You say tomato, I say tomato

Yesterday, I was asked to fill in for an absent church member to read the fourth lesson at our annual service of lessons and carols. I, in turn, found another willing member from "the bench" (or should that be pew?) as I was reluctant to commit. I have to say that Maria, who is of Austrian birth, read the lesson beautifully, as did all the other readers.

The reason for my reluctance is that I am aware of my English, very English, pronunciation of Isaiah. I've always been used to saying "ai-ZIRE-uh" and it has always sounded strange when read in church here as "ai-ZAY-uh". Now I would be the last to say which is right or wrong - now there IS a novelty - and to be fair, our wonderful vicar, who is Canadian by birth, has always encouraged me to "be myself" when reading and indeed was quite happy for me to use my English pronunciation if I decided to read the lesson.

This lead to a discussion on the different ways we English pronounce, never mind spell, common words. As usual food played a significant part - in which the Americans got full marks for saying PAR-sta, it is Italian after all, while us English say PA-sta, emphasizing the short "a". I was reminded of my embarrassment when on my first visit here I ordered a fil-LET steak and emphasized the "t", as any Englishman would. I got the same reaction from the American server (and my American family) as I would have done if I ordered a cod or plaice fil-LAY in an English "chippy" (fish-'n'-chip shop)! Understandable from the American point of view as even the English don't say bal-LET, but bal-LAY.

To-MATE-toe I do say now rather than to-MAR-toe (probably the only American pronunciation Gail can't, or won't, say). Another great food example is AP-ricot as opposed to English APE-ricot.

Of the non-food differences there is, of course SKED-ule as opposed to SHED-ule (the American version does make sense, no one pronounces school "shool"). Syllable emphasizing is another part of the language that takes some getting use to. IN-surance as opposed to in-SUR-ance, warran-TEE against warran-TY and sem-EYE versus sem-EE, are examples that come to mind.

Thank goodness we do understand one another. Even if we do pick up the pronunciations of our new home and alter our spellings, we are still of English stock. As our very talented choir director tells me, "be proud of your heritage", just as she is of her Filipino roots.

A Joyous Christmastide

As I will not get another chance to post before the happy day, Gail and I will take this opportunity to wish you, together with all our friends and family in England, Eire, Spain and here in the USA, a Blessed and Joyous Christmas.

Gail is about to get to our church to prepare the turkey she will be cooking for our annual Christmas dinner, which will follow our evening Holy Eucharist.

The church is looking more beautiful then ever, thanks to Kate and Monty and helpers and we are looking forward to worshiping with our friends both new and old.

Peace be with you.

Dress sense

A chance remark had be thinking on our "separated by a common language" theme again. I was talking about shoes and mentioned that so many people of all ages nowadays wear trainers. What are trainers?
Okay, let's have another session on American English and [British English]:
Sneakers or tennis shoes [trainers]
Pants [trousers]
Vest [waistcoat]
Tee-shirt [vest] as in underwear
Windbreaker [windcheater]
Suspenders [braces]
Cuffs [turn-ups]
Slicker [anorak]
Coverall [boiler suit]
Tuxedo [dinner suit]
Robe [dressing gown]
Sweater [jersey, jumper, sweater]
Panties [briefs, knickers]
Turtle neck [polo neck]
Panty-hose [tights]
Galoshes [wellington boots, wellies]
Purse [handbag]
Pocket book [purse]
and finally, a more delicate one:
Fanny pack [bum bag]

So, so different

I’m currently reading “The Anglo Files” by Sarah Lyall. Its sub-titled “A Field Guide to the British” and I must admit its great fun to be reminded of the differences we English and Americans either don’t realize or have forgotten. The author grew up in New York and is a London correspondent for the New York Times.

