I'm a pumpkin head!

Avoir la tete comme une citrouille! As in "a head that feels swollen from information overload" (see previous post).


I'm not sure what possessed me to get myself into such a learning frenzy with dance lessons, les cours de français, new computer skills, all at the same time - what is this the 18th century? I do, however, draw the line at embroidery. It is no longer necessary to be "accomplished" these days in order to attract some upstart from a snooty family. Not that I care about attracting upstarts. Isn't it a shame this thirst for knowledge didn't hit me twenty years ago? I more than likely would have been living in Paris for years by now. 

The funny thing is, and not in a ha ha way, this quest  I've embarked upon has somehow exacerbated my self-consciousness issue. I am terrified when I have to speak in my french class, and I am so tense during dance lessons, muscle relaxers are needed for my back the following day. I must find a cure for this affliction, my progress is being impeded.


While I'm at it, can I lose this Texas accent in a week or two? Wonder if the Eliza Doolittle method would work. .http://bit.ly/piSLPi 

There is a bit of encouraging news this week: I am able to pronounce l'alphabet français assez bien. I found several french alphabet songs for children on YouTube, but this is my favorite. http://www.youtube.com/watch?

I learned some quite useful tips in class on Saturday. I shall share a few of them with you. Ever wonder what that little squiggle is under the letter C, that looks like 2/3 of a 5? This is une cedilla. It changes the pronunciation of the letter C from a hard sound to a soft sound, as in garçon and française. In addition, the soft C always comes before e and i. The hard C always comes before a, o, u. I found this to be a delightful bit of information.

We conjugated our first verbs, and oh mon Dieu, is that going to take a lot of practice. Let's look at how to conjugate the verb parler (speak). There are six words, five spellings, four of which sound exactly the same, the last letters of the other two are not pronounced. Seriously? I just realized that I'm going to have to recite these and others next week. A wave of nausea just came over me. Oh self-confidence, why hath thou forsaken me?

Here is what's happening in Austin and Paris this weekend.

The third day of ACL (Austin City Limits) music festival is still going strong. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Er4vugx4n4o&feature=fvst

Que faire à Paris ce week-end? Heritage Days: discover Paris from a different angle - Pari... 



Consider yourself caught up. I shall leave you today with des phrases amusantes en français - bonne semaine!

Prendre son pied. =
Take his foot. (It was swell.)

Les carottes sont cuites. =
The carrots are cooked. (I've had it!)

C'est la finition des haricots. =
It's the finish of the green beans. (It's hopeless.)