Back to the Lessons

I took a break from my Norwegian language lessons a few weeks before Elliot arrived, so it's been a while since I've had any formal training.

Husband is fluent* and really wants Elliot to have at least the beginnings of the language, as do I.

So we've been working on it.

And by "we" I mean Elliot and me.

Especially now, as we figure out where we will be for the next few years, I think it's really important to work on our Norwegian language skills.

If we're going to continue to be here, I need to up my game from the basic I know now.

If we're going to be head off to parts unknown, then I need to have a little bit more so Husband and I can have a "secret" language in public situations.**

And there are all sorts of theories about language and infant brains, so it can only be good.

We have been working on it together, with Husband's guidance.

Husband speaks to Elliot in Norwegian on a regular basis and we all read books together.***

In Leksikon for de aller minste (Lexicon for the smallest), we've been learning word order, vocabulary and the the seasons.

Snow

In the winter, it snows.

The snow is cold and white.

Robin****thinks it's fun with snow.

In Æsj! Det er Ekkelt, Bert (Ugh! It's Disgusting, Bert) we've been learning about appropriate behavior.

If Bert saw that the cat tee-tee'd in the flower-bed, Bert also tee-tee'd in the flower-bed.

Then all cried: Ugh! It's Disgusting, Bert!

In Min Store Dyrebok, (My Big Animal Book), we've been working on our animals.*****

You can guess the animals, but the non-animal words are:

On the farm.

I love to eat and mess. Who am I?

I say kykeliky! Who am I?

But just to get some extra practice, we stopped by the local library and perused the children's books.

There were the usual English translations of familiar classics, which are helpful to compare the English to the Norwegian copies. In most of them even the cadence is the same, which must be a challenge for the translator.

Then there are the ones that are a bit service-y******..."Thomas Goes to the Doctor," which is exactly as you might imagine it is.

And even a bit more service-y..."A Mother and Father to Gabriel," which explains how adopted children come to Norway, specifically a little boy named Gabriel.

Then I saw one that takes service-y to an even higher level, called When Momma and Pappa Drink. I picked it up out of a bit of morbid curiosity, but also thinking there would be good words. And really, as I flipped through the pictures, I just wanted to know what happened. Surely there must be a bit of redemption somewhere in it.

So I went home and Husband read it to me, and I will tell it to you....

There are two children, Mette and Mads. Their mom works in a bakery and their dad is a mechanic. Sometimes the family comes home and he is passed out on the sofa.
Or they have to go pick him up at the bar.
The kids often don't do well in school because they are tired.
In the summer they go to their cabin.
Their dad's buddies come over with coolers of booze and the adults stay up late and are loud.

The kids try to think of nice things, but really they'd like to go back to school.
The end.

I'm not sure the little man is ready for that one quite yet.

_________________________________________________

*He would say he's not, but that is only because he's modest and may have a little bit of a hard time reading classic novels. But he can conduct business and fool servers in restaurants. Then I blow his cover.

**And by "public", I mean places like the mall and family dinners. In either case, sometimes it is unavoidably necessary to comment on the situation at hand, though often I would prefer the conversation to stay between Husband and me. Also, we would never be overt about it. Not only would that be exclusive and rude, you never know who may understand.

***By read together, I mean Husband reads to us. Elliot and I listen.

****Robin is the fox. He's the star of the book.

*****When Husband reads, I make the animal sounds. It's big fun.

******This is not to say there are not other kinds of children's book in Norway. There are. This post is not about those kinds of books.

Husband Knows Stuff #3: The Portuguese Language

We've just gotten back via delayed flights and a long stop into the Stavanger Airport "Where-Is-Our-Luggage" office.  

The two weeks in Portugal were lovely and completely eventful.  We tasted gallons of wine, made loads of friends, soaked up hours of sun and drove almost 2000 kilometers.  

It was exactly what we needed.  

Instead of telling all about it right now, I must go and track down our bags, then go and pick up the sweet hunds who will most likely smell like a foot. 

 

But stories and photos will come soon.  

In the meantime, I leave you with this, the latest installment of "Husband Knows Stuff" Episode Three: The Portuguese Language...*

*If I were more savvy, I would know how to flip it around, but unfortunately that particular skill is not one I possess.

Husband Knows Stuff #2: The Alphabet

Right now, Husband is almost there.

