Zack Hersh Quarter 1: Reflection 8 11/4/13

Señorita Manuel

Fin de una era: Blockbuster cerrará sus puertas

Blockbuster, una cadena de tiendas que vende y alquila peliculas, cerrara sus puertas, empezando en dos mil catorce. La compañía que posee la cadena de Blockbuster, DirecTv, finalmente dio. El gerente de DirecTv, Joseph Clayton, anunció en miércoles que ellos van a cerrar Blockbuster, porque mientras a una era fue muy popular, lo no puede competir con piratería de video y compañías muy grandes que estan muy popular como Netflix y Hulu.

   Blockbuster solo no está haciendo suficiente dinero para quedar y competir. Antes de la era digital, Blockbuster fue muy exitoso y popular, pero con la tecnología de hoy, no es posible para quedar. En dos mil once, la compania empresa quebró. Clayton dijo que “No es una decisión fácil, pero la demanda de los consumidores se dirige claramente a la distribución digital del entretenimiento audiovisual". Este es triste. Mientras no visitaba Blockbuster con frecuencia en mi vida, siempre he respetado y gustaria lo.

Pero la verdad es no tiendas de peliculas va a seguir en el negocio mucho mas. No hay demanda alta para tangible videos y peliculas cuando podemos conseguirlos y verlos digitalmente. Este fue inevitable mientras nuestra tecnología progresó tan rápidamente. Blockbuster fue bueno, pero su vez ha pasado.

Palabras: 203

EFE. "Latino News and Opinion." Fin De Una Era: Blockbuster Cerrará Sus Puertas - . Al Dia, 06 Nov. 2013. Web. 08 Nov. 2013. <http://www.pontealdia.com/estados-unidos/fin-de-una-era-blockbuster-cerrara-sus-puertas.html>.

Cómics en Spain

vocab

de todos modos - anyway

interés - interest

Por lo que he oído  - from what ive heard

mezclar - mix

poesía - poetry

alabanza - praise

anadir - to add (v)

pulido - polished

demasiado - too much

la semana pasada el escritor Miguelanxo Prado ganó una premmio para su cómic “Ardalén”. No lo lee, pero quisiera leerlo después de estaba mirando ese artículo. Me gusta leyendo cómics, pero no he comprando un libro en casi un año. Cuando fui joven, y estaba en escuela primaria, yo y mis amigos estábamos yendo al tiendo de cómics y compré muchos libros, incluso spider man(araña hombre) , the walking dead (los muertos caminandos), y the spirit (el espíritu). Me gusta todos de esos libros, pero no he leyendo esos en un tiempo largo.  De todos modos, pienso que eso cómic de señor Prado va a ser un cosa buena para mi interés en el mundo de cómics. Despues de leyendo sobre “Arladén”, quizás voy a leerlo. Aparentemente su trabajo he sido sobre mágica y sueños. Por lo que he oído Prado mezcla ficción y emoción en una manera de poesía, recibió alabanza de personas similar que Steven Spielberg y otras personas famosas con muchos premios de cómics. El mejor parte de sus trabajos estan su arte, añade mucho amor a cada ilustración y le usa muchos estilos y utensilios para un producto final mucho interesante y pulido. Quizás sabes que estoy mejorando mi dibujar porque cuando estoy más viejo quiero a trabajar en una empresa como cartoon network o si no allí, alguna donde puedo trabajar con arte o música. Cartoon Network esta mas interesante a yo porque, aprenderé a animar en mi ILP en drexel.  Necesito a practica, y tengo más a aprender.

Tuve un poco problemo cuando estaba escribiendo eso reflexion, estaba trabajando cuando de repente realice que he sido usando google translate demasiado. Me gusta que escribir en espanol pero no se si estoy escribiendo más bien. Si puedes corregir los errores en mi escritura, lo sería más útil. Gracias

August.  

Osman Bangura       10/25/13

Speaking Dilemma

‘’How you de multiple the variables?’’

‘’Hahaha, that’s not how you say it!’’

‘’Na the way how I speak amm.’’

 It was the start of 9th grade and we were having one of our first stream of lessons in math of the school year that involved variables, two-step equations and etc. This was the year I turned 15, but the only difference/new thing here in this year was that I decided to speak in my West African dialect, which is called Krio, for the first half of the entire quarter of the school year. This language is a mixture of a French and African language. I did this to become more fluent in my language in attempts to connect more with the indigenous side of my culture. Although people did not appreciate or like the thought of me speaking in a foreign dialect, I simply did not care.

