BAI

LANGUAGE: Silent Letters (1)

Silent Letters (1)

Many words in English have silent letters. These are letters that we use in the written word but not when pronouncing them, which can cause mistakes in speech and writing. Every letter in the alphabet, except “H” and  “V” have at least one word with a silent letter! Surprised? Probably not! This is just one more aspect of the English language to master!

Let’s start with the letter “B,” as it has several common English words in which it is silent: normally when it follows the letter “M” at the end of a word, but also before the letter “T.” (The word obtain is an exception.):

Bomb, climb, comb, crumb, dumb, lamb, limb, numb, plumber, thumb, tomb, womb, debt, debtor, doubt, subtle.

Lletres mudes 

Moltes paraules en anglès tenen lletres mudes. Són lletres que utilitzem a l’escriptura però no quan les pronunciem, cosa que pot provocar errors tant en la parla com en l’escriptura. Cada lletra de l’alfabet, excepte la “H” i la “V”, té almenys una paraula amb una lletra muda! Sorprès? Probablement no! Aquest és només un altre aspecte de la llengua anglesa que cal dominar!

Comencem amb la lletra “B”, ja que té diverses paraules comunes en anglès en què és muda: normalment quan segueix la lletra “M” al final d’una paraula, però també abans de la lletra “T”. (La paraula obtain és una excepció.):

Bomb, climb, comb, crumb, dumb, lamb, limb, numb, plumber, thumb, tomb, womb, debt, debtor, doubt, subtle.

Letras mudas

Muchas palabras en inglés tienen letras mudas. Estas son letras que usamos en la palabra escrita pero no al pronunciarlas, lo que puede causar errores tanto en el habla como en la escritura. ¡Cada letra del alfabeto, excepto la “H” y la “V”, tiene al menos una palabra con una letra muda! ¿Sorprendido? ¡Probablemente no! Este es solo otro aspecto del idioma inglés que hay que dominar.

Empecemos con la letra “B”, ya que tiene varias palabras comunes en inglés en las que es muda: normalmente cuando sigue a la letra “M” al final de una palabra, pero también antes de la letra “T”. (La palabra obtain es una excepción.):

Bomb, climb, comb, crumb, dumb, lamb, limb, numb, plumber, thumb, tomb, womb, debt, debtor, doubt, subtle.

 

by BAI

WHO AM I? (2)

Who am I? (2)

Who am I? Where you are given information or clues about an actor, singer, athlete, politician, or other celebrity, and you guess who they are. Were you correct?

Qui sóc? Quan et donen informació o pistes sobre un actor, cantant, atleta, polític o una altra celebritat, i tu has d’endevinar qui és. Ho has encertat?

¿Quién soy? Donde se te da información o pistas sobre un actor, cantante, atleta, político u otra celebridad, y tú debes adivinar quién es. ¿Acertaste?

 

by BAI

LANGUAGE: English Oddities (1)

English Oddities (1)

English Oddities:

  • A PANGRAM sentence is one that contains every letter in the English alphabet. For example, the sentence “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” is a pangram. Here’s another: “The joyful wizards quietly mixed groovy black potions.” How many letters of the alphabet can you use in one sentence?
  • The word SWIMS can be turned upside down and it still spells SWIMS.
  • -OUGH can be pronounced at least 10 different ways! Here are the five most common ways of pronouncing this group of letters:
    1. -OFF: words like cough and trough rhyme with scoff
    2. -UFF: words like tough, rough, and enough rhyme with stuff
    3. -OW: words like plough rhymes with now
    4. -OH: words like though rhyme with go
    5. -OO: words like thorough rhymes with zoo

More Oddities

  • Approximately 4,000 new words are added to the English dictionary each year.
  • The words bulb, angel, and month do not have any perfect rhymes in English.
  • 90% of English texts use just 1,000 words.

