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

I have been watching for French researchers for many months now and although there are one or two who live in France, they are English or Irish.

Why is it that the French don't know about H2G2 - is it not a popular idea in France or was it just not publicised enough?

Your English is very good.

err...salut!
vous êtes d'accord si je parle en français? je suis anglais, et j'étudie le français pour les examens, mais je ne suis pas trop forte...je crois que ce message va disparaître, mais j'espère que vous pouvez le lire bientôt...
si vous voulez m'écrire en français, c'est bon, mais c'est peut-être plus facile si vous utilisez e-mail...
^. .^
= ' =

Salus, friends!

I was told is not allowed to write in French, but I see you did so, and very well too, Cleba.

No, my English is not too good. It is having to get much better fast because I am now living in the USA. I learn it in England it is very many years now. In between, I teach in France, French-speaking Africa (Sénégal, Côte d'Ivoire) and then in Québequois-speaking Québec (they say they are not French-speaking and so do I !). I move to USA out of curiosity, and because the climate in Québec is not too hospitable to my rheumatic knees. They say to try living here. I like, but I hope sooner than later to go home. My parents are very old now. In fact, I am quite old now as well. I suppose they go together, eh?

I like this Canadian 'eh?', they use like we use 'n'est-ce pas?' at the end of everything, eh?

I don't know why there are not French people here. I think is not about them, so much as that I am unusual for French. My dear parents think I landed. My sisters and brothers were born. I landed. I don't know too many people in France who 'got' Douglas Adams. The humour doesn't always translate, and British humour is not funny in France, and visa-versa, but it make me roll on the floor and cry from laughing, and so do Monty Python, especially 'the Holy Grail'. Other French people got stick inconveniently placed, so they did not laugh at parody of French men, but is parody of everything, n'est-ce pas? 'Kunnnnigutts'!

If you are wishing help with your homeworks, in French, you need to know I never tell answers. I may give explanation or linguistic history lecture, or show pattern, but I don't say what is right answer. That is not teaching, that is cheating. If is okay, by all means to email. I am not so much available, but I will give you at least response of how good and what are mistakes. Only you must do same for me in English. I know when I try going fast I make all the classique French mistake. I can write good enough English, at least as good as some I have read here, but is time-consuming, eh?

That is best French smiley you have, so I will use him!

je crois que ce sera plus facile si on utilise e-mail, mon addresse est [email protected]
malheureusement, je peut lire mes e-mails que le weekend (that's supposed to say i can only read my e-mails at the weekend). recemment, je pensais sur l'idee de passer un an avant aller a l'université en quebec, peut-etre en faisant du surf de neige...que'est-ce que vous pensez sur l'idée?
^. .^
= ' =

Well, is not mine to judge your plans at all. I think if that make you happy, and you will apply yourself more attentively in university after you take time, you should take the time to have the fun. There are not so many opportunities, later in life, to just play, unless you find the key to making life playful.

Québec, hein? You realise if you learn speaking French there, you will never be understood any where else? So-called Standard French you get in France, at major universities. Otherwise, you will be learning Québecquois, which they agree is not French. I have just been several years there in Québec, and at first though they could all understand me, I did not follow a word they say. This happened everywhere, that the Standard French is understood, in Haïti, and Nigeria, Québec, French Louisiana, Gabon, and Guadeloupe, but don't try to get them to understand one another! Laotians spoke French and so did Lebanese. Not to each other!

Why Québec? And also which university, please? Concordia in Montréal is very good, University of Montréal also. University of Québec is in Québec City, and is much more provincial, so you must think too how rustic you wish to be.

My email addresse is on my page. You are welcome to write to me. I cannot always be able to respond, but if you are only reading in the weekends, maybe that is all right.

S.