Monthly Archives: May 2008

Scots and modern languages

Depressing bit of trivia on the British Council website.

Numbers
Presentations for Modern Languages in Higher Grade Examinations in Scotland

1976

French 11,610
German 3,130
Spanish 659
Italian 364
Russian 114

1997

French 4,840
German 2,078
Spanish 788
Italian 188
Russian 22

Source: McPake et al, 1999

http://www.scre.ac.uk/scot-research/hallcont/chapter3.html

I found this because for some strange reason, Google suggests this blog if you search for “French words to Scotland the Brave.”  Apparently.

It also points me at bizarre autotranslations of posts I wrote in 2005.  I particularly like “Nous savons tous ce que disent les grenouilles.”

Tweets on 2008-05-09

  • Heading into my ward to see a lady about a tree. #
  • @thoroughlygood we could have a wine bulletin replacing the sport. "And now here’s Nigel with a cheeky little barolo" #
  • Ruling out camping this weekend – too many fires to fight at home. #
  • Popping into PC world "to browse." An eeePC just jumped off shelf and bit my credit card. #

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Quote of the day

From Jonathan Calder’s Lib Dem News column, Housepoints, which he kindly duplicates on his blog each week, thus helpfully removing the need to open the envelope with Lib Dem News in it:

But Kenneth Horne was not without a puritan streak too. He once said: “I am all for censorship. If ever I see a double entendre I whip it out.”

Tweets on 2008-05-07

  • Packing, getting ready to leave. #
  • How warm is it in Blighty? Can I pack my coat away? 🙂 #
  • Phew. I’m actually feeling ready for sitting down for 7hrs on plane and in airport. #
  • U #17 @todo #
  • Being herded into an airport holding pen with seats for only a small fraction of the spaces on the plane. #
  • Airport buses circling around on the tarmac like hungry lions stalking gazelles. #
  • Just landed. Oh, god, aargh, my ears are killing me. #
  • Not clear why an airport is supposed to be "visual experience" but apparently EMA is to be transformed into one. #
  • Assessing burglary damage. Actually appears slightly less bad than we’d pictured. #
  • Cats pacing up and down angrily and talking about renegotiating service level agreement. Once daily feeding not enough! #

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Tweets on 2008-05-06

  • Struck down by hayfever. Eyes, nose, breathing, achey jaw. #
  • Carefully writing the Greek for Hayfever on a slip of paper and heading to pharmacy. Alleriko thuvaxi #
  • Sitting in seafront cafe drinking coffee and writing postcards. Stray cat sauntering in nonchalently. #
  • Spending small bits of my hol reading "Getting Things Done" and sending reminders of things to Sandy. #
  • Knocking back a can of "Mr Brown" iced coffee. #
  • @willhowells woss your specialist subject? #
  • Disturbed by the Greek thing of not flushing toilet paper. #
  • @po8crg they get you put it in a bin next to the toilet. #

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Tweets on 2008-05-05

  • Setting off on epic road trip round Cyprus #
  • Heading into the mountains listening to Camp as Tits FM. #
  • Drinking Greek coffee in Omados. #
  • Scary moment on single track mountain road when what should come around the hairpin bend but a Somerfield lorry! #
  • Extremely hairy drive through Cedar Valley, on road that’s only recently had safety barrier and tarmac added. #
  • Now settled in taverna in remote valley with amazing view and apologetic, generous hostess. #
  • "This is local wine from my grapes, this is juice from my oranges. This is cake." #
  • Cocks crowing on either side of road, next to no traffic, fig tree, vines and cherries everywhere. #
  • At the beach near Aphrodite’s Rock. Throwing stones into sea. #
  • Teaching P to duck fart. #
  • Getting back in after about 12hrs on the road. Shaking the sand from my boots. #

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Tweets on 2008-05-03

  • Sitting in the shade in a tabepna watching a local couple get married. Horns, veils, traffic nightmare, #
  • Early evening sea swim now the worst of the sun has passed. #
  • Sunset cruise from Larnaca marina round the headland. #
  • Dios mio, Larnaca’s only gay bar is huge, and heaving. #

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Tweets on 2008-05-02

  • In a pottery workshop on Cyprus – where they import clay from Stoke on Trent! #
  • In internet caff checking election results. Thanks for burglary sympathy. Can’t receive any mnore Twitter messages til Monday on phone. #
  • Looks like dataflame has crashed – my blog and libdemvoice are down? #
  • Getting totally confused with Greek. Bill please: Lepidoptera por favor! #

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