Estranyeses de l’anglès:

  • Una frase pangrama és aquella que conté totes les lletres de l’alfabet anglès. Per exemple, la frase “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” és un pangrama. Aquí en tens un altre: “The joyful wizards quietly mixed groovy black potions.” Quantes lletres de l’alfabet pots utilitzar en una sola frase?
  • La paraula SWIMS es pot girar cap per avall i encara s’escriu SWIMS.
  • El grup de lletres -OUGH es pot pronunciar almenys de 10 maneres diferents! Aquí tens les cinc formes més comunes:
    1. -OFF: paraules com cough i trough rimen amb scoff
    2. -UFF: paraules com tough, rough i enough rimen amb stuff
    3. -OW: paraules com plough rimen amb now
    4. -OH: paraules com though rimen amb go
    5. -OO: paraules com thorough rimen amb zoo

Més estranyeses:

  • Aproximadament 4.000 paraules noves s’afegeixen al diccionari anglès cada any.
  • Les paraules bulb, angel i month no tenen rimes perfectes en anglès.
  • El 90% dels textos en anglès utilitzen només 1.000 paraules.

Rarezas del inglés:

  • Una frase pangrama es aquella que contiene todas las letras del alfabeto inglés. Por ejemplo, la frase “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” es un pangrama. Aquí tienes otro: “The joyful wizards quietly mixed groovy black potions.” ¿Cuántas letras del alfabeto puedes usar en una sola frase?
  • La palabra SWIMS se puede poner boca abajo y todavía se lee SWIMS.
  • El grupo de letras -OUGH se puede pronunciar al menos de 10 maneras diferentes. Aquí están las cinco formas más comunes:

    1. -OFF: palabras como cough y trough riman con scoff

    2. -UFF: palabras como tough, rough y enough riman con stuff

    3. -OW: palabras como plough riman con now

    4. -OH: palabras como though riman con go

    5. -OO: palabras como thorough riman con zoo

Más rarezas:

  • Aproximadamente 4.000 palabras nuevas se añaden al diccionario inglés cada año.
  • Las palabras bulb, angel y month no tienen rimas perfectas en inglés.
  • El 90% de los textos en inglés usan solo 1.000 palabras.

by BAI

LANGUAGE: Phrasal Verbs (2)

Phrasal Verbs (2)

 

Need to visit a doctor? These phrasal verbs may help you explain your condition and understand the doctor’s questions and diagnosis!

Necessites visitar un metge? Aquests phrasal verbs et poden ajudar a explicar el teu estat i a entendre les preguntes i diagnòstic del metge!

¿Necesitas visitar a un médico? ¡Estos phrasal verbs pueden ayudarte a explicar tu estado y a entender las preguntas y el diagnóstico del médico!

 

HEALTH / SALUT / SALUD

  • Come down with: To begin to have a (non-serious) illness. Començar a tenir una malaltia (no greu). Empezar a tener una enfermedad (no grave).

     Example: I think I’m coming down with a cold. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/come-down-with?q=come+down+with

  • Get over: To return to your normal state of health, happiness, etc. after an illness, a shock, the end of a relationship. T ornar al teu estat normal de salut, felicitat, etc., després d’una malaltia, un xoc o la fi d’una relació. Volver a tu estado normal de salud, felicidad, etc., después de una enfermedad, un shock o el fin de una relación.

     Example: “She never got over the death of her late husband.”   https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/get-over?q=get+over

  • Pass out: To lose consciousness.  Perdre la consciència. Perder la conciencia.

     Example: After he got kicked in the head, he passed out for about ten minutes. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/pass-out?q=pass+out

  • Pass away: The more polite way of saying “to die.” Manera més educada de dir “morir”. Forma más educada de decir “morir”.

