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Post by Etaoin Shrdlu on Mar 4, 2023 13:33:07 GMT
Are there Walloons who actually want to be part of France? I have never really understood Belgium. I can understand why Catholics from the south of the Netherlands wanted to break away from what they saw as a Protestant country, but am less sure of what particular beef the Walloons had with the rest of the French population, or where they got their Germanic-looking W, for that matter. For whatever reason, they decided to start a new country, and then apparently discovered that they hated each other as well.
My first suspicion was that Walloons and Flemings (nobody ever says Flemings) were not really ethnic groups, but euphemisms for the kind of people who don't get on with anyone. But in my limited experience, Belgians are nicer than the French or Dutch. When I speak my admittedly appalling French in their country, they regard it as one of the tribulations of life that must be borne, and don't pretend they don't understand, or look at me like something they have scraped off the bottom of my shoe, the way the ones in the bigger country do. It's one of life's mysteries.
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Post by Bitmap on Mar 4, 2023 13:42:59 GMT
What do people say instead of Flemings?
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kizolk
Indecisive 
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 13:44:23 GMT
I mentioned on LD I had a freshly arrived American coworker, who had a limited French but I thought of the time he was perfectly intelligible. He got ostracized right away by some of the others, and I was the only one to speak with him for a time. I think imperfect intelligibility/awkward French makes some people nervous.
(Also, having some internet connection issues so I may be double-posting, or not posting at all...)
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Post by Etaoin Shrdlu on Mar 4, 2023 13:52:35 GMT
What do people say instead of Flemings? People who live in Flanders and speak Flemish. Personally, I call them Phlegms, which is a bit unfair, as the Dutch of the Netherlands is much more guttural than the language of Belgium, whatever you call it. Robert Benchley said that two things kept him up at night -- trying to remember the word for people who live in Flanders and speak Flemish, and the present tense of 'wrought'. It's the equivalent of asking German speakers what the present tense is of '(aus)(er)koren', which you mention on another thread. |
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Post by Bitmap on Mar 4, 2023 13:58:32 GMT
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 14:41:35 GMT
One of my cats hissed another one earlier, and I thought it was pretty crazy that even with the millions of years of evolution that set us apart, the "I'm being scary, just look at my face" message was nonetheless perfectly conveyed across the specific (special? Speciesesque?) barrier.
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Post by Etaoin Shrdlu on Mar 4, 2023 14:48:58 GMT
Do you think your cats might profit from conflict resolution? That sort of thing is big over here, though not generally for cats.
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 14:52:39 GMT
I actually think they would. I've tried to do a bit of that myself, and it has gotten a little better in fact (Gros Chat can tolerate Edgo's presence at times, they even ate together in the same dish not long ago) but most of the time she's not willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 14:53:39 GMT
I should count the number of messages I've managed to post here without having to edit them. Not looking great.
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 15:00:05 GMT
I should add that I didn't give him the name "Edgo": he was actually my brother's cat, but my brother couldn't take care of him anymore.
My names are much better. Gros Chat's daughter is Petit Chat.
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Post by Bitmap on Mar 4, 2023 15:04:07 GMT
Gelbe and Clifford attacked each other this morning. I latter found a claw in his head.
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 15:24:51 GMT
Savage beasts :/
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Post by Bitmap on Mar 4, 2023 15:41:00 GMT
They usually get along ...
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Post by Etaoin Shrdlu on Mar 4, 2023 15:46:52 GMT
I never really understood the dynamics between my two last cats, who were sisters and littermates. For the most part, they got on. Sometimes they would be lying together in what would look like a peaceful cuddle, and one would suddenly take a swipe at the other for no discernible reason. This would lead to a brief screaming fight before all was well again.
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kizolk
Indecisive
Posts: 5,472
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Post by kizolk on Mar 4, 2023 15:55:37 GMT
I never really understood the dynamics between my two last cats, who were sisters and littermates. For the most part, they got on. Sometimes they would be lying together in what would look like a peaceful cuddle, and one would suddenly take a swipe at the other for no discernible reason. This would lead to a brief screaming fight before all was well again. Sometimes Petit Chat does that to her mother. And to Edgo. When she sees another cat having fun (running around chasing ghosts), she sometimes comes up to them and just hits them on their head :/ She's the ultimate party-pooper. |
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