“Grammar is going backwards, not forwards”

I found this on Informed Consent, of all places:

“The Great Vowel Shift was a major change in the pronunciation of the English language that took place in England between 1350 and 1500.

Because English spelling was becoming standardised in the 15th and 16th centuries, the Great Vowel Shift is responsible for many of the peculiarities of English spelling.”

For example, the ‘o’ was pronounced as ‘u’, as in London and Constable. It became the way that Americans still pronounce it, making the difference between, for example, how we spell ‘kebab’ and they spell it ‘kebob’. They still pronounce the letter as it used to be.

What actually annoys me about spelling nowadays is that we seem to be going backwards, whereas our language has always been going forward.

We call our mothers ‘Mum’ because that’s the way it has become and it irks me when I see it written as ‘Mom’. That’s an American spelling. I’m not American, therefore I will continue to spell it as ‘Mum’ and I wish others would do the same. You don’t buy cards from Hallmark that say ‘Mom’, so why write it with an ‘o’?

I blame the internet. You have to blame something.

ETA: the word is pronunciation, not pronounciation *shudder*

The Coral Reef

Hailed as a “modern masterpiece“, Mike Nelson’s The Coral Reef is a very tangible exploration of how sociopolitical ideology  can create confusion, disorientation, even trauma.

The piece – currently on display at Tate Britain – comprises of a maze of rooms, each filled with derelict remnants of a popular culture, religion, or movement.  As the title may suggest, it is a collection of complex and fragile ideas layered together to present something that is both overwhelming and futile.

In Nelson’s own words, he wants the spectator to feel ‘lost in a world of lost people’.

 

The Coral Reef is free to visit at Tate Britain in Pimlico.  

 

100 Foods to Eat Before You Die

Ooh, this is way more interesting than New Year’s Resolutions!! I’ve done 46 so far…

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding 
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O shot-
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal
44. Goat’s milk
45. Single malt whisky
46. Fugu
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini-
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee
100. Snake

(Originally found on Chew On That by Alice)

 

CC40 Clothing at the Imperial War Museum

CC40 Clothing, a photo by icklekitty on Flickr.

1940s Wartime Media

1940s Wartime Media, a photo by icklekitty on Flickr.

Jouissance

I have a tattoo on the back of my neck that says jouissance.  It’s a word that probably symbolises the closest thing I have to a faith or life philosophy.  Despite this, I always struggle to describe succinctly the significance of the word (possibly because things worthy of such passion are often ineffable). 

Here’s the most representative explanation I can find, taken from the translator’s notes of Image-Music-Text:

Plaisir/jouissance – English lacks a word able to carry the range of meaning in the term jouissance which includes enjoyment in the sense of a legal or social possession (enjoy certain rights, enjoy a privilege), pleasure, and, crucially, the pleasure of sexual climax. The problem would be less acute were it not that jouissance is specifically contrasted to plaisir by Barthes in his Le Plaisir du texte: on the one hand a pleasure (plaisir) linked to cultural enjoyment and identity, to the cultural enjoyment of identity, to a homogenizing movement of the ego; on the other a radically violent pleasure (jouissance) which shatters – dissipates, loses – that cultural identity, that ego. The American translation of Le Plaisir du texte (The Pleasure of the Text, New York 1975) uses the word ‘bliss’ for jouissance; the success of this is dubious, however, since not only does ‘bliss’ lack an effective verbal form (to render the French jouir), it also brings with it connotations of religious and social contentment (‘heavenly bliss’, ‘blissfully happy’) which damagingly weaken the force of the original French term. I have no real answer to the problem and have resorted to a series of words which in different contexts can contain at least some of that force: ‘thrill’ (easily verbalized with ‘to thrill’, more physical and potentially sexual, than ‘bliss’), ‘climactic pleasure’, ‘come’ and ‘coming’ (the exact sexual translation of jouir, jouissance), ‘dissipation’ (somewhat too moral in its judgement but able to render the loss, the fragmentation, emphasized by Barthes injouissance).

There, now I can just link people to this blog post when the question comes up again. 

2011 in review

This blog post was written two weeks ago. I’m currently in Paris, shopping here, drinking these, and driving this person crazy.

Unlike most of my recent years, 2011 hasn’t really had a cohesive “theme”.  It’s not the year when I met X, the year Y happened, or the year I realised Z.

