Ich habe keine Idee
It has been a long dry spell. I haven't been able to come up with anything to blog about. I promised myself that I will not be pressured into writing. Still, I have been wondering "why can't I write like before?" I have been turning to articles, tags and jokes from the web to get by. I have contemplated on taking a long hiatus but decided against it. I have met so many beautiful and interesting people since I stepped into the blogosphere. It is hard to stay away from them and their blogs.
Some blogs take me down memory lane. Some blogs bring awareness about the less fortunate in our world. Some speak about events in their life and some about our current socio-political scene. With so much inspiration around me, I should be able to blog about something, right? Nein. Ich habe keine Idee (Translation: No, I have no idea).
Hey! wait.. I am into my third paragraph. That's progress albeit just ramblings. Before I go on aimlessly, I would like to share something that has always amused me, no matter how many times I've read it.
While we are on that, have you seen this video before?
See... English is important!
In case you're wondering, I am not going on a German-bashing spree here. I'm just sharing what I've experienced hearing in the past six years.
I can speak a little German but I always try to get away by saying, "Sprechen Sie Englisch? Mein Deutsch ist nicht gut." (Translation: Do you speak English? My German is not good.) Try, I said. Sometimes - no luck.
I don't mind speaking the language. I am just afraid that someone will take that little knowledge I have as an indication to carry out a conversation. Believe me, that happened in my first year in Germany. I used to give a defeated look and then promptly declare, "Ich spreche Deutsch nicht" (Translation: I don't speak German) afterwhich I would get a strange look. Why? Because I just spoke in German! I probably came off as unfriendly. Oh well ...
Wow... I just wrote an entry and I thought I couldn't. I guess that is all for now. Till the next time, adios ... I mean Auf Wiedersehen.
61 comments:
heyya JT,
Thanks a lot for dropping by into my blog.I appreciate it.Hey, You have a nice blog, I should visit more often then...
BTW,talking baout the Europe-English,I was thinking to put it in my blog but you did already... what do you think? hehehhee...
Sertainly,it will konfused others, don't you think so??
Have a gr8 week yea.
I'm so glad you're still here and decided against the hiatus. :)
We're all learning from each other, supporting each other. And, yes, reading about other people's experiences and views enhances and enriches the quality of my life too. :)
Hi Noushy Syah,
Thanks for returning the visit and the compliments. I appreciate it.
Re Europe-English, please go ahead and put it on your blog too. More people will be entertained (hopefully). :D
It vill definitly not konfus zer readers. Riting zis,however, is konfusing me.
See ya around. :)
Hello Knicksgirl
Thanks for the tip. :) Have a good trip.
Hello Rashikaps
I figured I will keep cruising at low speed with borrowed articles and jokes until I get back into my groove.
Lots of people have inspired me. I may not blog about it but they certainly have enriched my life as well. Thanks for your support. :)
the video clip was short but funny. thinking=sinking ... oh my! lol!
Princess Farina
That clip left me in stitches. I cannot get over that guy's accent and pronounciation. :D
There... that wasn't so hard was it? Now u've officially joined the club of the rambling bloggers, where I'm the president.
:)
I'm studying French now (just a beginner). When I'm done here, I'll move on to German. Then, we can sembang together-gether la. Howzat?
Hallo! Agree with u! Sometime really don't know what to write. So I ask my reader for suggestion, so at lest I know what my reader like me to write about. Have a nice day.
The video clip's hilarious! (the poor guy...he wants to help! lol)
The Euro-English is really good, it's the 3rd time I've seen it and I still find it as funny as before! :D
that video is so funny! :P after reading all the euro-english..oh please!
I sertianly have no idea hov by ze fifz year I can understand anyzing at al hahaha (this practicing of the euro-english took me a little while to twist my brain around ;P)
JT,
I have cousins born and bred in Saudi Arabia who can't speak Malay even though both parents are Malay. When they try to speak broken Malay, I can't understand them and when I try to speak broken Arabic, they can't understand me! And since their English is worse than broken, we have no choice but to speak our own language and use sign language at the same time. Can you imagine unta speaking to ayam kampong? :)
very interesting video ha ha ha....english IS important...