As a WWII baby, I was brought up on ration books (many people forget that there were severe food shortages for quite a few years after the war was over, into the early fifties in fact), so I’ve always tried to be thrifty, kept a well-stocked pantry and realized that my mother was right about the differences between “need” and “want”. Even my mother-in-law, with whom I disagreed with just about everything, was wise enough to quote the old adage “there is no such thing as a bargain if you have no need for it”.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s annual budget speeches as Chancellor of the Exchequer were well punctuated with the wonderful word “prudent”. He was often mocked for the number of times he used this word when spelling out the nation’s economic situation. I think prudent is how many of us, on both sides of the Atlantic, will become before the current recession is over. I was amazed at Sarah’s revelation (to me anyway) that a nation that used to be well known for being thrifty had become “awash in debt, about £1.35 trillion of it by 2007 – giving it the highest ratio of debt to personal income in the developed world”! That’s about $2.1 trillion by today’s exchange rate. Staggering!

Okay, so the English have that in common with our American friends, but Sarah points out the huge differences between our two countries. You notice that when I refer to Great Britain I use “nation”, when referring to England I use “country” (most of my friends here are aware of my dislike of being called a “Brit”). She has really reminded me of these differences. It’s not just differences in vocabulary, or the so-called “politeness”. It goes much deeper than that and thank goodness it does.

Upon reading her comments on the Englishness of not turning on a lamp until we can hardly see to find the switch, had me laughing out loud – we still do it here and it often amuses us to see neighbors having lights on all day.

I can thoroughly recommend this book. Americans will be amazed at some of the author’s experiences and observations, the English may be horrified, but will ultimately recognize themselves and like me laugh about it. That’s another subject for a blog posting – our different senses of humor.

Photos by Ian Britton, freefoto.com

O Come, all ye Faithfull

At church yesterday we were invited to join with the Altar Guild next Sunday in dressing the church with greenery. Our wonderful organist and choir director, Lyn, will be leading the choir in helping us willing workers along by singing our favorite carols.

Although since living here I’ve found I’m singing familiar hymns to unfamiliar music and vice versa, I still have favorites from my Norfolk boyhood, singing in the choir at our wonderful neighborhood church of St. Andrew’s, Great Yarmouth. I can still remember the first hymn I sung in that choir, probably aged 10. It was at our Harvest Festival service – “Come, ye thankful people, come, raise the song of harvest home”. Amazing how it still brings a lump to my throat when I hear it over fifty years later.

Advent and Christmas hymns and carols are no exception. Two in particular evoke such wonderful boyhood memories, not to mention that they were favorites of my parents. My mother adored “In the Bleak Mid Winter”. I also get quite emotional when singing this beautiful carol written by Christina Rosetti to the wonderful music of Gustav Holst.

Mum went to a Catholic school and was instructed to sing many carols in Latin (that certainly came in handy)! She did however take great delight in trying to pass this on to me. To my shame I can only remember the refrain from “Adesle, fideles, laeti triumphantes” (O Come, All Ye Faithful) and still sing this: Venite adoremus, Dominum.

Perhaps my strongest recollection of boyhood and teenage Christmas mornings was my father singing his favorite, "Christians Awake, Salute the Happy Morn!", whilst climbing the stairs at 3am to "awaken" a bleary-eyed me to breakfast of pork pie complete with HP sauce, before going with him 30 minutes later to deliver milk. He would never let his customers down, even on Christmas Day! “Christians Awake” was sung to the tune “Yorkshire” written in 1750 by John Wainright, and although not that well-known here, has been put on the list for this coming Sunday. Lyn, you can expect a few tears from this ol' Norfolk boy.


St. Andrews Church, Great Yarmouth. [Photo: Cliff Richard Temple]. The infant school I attended connot be seen in this view, but was attached to the church on the left.

Driving me crazy - part 2

The inspiration to write this post came whilst driving from home to the grocery store [supermarket]. In less than three miles I witnessed several drivers total disregard for other road users. Examples included not using turn signals [indicators], chatting on their cell [mobile] phones, drinking coffee or other beverages, and a real dangerous maneuver [manoeuvre] - pulling out in front of me when, although I had a green, they were turning “right on red” without stopping.

