Random Confessions

[anonymoose_au]

Oh my freaking god decided to try watching Euros with Macedonian commentary, and she freaking mistook the coach with Ryabova as Plushenko because he's named as one of the coaches. That's it. I'm outta there.

OMG, I hope it was Alexander Volkov she mistook for Plushy and not the other guy - Rina's father I think, because he's bald and looks about 50!!

 

[invisiblespiral]

Boyfriend and I watch Grassl's Euros FS:

Me: "Yay, he got rid of the bloodstain costume!"

Him: "I liked that costume..."

Me:

 

[Vandevska]

Wait, what? [emoji23] When was this? Could she have been talking about Moris Kvitelashvili?

Nope, she said Tutberitze, Dudakov, paused and then BAM poor Gleichenhaus hahahah.

OMG, I hope it was Alexander Volkov she mistook for Plushy and not the other guy - Rina's father I think, because he's bald and looks about 50!!

Yep it was Volkov. [emoji23]

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

Oh my freaking god decided to try watching Euros with Macedonian commentary, and she freaking mistook the coach with Ryabova as Plushenko because he's named as one of the coaches. That's it. I'm outta there.

I admit that I am not sure of who a lot of coaches are when I see them, and can get them mixed up. But, Plushenko is such a well known figure that anybody with even the slightest interest in figure skating would know what he looks like. And many people who don't have an interest in figure skating would also be able to identify him.

But both of those guys don't look like him! So, how on Earth did somebody who is actually employed to commentate on figure skating (and presumably knows something about the sport) manage to make that mistake?!

Mind you, if you saw Plushenko when he had short hair, and hadn't seen him since, you might be forgiven for mistaking Alexander Volkov for an older version:

Evgeni Plushenko - 1998 World Championships SP
Alexander Volkov with Ekaterina Ryabova at 2019 Europeans

But, who hasn't seen Plushenko in the past 20 years?!

And she just pronounced Gleichenhaus' (probably botched the spelling) name as if he were Georgian like "Gvitelashvili". [emoji24][emoji24]

Vandevska - your attempt at a spelling is not botched at all. Believe it or not, you have actually inadvertantly spelt Daniel's surname correctly. It is actually "Gleichenhaus". But it has undergone a double transliteration from Latin characters (it's a German name) to Cyrillic characters (because he is Russian), and then back into Latin characters. Which is why the ISU have him down under the mangled version "Gleikhengauz".

But, where on Earth did your commentator get that pronounciation out of?!

The only explanation I can think of is that she maybe got Daniel and Eteri's background stories mixed up, and decided to use artistic license and give his name a more Georgian feel. But, surely she would have realised that there had been a mix up if she had tried to say the names as they were written. For goodness sake, even the mangled version of his name sounds German! And her name undeniably sounds Georgian!

It sounds like figure skating fans in Macedonia had an entertaining night listening to this commentator!

(By the way, has the new "North Marcedonia" name been embraced by the general public in your country? Or does everybody still just use "Macedonia"?)

CaroLiza_fan

 

[Vandevska]

I admit that I am not sure of who a lot of coaches are when I see them, and can get them mixed up. But, Plushenko is such a well known figure that anybody with even the slightest interest in figure skating would know what he looks like. And many people who don't have an interest in figure skating would also be able to identify him.

But both of those guys don't look like him! So, how on Earth did somebody who is actually employed to commentate on figure skating (and presumably knows something about the sport) manage to make that mistake?!

Mind you, if you saw Plushenko when he had short hair, and hadn't seen him since, you might be forgiven for mistaking Alexander Volkov for an older version:

Evgeni Plushenko - 1998 World Championships SP
Alexander Volkov with Ekaterina Ryabova at 2019 Europeans

But, who hasn't seen Plushenko in the past 20 years?!



Vandevska - your attempt at a spelling is not botched at all. Believe it or not, you have actually inadvertantly spelt Daniel's surname correctly. It is actually "Gleichenhaus". But it has undergone a double transliteration from Latin characters (it's a German name) to Cyrillic characters (because he is Russian), and then back into Latin characters. Which is why the ISU have him down under the mangled version "Gleikhengauz".

But, where on Earth did your commentator get that pronounciation out of?!