The best place to start, therefore, is probably last year’s New Year’s Resolutions.  I didn’t even finish writing them, which is a good start.  The final point was going to be something along the lines of how my grandmother’s death would make me more proactive, more productive, and less of a push-over.  Personally, there has been a lot of saying yes to things I want and no to things I don’t want in my life.  I’ve managed to sort out at least 3 health issues I’ve been putting off due to concentrating on my PCOS, and have learnt* how to better tolerate humans.  So, effective yes.  The leopard print-wearing, pain au raisin-eating octogenarian would be pleased.

I also said that I’d turn my job into a career and loose 5kgs.  Freelancing has gone from strength to strength and while I’m not yet confident enough to be making huge purchases (I miss you, Australia), I am earning enough to be able to pay off my mortgage a lot quicker than expected.  And while I’m certainly not as svelte as I was in 2009, I’ve managed to maintain a *steady* weight for most of 2011, which is important.  The recently discovery of a good fish and chip shop on Queenstown Road and the onset of winter has made this more difficult, but I’m managing to resist in moderation, stick to my food plan, and as for that inevitable hormonal tummy fat…corsets exist.  5kgs?  I’m not sure about that as I can’t remember what I weighed a year ago, but I am only 7kg away from my Endocrinologist-approved target of 8st 4lbs.

Elsewhere in 2011, I got 3 tattoos in the space of 9 months, visited Germany for the first time (if London is my lifeblood and Paris my true love, Berlin is my personality through and through), received messages of reassurance and affirmation from Robbie Williams (surreal), and finally obtained audiovisual proof of my magnetic attraction to the barrier at the Brixton Academy.  Frivolous things that only mean something to me.

I’m not sure what to resolute about in 2012 (besides reaching that weight target) because this year has been more about focusing on achievement than lack.  We’ll see.

*the t/ed past tense verb conjugation confuses me.  Bad english or a valid alternative?  The Romance languages don’t have this problem.

Afternoon Tea at Altitude 360

Altitude 360 is a restaurant at the top of the Millbank Tower in Westminster, walking distance from the Tate Britain and Parliament.  It offers panoramic views of London, including opportunities to see Westminster Abbey, The Gherkin, and St Paul’s Cathedral from a perspective that (in my opinion) beats that of the London Eye.

As a result it’s also really fucking expensive.  Altitude 360 offers brunch, dinner, and afternoon tea, which at full price is £87.50 for two.  Luckily, I came across a Groupon a few months ago for afternoon tea at the far less eyewatering price of £36 for two.

Given that this was a budget deal, we expected to be lumbered with the worst table in the restaurant, with the poorest view of the city.  Indeed, looking around the venue, it seemed that some diners (teaers?) were seated in front of a pretty dire view of Lambeth, but ours was arguably the best in the room:

If you're looking to get the most out of your money at this place, I highly recommend table 27.

The meal itself exceeded my expectations.  They don’t refill the tower, but as there was a sufficient savoury:sweet ratio, this didn’t really feel necessary.  There was enough to make it filling without feeling like too much, and the service was reasonably seamless.  Each course seemed fresh, but the scones could have done with being a bit warmer.

NB: Several items nommed before this picture was taken

All things considered, an excellent afternoon tea, but I’m not sure I’d pay full price for one sitting (brunch here is a buffet).

PCOS Update

Good news all-round this time.  Firstly, this has been the first winter since starting my new wave of treatment that I have actually lost weight.  This puts me at 5kg away from my target weight, which is still slightly classed as overweight by the BMI monitor, but I’ve decided I’d rather take boobs and bum into account than stick too closely to this.  I’m firmly closer to a 10-12, at any rate.

Secondly, the tablets seem to be working well.  Most notably, Finasteride (propecia) is making my hair grow back.  There’s been less hoovering and an increase in baby hairs.  I’ve been told that it’s important to keep my Vitamin D up to give myself the best chance of surviving winter, as it’s a vitamin closely tied to PCOS.

I’ve also had it confirmed (through social conversation with a gynaecological consultant) that my endocrinologist is just about the best in the business, so I’m fairly confident that things are going down the right track at this point.

For previous entries on PCOS, follow this link.

Fritz von Runte presents Lycantropii

The word lycanthropy (in english) is used generically for any being who’s part-human, part-animal. This is the idea here… Two (or more) songs mixed together, becoming something else. The Lycantropii Collection is composed by volumes of 20 tracks each. Each track is created by mixing the instrumental parts of one song with the vocals from another – becoming then another piece, unique and exclusive. A Lycantropii.  http://www.lycantropii.com