     Example: Her grandfather passed away last week after a long illness. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/pass-away?q=pass+away

  • Break out in: To suddenly be affected by an unpleasant sensation or condition (usually on the skin), such as a rash, hives, or sweat. Patir de sobte una sensació o condició desagradable (normalment a la pell), com erupcions, urticària o suor. Verse afectado de repente por una sensación o condición desagradable (normalmente en la piel), como sarpullidos, urticaria o sudor.

     Example: If I eat shellfish, I break out in a rash on my face! https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/break-out-in?q=break+out+in

  • Throw up: To vomit.  Vomitar. Vomitar.

     Example: The baby threw up her breakfast all over the seat of the car. https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/throw-up?q=throw+up

 

 Note: If you go to the links, you will see that most of these words have several meanings! This is one of the reasons why phrasal verbs are so difficult to learn. Don’t get discouraged. Try to learn them in small, related groups like the six above.

Nota: Si visites els enllaços, veuràs que la majoria d’aquestes paraules tenen diversos significats! Aquesta és una de les raons per les quals els phrasal verbs són tan difícils d’aprendre. No et desanimis. Intenta aprendre’ls en petits grups relacionats, com els sis exemples anteriors.

Nota: Si visitas los enlaces, verás que la mayoría de estas palabras tienen varios significados. ¡Esta es una de las razones por las que los phrasal verbs son tan difíciles de aprender! No te desanimes. Intenta aprenderlos en pequeños grupos relacionados, como los seis anteriores.

by BAI

LANGUAGE: Irregular Plurals (1)

Irregular Plurals (1)

 

Common Irregular Plurals / Plurals irregulars comuns / Plurales irregulares comunes:

 

Most nouns in English are made plural by simply adding -s or -es; however, as you might expect, English has several exceptions to that rule. Below are some of the easier ones put into groups to facilitate their learning:

La majoria dels substantius en anglès es fan plurals simplement afegint -s o -es; però, com era d’esperar, l’anglès té diverses excepcions a aquesta regla. A continuació tens alguns dels més fàcils, agrupats per facilitar-ne l’aprenentatge:

La mayoría de los sustantivos en inglés se pluralizan simplemente añadiendo -s o -es; sin embargo, como era de esperar, el inglés tiene varias excepciones a esta regla. A continuación, se presentan algunas de las más fáciles, agrupadas para facilitar su aprendizaje:

Let’s start with the easiest ones: those in which the plural is exactly the same as the singular! (Note: notice that they are all animals.)

Comencem amb els més fàcils: aquells en què el plural és exactament el mateix que el singular! (Nota: observa que tots són animals.)

Empecemos con las más sencillas: aquellas en las que el plural es exactamente igual que el singular. (Nota: fíjate que todos son animales.)

 

SINGULAR                                                       PLURAL

bison                                                                   bison

buffalo                                                                buffalo

deer                                                                     deer

elk                                                                        elk

fish*                                                                    fish

moose                                                                moose

sheep                                                                  sheep

*shrimp, cod, trout, salmon, carp, and pike: all these fish have the same singular/plural form. Tots aquests peixos tenen la mateixa forma al singular i al plural. Todos estos peces tienen la misma forma en singular y plural.

 

Non-animal words with the same singular/plural are all -craft (meaning related to a boat or ship) words:

Les paraules que no són animals i que tenen el mateix singular/plural són totes paraules acabades en -craft (relacionades amb un vaixell o embarcació):

Las palabras que no son animales y que tienen el mismo singular/plural son todas palabras terminadas en -craft (relacionadas con un barco o nave):

Aircraft, hovercraft, spacecraft, and watercraft

by BAI

SPANISH SPEAKERS (2)

English for Spanish Speakers (2)

Cognates / Cognats / Cognados

There are three types of COGNATES: Perfect, True, and False; this latter one perhaps better known as a “False Friend.” In this entry, we will look at Perfect Cognates. These are English and Spanish words with identical meaning, spelling, and similar sound. For example, doctor and (el) doctor, which are only differentiated by their pronunciation. Here are 20 more! Obviously, these are pretty easy. Next entry, we will look at True Cognates before moving on to the much more difficult False Cognates.

