h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

They may well be.

I met some lads from Dublin at Leeds Pride last week and they were lovely. I was rather taken with one of them but sadly he was already taken by someone else.

I know Manchester has a couple of gay rambling groups and I'm considering dropping them an email, saying I'd be interested in any walks they do on my side of the Pennines (I could be a guide)

Knowing that I am settling into an uncomfortable degree of sloth, I sorta wish we had 'rambler' folks here. Must look about, I know the bride would love the idea.

I start learning Urdu tomorrow evening - just been out and walked the route to the Uni. Pretty excited about that.

Been out on a couple of walks with the Ramblers now and I really enjoy it, they're a good gang of people.

I've got an interview for some volunteering at a local steam railway this coming Saturday, just for some occasional/holiday work.

Plus work is going really well, I'm doing some good stuff there. All in all it seems I'm on the brink of having a life. Not a bad turn around in a couple of months.

Yay! That is positive to hear. Especially on the work front, I know it has been difficult* for you recently.



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*she says with British understatement.

I have to say, having a new boss at work has helped a lot. The previous guy was great and very supportive, but the new Head of 6th form is just wonderful: she's very direct and clear with what she wants, which I enjoy, and she's appreciative afterwards.

Basically she kicks my arse, which I need. The lads also seem to have cottoned on to the fact I'm not leaving until I choose to and that, if they do what I want them to, I'll leave them alone afterwards so I'm getting a lot less hassle from that quarter.

I'm looking back at this thread from time to time because it reminds me that I need to get out there and do something too - just as soon as I'm well enough to commit to something. Thanks for the reminder...

Urdu could be great fun, quite apart from any local relevance it might have. I'm considering Bahasa Indonesia, if anyone around here is offering a course.

Just gotten back from my third Urdu class. I'm mostly enjoying it but there are times when I'm completely overwhelmed because I'm, by some margin, the weakest student in the class in a few areas.

I'm completely saved by my GCSEs in German, French, and Latin as Urdu grammar has a lot of similarities with German grammar and there are a lot of sounds in Urdu that don't really exist in English, but do in French, German or Latin so I'm able to cope. The ability to spot similarities from the Indo-European root has helped too - I've just picked up 1-3 and 7-10 in a couple of minutes (4/5/6 are a bit weird and I suspect they come from Arabic or another non-Indo-European language).

The script however, the script is a nightmare. I know it's early days but I'm really struggling with the script. I'm beginning to be able to read it, but writing in it seems a long way beyond me right now - my handwriting in English is atrocious, so a subtle script like Urdu is proving troublesome. Oh well, I've got a long time to learn it.

Funniest moment came last week when the teacher pulled me up on my pronunciation of a few words, saying she could hear the influence of my students as my pronunciation was quite slangy. Oh, and for the little sisters out there in Urdu 'little sister' and 'debate/argument' are the same word (behes). That seems apt to me as the older brother of a little sister

You'll get there.

TRiG.

I've heard it said that learning the slang and cuss-words is the easiest way to begin 'thinking' in a new language ...

I love the way she could tell you've been influenced by your students.