Ahh, it's that super special time of year. I love the Olympics for so many reasons. First of all, it's like combining the 4th of July excitement you have for your country along with really fantastic sports. This is not the NBA NFL tattoo'd up million dollar paycheck crap that's on every day. These people are good, and when they represent your country they become heroes for at least a month out of the year. Also, some people may not know, I used to be a diver in high school, so it's very cool to watch people doing something that you actually know about.
Another reason to love the Olympics is the International Travel element. You get to learn all about the countries that they are hosted in, and the countries people are from. You get to learn how to announce all kinds of crazy names such as Vladislava Ukraintseva or Harutyun Yenokyan. Also gotta love the announcers talking about the Olympians' personal lives because they have nothing else to say. (It's a bold strategy, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off for 'em.)
All this new international perspective, however, leaves me a tad annoyed at the personal day to day world that I live in for a few reasons. First of all... has anyone taken a notice to the uncanny tradition of changing the way we prounounce a country or city whenever there is a major news event taking place. Take por Nicaragua for example. For as long as I've spoken English it's been pronounced Nick-uh-rah-gua. But lo and behold an earth quake happens and shakes the very bedrock of the alphabet. Suddenly my tv screen is filled with phlegm a la ABC news.
[Re-enactment]
"there was a big earthquake today in Nee-Haw-RA-Goo-Ahhhh" Oh the horror.
I almost snorted my Wendy's frosty out my nose when I turned on the news and heard about the Olympic Games in Bay-Jing. As in Ju-Ju Bees "Jing". Lets all go back to kindergarten (german coincidentally) and learn phonics again. I thought it was supposed to be Beige-ing. Like the wall color. I mean I guess maybe people with authentic Asian accents kinda say it in between the two but that doesn't mean we have to change. That's like admitting we were wrong. Besides I was quite secure with beige-ing.
So the second annoyance this brings up is just a further realization that I work in an alternate reality. Now I am really liking my new job so far and the people I work with are cool. But there's one little minor detail that just baffles me! In this department, and in my old department, NO ONE I repeat No ONE can pronounce my name. It's Kris-Ten. Like Kris and the number Ten . 10. You can even spell it with a C if it makes you feel better about it. Just please stop calling me Christiarn, and Crescent, KEERStin and Krr..... how do you say it?
And to put the icing on the cake these past few weeks, I've been in a special training class. One of the lady's in charge has a rather original name. For anonymity's sake lets just say it's one of those names with an apostrophe in it. People have taken great care to learn this lady's name and they do a little celebration dance everytime someone says it right, which seems to be every single time. WTF? Why can no one say Kristen?? I mean if the announcers can say Ertugrul Icingir, I shouldn't think my name would twist your tongue. These people are all English speakers. None are bilingual or English as a second language. They sure as heck can pronounce Barak Obama. Oh well...
I guess I should never run for president. I would be President Torgerwho? President Whatsherbutt? sigh.
Peace in the Middle East.
Your comments please, because I am too grossed out to elaborate. I also must add that I was once offered "ox tails" at work. Are there really a multitude of oxen running around without their tails? Are we so down on the food chain that we can't even eat like oxen steak, we have to resort to the tail?
