the same answers on their quiz. Unluckily for them, their answers are all wrong. HA.

How can you take notes on a lecture that I'm pretty dang sure you didn't attend and that cannot be found on the internet?

Of course, there are a few assignments on which I can easily dock points for cheating. Like when they have to do a summary of what they heard on the news, and the grammar is 100% perfect and the vocabulary is college level...and they clearly didn't write it themselves. It's also really fun to ask them what certain words from their summaries mean and watch them sqiurm. Or like when they're in the process of asking (in their native language) another student the answer to question #12 on the test and I happen to hear/see them right at that point. Blushing, anyone?

I know students cheat. Even good students might occasionally get a few answers from a friend. But I think foreign students cheat way more often than Americans. And they're dumb about it. If you're going to cheat, do it well. At least re-word your answers so it's not quite so blatantly obivous. Or you could just not cheat. Then maybe your English would actually improve.

on the american classroom

As a student, I had plenty of classes where the professor droned on with little to no participation from students. I had classes where we had loads of group work and classes where we had none. And I had several professors I felt completely comfortable with, a few I didn't care for, and one I completely idolized (and was naturally seized with terror any time I had to speak to her). I came to expect that in most of my major classes, there would be class discussion (though I may or may not choose to participate), and that occasionally I would have to work with my classmates. Foreign students, on the other hand, arrive to the US with little idea what to expect out of the American classroom.*

For example, they are often shocked (and sometimes appalled) to discover that in many American classrooms (especially ESL), you are usually expected to participate. No longer can students sit in class, searching the internet on their iphones or facebooking on their laptops (although they sometimes still do), for they never know when they may be expected to answer a question or break into group discussions.

They are also surprised to find that they can actually talk to their teachers. Us American professors are typically happy to answer questions after class, explain the logic behind assignments, or even just chat with students. We acknowledge that we are neither omnipotent nor omniscient (at least some of us do...the ESL teachers do). Foreign students are also surprised to find out that if they have a problem with another student in the class, they can talk to their professor. Or if they hate an assignment, they can complain about it; the instructor may not do anything, but we'll at least listen.

And, of course, group work. American classrooms are often filled with group class work, presentations, or discussions. Foreign students are often loathe to participate in group work, instead spending their time finding reasons to complain about the project, their group members, or something else totally irrelevant (maybe something they don't like about American culture...or American food...or the way the teacher hands out papers...).Which is actually quite similar to the way many American students react, except the Americans are trained to complain and the foreigners pick up on it all too quickly.

I've decided that all incoming foreign students should be informed of these things before they're thrust into the thick of things. It would make their lives a lot easier. And it would definitely make my life a lot easier. Is there anything you would tell a foreign student about class in America?

*My disclaimer: I'm sure there are many of you who never had to work in groups in your college classes or never said a word during lectures. I know you're out there. As you read this, just imagine a major where you have to be vocal. Or think about your high school classes. Or maybe grade school...

Quick! I need one of these. Or maybe one of these. Or these. Or this or this or this.

Good thing there aren't any prices listed so I can't realistically lust after the entire store.

the longest day

I awoke this morning with a feeling of dread. The feeling you get when you wake up and know there's not the slightest possibility of accomplishing everything you have to do, no matter how you shuffle your schedule or efficiently manage your time.

So I ran around all day, maniacally trying to catch up from being half a step behind. Time just slipped through my fingers. Before I knew it, my evening class had arrived, dinner was inhaled in record time, and I finished writing a test literally 3 minutes before class. Then suddenly I was home with nothing to do but take care of a 2 year old who is spending his last night of 6 at my house.

This isn't to say that today was a bad day; quite to the contrary. I did manage to get almost everything done, although my students won't actually be able to take the test they think is scheduled in the testing center starting tomorrow because I turned it in late. Ooops. Thursday promises more chaos with the upcoming ESL Halloween party I'm so lucky to be in charge of.

The highlight of the madness: I got to hear one of the greatest people ever speak at BYU, the author of Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson (I was a mere 250 people away from him). And I drank a very large and overpriced Jamba Juice. And I kept my mouth primly closed when a particular rotten student was her normal rotten self. And I wore a lovely purple cardigan, which of course made the craziness much more bearable. Had I been wearing something else, I may have shuffled off into a dark corner with slumped shoulders and hid.

a trip to idaho

Last week we went to Moscow to see Trav's parents during my fall break. While there, we took a tour of central Washington (also known as the barren wasteland) where Trav spent his early years. It's actually not that bad; I'm just more accustomed to farmland being green with fields interspersed with hedge-rows of trees rather than dry brown sage brush. Then we spent 2 days in Leavenworth, WA, a small "Bavarian" village on the east side of the Cascades. Although very touristy and rather kitschy, it was still pretty fun. Here's a picture of the main street:

My favorite part were all the signs. In order to give things a more "German" feel, the locals added German words to most of their store names. However, they didn't always bother to check to see if the words were grammatically correct. Or even German. Two of my favorites:

We also stopped at a candy factory in Cashmere, WA where they make a very strange and sometimes tasty treat called aplets and cotlets. They're kind of like Turkish delight, except not as nasty. Millions of pounds of candies are made each year in a building smaller than most houses by a staff of about 20. All hand packaged, even. They're a Zirker family favorite for Christmas...and a bit of an acquired taste.

Trav did his best to eat as many free samples as he could. He said it was all in the name of settling the family dispute about which are better: aplets or cotlets. I vote cotlets.

ESL perspectives

Yesterday my listening speaking level 4 students had their midterm exam (or at least part of it. I've been cursed of recent with the MOST horrible unsolvable technological problems. And our department tech guy is out of town. As usual). Part of the their exam was an oral interview where they were asked their opinions on the following questions:

1. Do you like/dislike President Obama? Why?
2. What is the biggest issue Americans have to deal with today?
3. What can Americans do to improve their relationships with foreigners.

Most students liked Obama. One girl from Tajikistan said she liked him even though he was black. Even though? She was quite surprised that a black man could amass that much power and then end up elected and a good president. One Korean didn't like him because he is black. One Mexican liked him because he is black and his parents were immigrants, just like her. Because the Koreans usually have no idea who is president in their own country, they had even less of an idea about ours. Case in point: a few semesters ago we were discussing American government vs other forms of governments, and none of the 12 (South) Koreans in the class could tell me if they vote for a president or if the military is in control of their country or if they have a divinely chosen reincarnated king...

America's biggest issue is either dishonesty, laziness, or the economy. Ooo, and housing costs. Houses should be cheap for all! One girl thinks the recession is due to people watching too much cable tv instead of getting a job.

Americans can improve relationships with foreigners by "hanging out." Or by not giving the Koreans mean looks when the Koreans try to speak and you have no idea what gibberish just came out of their mouths. Or by being 100% blunt: if you think it, say it (Unsurprisingly, this came from an Armenian student..remember the wrinkle comment?). Being blunt would solve social, economic, and military problems. But, as this girl has noticed, it might not get her an American boyfriend.

I really love my students.