Nicole Alderman

Today my history students were learning about spindles from around the world. For the activity, they made drop spindles with dowels, eye hooks and air dry clay (for the whorl). I showed them your video to help explain what's needed in a drop spindle. They loved it! The chicken at the end was a huge hit! Both of my classes laughed and said, "Awwwww!"

Texas is the second largest state (the largest is Alaska). I've heard that Texans like to talk about their state being the largest (because it is the largest in the contiguous USA). But, I don't know if Texans do, or if that's just people picking on Texas. The Texans I know really like Texas and think it's awesome (which is fair. Most people like where they live and think it's awesome), but none of them have never talked about it being the largest state.  Regardless, it seems like a bit of a running gag at this point.

Which is the largest Canadian Province? And why don't I know this? All I "know" is that Quebec apparently wants to be it's own country sometimes. But, I don't think that's because they're larger than the other provinces (it's because they're more French than British, right?)...

I guess the fact that I don't know what Canada's largest province is, shows that it doesn't make sense that other countries don't know the USA's states. I don't know a single one of Mexico's states, let alone any other country's states/provinces/counties/etc. Surely China and India have something like states/provinces...but I don't know them. If I don't know any of those things, I can't expect someone in another country to know what/where Washington state is.

I just got an email from permies again (I have hotmail) after a week or so of no emails. Maybe that means things are fixed again!

Jeremy VanGelder wrote:Nicole, down at the South end of Washington State we have a double ambiguity. We get to say, "I'm from Vancouver, not BC, Washington, not DC."

I can imagine! I always thought how weird it was that when I'm driving south, I'm driving toward Vancouver. And when I'm driving north, I'm driving toward Vancouver. It sure gets confusing!

Greg Martin wrote:Wait, does that mean that my "I love Maine" mug is not funny to Canadians???

It's hilarious as a "Gotcha" joke for most everyone. If you'd asked me what postal abbreviation Maine had, I wouldn't have thought it'd be an "ME," because you don't even pronounce the "E"! I think most people don't know "ME" stands for Maine, which makes it even funnier!

Timothy Norton wrote:I'm spoiled that New York is recognized as "N" "Y commonly. You don't hear Vermont calling themselves the "V""T". Sounds kind of clinical!

My state stinks because it shares a name with the nation's capital, "Washington, D.C." Apparently, we were going to be called Columbia, but they ditched that because they didn't want to get confused with "District of Columbia." That sure didn't work out! I almost wonder if referring to myself as living in WA is better than "Washington." I usually just always say "Washington State" and hope people know that's different than the US Capitol.

Hmmmm, maybe we should just rename our state "Seattle." Then Seattle can be "Seattle, Seattle" like New York is "New York, New York." I'm sure those living in the eastern half of my state won't mind....

Judith Browning wrote:I suppose USA is out then? and United States of America seems like too much at the moment...I might just try for something less defining in this political season🫤

I never know what to refer to us as. USA seems the only really accurate term, but, like you said, it seems a bit much right now. That term seems to have become politicized. And, it doesn't give us a way to refer to ourselves. I'm a USof A-er? Our only real way to refer to ourselves is to say "I'm American"...but so is everyone else who lives in North and South America. But, honestly, some of those people might not want to be grouped in with those that live in the USA. Goodness, many who live in the USA claim to be Canadians when they travel abroad.

r ranson wrote:
Having basic 120v wireing knowhow like how to change a plug, light fixture, or how to wire a new circuit is a big help.  It also acts as a guide for when we need an electrician.   Some jobs, like spark shower from the ceiling light, are a 10 min fix.   Other things, like a faulty ground, it's good to get a man in.

Yes! Having some basic electrical knowledge will help you know when you can tackle a project, and when it's over your head and too dangerous to try. If you don't know anything, you might think you either (A) Can do anything, or (B) Can do nothing. Both are dangerous.

Also, having a basic knowledge of electricity would help you know when something is worth worrying about. My dad was never an electrician, but did a lot of electrical wiring as a mechanic. There's been many a time I've asked him, "Dad, do I need to worry about this?" Maybe a light fixture is always burning out bulbs, or the lights dim every time you turn on the vacuum. Are these things to worry about, or not? You don't know if you don't have some knowledge. Knowledge is power and understanding. That knowledge can keep you and your house safe. You don't have to do the electrical work to benefit from knowing basic electrical skills.

