Why people have trouble with the English language….?

Can you read these right the first time?

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.

2) The farm was used to produce produce.
3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
4) We must polish the Polish furniture.

5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.
6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
7) Since there is no time like the present , he thought it was time to present the present.

A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum
9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
10) I did not object to the object.
11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
13) They were too close to the door to close it.
14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.
15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Becky the Bookworm: Anna Karenin

I’m currently reading Anna Karenin by Leo Tolstoy. Having seen bits and pieces of the movie version, I find it very hard at times to get myself to read the book. I know that something bad is going to happen to Anna and I just don’t want to read it. However, I know a lot of people consider this novel as a classic and I just want to read it and see what’s so good about this book. Maybe I’ll just concentrate on the love story of Levin and Kitty instead of Anna and Vronsky. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Turin Winter Olympic

Dale Begg-Smith won gold medal today for free-style mogul skiing. During an interview I watched, he was questioned as to why he was playing for Australia instead of Canada since he is Canadian-born and has played for the Canadian team previously. He stated that he was frustrated at the training requirements for the sport that he is interested in playing  and found a system that works for him better. As well, he ended up working with a Canadian coach who ended up working in Australia. So obviously this guy is very talented and has the skills to be the at the top of this sport. Why hold him back? I didn’t understand why that reporter tried to make him feel bad about knocking the lone Canadian in the standing when he managed to get the top spot after he skied. If that lone Canadian at the third place was really really good/excellent in that sport, he would have managed to do better than that and no matter what Dale Begg-Smith did, he would not have been knocked out of a chance to be on the podium. Why blame on other athletes the lack of winning opportunities of Canadian athletes? The Canadian government needs to do better in supporting our athletes. If these Canadian athletes do not get the support they need, they will have difficulty in achieving the success they want.

What movies can do…

I was watching "Day after Tomorrow" again today. I have seen this movie a number of times and I’ve always wondered how bad will it be if we do not start to take care of our environment. We all know Hollywood has a penchant for exaggerating issues for the sake of art but in this case exaggeration has somehow served a purpose. If this movie has made at least 15% of its viewers think about what they can do to help protect the environment, then I would say it has done some good to the environment.

So what exactly is going on with our environment. Yes, there are a number of greenhouse gases that affect our environment. The concentration of these gases in the atmosphere has certainly increased since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution.

What can we do about it? There are a number of things we can do to help reduce the emission of greenhouse gases. Please educate yourselves to what you can do to contribute. It does not have to be a HUGE action, even the littlest thing can help. I know we all live in a highly technologically dependent society but there are ways to enjoy these technologies without harming the environment. I am not saying give up your cellphones, cars or heating in the house. All I am saying is practice MODERATION. I’m sure we can do something without having to sacrifice the benefits we’ve earned from the Industrial Revolution.

Here are some helpful websites that you can browse through to educate yourselves:

1) http://www.climatechange.gc.ca/onetonne/english/index.asp (Canada)

2) http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/globalwarming.nsf/content/index.html (USA)

Current events….

Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy has started. So many sports to watch but the only thing I’ll be keeping an eye on would be the hockey game. Go Canada Go! It certainly would be interesting to find out how this game will turnout.

For more info on Turin Winter Olympics, check this website out: www.cbc.ca/olympics

Becky the Bookworm: Pride and Prejudice

I LOVE the story of Pride and Prejudice. I did not read the book first but I fell for the story when I saw the BBC mini-series edition with Colin Firth in it.

When I first read the book, I thought the English language has certainly evolved. We can say thoughts, opinions or criticisms in less words than Austen’s characters did in the book. I’m not saying that our English language today is better but that the society and culture back then called for that type of English conversation and the society now doesn’t.

So, for any romance suckers out there, you’d be missing a lot if you didn’t read this book. Enjoy!!

Becky the Bookworm: Hope in Hell: History of Doctors Without Borders

I have been trying to find information on what it would be lke to work with Médicins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders)and this book has certainly taught me a lot.

The stories of the doctors, nurses and various non-medical professionals working with MSF were enlightening, heart-breaking and inspiring.

The book also discussed how MSF staff dealt with
- performing emergency surgery in the war torn regions of Africa and Asia
- understanding cultural customs and societal differences that affect health care and
- witnessing and reporting genocidal atrocities

For everyone and anyone interested in medical and humanitarian issues, I hope you will find this an educating read.

never thought i’d be blogging…

Welcome everybody!

This is my first time blogging and i’m learning so many things. I’m excited to have this section started so I can share stories, opinions and photos with all my friends. It will be a very slow process getting this section going seeing as I’m not that tech savvy but it’s the experience that counts right??

Happy blogging everyone!