Hi ha tres tipus de COGNATS: perfectes, veritables i falsos; aquests últims són més coneguts com a “falsos amics”. En aquesta entrada veurem els cognats perfectes. Són paraules angleses i castellanes que tenen el mateix significat, la mateixa ortografia i una sonoritat semblant. Per exemple: doctor i (el) doctor, que només es diferencien per la pronunciació.
Aquí tens 20 més! Evidentment, aquests són força fàcils. A la següent entrada veurem els cognats veritables abans de passar als cognats falsos, que són molt més difícils.

Hay tres tipos de COGNADOS: perfectos, verdaderos y falsos; estos últimos son más conocidos como “falsos amigos”. En esta entrada veremos los cognados perfectos. Son palabras en inglés y español que tienen el mismo significado, la misma ortografía y un sonido similar. Por ejemplo: doctor y (el) doctor, que solo se diferencian por la pronunciación. ¡Aquí tienes 20 más! Evidentemente, son bastante fáciles. En la próxima entrada veremos los cognados verdaderos antes de pasar a los cognados falsos, mucho más difíciles.

Other examples include:

  1. actor → actor → actor
  2. agenda → agenda → agenda
  3. area → àrea → área
  4. artificial → artificial → artificial
  5. cable → cable → cable
  6. cancer → càncer → cáncer
  7. capital → capital → capital
  8. central → central → central
  9. chocolate → xocolata → chocolate
  10. debate → debat → debate
  11. division → divisió → división
  12. error → error → error
  13. frontal → frontal → frontal
  14. hospital → hospital → hospital
  15. idea → idea → idea
  16. lateral → lateral → lateral
  17. original → original → original
  18. real → real → real
  19. sentimental → sentimental → sentimental
  20. total → total → total

 

English for Spanish Speakers: Answers from October 31 / Respostes del 31 d’octubre / Respuestas del 31 de octubre

Here are the corrections of a dirty-dozen of some of the most common errors English teachers hear in their classrooms. / Aquí tens les correccions d’una dotzena dels errors més comuns que els professors d’anglès escolten a les seves aules. / Aquí tienes las correcciones de una docena de los errores más comunes que los profesores de inglés escuchan en sus aulas.

How many did you get correct?

  1. Before I came to this academy, I studied English with a private teacher!
  2. On weekends, I like to go jogging/running and play basketball.
  3. Normally, we spend our summer holidays at a campground.
  4. I’m sorry I couldn’t attend class last week.
  5. My English teacher at school told me that I had to study more.
  6. When I was younger, I used to play
  7. A) How old is your sister? B) She is Or, She is 18 years old.
  8. In my job, I am in charge of
  9. I’m sorry I’m late for class, but I missed the bus in Barcelona.
  10. A) I think we should probably stay home tonight. B) I agree.
  11. The new capitol building cost the government ten million
  12. After class, I am going out with my friends to have a drink.

by BAI

PUB QUIZ (1)

Pub Quiz 1

A pub quiz is a contest normally held in a bar or pub. It’s a modern example of a pub game, becoming part of British culture in the 1970s, and soon afterwards introduced into Irish pubs and then spreading internationally. It involves rounds of quiz questions addressed to teams of players, touching on general knowledge (geography, science, & nature), sport, entertainment, true & false, Who am I? (see above), music, puzzles, and more. Test yourself, learn more vocabulary, and amaze your friends with your knowledge!

Un pub quiz és un concurs que normalment es celebra en un bar o pub. És un exemple modern de joc de pub, que es va convertir en part de la cultura britànica als anys 70, i poc després es va introduir als pubs irlandesos abans d’estendre’s internacionalment. Consisteix en rondes de preguntes dirigides a equips de participants, sobre coneixements generals (geografia, ciència i natura), esport, entreteniment, vertader o fals, Qui sóc? (vegeu més amunt), música, trencaclosques i més. Posa’t a prova, aprèn més vocabulari i sorprèn els teus amics amb els teus coneixements!