I hate the fact that electricity is super confusing and overwhelming to me. One day, I really want to gain knowledge and skill in that area, so I'm not always afraid and lost. I don't necessarily want to do my electrical stuff, but I want to understand what's happening in my house.

For me, when I'm learning a new skill, I like to start small and simple (and the least dangerous) and work my way up. Electricity is terrifying to me, but I know that if I started small (with things like changing out a light fixture), I could build knowledge from there.

I really like permies SKIP/PEP framework. You start with learning the easier, less dangerous skills and move up from there. I haven't really started on the SKIP Electricity activities. But, to me, they seem like a good start for learning basic electricity skills.

Youtube channesls, like the one Jackson mentioned, can be a really useful way to start small and build up skills and knowledge to be able to do electrical work.

Tereza Okava wrote:so I would say "per - ih- dot" (per with a short e, like the e in "very").
Only because this is a word I don't think I've ever heard spoken out loud in English!! (the curse of the precocious reader child)
But certainly it must come from French, which changes things.

I think that's the same as "pear-ih-dot" to me. I pronounce "pear" (like the fruit) with the same short e as I use in "very."

Trying to write down the short e sound followed by a R is hard! Usually, if we put an "a" after an "e," we get the long e sound--the same as when we say "peer" (peer as in an equal or "to look"). But, for some reason, in my dialect, we have:

Pear (the fruit)
Pare (to cut/trim)
Pair (a group of two)

Those all have the short e sound, though they look like they should have either a long a or long e sound.

I'm gaining new respect for how difficult it is for people to make those maps of how people pronounce things around the world!

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This thread has gotten really interesting! When I started it, I was trying to find out if people ended the word with a "doe"/"doh" or a "dot." On the way, though, we've seen a lot of different ways for how people spell and read various sounds! It's facinating!

Carla Burke wrote:My pronunciation is from every jeweler & gemologist I've dealt with, since my daughter was born. That's why I say it that way. However, is seems either way it's linguisticly correct

https://www.pronounceitright.com/pronunciation/peridot-15243
https://youglish.com/pronounce/peridot/english/us

I had never heard it with a "dot" at the end until I was watching this video last night:



It really sent me spinning. For a second, I thought that I'd somehow been pronouncing it wrong all these years. But, if I were making up my own pronunciation, I definitely wouldn't have used a "silent-t" at the end. I then remembered that I have most certainly heard it spoken multiple times in my life, and had never heard it with a "t." But, then--in my sleep deprivation--I thought maybe I'd gone crazy and was making up memories. To verify my sanity, I searched youtube for Home Shopping Network/QVC episodes talking about peridot, and was relieved to hear it without the "t." (I used to watch the QVC gemstone hour when I came home from school as a sort of "semi-interesting thing to watch that was easy to turn off, so I could relax for  bit after a long day of school, but also turn it off when I was done".)

I still am very flummoxed that no dictionary I have looked it up in has the "pare-ih-doe" pronunciation. I even got my mom's college dictionary from the 70's, and it has it as "pare-ih-dot." It seems like a lot of people say it without a "T," and that's the gemstone industry's pronunciation. Considering that, you'd think a dictionary would list it as a possible pronunciation.

My wedding ring has a peridot on it. We just got the stone replaced, and the jeweler never once said "pare-ih-dot." When we bought the wedding ring, we talked about the stone a lot. Never heard it as "pare-ih-dot." My husband had never heard it with a "dot," either. It's so weird that it's the dictionary pronunciation, but I had never heard it pronounced that way in the 40 years I've been alive. Crazy!

Carla Burke wrote:Peer-i-doh (soft 'i' like 'it'). It's my daughter's & my step-daughter's birth stone.

Is the "peer" pronounced like "pier" and "peer" (like to look)?

I tried to show that short-vowel, soft "i" with the "ih." I think that's the same?

Do you pronounce doh the same as doe and dough? Or differently?

Spelling out sounds is surprisingly hard!