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August 12, 2008

Potayto, Patahto?


So Canadians have some serious accents. It isn't something that is noticeable all the time. I've pretty much gotten used to it. "Paaasta" like the sound a sheep makes instead of "pawsta" like the rest of us say. "Aboot" instead of "About". "Sorey" instead of "Sorry". Not that any of these you ever get used to enough that it sounds good to your ears but whatever, I can't make them all stop the way they talk. But recently I've had a couple of doozies. Let me digress for a bit:

So perhaps unbeknownst to you, the primary song, "I Am A Child of God" has a 4th verse. The last line says, "if I can but endure". Enter Chloe, the ever singing child. Silly songs, made up songs, narration songs, you're ignoring me songs, etc. You get the idea. So on Sunday nights, we let her listen to some church music to fall asleep. It just so happens that this same song is on and Chloe is singing along. In her drama soloist voice she trills the ending, "If I can but BONJOUR!!!!!". I'm like what did she just say? And so I ask her. She gets that tone in her voice like "Duh, Mom.[I'm in serious trouble for when this home girl grows up because she already thinks she knows more than me on lots of things] and proceeds to tell me that the word is "Bonjour". "It's a Canada word" she tells me. Suddenly I'm laughing so hard because it dawns on me the path her brain has taken to get her to that conclusion. First off "Bonjour" is a word you hear in Canada. No, you don't hear it a ton but you do hear it and she has asked me about it before. Second, the primary music teacher says things in such a weird way sometimes. I have to turn my ears off sometimes in singing time because she is killing me softly and sometimes loudly with her song. So the word "endure" she says more like "injure" extra strong on the "jj" sound. In Chloe's 4 yr. old brain, it doesn't make any sense to sing the word "injure" but it makes perfect sense to be singing "bonjour". I tried to tell Chloe that the word was wrong and that this girl says words different than others (I wanted to say she says words WRONG) and I even attempted to have her say it the right way but she's convinced I'm wrong. I guess I'll just hope she makes a big drama finish during the primary presentation. So while I'm at my bone picking with this chick and her pronunciation, if I have to hear her sing the 10th A of F one more time, just shoot me. "paradisiacal" When you were little, didn't you say it more like "bicycle"? Well she sings it "para-di-CYYYYY-aaaaahhhhhh-cl" glory. As I hear nails running down the chalk board.

5 comments:

Sullivan Family said...

How funny is your little girl!! I tried emailing you on that roxy address, but it did not go through?? I added you to my blog list so we can keep in touch!! GINA

Cyndi said...

Hey Julie,

I ran across your blog and of course it's keeping me quite entertained and laughing!

This one cracked me up because I totally have a similar story in regards to primary songs and weird accents.
In the early 80's I was visiting with my cousins in San Diego when I got the pleasure of learning the song Love One Another. The song leader lady was totally Mexican and had a very heavy accent so when she taught us the line-by this shall men know-my little brain put it together as by this shallmeno. Thinking that shallmeno sounded Spanish enough I just figured it was some weird proclamation or something that I would understand as I got older. Well, older I got and I still didn't get it. I was probably 12 or so when I figured it all out. Yeah, a little slow on the uptake, eh? So hopefully Chloe will get it down before she hits puberty!!!

Anyway, it's fun to find you and see how you're all doing. Sorry about the extensive comment!!!

Diana said...

Julie you are so funny. Its true they have a different way of talking up North. Its something I never really recognized until I got older. Now when I talk to my relatives I'm just like "AH! Don't say that!" Just don't start saying "eh" :)

Natalie said...

Ha ha ha! That's so funny! When Whitney used to sing I Am A Child of God it was always "With parents kind down deer, leave me, guide me, walk beside me..." They have no clue that what they're singing is wrong,and it doesn't occur to them that this song doesn't make sense at all!

Teresa said...

Julie... this is freakin' hilarious! I love that you just go off on how those crazy Canucks talks (is that how you spell that word?). Chloe sounds like a Greg clone... can't wait to get to know her and meet her all over again at Christmas