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

*Probably*, yes. But with some people, I never know how safe it is to extrapolate from the usual rules...

In this case, you may safely assume that he's full of ****...

Thank you, thank you, thank you for spelling "German Shepherd" right! I was just trying to figure out how to give her hell for that as subtly as possible...

It's right up there with dalmations, Jack Rustle Terriers, and cocktail spaniels!

You're welcome, but I didn't do it on purpose.

When I butcher your language it's (usually) unintentional - when I butcher this language, it's nearly always intentional. Nearly.

I do like reading words that are spelled wrong. Often they let me hear the accent when I don't even know who the writer is or where she comes from.

I heff no ideya vott your tocking about...

Heffst du an eeday vut I'm ticking about?

I didn't think of that; I was thinking more of the were/where thing, for example. Lots of people spell things as they hear them.

But yes, it drives me crazy sometimes. Sometimes I have my own jokes explained to me about an hour later.

But that kind of spelling usually indicates a native speaker: an American!

Your late, what's you're excuse?
Their, I mowed there lawn.
I wonder weather to let out my whether in this wether.
Its too bad it's ear broke off...
Witch wich ate the sandwhich?

Stop it! Why are you doing this to me?

I love the 's ("greengrocer's apostrophe") when it's in German, though. And I quite like Dalmation, just for the logic in it - although it betrays a poor knowledge of history and geography...

About that mysterious parcel that arrived for Mala... am I right in suspecting that you found out about a certain date, and that she had better not open it until next Wednesday?

I've no idea what you're talking about.

I'm not a stickler for things being left wrapped up until certain points in time, either.

Hey, this is so cool - I had no idea I actually KNOW the guy who does the Gänseblümchen song! When I met him before, his hair wasn't pink, and I never made the connection.

He's the brother of the guy who runs the puppet theater where Mala's middle sister works sometimes. She played in the theater's house band with him for a while. I also know his parents, they're both in their seventies and play their bagpipes at every occasion. Crazy fanily, but really nice.

Small world, eh? His parents sound just as entertaining.

Although in the video I saw, his hair wasn't pink, and he didn't look old enough to have parents in their 70s (as far as I can remember...) Perhaps someone's stealing his act.

Well, he left the band in 2004, and the daisy song was recorded in 1997, making him twelve years older these days...

Yes, the parents are a hoot. Actually, another brother is going to play live Irish music at the Baristasista's wedding in April... (don't cringe, he's quite good!)

I can't help cringing - I just remembered a group called Foreign Feathers. Heard of them? A German band who play Irish folk songs. But they sing all the corny ones, it seems. And their diction and pronunciation is a bit hard to listen to. Not bad, as such - what makes it a bit hard to listen to is that it's too *good* - too polished and precise. There should be a bit of anarchy dancing under the music, I think.

But, as I've said before, if I sung a Hannes Wader song in public, Germans wouldn't even recognise the lyrics. So I'm not critical.

Which song? I'm prepared for the worst!

Oh, you choose - it doesn't matter. You won't know which one it is anyway.

Well, I know most of what he's published... please tell me it's not "Freifrau von Droste-Vischering"!

Oh, I'm sure you do know most of his songs, you just might not recognise my "arrangement".

Don't tell me you were trying to sing in Plattdeutsch!

At least several of the songs on that album were set to Irish or Scottish tunes (such as "Kelly, the boy from Killarn" and "The Three Marys").

Hmm, for some reason, I'm not surprised about that!