Category Archives: Language

“How are you?”

Posted on 2020-02-08 by

Someone: How are you? Me: Confused. Someone: Oh. I am sorry to hear that. Me: No, that’s OK. I am studying philosophy. When I first went to Israel on a youth exchange program, I stayed with a family in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, Israel, Language, Life | 25 Comments

Belgium goes into extra time

Posted on 2019-09-12 by

Those who are familiar with the weather in Belgium will understand why everyone here wants to leave for vacation as much as they can. That creates an enormous demand for house sitters and cat carers. Hence, immediately after house sitting … Continue reading →

Posted in Belgium, Language, Politics, Travel | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

Easily Confused (66) Influencer

Posted on 2019-06-21 by

People who call themselves “influencers”, but don’t influence me at all: What really influences me, although none of their authors would use such a stupid self-descriptive term: Influenza: The last one can be pretty influential, actually. It definitely impresses me … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Language | 2 Comments

Random Thoughts (24)

Posted on 2019-03-08 by

Good news: the days are getting longer. Unless you live in the Southern hemisphere, then you are doomed to darkness. And unless you live on the equator, in which case you are missing out on something fabulous. My sister asked … Continue reading →

Posted in Austria, Books, Brazil, Canada, Economics, Elections, Facebook, Feminism, Germany, Iran, Language, Politics, Religion, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Travel, UK, USA | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Testing a Client’s Sense of Humor

Posted on 2019-02-18 by

Five years ago, an American lady contacted me about applying for German citizenship. She fell into that group of people who could qualify without living in Germany, but she would need to pass the German language test at a high … Continue reading →

Posted in German Law, Language, Law | Tagged , | 12 Comments

“Mindfulness”

Posted on 2018-11-13 by

I know something is a fad when I see it advertised in a really small town in Andalusia.

Posted in Andalusia, Language, Spain | Tagged | 6 Comments

Spanish B1

Posted on 2018-05-10 by

So, it seems I can speak Spanish now. At least at the intermediate B1 level. But considering that you only need A2 to obtain Spanish citizenship, that’s not too bad. I was disappointed that I almost failed the written part. … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Language | Tagged | 18 Comments