Category: language & culture

I was struck by an honest-to-God shibboleth in 2020, as described by this article in the latest issue of Harper’s.  Here’s the passage. “Delete it! Now!” A middle-aged woman wearing a bright-yellow vest with the words protect the children on the back was yelling at another woman, who had been taking pictures with her phone.… Continue reading Giving a Clock

Listening to the CBC news Monday morning, I was reminded at how code-switching, or to alternate between languages in a single utterance, is so familiar elsewhere, but comparatively uncommon in the US media. In this instance, the unfortunate news was a spike in COVID deaths in Quebec due to recent outbreaks in nursing homes.  The… Continue reading Say Ache Ess Ell Day