Un pub quiz es un concurso que normalmente se celebra en un bar o pub. Es un ejemplo moderno de juego de pub, que se convirtió en parte de la cultura británica en los años 70, y poco después se introdujo en los pubs irlandeses antes de extenderse internacionalmente. Consiste en rondas de preguntas dirigidas a equipos de jugadores, sobre conocimientos generales (geografía, ciencia y naturaleza), deporte, entretenimiento, verdadero o falso, ¿Quién soy yo? (ver más arriba), música, rompecabezas y más. ¡Ponte a prueba, aprende más vocabulario y sorprende a tus amigos con tus conocimientos!

 

by BAI

FUN FACTS (2)

10 Fun Facts about Canada: a land of superlatives!

  1. Canada, the second largest country in the world, has ten provinces and three territories. Despite its massive size, it only has 0.5% of the world’s population.
  2. 65 people live in Alert, the world’s northernmost inhabited settlement.
  3. Ottawa is the world’s coldest capital, arriving at minus 24º C.
  4. Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined!
  5. The Trans-Canada Highway, the world’s longest, is 7,608 kilometers long.
  6. Canada has the best educated citizens in the world: 56% are college graduates!
  7. Canada was the first country to create a national park service. And some of its parks are bigger than countries (for example, Albania and Israel.)
  8. The US-Canadian border is the world’s longest: a total of 8,891 kilometers!
  9. The highest point in Canada is Mt Logan: 5,959 meters.
  10. The Bay of Fundy has a tide that rises 16 meters from low tide to high—taller than a three-story building! Yes, it is the greatest tide differential in the world!

 

10 curiositats sobre Canadà: una terra de superlatius!

  1. Canadà, el segon país més gran del món, té deu províncies i tres territoris. Malgrat la seva grandària enorme, només té el 0,5% de la població mundial.
  2. 65 persones viuen a Alert, el poble habitat més septentrional del món.
  3. Ottawa és la capital més freda del món, amb temperatures que arriben a menys 24 ºC.
  4. Canadà té més llacs que la resta del món junt!
  5. La Trans-Canada Highway, la carretera més llarga del món, té 7.608 quilòmetres de longitud.
  6. Canadà té els ciutadans més ben educats del món: el 56% són titulats universitaris!
  7. Canadà va ser el primer país a crear un servei nacional de parcs. I alguns dels seus parcs són més grans que països (per exemple, Albània i Israel).
  8. La frontera entre EUA i Canadà és la més llarga del món: un total de 8.891 quilòmetres!
  9. El punt més alt del Canadà és el Mont Logan: 5.959 metres.
  10. La Badia de Fundy té una marea que puja 16 metres des de la marea baixa fins a la marea alta—més alta que un edifici de tres pisos! Sí, és la diferència de marea més gran del món!

10 curiosidades sobre Canadá: ¡una tierra de superlativos!

  1. Canadá, el segundo país más grande del mundo, tiene diez provincias y tres territorios. A pesar de su enorme tamaño, solo tiene el 0,5% de la población mundial.
  2. 65 personas viven en Alert, el asentamiento habitado más al norte del mundo.
  3. Ottawa es la capital más fría del mundo, alcanzando los menos 24 ºC.
  4. ¡Canadá tiene más lagos que el resto del mundo combinado!
  5. La Trans-Canada Highway, la carretera más larga del mundo, mide 7.608 kilómetros.
  6. ¡Canadá tiene los ciudadanos mejor educados del mundo: el 56% son graduados universitarios!
  7. Canadá fue el primer país en crear un servicio nacional de parques. Y algunos de sus parques son más grandes que países (por ejemplo, Albania e Israel).
  8. La frontera entre EE. UU. y Canadá es la más larga del mundo: un total de 8.891 kilómetros.
  9. El punto más alto de Canadá es el Monte Logan: 5.959 metros.
  10. La Bahía de Fundy tiene una marea que sube 16 metros desde la marea baja hasta la alta—¡más alta que un edificio de tres plantas! Sí, ¡es la mayor diferencia de marea del mundo!

by BAI

SPANISH SPEAKERS (1)

English for Spanish Speakers (1)

Here’s a dirty-dozen of some of the most common errors English teachers hear in their classrooms—many of these are even heard at higher levels!