Dear Mdm President (Sue)
I thank you for inducting me into the Rambling Bloggers Club. It is my hope that I will acquire the skills of rambling while I enjoy the camaraderie .. of aimless minds. :)
Cool! you are studying French. I am hopeless with that language. I will wait till you start learning German. Looking forward to the bersembang sessions. :)
Hor ny ang moh,
That is an idea. I did that before and looks like I have to try that again... soon :)
Thanks for visiting and for the idea.
WP,
I get so tickled every time I see the video and read the Euro-English.
To me, it is good practice. I used to find it difficult to immitate the Germans. :D
Thanks for dropping by. Hope to see you around.
Hi Winnie,
Ze man in ze video makes me laf.
I vil agree dat it is a littl difikult to understand espesially wen attempting to rit ze vords. Ve vil get no ver viz zis. :D
Hi Pi,
hahaha... unta speaking to ayam kampong?
That's funny. All the pointing and trying to explain stuff in sign language.
I did that with some people from the Czech Republic at an international youth gathering. We were camping out in the open field. I offered them my food supply because it looked like they did not have enough for their group. (P.S. It was easy to give up my food because I did not really care for canned tuna) ... and they didn't either. :D That broke the ice. They gestured that they rather eat their bread and wait till the next meal than have another round of tuna. :)
Zaitgha,
It sure is .... :)
Thanks for dropping by. I have been meaning to visit you but was caught up with stuff. I will try to visit your blog soon.
All I remember of Germany is: "Its not the ein, not the zwai, but the dry martini that gets you" .. ha ha
Hi jt.... long time no see lah !!
I'd be more konfius when c is changed to k and it looks like English is no longer a fun language to learn.... here in Jorrrrdan, the arab tends to pronounce R with thick RRRRRRRRRRRR.... it's good forrrrr you .....:)
Hi JT,
A full-page post from someone who doesn't know what to write?
*Snort, snort...Choke from too much snorting*
Hehe...
How r things going besides the oh-so-severe writers block (Snorting starting again)?
Hope all is well...Regards to Mitch yea?
Me too! Me too!
Im a pure Malay who look nothing less like a chinese.
Im working as a promoter currently so the customers will speak chinese to me because they thought im chinese but my reply will be 'ngo em sek kong, ngo hai malayan' which translate 'i cannot speak, im malay" but i just spoke their language. oh well!
Hello Captain
So the Dry Martini got you. :D
A classy drink you had there.
You must have had quite an adventure in Germany. :)
Sarinah (LoveUJordan),
So happy to see you back herrre. Everything back to norrrmal forrr you. Now yourrr next big event is moving back to Malaysia. Exciting times again. :D
Oh.. I can just imagine the accent you hear every day. :)
Hi Daphne... miss you dear! *hugs*
Ya lah a full page ... but it took me a long time to get to that point. :) Mind you, I am still suffering from writer's block - a little lar ... stop that snorting hahaha
All is well here. I will be busy next week... again. This time school-age children will take up my time. As soon as summer is over, I think I will be back to my MSN and blogging routine. :)
Keanorlinsya,
Isn't that funny? We usually learn that one sentence, about not speaking the language, in that language. :)
When I am in the States, some people mistake me for Mexican and start talking to me in Spanish. I know a little but not enough to hold a conversation. In my mind, I'll be thinking, "oh my... here we go again." :)
Nice post Jacqui.
People should learn more English because it is very, very important.
Take care.
jt, if europe adopts english, the publishing houses specialising in the language are gonna have boom years centuries to come hahaha!
please don't stop blogging, your writings have a class of it's own :)
I like your writing dear... keep on coming back for more!
The Euro English is a natural as progression as some of the sms people have been using them for shortcuts. Anyway it will help Malaysians alot as it is slmost similar to the way Malay words are spelt.
When in Thailand learn the phrase: put thai may dai ( I dont speak thai) It will help to break the ice when being approached by a Thai.
