MikeL

And Rory, Luke, and Seth?

When you've got to go, you will do almost anything to distract yourself.

QUOTE(Bondwriter @ October 10 2007, 12:00 PM) * A zeta-reader is last? Not sixth? What then is an omega-reader? Or, are there only six readers? Enquiring minds want to know.

No problem for me. I'm glad that the record has been put straight. If you two are neighbors and a friendship ensues, I'm glad for the mistake. It's a small world, after all.

All Helen has to do is place a call to the senator about his sweet little daughter; then we find out if the senator has balls. We already know some real ones do not. Sorry for the political comment. We now know that the two story lines will converge in Australia. I'm ready for chapter 13; hope it will be lucky for Brandon and Chase.

Endangered species laws seem to work well in many cases in the US. There are now more white-tailed deer (the most common species in the eastern states) than there were when the first Europeans settled here 400 years ago. That has created a growing problem as the human population and infrastructure grow. CJ, I'm anxiously awaiting chapter 12. Thanks for a very interesting story.

Would you not be influenced by the author's description of the character?

Well, I don't think that guy in the clip looks like I would expect Seth to look. Seth would probably be bigger. In Desert Dropping chapter 24, Rory describes Seth:

True. I've put on 12 pounds. I need another chapter of ITFB to curb my appetite.

I just wrote that to see if anyone was paying attention. I'm just kidding. It seems you are correct. I am not a German speaker, so I did some research before I posted my earlier comments. I did more research after reading your response and found information that contradicts what I had found previously. Although Noah Webster set the standard for the "sk" pronunciation, he must had some other influence besides German. Now I'm confused too. I think the other information about the usage of German early in US history is correct. And, I thought of a few words beginning with s-c-h that Americans pronounce as "sh"; they are all German names such as Schubert, schnauzer, and schnitzel. English is complicated, has a lot of words taken from other languages, and has more words any other language (I think). There is a saying that English is the only language with a thesaurus and the only language that needs one. But I could be wrong.

As for the pronunciation of "schedule", I think the American usage of the "sk" sound versus the British "sh" is due to the influence of the German language in American colonial and early independence periods. Noah Webster apparently settled on the "sk" sound for his first American dictionary due to German influence. Since English is a Germanic language, it is likely that speakers of Old English used the "sk" pronunciation. The Angles (as in Anglo-Saxon), from which the name English is derived, were a Germanic people from Jutland (Denmark). The British "sh" pronunciation may be the result of Norman (French) influence. There was even a strong movement to make German the official language of the US in its early days. I read somewhere that, as recently as the US entry into World War I (1916), Cincinnati, Ohio had six German language newspapers. They went out of business when speaking German became unfashionable. I can't think of any word beginning with the letters s-c-h that Americans generally pronounce any way other than "sk". American radio and TV networks often use British reporters for their European coverage, so I hear "schedule" pronounced with "sh" frequently. Doesn't bother me; the accent has already identified the speaker as British. The British aren't as consistent as Americans; pronouncing "school" and "scheme" with "sk". The difference may be due to the letters that follow s-c-h, such as the "dj" sound between the two syllables of "schedule". There is probably more confusion in the definition of words between Americans and British than there is in pronunciation, but I wouldn't want to start anything.

Vic, this has been an unusually long wait. You seem to have your own direct contact with Dom. Is this still an internet service issue? I didn't think any cable or telephone company was this slow. Can you get any update for us? All of Dom's fans are getting anxious...even the most patient of us. Thanks.

They are half brothers. Would that make it semi-incestuous?

Chapter 16 is here in time for our weekend reading. Have a good one. Another great chapter. Everyone begins to sort things out and a new normality is in sight for all the relationships affected by Jamie's sacrifice. More action is likely after lunch.

Yeah. Jue?

Here's a clue by way of punctuation: jeet?

I know your list of phonetic concoctions wasn't intended to be exhaustive, but I feel compelled to add one: jeet. All of these are more easily understood in conversation than they are when written.

You could have told him that Queens is in New York. When someone corrected Red Skelton's grammar by asking "Don't you know the Queen's English?", he replied "She is?".

"A man may take to drink because he feels himself to be a failure, and then fail all the more because he drinks. It is rather the same thing that is happening to the English language. It becomes ugly and inaccurate because our thoughts are foolish, but the slovenliness of our language makes it easier for us to have foolish thoughts." -- George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language" Different spellings may cause us to cringe, but they are nothing compared with the way we...British and Americans...change the meaning of words (e.g. "gay").

In British, that's Earl Grey. There's no end to the misspellings we would be stuck with if not for Noah Webster.

Amen. I had to use one in Paris a few months ago and it was a real pain in the derri

I get the sense that you are well-traveled. I have been to several of the places mentioned in the story and your descriptions are very much what I remember. Thanks for a great story.

Kevin, I must be reading a different version of the story. Brennan is the one who is being uncommunicative. Grady has made several attempts to talk with Brennan, but keeps getting the cold shoulder. Brennan is still a good friend as we saw when he covered for Grady's absence when he broke the rules by going to a movie with David. Being jealous - if that is what the problem is - is bad enough, but avoiding discussing the matter with your best friend is a bigger problem. I believe that Grady and Brennan are still very good friends. Brennan is at fault for the current chill in the relationship. In a different situation, they would be candidates for marriage counseling. As the story unfolds, I may find I am wrong, but, at present I can't see it otherwise.

Kashka, your virtue is showing.