A quick reference - a light hearted translation

[engineer one]

amazing what a nights sleep will do. :lol:

the tarmac thing goes back to a guy called blind jack macadam,
who originally used a goop which exuded from the earth in his
part of scotland. later he mixed other things with it,

but i think that tar products were called tarmac or macadamised which i am
sure he had patented, after him and his activities.

paul :wink:

 

[wrightclan]

One thing that I have found with most all Amercicans I have met and worked with, (and that is a lot!) is that they find it almost impossible to pronounce one particular word correctly - and that word is SQUIRREL!

They always say it as SQUIRL

Try on the next American you talk to!

Regards
Martin

Just think how hard it is for me, living in Scotland, trying to say some of the place names. Many English have a hard enough time saying some of the Scottish place names. When my wife (who is Scottish) wants to embarrass me, she tries to get me to say 'Arrochar'--an absolute impossibility for the American tongue. :shock: :shock: :shock:

On the other hand, we have friends in the U.S. who are an English/American couple. The man's name is Carl (American), and my wife cannot say his name to save herself. To an American ear, it sounds just like Carol. :lol:

On the tarmac thing. I'm roughly aware of the history. It's just that I live across the street from a Hanson quarry, and five miles from a Tarmac quarry. In much the same way, someone who works for Electrolux, would not call a vacuum a hoover.

By the way mods, thanks for plucking this out of the Dado thread. I won't even try to discuss that subject in this forum for fear of a thrashing. :wink:

 

[Nick W]

SQUIRREL!

They always say it as SQUIRL

Mirror usually comes out as MEE'ER.

 

[mailee]

The English language is changing all the time and most of it is due to our cousins over the water. I remember when 'Gay' meant someone who was a happy person! What is this thing called 'Bling' I remember it as jewellery. But where did the word 'decompartmentalised' come from?? Cool is now something that is good and desirable and used to be inclement weather. Yes our language is changing for sure whether tis for good or bad is another matter. :?

 

[treena]

You say potaatoo... I say potato
You say toomaytoo... I say tomato
Lets call the whole thing off!

 

[wrightclan]

You say potaatoo... I say potato
You say toomaytoo... I say tomato
Lets call the whole thing off!

I think that might be:

I say potato...you say pototto.
I say tomato...you say tomotto. :wink:

Brad

 

[woodbloke]

Engineer One wrote:

crappy old american freighters lumbered their way across the atlantic

You mean one of these:

This was photographed in San Fransisco a couple of years ago, the last Liberty ship afloat. Its good fun to slag off the Yanks (and vice versa) - if Clarkson can do it to an audience of 350,000,000 each week, its OK by me. To be fair though, when our colonial cousins build stuff, they do it seriously....during the Battle of the Atlantic, they were building these faster than the U-Boats could sink them. Spare a thought also for the guys in the Merchant Service of both countries who brought you the detestable corned beef (which I love) and Spam, which they can cheerfully have back - Rob

 

[engineer one]

hi rob, you are right we owe bundles to old man kaiser for designing and
ensuring that liberty boats got built, but they were the ford model t of the sea, and from talking to some older merchant marine guys, it was not fun.

what is amazing is the number of young kids who very much underage
volunteered to sail in them. i know i have met a number. not sure the
kids today would go no ealf and safety. :lol:

they were some tubs, but doesn't mean they weren't rusty old things.
what was amazing was that they seemed to take more damage than some
of the better so called built boats.

ain't nuffink wrong wiff america that could not be cured by getting
rid of the yanks :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: and i am still in awe
of the way they can make certain things and not others. :?

paul :wink:

 

[woodbloke]

Paul wrote:

they can make certain things

........like one of these?

.....or maybe this ?

USS Missouri, Pearl Harbour, now that ship is really put together...as this is an English forum, it get spelt the correct way :wink: Thats SWMBO at the bottom of the ladder (underneath the 16" guns) on the left, good job she wasn't there when the main armament fired
As an aside, I just heard on the wireless (Radio 2, Jeremy Vine) that New York has now been voted the politest place in the world :shock: , London 15th...now there's a thought - Rob

 

[engineer one]

ok rob, now we know you are making so much money that you can
afford holidays in hawaii????????????????????????? :twisted:

are you sure you are a woodworker :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:


i agree about the noise when the guns go off, but the real noise that
scares is the 16inch shell travelling toward you, or overhead.
now that is scary.

paul :wink:

 

[woodbloke]

Paul - SWMBO was left some probate dosh couple of years ago so we splashed out and had a fantastic holiday in the good 'ol US of A....didn't take the kids tho'... :roll: -Rob

 

[engineer one]

obvious proof that you can't take it with you :lol: :lol: :lol:

unless you take the chances when they come along
then you turn round and you can't do these things
anymore.

paul :wink:

 

[woodbloke]

Paul wrote:

obvious proof that you can't take it with you

Our thoughts too. We could have done something sensible like pay of some debts, or a bit of the mortgage but chose to do this instead. That said SWMBO would go off to the ends of the earth at the drop of a hat...definitely got itchy feet and hey, I have to go with her....its a tough life, someone's got to do it tho' ...-Rob

 

[CHJ]

...snip...
they were some tubs, but doesn't mean they weren't rusty old things.
what was amazing was that they seemed to take more damage than some
of the better so called built boats.

This Guy, my uncle, (Picture circa 1938)

Had the job for some time of ferrying the liberty boats to UK on their first trip.
On one occasion he arrived in Liverpool with nothing showing above the deck rails, stearing by jury rig below aft.