Aquí tens una dotzena d’alguns dels errors més comuns que els professors d’anglès escolten a les seves aules — molts d’aquests es poden sentir fins i tot a nivells avançats!

Aquí tienes una docena de algunos de los errores más comunes que los profesores de inglés escuchan en sus aulas — ¡muchos de estos se oyen incluso en niveles avanzados!

                    1. Before I came to this academy, I studied English with a particular teacher!
                    2. On weekends, I like to do footing and play basket.
                    3. Normally, we spend our summer holidays at a camping.
                    4. I’m sorry I couldn’t assist class last week.
                    5. My English professor at school told me that I had to study more.
                    6. When I was younger, I used to practice football.
                    7. A) How old is your sister? B) She has 18 years.
                    8. In my job, I am the responsible of IT.
                    9. I’m sorry I’m late for class, but I lost the bus in Barcelona.
                    10. A) I think we should probably stay home tonight. B) I’m agree.
                    11. The new capitol building cost the government ten millions of euros.
                    12. After class, I am going out with my friends to take a drink.

Can you correct these sentences? The correct answers and explanations will be given in our next “English for Spanish Speakers” posting on November 5!

Pots corregir aquestes frases? Les respostes correctes i les explicacions es donaran a la nostra propera publicació “Anglès per a parlants de castellà” el 5 de novembre!

¿Puedes corregir estas frases? Las respuestas correctas y las explicaciones se darán en nuestra próxima publicación “Inglés para hispanohablantes” el 5 de noviembre.

by BAI

NOVEMBER CALENDAR 2025

Each month we will give you a list of special happenings in the UK, USA, and other English-Speaking countries, some serious, some light-hearted, and others rather dark!

2: Plan Your Epitaph Day.

This follows the more widely and enthusiastically celebrated Day of the Dead, in which the near 68 million members of the US Hispanic community, believing that the souls of the deceased travel to Earth to visit their family and loved ones, celebrate through both traditional family customs and large-scale public events. Today’s celebration is a more deeply somber and reflective one, thinking about your life and choosing the right words to summarize it for eternity. Here’s one that might guide you:

Yet sometimes death takes us suddenly and our epitaphs are written for us. Here are two from the aptly named 19th century Western town of Tombstone, Arizona, Boot Hill cemetery:

Here lies George Johnson                                 Here lies Lester Moore
Hanged by mistake 1882                                   Four slugs from a .44
He was right, we was wrong                              No less, no more
But we strung him up
And now he’s gone

 


Sue Rangell (derivative), Marc29th (original), CC BY-SA 1.0, via Wikimedia Commons

4: Melbourne Cup

It’s a day of public drunkenness and bad behavior; conspicuous fashion and animal cruelty, not to mention reckless and excessive gambling. The annual Thoroughbred horse race is held in Melbourne, Australia, at the Flemington Racecourse. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and up. The event starts at 3:00 pm on the first Tuesday of November and is known as «the race that stops the nation.” Quite right, stops many well-dressed spectators dead drunk in the stands, as well as horses dead in their tracks. Excessive drinking and gambling have also led to a spike in wife & child abuse claims (due to lost bets?) on race day; as well, the Cup has recently suffered a spate of race time equine injuries—broken bones, heart attacks, and forced overexertion—leading to horses being euthanized at the track. All told, 151 horses died during the 2023-24 Australian race season.