The only explanation I can think of is that she maybe got Daniel and Eteri's background stories mixed up, and decided to use artistic license and give his name a more Georgian feel. But, surely she would have realised that there had been a mix up if she had tried to say the names as they were written. For goodness sake, even the mangled version of his name sounds German! And her name undeniably sounds Georgian!

It sounds like figure skating fans in Macedonia had an entertaining night listening to this commentator! [emoji14] [emoji23]

(By the way, has the new "North Marcedonia" name been embraced by the general public in your country? Or does everybody still just use "Macedonia"?)

CaroLiza_fan

It's a simple reason actually. The commentator is not up to date with the FS world (though who doesn't know how Pluschenko looks?!), and hasn't heard Daniil's name pronounced and pronounced it like she thought it was lol. It's not a popular sport here by any means and it's unfortunate that even people who watch won't be informed properly. I wish more attention would be brought to it. I mean, even i would've done a better job.

On the name change, essentially only people who are involved in politics with the leading party (though not leading anymore) or has voted for them are accepting it. There was a big opposition against it, and if the results from the referendum were respected, there would've been no name change.
Anyway, as per the contract the name changed to North Macedonia, however the adjectives didn't. So, it is the Macedonian language and not the North Macedonian language, Macedonians instead of North Macedonians.

To portray how much people hate the name change, I'll tell you a story. I'm a software engineer and recently we had a project where our client has partners from multiple countries, including Macedonia. The nomenclature of one of the entities was very important, so it was very important to have the names of the countries written properly and once they were, there was to be no change done unless absolutely necessary.
One day we noticed that no matter what one part of the website (for MKD) would simply not work. After debugging for a whole day I noticed that the name was changed to Macedonia, and only then did my colleague admit to have done it out of frustration.

I am mostly impartial, i don't particularly care. However, even though in official documents I would respect it, I would NEVER say that I'm from North Macedonia. I don't how to explain it, it's like, yes, the country is North Macedonia, but I am not from North Macedonia.

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

It's a simple reason actually. The commentator is not up to date with the FS world (though who doesn't know how Pluschenko looks?!), and hasn't heard Daniil's name pronounced and pronounced it like she thought it was lol. It's not a popular sport here by any means and it's unfortunate that even people who watch won't be informed properly. I wish more attention would be brought to it. I mean, even i would've done a better job.

On the name change, essentially only people who are involved in politics with the leading party (though not leading anymore) or has voted for them are accepting it. There was a big opposition against it, and if the results from the referendum were respected, there would've been no name change.
Anyway, as per the contract the name changed to North Macedonia, however the adjectives didn't. So, it is the Macedonian language and not the North Macedonian language, Macedonians instead of North Macedonians.

To portray how much people hate the name change, I'll tell you a story. I'm a software engineer and recently we had a project where our client has partners from multiple countries, including Macedonia. The nomenclature of one of the entities was very important, so it was very important to have the names of the countries written properly and once they were, there was to be no change done unless absolutely necessary.
One day we noticed that no matter what one part of the website (for MKD) would simply not work. After debugging for a whole day I noticed that the name was changed to Macedonia, and only then did my colleague admit to have done it out of frustration.

I am mostly impartial, i don't particularly care. However, even though in official documents I would respect it, I would NEVER say that I'm from North Macedonia. I don't how to explain it, it's like, yes, the country is North Macedonia, but I am not from North Macedonia.

Thank you. Ever since the change was announced, I often wondered what the normal people of Macedonia actually thought about it.

And can I tell you a story too?

A year or two ago (before the agreement), I was in Cyprus and was reading a story about the talks between Greece and Macedonia in the local English language newspaper over there. The story wasn't the paper's own; it was supplied by one of the international news agencies. But, it was obvious that it had been edited by the paper. Because there were phrases like:

• "North FYROM"
• "South FYROM"
• "Greek province of FYROM"
• "Former Yugoslav Republic Of FYROM"
• "the ancient Kingdom of FYROM"
• "King Philip II of FYROM"
• "Alexander the Great of FYROM"

Whoever edited it had clearly been told to change references to the commonly used name of your country ("Macedonia") to the initials of the then-official name ("FYROM"). But they took the easy way out and just did a "Find and Replace All" search. And then never bothered reading over the story to check if the sentences that had been changed still made sense!