I must explain the latter to UK readers. In North Carolina (although not in all US States), it is permitted to turn right on a red signal at an intersection (unless signage instructs you not to) if, and only if, it is safe to do so. In the UK, this is the equivalent of turning LEFT at a red signal [traffic light]. As this is a RED, you must also STOP before continuing but it seems that whilst behind the wheel, stop is a word many Americans seem incapable of interpreting and it is not unusual to see many do what is known as a “Californian roll” at any stop sign.

Traffic circles [roundabouts] are very few and far between here, although there seems to be a move by some local authorities to introduce them. Most neighborhood intersections [junctions] are controlled by a stop sign in the minor road. Where two major roads intersect a “Four-Way” stop is used. This is a very civilized (if at first scary) system whereby the first vehicle to arrive goes first. Outside neighborhoods, on the major roads, traffic signals are the norm with filters, just like Europe, depending on the size of the intersection.

Whether driving standards are any better or worse here than in the UK or continental Europe, it’s difficult to say. I do know that it seems acceptable to travel a few miles per hour over the posted speed limit here and my biggest gripe is that only a minority use turn signals and many who do use them do so after making the maneuver – grrrrrrrr! Old school I may be, but I consider I was taught well, to always make a turn signal, even if I was the only car on the road (a good habit to get into) and to always follow this basic rule – "mirror, signal, maneuver". Okay, it's time for me to polish my halo and get on with the American-English – [British-English] translations:

Vehicle or automobile [car], usually pronounced “veer-he-cal” especially in the South.
SUV [4x4, even when it’s a 4x2], SUV = Sports Utility Vehicle
Minivan [people carrier]
Van [minibus]
Muffler [silencer or exhaust pipe]
Trunk [boot]
Hood [bonnet]
Fender [bumper], although common usage as in “bumper sticker” not “fender sticker]
Antenna [aerial]

There are many differences in vocabulary associated with actual driving. For example: Let’s say we are going on a trip [journey]. You crank [start] the engine [car], back-up [reverse] off your driveway [drive] into the street [road]. You might pop [open] the trunk [boot] to get something out or crack [open] a window to get some fresh air. Our son told us when he first came here he would mix American and British English in the same sentence, e.g., to his wife “honey, can you “pop” the “boot”, I need my jacket”!

Whilst driving (on the right of course) you will need to be careful as being involved in a wreck [accident or RTA] is the last thing you want. Of course you will not want to be pulled over by a cop, deputy or trooper [police officer] in his/her cruiser [patrol car]. There are very few “Yield” [Give Way] signs here, mostly “stop” signs or traffic signals [traffic lights] (see part one). We will want to get onto the highway or interstate [motorway] as soon as possible so we carefully merge from the ramp [slip road] into the right lane.

One of the many phrases which get a confused look is if we ask someone if they “want a lift”. No thanks, I don’t have to reach for anything and anyway I don’t think you can lift me! We soon realized that the question should be phrased “would you like a ride?” There, easy isn’t it?

Getting back to intersections and traffic signals – Americans tend not to slow down when approaching a “green”. We soon discovered that this is because the yellow [amber] holds for a lot longer than in the UK, so if green is just changing or changed to yellow you still have plenty of time to cross before it changes to red. That’s the theory anyway. And just like continental Europe, after red, it changes direct to green, not red and amber.

I must admit, that one place where drivers here take it easy and are extra vigilant, is on parking lots [car parks]. Pedestrians always have right of way. I know that’s the case in Europe, but the Spanish in particular treat pedestrians as “fair game” and assume that the species has no earthly right to actually walk from car to store. That’s a big plus for American (at least Southern) courtesy.

Whatever nationality you are and wherever you drive – “Let’s be careful out there”!

Footnote: Why is it that the car that overtakes you is going too fast (probably driven by a mindless moron) and the one you overtake going to slow (probably driven by a doddery old fool)?