Richard Riley, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

5: Guy Fawkes Night

It began as an anti-Catholic celebration after the 1605 failed attempt by Guy Fawkes and 13 other Catholic men to assassinate the King and The House of Lords at the opening of Parliament. The annual celebrations that followed across Britain were virulently anti-Catholic, raucous and violent, and included the traditional burning of effigies of the Catholic Pope and Fawkes in bonfires. Over the centuries, it has evolved into a general night of bonfires, fireworks, and sparklers, with families, friends, and communities. Fireworks are displayed by sports clubs, churches, and other organizations. Families will also set off fireworks in their back gardens and take part in bonfire night parties. What happened to Fawkes and his co-conspirators? They were variously tortured, dragged behind horses, shot, hanged, and quartered, their bodies put on display to warn others against treason! The Guy Fawkes mask, popularized in the film V for Vendetta, has become a symbol of protest, and the symbol for the online hacktivist group “Anonymous.”

5: National Redhead Day

It’s celebrated on this date every year by the 2% of the world’s “ginger” population who have naturally red hair. Red hair is more common and appears with greater frequency—up to 6 percent—among those of Northern European descent. Earlier cultures associated red hair with witchcraft, the devil, and, according to Spanish Inquisitors, with the stealing of fire from hell. In the 16th and 17th centuries, women who had red hair were often stigmatized as witches and as moral deviants; Hundreds of red-haired women were burned at the stake over centuries of witch trials. Fun Facts:

  • The rarest eye color among redheads is blue
  • Ireland has the greatest number of redheads; they are also commonly found in Scotland and places where people have Celtic ancestry.
  • Redheads don’t go grey. Read hair will never turn grey; it simply fades to white via rose gold when the time comes.
  • Redheads are more likely to be left-handed because red hair and left-handedness are both recessive traits (which tend to come in pairs).
  • True or not, redheads are associated with having bad tempers.
  • Famous redheads throughout history include Henry VIII, Vincent van Gogh, Leonardi da Vinci, Mary Queen of Scots, Vladimir Lenin, Mark Twain, Galileo Galilei, Saint Brigid, Winston Churchill, and, of course, Bill Burr.

Dpulitzer, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

9: National Tongue Twister Day

It’s on the second Sunday in November. It celebrates this alliterative sequencing of words that are both fun and challenging to say. Today is also a day to learn some new tongue twisters. Here are some classics:

  • She sells seashells by the seashore.
  • How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
  • Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
  • The sixth sick sheikh’s sixth sheep’s sick.
  • Pad kid poured curd pulled cod.

The last one was actually invented by MIT investigators as the most difficult possible according to their research on the human brain and speech. For me, the one previous to it is much more difficult! Try them all! Say each 10 times consecutively!

13: Guinness World Record Day

It’s a day for breaking records. It celebrates the anniversary of the publication of the Guinness World Records book, of course, enabling them to sell even more copies. Ironically, this book of records encourages more ridiculous, anti-social, dangerous, and self-injurious behavior by people when totally sober than a half-dozen pints or more of the Black Stuff could ever do so.

  • Most watches eaten: Kim Seung Do from Seoul ate 5 watches (no wristbands) in 1 hour and 34 minutes. He trains on 600 grams of metal a day and has consumed an estimated 4 tons in his lifetime. (Won’t be asking the obvious question.)
  • Loudest burp: UK gent Paul Hunn burped at an ear splitting 109.9 decibels in 2009. (Equal to a power saw or jackhammer up close, and able to cause hearing damage with only short-term exposure.) In the women’s category, Italy’s sweetheart Elisa Cagnoni released a belch at a deafening 107.0 decibels. No information is given about what and how they train.
  • Fastest to count to a million: Jeremy Harper counted from 1 to 1,000,000 in 89 days! (This record looks like low hanging fruit: all you need is a clean calendar for 3 months, an extremely high boredom threshold, and a pathetic hunger for a modicum of fame.)