It was hilarious to read!

But, this situation and the one you talked about just show how strong the feelings are on both sides.

Anyway, I think we should leave it there, as this conversation could be seen as being about politics. Which was not my intention.

But, thank you for this interesting insight.

CaroLiza_fan

 

[Vandevska]

Thank you. Ever since the change was announced, I often wondered what the normal people of Macedonia actually thought about it.

And can I tell you a story too?

A year or two ago (before the agreement), I was in Cyprus and was reading a story about the talks between Greece and Macedonia in the local English language newspaper over there. The story wasn't the paper's own; it was supplied by one of the international news agencies. But, it was obvious that it had been edited by the paper. Because there were phrases like:

• "North FYROM"
• "South FYROM"
• "Greek province of FYROM"
• "Former Yugoslav Republic Of FYROM"
• "the ancient Kingdom of FYROM"
• "King Philip II of FYROM"
• "Alexander the Great of FYROM"

Whoever edited it had clearly been told to change references to the commonly used name of your country ("Macedonia") to the initials of the then-official name ("FYROM"). But they took the easy way out and just did a "Find and Replace All" search. And then never bothered reading over the story to check if the sentences that had been changed still made sense!

It was hilarious to read! [emoji23]

But, this situation and the one you talked about just show how strong the feelings are on both sides.

Anyway, I think we should leave it there, as this conversation could be seen as being about politics. Which was not my intention.

But, thank you for this interesting insight.

CaroLiza_fan

Thank you for sharing too! Former Yugoslav Republic of FYROM for the win! [emoji23]

Hope you had a nice time in Cyprus. [emoji4]

 

[Ichatdelune]

Random bit of news from the land of Mordor where the shadows lie... I mean, the English academy.

There's this kid, aged 9-10 (4th grade). He has a name that belongs in the category I call "on-the-line" names, i.e. a name that's just 'normal' enough to not make people go "What an unusual name" but still feel unusual. Today I learned that his mother is Japanese, and now his name makes perfect sense. I don't know what Chinese letters he uses for his name, but most of the possible letters sound nearly the same whether read in a Korean context or a Japanese context. I presume that was his parents' first priority when they named him, hence the 'on-the-line'-ness.

Come to think of it, he has Japanese-looking features. I should've guessed.

 

[Ducky]

Thank you. Ever since the change was announced, I often wondered what the normal people of Macedonia actually thought about it.

And can I tell you a story too?

A year or two ago (before the agreement), I was in Cyprus and was reading a story about the talks between Greece and Macedonia in the local English language newspaper over there. The story wasn't the paper's own; it was supplied by one of the international news agencies. But, it was obvious that it had been edited by the paper. Because there were phrases like:

• "North FYROM"
• "South FYROM"
• "Greek province of FYROM"
• "Former Yugoslav Republic Of FYROM"
• "the ancient Kingdom of FYROM"
• "King Philip II of FYROM"
• "Alexander the Great of FYROM"

Whoever edited it had clearly been told to change references to the commonly used name of your country ("Macedonia") to the initials of the then-official name ("FYROM"). But they took the easy way out and just did a "Find and Replace All" search. And then never bothered reading over the story to check if the sentences that had been changed still made sense!

It was hilarious to read!

But, this situation and the one you talked about just show how strong the feelings are on both sides.

Anyway, I think we should leave it there, as this conversation could be seen as being about politics. Which was not my intention.

But, thank you for this interesting insight.

CaroLiza_fan

That reminds me of this absolute gem of some copy editor on autopilot: https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=3915

 

[NoNameFace]

I got annual compensation review today - and can't really shake the shock off...First, I got a bonus at all (I didn't really count on one as I am only 6 months in this new work) and it is...bigger for that half year than I got at the old place for the whole year.

The thing for me is that money as it is brings me mild anxiety. As someone who had little of it growing up, it is a strange state for me to have them to actually SPEND them . I am a bit paranoid about that, but at the same time...Junior Worlds are probably in then for me . I will be dog tired, but have memories forever

 

[Jeanie19]

I got annual compensation review today - and can't really shake the shock off...First, I got a bonus at all (I didn't really count on one as I am only 6 months in this new work) and it is...bigger for that half year than I got at the old place for the whole year.