Oh sister... tell me about it. I am getting by on my blog nowdays by writing book reviews (are you for real elviza?????). It's getting boring.... I could feel it.
Just like you, I thought I could write just like that. I was dead wrong.
Hmmmmmmm, ah off to KLCC lah. Havent seen the sale yet... take care sister
Hello Odele
English is widely spoken in the world, so it is good to know that language.
As much as English is important, it is also beneficial to learn or at least understand some of the language of a country where one stays. It helps. :)
You take care too, Odele.
Hey Wailer,
So true what you said. I'm imagining millions of books that need to be translated, not forgetting new ones to guide people on the new language. :D
..and thank you for the compliment. Appreciate the encouragement. So manis. :)
I will not stop writing.
Hello Angel Eyes,
Thank you dear... appreciate your comment very much. :)
heheheheheh - I'm on the floor laughing at that video! that's sooo funny!
You know, i can speak really basic German as well but the problem is that when I make an effort and speak to strangers (eg at the shop I can ask for things etc) in German, they then reply with a whole speech in German and I have no idea what they're saying!
So I can understand where you're coming from!
Oh - and I'm having bloggers block as well!
Hello Zawi
Good observation there.
I am beginning to not understand an SMS text when it is cut short too much. I still write my messages in full... well most of them.
Thanks for the phrase - "put thai may dai (I dont speak thai)"
I don't know when I will step into Thailand again but good to know for future use. :)
Hello Elviza dear,
Hey, you did a great book review the last time. If you have to get by with a review, it is still worth reading. :) I would come back for more.
Off to KLCC? I miss that place. All kinds of food! Oh, love the book shops too... and shoe shops and handbags and... *sigh*
I spent mostly on food. Love food. :)
ColourMeCrazy,
I thought you would get a kick out of that video. lol
You should continue your "Babel" series on your blog. It is funny. :D
Beer and a foreign language makes for some laughs.
Hi JT, thought you were still on blog holiday. Glad your batteries recharged, ha ha.
Ha ha, the article re 'Euro English' is funny.
Talking about that, how's your Malay? Or for that matter Portuguese?
You know, one day some months back an American elderly couple on holiday here was trying to find a road they looking for and seeing me enquired, "x'cuse me sir, you speak English"?
I replied shaking my head, "wie bitte? Ich spreche English nicht".
Both of them looked at me and mumbling something drove off.
Would you believe a lot of Americans not too sure whether Canadians speak English according to a survey done awhile back. They think we speak Eskimo or Inuit language and use dog sleds for transport and our cops all wear red tunics and stetsons, ha ha.
Nice to see you blog active again, JT. Best regards, Lee.
Hi U.Lee,
It was just an out-of-the-blues urge to write about something. I hope it is a good start. It has been a long dry spell for me. :)
My Malay isn't too bad - it could be better. I use it less overseas, obviously, but when I am back home in Malaysia on holiday, I can get right back into it especially when I shoot the breeze with my favourite satay lady.
That was funny... you threw the elderly couple off with the German language. I am not surprised that a lot of Americans do not know about Canada, and that's their neighbour! Imagine how much less they know about the world. ;)
When I first settled in the States, some were surprised that I spoke English. They were doubly surprised that I grew up watching their old western stories, cartoons and soap operas. :D
I see that you have a new post. I will be over there as soon as I can. My Maserati in the garage is waiting to purr again. hahaha
hi JT...
Nice blog you have here.. For someone who is searching for ideas, you surely can write.
anyway.. I'll be coming here again :)
*off topic*
JT, iv ppsted the sambal tumis udang recipe.
btw, u mentioned above abt how a lot of americans dont kno abt canada. reminded me of this reality show abt the OC housewives (rich ppl in coto de caza). 1 of them has a son who had a canadian gf over. she actually asked the girl, "do u speak canadian?" on national tv! money really cant buy knowledge. hahaha..
Hi Banji
So nice to see you here. Thanks for the compliment. See you around, then. :)
P.S. I like your current post about desire.