It would seem that even the good folks at Guinness would agree that people’s quest for celebrity has gone off the rails of good sense and health. They have banned the following: gluttony records; being buried alive; dance marathons; overfeeding pets or farm animals; sleep deprivation; binge drinking; child-endangering records and many more.

26: Australian Thanksgiving

It’s celebrated on a different date from the American Thanksgiving—on the last Wednesday of November. It has little national significance and is chiefly celebrated on the territory of Norfolk Island, located nearly 1,000 miles east of the Australian mainland, with a population of around 2,400. The tradition was introduced in the late 1800s by Americans sailors from whaling ships. Interestingly, inhabitants of the island are descendants of the infamous mutineers of the HMS Bounty, 193 of them having moved from Pitcarin Island in 1856 to Norfolk, then an uninhabited former penal colony.

27: National Electric Guitar Day

Hendrix? Page? Jones? Clapton? B.B. King? Beck? May? What about Blackmore? Townshend? Berry? Knopfler? Gilmour? Electric Guitar Day takes place on the birthday of electric guitarist legend Jimi Hendrix. By the 1950s, the electric guitar had become one of the most widely used and important instruments in popular music. It became integral to the development of electric blues, rock and roll, rock, heavy metal, and punk rock. So, who’s the greatest ever? That’s quite subjective, like asking who’s the greatest author, what’s the best film, or even what’s the best men’s underwear. Many would reasonably say Hendrix, but for my money, London’s graffitied walls of the late 60s didn’t lie, stating: CLAPTON IS GOD. And before snooty guitar aficionados take issue, I’ve met you before: lying on your sofa in your orange TK Maxx skivvies, a framed B&W photo of Jimmy Page on the dirty bare wall behind, reading Tom Clancy novels or watching reruns of Twilight. Get outta here!

 


Carlos Delgado, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

27: American Thanksgiving Day

It’s considered a Day of Mourning for many present-day Native Americans. But, as taught to generations of American school children, it is historical celebration rooted in a harvest feast happily shared between English colonists and the Wampanoag people in 1621 in Plymouth, Massachusetts—so far, so good, but this meal marked but a brief respite from what were often tense and violent relations between  the Native Americans and their colonizers, the latter offering up little more than land theft, disease, rape, slavery, and death to the local populace. The tradition of early colonizers giving thanks (never the locals) is equally tied to the horrific massacre of over 700 Pequot Indigenous men, women, and children a few years later by the soldiers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. In recognition of this “victory,” Governor Winthrop proclaimed a “day of thanksgiving” for returning soldiers—all but two survived. Puritan zealots thereafter excused this genocidal annihilation of women, children, and the elderly with biblical scripture. Sound familiar? Anyway, enjoy your turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie! And, go Cowboys!

28: Black Friday  

It’s the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States. It traditionally marks the start of the Christmas shopping season and is the busiest shopping day of the year in the US. Many stores offer highly promoted sales at heavily discounted prices and often open early, sometimes at midnight. Here are some fun facts about Black Friday:

  • The original term was used to describe a financial panic & stock crash of 1869.
  • Online sales now officially surpass in-store sales for the Black Friday event.
  • An auto insurance company’s analysis show a 34% increase in accidents on Black Friday, most occurring in parking lots while hurriedly backing out of spaces.
  • Over 39% of Black Friday sales are on Smartphones.
  • The Black Friday tradition has spread to over 15 countries; at the same time, it has been banned in several others.
  • 12% of buyers online admit to being drunk when making their purchases.
  • In 2011, Walmart broke the Black Friday tradition by opening on Thanksgiving evening—thus, requiring employees to leave their family celebrations. Owned by the Walton family (total worth $432 billion—world’s richest family), Walmart was shamed into closing in 2020, “generously” allowing workers the full day off once again.

Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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by BAI