The thing for me is that money as it is brings me mild anxiety. As someone who had little of it growing up, it is a strange state for me to have them to actually SPEND them . I am a bit paranoid about that, but at the same time...Junior Worlds are probably in then for me . I will be dog tired, but have memories forever

Great post. I was actually going to PM you the other day to ask how the new job is going. Well I am very happy for you.

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

Thank you for sharing too! Former Yugoslav Republic of FYROM for the win! [emoji23]

That was my favourite too!

Which reminds me about another pet hate of mine - when people use an acronym in conjunction with a word that is actually part of what the acronym stands for.

And it is becoming pretty common in TV channels.

When the main MTV channel went down the reality show rubbish route, it moved to the Entertainment section of the Sky EPG. And to fill up the now-vacant slot at the top of the Music section of the EPG, they moved one of their minor channels (MTV Shows) to the slot and renamed it "MTV Music".

So, "Music Television Music"!

(Personally, I never understood why this channel didn't just take the name of the channel that had previously played the same role in Germany, "MTV2 Pop").

And a few months ago TCM rebranded as "TCM Movies". So, "Turner Classic Movies Movies".

Apparantly, this is called "redundant acronym syndrome" (Wikipedia page). But, I protest at that, because in many cases the acronym's aren't redundant. Well, not for me anyway.

Hope you had a nice time in Cyprus. [emoji4]

I did! Cyprus is a regular holiday destination for my family. So, the fact that we keep going back pretty much says it all.

I think that story appeared the year that I met some of the Cypriot skaters. So, there was an extra bonus!

That reminds me of this absolute gem of some copy editor on autopilot: https://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=3915

Awww, that was a good one. Thank you for sharing it.

I clicked through to all the previous articles that were linked to in that story, and there were some great examples in them too! Although they were funny, it really is a sign of the times that people don't have the wit (or is it the time?) to spot things like this before they are published.

Oh how I wish that newspapers and the like still employed proof readers. Because letting mistakes like these slip through really does make them look unreliable and unprofessional.

But, people in the news business do not seem to care about that any more. :disapp:

CaroLiza_fan

 

[Vandevska]

I got annual compensation review today - and can't really shake the shock off...First, I got a bonus at all (I didn't really count on one as I am only 6 months in this new work) and it is...bigger for that half year than I got at the old place for the whole year.

The thing for me is that money as it is brings me mild anxiety. As someone who had little of it growing up, it is a strange state for me to have them to actually SPEND them . I am a bit paranoid about that, but at the same time...Junior Worlds are probably in then for me [emoji23]. I will be dog tired, but have memories forever

Congrats! I can definitely relate to the feeling of having money to spend after growing up with very little.

 

[NanaPat]

I got annual compensation review today - and can't really shake the shock off...First, I got a bonus at all (I didn't really count on one as I am only 6 months in this new work) and it is...bigger for that half year than I got at the old place for the whole year.

The thing for me is that money as it is brings me mild anxiety. As someone who had little of it growing up, it is a strange state for me to have them to actually SPEND them . I am a bit paranoid about that, but at the same time...Junior Worlds are probably in then for me . I will be dog tired, but have memories forever

Better to spend a bonus on something that is one-time (like a trip) than to use it to upgrade your lifestyle (for example, buy an expensive cell phone that requires expensive monthly service fees). But if the extra money is causing mild anxiety rather than irrational exuberance, you're on the right track to dealing with it.

Congratulations on how well your new job is working out.

 

[cathlen]

I got annual compensation review today - and can't really shake the shock off...First, I got a bonus at all (I didn't really count on one as I am only 6 months in this new work) and it is...bigger for that half year than I got at the old place for the whole year.

The thing for me is that money as it is brings me mild anxiety. As someone who had little of it growing up, it is a strange state for me to have them to actually SPEND them . I am a bit paranoid about that, but at the same time...Junior Worlds are probably in then for me . I will be dog tired, but have memories forever

That's awesome! Great to hear the new workplace is working so well for you

 

[DenissVFan]

Today I used Google Translate to make sure I understood some figure skating content in Russian (I only ever use it for FS stuff) and after I read the translation, I thought: now let's translate it into English to see how it compares, only to realise that the first translation was in fact in English and not in Polish. A proof that you can forget what language you're reading something in

 

[cathlen]

Today I used Google Translate to make sure I understood some figure skating content in Russian (I only ever use it for FS stuff) and after I read the translation, I thought: now let's translate it into English to see how it compares, only to realise that the first translation was in fact in English and not in Polish. A proof that you can forget what language you're reading something in

It translates better to English. Most of the time translating to Polish looks like it was first translated to English first anyway....