Princess Farina,
Oh my! "do u speak canadian?" ... I am speechless. :D
Once someone (in the States) asked me if there was a difference between Malaysia and Burma. Oh! I had a mouthful to say but I had to sieve my words. I was so tempted to ask in return, "Is there a difference between Mexico and US?" :)
P.S. I will drop by your blog for the sambal recipe. Thank you.
Hi j.t.,
Read your post title and my eyes lit up...I thought you are posting some chicken recipe...the famous nyonya dish 'Inche Kebin'. hahhaha.... I love this dish...chicken seasoned in spices and then deep-fried.
That Europe English thingy...I think some of our young students here are already writing English in similar styles. And I was told that teachers marking their exam scripts are to give marks for contents and just ignore the spelling. Don't know how true is that, though.
j.t., no worries re: your lack of updates. Same over here with me too as I am much tied up with work.
I will always pop and visit you.
Have a great day. :)
And you said you didnt have anything to write?!
Yeah right! :)
Hi Nyonya
That dish 'Inche Kebin' sounds yummy. Maybe I should do something like that to the chicken thighs I have in my freezer. What kind of spices?
Golly... IF teachers are allowing spelling mistakes and going for content only, how are those students going to learn?
Thanks for always dropping by for a visit. Appreciate it very much. :)
Trueblue,
Seriously, I did not know what to write about. :D
One thing led to another and I managed to get a post out.
Hi JT,
I stumbled to your blog thru my sister's blog, Aiyah Nyonya. The video is hilarious! I have to admit English is so important.
Although I speak English, well, English with some Malaysian, British and American accents, people who I'm talking to says I am hard to understand and sometimes do not know what I'm talking about. I am so cautious of the way I speak. And of course, I never used to speak English everyday when I was in Ipoh, that was quite hard for me when I came here. I know at times I still speak like how I speak in Cantonese. My husband finds it funny. He never corrects my English because he says it's cute! *slaps head*
Hello Dawn
Welcome to my blog. Interesting to note that you are living in MN. I have a family friend who has been living there for about 20 years.
When I first moved to the States, some of them could not understand me because they say I spoke too fast. I had to learn to slow down for them. ;)
With such comments, it made me so cautious about how I spoke. *sigh*
However, over the years I started mixing with multi-racial communities and suddenly my accent did not seem so obvious. I was like the rest. :D
Thanks for dropping by. :)
Ya, English is important but hard to learn.
There is no apple nor pine in PINEAPPLE.
English muffins were not invented in England or French fries in France.
We find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.
And, ending a sentence with a preposition is something up with which I will not put.
j.t
I like this post that "you haven't been able to come up with anything to blog about" ha ha !
Hey Linken
You have good examples why English is hard to understand. It is downright confusing at times. :D
I wonder what I will blog about next. I cannot think of anything right now but we will see. :)
JT - Sometimes blogging about nothing is actually the something! Have a great day!
Hello Tunku Halim
It's true, isn't it?
From now on I am going to blog about nothing. ;)
You have a great day too. Thanks.
Hi JT, you back into the swing again?
You know, it would be nice to read your teen days in KL, re Eurasian club in Pudu Road, or Selangor club or just your fun days in school.
Keep well, JT, Lee.
Hi Lee,
Well ... partly.I'm not swinging high enough to get something down as quickly as before. Hopefully I can think of something by this weekend.
I guess I could try and recall some memories. Eurasian club memories only began around 2003. Most of my teenage social events were in Klang or Malacca. :) I'll think of something.
Take care, Lee.
Hi JT, got to your blog via MsJ's blog! Am Mush, a singaporean married to a belgian and we hv a 20 month old daughter name, Nora = ) Thanks for sharing the laughters, made my day abit lighter! Cheers to a great weekend ahead.
Hello Mush
Welcome to my blog. :)
Glad you were entertained. You have a good weekend too. I will be hopping over to your blog in a minute.
Cheers!
Thank God
i always wanted to migrate to germany
but i cud not master the german language
Hi Jim,
German language is hard. I still struggle with it a little. I think once you are here and you are exposed to the language daily - on TV, in shops, in public transportations, etc. - you will be able to grasp the language faster.
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