While he is getting ready to strap on his board and whiz down the mountain, I am going to practice my Norwegian.

He left me with this helpful study aid*.





*And yes, contrary to his last comment, he said it was okay to post.

Norwegian lesson #1: Forbudt and "ha det"

Norwegian is a Germanic based language and can be challenging to learn, especially for someone like me whose language experience is limited to English, a smattering of Romance-based languages and a working knowledge of Pig Latin.

The vast majority of Norwegians know English and will use it when asked, so I am not completely stuck.

Husband is fairly fluent, so he's always fine and I can rely on him to help with communication issues when he's around.

We have Norwegian friends who are kind enough to speak English in front of me. But, I don't want to rely on all of their kindnesses because we're going to be living here for at least two years, if not longer. Plus, often a native speaker will slip back into Norwegian and I'm left in the dark and miss great bits of what seem to be really good stories. (Though some words are almost identical, in a few days I will tell the Kangaroo Body Parts story...)

In any case, I am an American living here. So, as a resident, I want to learn to speak and at least comprehend much of what goes on around me for a variety of reasons, the least of which is that I just think it's the polite and right thing to do.

So in my quest towards fluency, I am using several methods.

Immersion:
During the day, I often go to places alone where people are not quite as fluent, like the wine store. I use the bits I know and muddle through the rest with combinations of "Tusen takk" (Tooo-sen tock) which means "thanks so much" and pointing.

Osmosis:
Most morning I keep the Television tuned into the channels that only use Norwegian in the hopes that it will sink into my subconscious.

Tutoring:
Tomorrow, I will officially begin my lessons with an instructor and Husband has been coaching me through lots of lessons.

Self-study:
By using Husband's old language books and workbooks, I've figured out some conjugations, vocabulary and structure.

Going to the grocery store:
Much like reading a children's book (which is another method I will soon employ once I get a library card), the grocery store is full of items that I can identify by sight, so then I memorize the appropriate word, (red pepper=paprika, cheese=ost, milk=melk).

Word association:
There are just some connections that seem appropriate to me.

For example: "Forbudt" means "Forbidden"



Don't park here unless you meet certain conditions

And for some reason, "Forbudt" (Fuhrr-booodt) connects with "Forgetaboutit" (Fuhrr-get-ta-booot-it) in my head.

If you are over 18, let Donnie Brasco explain it to you



If you are under 18, learn about it through Mad TV
>

(To reiterate, the Norwegians mean "don't do it.")

Then there is a "ha det" (ha-da), which is a commonly used salutation, which is an informal way to say "good-bye, see you later." The inflection uses a higher pitch and emphasis on the first syllable.

Say it quickly and t may remind you of "Holla," which is also a commonly used American salutation, which means "See you later on, give me a call."

If you are over 18, the Ghetto Boys will help me explain what I mean...

Things I Learned Today, Installment One

So our camera broke today. An error message saying "Memory Card Error" popped up on the screen instead of the inspired photo I was trying to take of the giant shrimp statue in the harbor.

Husband replaced the memory card, but was too embarrassed to take it to his friend, the technophile, because it is so out of date. So for a while, until we get a new one, we'll have to do without photos, but not for tooooo long....

In the meantime, I'll add in links when I appropriate (or deemed so by me...).

Today, we got a loaner car. It's a Saab 93 diesel (wagon, natch...) and we'll be driving this one until our actual car comes in the mail or on a boat or via train or however it is that cars get to places when they are not being driven. So Husband ditched work early and picked me up for a Friday afternoon drive.

We went all over the area and into the country side and here are a few things we saw and a few things I learned.

1) If you are driving along the road and see a sign that says "Fartputer" do not be alarmed. Slow down because, if not you will soon be flying over Speed Pillows, which are speed bumps.

2) A goat is a geit, which is pronounced Yight (rhymes with sight). More than one goat is a geiter.

3) It doesn't matter that it was cold enough that we were buttoned up and wearing gloves. On this afternoon, the sun was out and the waves were breaking. So, car loads of people were pulling up to the beach, stripping down and then zipping up their wetsuits all for a few hours of surfing in the afternoon sun.

4) Not all cars in Europe are stick shifts. Some of them are automatic, one of which, in our possession for the next month or so, is parked right by our front door.