 

[Ichatdelune]

There's about 9 hours until I go to the English academy and express my wish to quit a month early, I'm honestly terrified. And a bit internally conflicted, even though I made up my mind after a long discussion with my best friend Nicole (who I temporarily dragged into the mess until she escaped) the things that held me back a month before still haunt my thoughts. Excuse my rambling, I need to get my thoughts straight before I have to wake up and face the actual situation.

Long story short, I should've quit when my most beloved favourite student Min stopped coming. When Min was there I was actually happy to go to work, I was excited to talk with her and introduce her to so much things that I find (and hoped she'd also find) fascinating. When Min stopped coming and I accepted the fact that she wasn't going to come back, I dragged myself to work purely because I wanted to be a responsible adult. I found a replacement fave in Elle, tried my best with her at least, and convinced myself that the place being constantly understaffed, the erratic and mostly chaotic schedule, the stress of having to constantly be alert and ready, and everything else was worth bearing for her sake. Well, the kids just keep on increasing in number and I can't handle the workload anymore. I'm so, so sorry, Elle, but while I wanted to help you through To Kill a Mockingbird since it was my decision to get you to read it, four hours a week just isn't enough to compensate for everything else. It doesn't even pay that much.

It's not about the money, although it is a factor I first and foremost require a sense of satisfaction, the feeling that I'm doing something worthwhile. And at the academy I don't "teach" most of the kids, I just go through the drill with them. Yes, it'd be nice if they learn a thing or two along the way, but I don't find myself engaged to the idea of their improvement. Most are just there because their parents make them come. Some do want to improve, but the allotted time and/or their patience can't handle me and my explanations that branch off everywhere. Besides, now that the kids are mostly younger (around 7-9) the job's become much more of a daycare thing, and I always have sucked at babysitting. I get stressed, the kid is dissatisfied, and the parent complains to the manager about me not being the perfect teacher for their child. Like, not that it's any of your responsibility, but my energy is half spent already with just interacting with 8-year-olds. I can't love their antics nor their gibberish, I'm not wired that way. It's the opposite in fact, I take ADD meds because my thoughts alone cause a ruckus within my head. I'm not going to be able to face a real-life ruckus with a loving sigh, I've tried and failed enough times to know.

I've had my share of burnouts, and I've been nearly burnt out into depression too many times during the last three months. Maman says all I say when I come home is "I'm drained." Only two things tie me down from leaving: the sense of responsibility for Elle and the anxiety of quitting something that has become habitual. Both, sadly, can't recompense for my mental well-being. So I have to face the challenge of saying I quit. That's what I'm supposed to do for myself. And it's also making use of my 4CC all-event ticket's ability to let me view official practice sessions. It's settled. (deep breath)

 

[Snorlax]

I am too enthusiastic about figure skating. And Star Trek.

Today, I wanted to research good socks for the future, as I'll get proper skates soon.

I googled for something way more interesting - iceskating spocks. :scratch3:

 

[CaroLiza_fan]

I am too enthusiastic about figure skating. And Star Trek.

Today, I wanted to research good socks for the future, as I'll get proper skates soon.

I googled for something way more interesting - iceskating spocks. :scratch3:

https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/495466396478186443/

Spock was always my favourite character. And I was genuinely upset when Leonard Nimoy died a few years ago. (Wow! Really can't believe it will be 5 years at the end of this month! :shocked: )

Did you by any chance watch the 2[SUP]nd[/SUP] of the new films ("Into Darkness") on Film4 tonight? I was planning to watch it LIVE (so to speak), but didn't manage to get tea over in time for it starting. But, I've taped it, and will hopefully get it watched in the next few days, before 4 Continents starts.

I enjoyed the first one when I saw it a few months ago, but you still can't beat the older films with the Original Series or Next Generation casts.

CaroLiza_fan