Driving me crazy - part 1

It had to happen. I knew from the minute I published my first posting that sooner or later I would make a comment about driving standards. Remember the original idea for this blog? It seems I sometimes forget too. It was (and is) my intention to comment and reflect on the everyday differences of living here in the USA, North Carolina in particular and the land of my birth, England. We lived in southern Spain for five years so that may just creep into postings now and again. So differences in driving and all things associated with the automobile are fair game.

I learned to drive as soon as legally permitted at 17, so have 48 years experience and many, many thousands of miles under my belt, 15,000 miles a year being quite a lot by UK standards. I can now imagine my son reading this and thinking to himself “I wonder what it felt like crawling along behind the guy with the red flag”!

Cars (the design, power and more importantly the sheer number), roads and drivers have change tremendously during that time. When I first started driving there were just two sets of traffic lights [signals] in my home town, now there seem to be hundreds. My first car, a Morris Minor 1000 (an identical vehicle is pictured below), is now a classic collectors’ piece. But I think the most important change is in driving standards. The UK driving test is quite exhaustive, much more so than when I took it, but even then is was still much more intense than the test here. Of course, as soon as you had passed and received your full license [licence], your driving habits changed. For example you no longer shifted down a gear (lucky to have four then), slowed down and looked both ways at every intersection, even if you had the right of way. You were now free to travel the Queen’s highway!

Oh dear, this is going to be a long one . . . like previous subjects, I’m going to have post in installments.

To be continued . . .

Photo by Ian Britton, courtesey freefoto.com

An eye opener

A fellow church member recently spent a week in Haiti, the purpose of which was to see for herself the plight of this, the poorest nation in the western hemisphere. She attended a conference in which various church and other aid organizations discussed how they can coordinate their efforts to help. We often hear of the problems of this and many other nations in the media, but after our Sunday service, when Lisa shared her experiences with a group of us, it somehow became more “real” and not so distant.

Another friend was telling me that a mutual acquaintance of ours, a renowned expert on tropical diseases, was extremely concerned about the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe, and the effect on southern Africa this could have.

I get so frustrated when I think of various governments who cannot (or do not want to) do anything to improve the plight of their citizens, yet seem to find money to keep themselves and their hangers-on in comparative luxury as well as to equip and organize an army to force their own ideals. I'm not suggesting this is the case in Haiti, but given that nearly 60% of that country's economy comes from US, Canadian and EU aid, there surely is something wrong.

There is so much hunger, poverty and injustice in this world, where do we start? I try not to be controversial or preach on this blog, but apart from the previous paragraph there is nothing controversial about millions living on less than a dollar a day - it's a fact. Perhaps we should give more than a thought and a prayer, although we should do that, but give practical help, in whatever way we can - buying “Fair Trade” products whenever possible, by stopping and thinking before cancelling or reducing our charitable gifts, etc. It is even more important in these times of economic recession. Maybe we haven’t much to spare, but “every little helps”.

Thanks Lisa for opening my eyes even wider and to my daughter-in-law Ellie for her comments on the previous posting and for giving me the encouragement to post this one.

. . . . Oh, and when you switch on your Christmas lights, or enjoy those in your neighborhood, perhaps you might just give a second or two to think of those who haven't even one electric light bulb.

Chritmas lights - to be or not to be?

Power stations must be gearing up for the annual surge due to the Holiday season lights. Our neighborhood is gradually lighting up and some homes seem to be competing with Blackpool [British readers] or the Vegas Strip [American readers]. For the first two years here we did the same, gradually buying more lights.

Okay, hear it comes . . . . “Scrooge”, “Humbug”, you will be thinking, but this year we decided to keep things more simple by not adding to the light pollution in our street (not to mention reducing our carbon footprint and maybe seeing a smaller December electricity bill).

To be honest the real reason is that all the “glitz” of “Christmas” wears a little thin when we consider the plight of millions worldwide who have no electricity, no clean water and hardly any food, not to mention nearer to home, our many “neighbors” who have no roof over their heads, never mind one lit with hundreds of light bulbs.

We shall decorate, albeit not so early as previous years, but more conservatively. Of greater importance, we shall enjoy the Christmas Season by remembering its true meaning.