Em Ay Why

@[email protected]
8 Followers
36 Following
26 Posts
what's with the third degree?
Pronounsthey/them
LanguagesEnglish (primarily), Russian (L1)
Opinionsfor everything good, against everything bad
No I will notlearn to code
Em Ay WhyNov 14, 2022
@jasonwyckoff I'm pretty sure a lot of language learners do this, because it makes sense on the surface. but subtitles in the target language are much better in terms of strengthening your listening comprehension. if you're using subs in the target language, you're somewhat forced to read at the same pace a person is speaking and you're getting any new vocab verbally and visually, which reinforces your learning. it's pretty neat! (you could always jot down any unfamiliar or inadequately contextualized words and then assess yourself against the English subs on a rewatch ;))
Show threadEm Ay WhyNov 14, 2022

@jasonwyckoff yw! I had a leg up on Spanish just from already being familiar w/ concepts like words having gender, and then I got really proficient when my mom got really into a telenovela despite speaking zero Spanish and press-ganged me into translation service, so I know the method works 😂

(one more note: I did use Spanish subtitles, but I have to use them in English for English audio, so it seemed fair. it's not always recommended since the idea is to listen and not read - auditory processing issues aren't included in mainstream language learning tips, lol - but it could be a good temporary tool for getting used to the rhythm and picking out slang!)

Show threadEm Ay WhyNov 14, 2022

@jasonwyckoff hi!

I'm bilingual from childhood (not in Spanish, but I had an okay grasp on that too for a few years) and just want to clarify that any people speaking "quickly" in another language are *more than likely* speaking at a pretty average rate.

i.e.: your comprehension isn't "especially" bad because of their rate of speech, but it sounds fast to you *because* of your limited comprehension - when you're not used to the flow of a language, it's hard to tell where words stop and start, which impacts your perceptions. :)

keep watching news/TV - it helps more than you might think! finding music you like will also help (look up the lyrics). try to engage with different media throughout the day, not as part of any dedicated language learning time.

btw - "native speaker" is a complex/loaded term for a lot of bilingual/multilingual ppl IME, and doesn't necessarily reflect language proficiency. try looking for language exchange or conversational practice groups that might already exist in your area, whether or not they're made up of 'native speakers.'

good luck!

Show threadEm Ay WhyNov 14, 2022

my Spanish comprehension is only so-so, but this sounds cool and good.

very rough (non-machine assisted) translation for other non-speakers; notes and significant liberties in [brackets]:

"okay, but now imagine a sort of federated tik tok. it would be hilarious [<--I had to look this one up, not sure if correct]: you could see 'curated' content without the need to appeal [<--i looked this one up too] to a recommendations algorithm. you would only need to make an amount on the server that had topics that interested you the most, and the power to explore content on other servers that [are attractive to you (?)]."

original: "ok, pero ahora imagínense un tipo tik tok federado. estaría chidísimo: podrías ver contenido "curado" sin la necesidad de recurrir a un algoritmo de recomendaciones. sólo necesitarías registrarte en el nodo que trate temas que más te interesen, además de poder explorar el contenido de otros nodos que te atraen" (see previous toot for OP if you wish)

Em Ay WhyNov 13, 2022

"Anarchist Black Cross Moscow, established in 2003, has supported Russian anarchist and anti-fascist prisoners continuously for almost 20 years. When Russia invaded Ukraine, in February of 2022, we decided to widen our focus by supporting anti-war prisoners.

As of October 2022 we have run out of almost all funds to support anti-war prisoners and we launched a fundraising effort on the Firefund crowdfunding website. Please join our fundraising effort by donating and sharing our call.

Support our fundraising campaign in Firefund : https://www.firefund.net/antiwarprisoners2022 "

(source article linked in my previous... toot... boosted from @AnarchistFederation )

#antifa #antiwar #fundraiser #abcmoscow

Support Russian anti-war prisoners

We are launching a new round of fundraising for anti-war prisoners.

Em Ay WhyNov 13, 2022

ever have a bit of a health scare, but then you're like, what if it's nothing? 🤔

but THEN you're like, what if it's ~something~ but you've internalized the way healthcare professionals dismiss legitimate concerns due to misogyny ( :queercat_enby: ) and really not-holistic methodologies

[before anyone assumes this is a crunchy granola post - "holistic" is a red flag for some ppl - let me point out that dental care being seen as separate from medical care, even tho your teeth are I N Y O U R B O D Y , is an example of non-holistic care.]

and also the local hospital is critically understaffed due to chronic labor shortages and a profit-hungry corporate overlord,

and also also, you've had multiple experiences being let down by Western medicine insisting there's nothing wrong with you (because they can't figure it out, so when you still feel like shit after multiple blood tests and other exams, and your doctor basically goes ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯, you don't trust another doctor to do any better in the future, and even if you did, you don't have the money or time to pursue it, you just get used to feeling shitty)

AND ALSO ALSO ALSO, if it's a particular thing, that would potentially have other really negative implications for your life because of ableism from neurotypicals and really fucked up drug policy,

AND THEN you're like, you know, it could actually be nothing!

and you'll have wasted who knows how much time being neglected in the ER and have to pay hundreds of dollars (if you're "lucky" enough to have employer health insurance, which also costs hundreds of dollars every month - yes I am based in the US, thank you for asking, please send help) to find out you just had to burp or something?

#healthcare #health #AskingForAFriend #ItsMeImTheFriend #hypothetical #ADHD #MiniEssay #rant

(i do not typically hashtag anything so I'm bad at it. i also do not typically capitalize words like that but I read it was better for screen reader use?)