 I didn’t always sound like this. Originally I always spoke in an english dialect every place I went, even around family members who were full-blood Africans. I was ridiculed by family members and people of my country whom I knew, because of my inability to speak my country’s native dialect fluently. Even when we were asked to share a parcel of our culture in an history project, I didn’t have much to emphasize on about my culture because I knew so little of who I really was. These experience brought me to becoming more critical of myself when it came to language and the way I would communicate with others.

 There were major influences that urged me to begin to speak in Krio; most notably my mother and a devoid feeling of identity brought this urge. I had to eventually find some way to break away from this devoid feeling, so I diverted to speaking my native language to gain a better sense of my culture. One time in the house my mother and I were arguing over me not getting homework done or any of my chores and she decided to speak in Krio so rapidly that I could hardly understand.

 For example, she started off as ‘’Waten yu de do na yah? You de fail because yu fashion fashion this game.’’ I responded in english with a startled expresson, ‘’What do you mean?’’’ She then responded without hesitation and a quick tone, ‘’Na make the reason yu de comot from de school with all these ziro ziro grade!’’ She turned in dismal and marched upstairs while I stared into space, with disbelief. Her accent was heavy and she talked fast, which made it very difficult to comprehend with what she said. However, I found it strange that I had any difficulty with comprehending her dialect whatsoever, because I was born in the same country as her; this was a rude awakening for me.

  This was the event that sparked off my search for an identity as an adolescent. It occurred to me after this event, that how could I possibly be deemed as an African male if I had no capability to even speak in my native language? And I also realized if anyone ever asked me to talk in my African dialect, what would my response be if I had no basic knowledge as to how? I would not only be embarassed but I would be looked at differently socially. It was bad enough as it is not being able to speak in my dialect, but in classes full of ridiculing americans and a few africans I would have any bolster from people of my country in classes at school. They would not accept me if I couldn’t simply communicate with them in my language.

 For example, in American Tongues, people were often criticized for having a different way of speech. If someone speaks in a different foreign dialect they would be laughed at or teased in some form of way. I was going through the same dilemma in my 9th grade classes at my old school, some people saw my language as amusing because of the way I expressed my accent(though I hardly had one, which contributed to the laughter). When I first began generating of the idea of speaking in that dialect for the first half of the entire first quarter, I seen it as ridiculous because I knew it would be socially unacceptable in a predominantly American school. But eventually I cared less and less as time went on, and got into the habit of doing so which produced some stunning results.

 Eventually, I stopped doing this all together in classes as soon as I realized that I was able to now fully comprehend and fluently speak in my native dialect. It was altogether a lot to go through socially because I had a hard time making friends, but people began accepting me for who I was because they respected me for my efforts on wanting to get intimate with my original culture.  Although I dropped this regimen and stopped speaking this way in school, I still continued this habit at home and around family members.  

Overall these experiences helped me to see past the social aspect of it, but the personal aspect as well. With making this plan to speak in my dialect for the first half of the quarter I gradually redeemed myself because I spoke in this dialect always around family members; when we had family occasions or meet ups I wouldn’t face exclusion which boosted my self confidence greatly. This helped me understand my identity and who I really was: Osman Bangura a strong-willed individual from West Africa. Reflecting back, my life is not as confusing as it was nearly a year ago now; therefore, I have no social obstacles because I know who I am and which type of people to associate with. I feel animated about all of this now, and I can even have a laugh now and then about how silly my struggle was to overcome but it was worth all of the effort.

Chris Tran

Srta. Manuel

Los 76ers registro es 3-0:

Este artículo se trata de los 76ers. Los 76ers es un equipo de baloncesto de filadelfia. En esto temporada, los 76ers tenían un registro de 3-0 porque ellos ganaron de juegos contra los equipo fantástico. Por ejemplo Los Heats con Lebron o Los Bulls con D-Rose. Este equipos es el mejor de NBA y los 76ers el equipo peor tuve gente piensan este los 76ers es un equipo fantástico y tenía novatos gusta Michael Carter-Williams. Michael hizo bueno este temporada, promedio un 19.8 puntos y 7.6 asiste. Un promedio perfecto por un novato a NBA. Los 76ers es un equipo bueno en la temporada los 76ers va a impuso mucho juego. Yo pienso el equipo de los 76ers es un equipo fantastico. Michael Carter-Williams y sus equipo van a impulso de división. Obtenía un impuso contra los equipo mejor, yo pienso Los 76ers pueden impuso el división. El vocabulario que yo aprendí en el artículo es encestador. Encestador es un persona quien hizo los puntos mejor.  Yo encontrado la palabra en esta sentencia en el artículo. “Carlos Boozer fue el mejor encestador de los Bulls con 22 puntos y 10 rebotes, seguido de Luol Deng, con 20 unidades.” (Fox Deportes)

Word Count: 202

Work Cited:

Audrey Pham

Q1

Melanie Manuel

Word Count: 201

“Orlando Bloom y Miranda Kerr se separan”

Miranda Kerr es superestrella famosa modela desde australia. Kerr trabaja para Victoria’s Secret compañía y otro modela los compañías, las revistas y sesión de fotos para diseñador de la moda. Ella tuvo poco los novios en el pasado excepto con Orlando Bloom. Orlando Bloom es muy muy  superestrello famoso actor en Hollywood. Él es en mundo famoso el cines. Bloom es popular para su famoso actúa habilidad. Guapo Orlando Bloom y Miranda Kerr tuvieron parearon para tres años y se casaron para tres años tambien. La paraje tuvieron un bebé, Flynn. Flynn estuvo nacido dos años hace. Tristemente, la paraje anunciaron ellos están se divorcian después tres años de matrimonio. Elegí este artículo porque me gusta Miranda Kerr. Yo pienso ella es muy guapa. Y no puedo creer Miranda Kerr y Orlando Bloom es se divorciaron.. Yo pensé ellos estaban feliz juntos. Mi opinión es yo jamás quero obtener se divorcian porque mis hijos estar triste. Yo quiero casar alguien yo no lamento porque vida es vivo y amar es raro. Divorciarse es terrible y triste. Yo no quiero la basura mucho dinero para una boda y separa con ello. Aprendo voy a casar un chico me encanta con no lamentas.

http://www.20minutos.es/noticia/1968905/0/depresion/causa-segunda/discapacidad/

Un estudio demuestra que la depresión puede causar disablility. La depresión es una enfermedad mental que causa tristeza en las personas. La depresión afecta a todo tipo de personas, pero la mayoría de las personas durante sus años de trabajo. Los estudios muestran que más mujeres tienen depresión, y los hombres tienen menos depresión. La depresión hace que la gente esté cansado, no dormir lo suficiente, tener dolores de cabeza y otros malestares o dolores. Los signos de la depresión también son más dramáticos en las mujeres debido al hecho de que las mujeres tienden a ser más emocional.

http://spanish.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=spanish&cdn=education&tm=192&f=10&su=p284.13.342.ip_&tt=2&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.abc.es/

El Mona Lisa por Leonardo de Vinci es una famosa pintura. Un hospital en Italia muestra la pintura sin pelo. Ellos están mostrando su sin cabello para aumentar la conciencia del cáncer. Las personas con cáncer que normalmente pierden su cabello. El hospital se siga usando esta imagen hasta el año 2014. Es popular en las redes sociales, en los carteles, y otros lugares en línea. Esta imagen es de toda Italia. También están utilizando otras pinturas famosas. Ellos son la eliminación de todo el vello de otras piezas de arte italiano. Dado que Italia es famosa por su arte, esta campaña es especially poderosa en la sensibilización para el tratamiento del cáncer y la investigación todas throughout Italia.  

In today’s society people and their social groups are widely identified by language. There are many parts to a type of language, and some are easier to identify than others. There are different pronunciations throughout the world, and even just throughout certain countries. There is a also a difference in the actual language spoken throughout certain social groups across the world, these specific words or phrases can only typically be identified by the group or multiple groups that created the term along with many of the local groups that interact with them. These terms are called slang and are an integral part of the different dialects throughout the world. Today there is a term called code-switching. Code-switching is when a person changes how they speak based on who they are around. Code-switching is becoming more and more common and has an influence on communities everywhere. People use it to feel more comfortable throughout different societies in their lives, and they use it to stay connected to all of these parties at once.

Today code-switching has become very popular. It is an integral part of society, because it pertains to so many different people in society. To understand code-switching, it is important to understand language and the role that it plays in society today. Language is something that connects people to their groups of friends, and their communities. There are many parts of language, and these parts can be used to identify a person, who they are, and where they are from. The pronunciation of speech is an important part, and also is possibly the most distinguishing part of language. Different pronunciations can be found because of your location (Philadelphia; Boston; Texas; etc.), or your background (Black; White; Jewish; etc.). Another factor in understanding speech, is dialect. This can also differ based on location or background. A component of dialect is slang. Slang is when different communities and social groups create or change the meaning of certain words. These words can seem well known to the group of origin, but to someone across the country or even across the state, can make no sense at all. In the documentary “American Tongues”, language is analyzed to better determine what types of language are spoken where, and what kind of Slang exists in these places. Throughout the documentary it becomes evident that some people truly have no idea of the definitions of certain words created by certain groups. Code-switching is when someone changes their language based on who they are with, typically to fit in better with that group.

There are many reasons why people code-switch. People switch their pronunciations of words and their dialects around to better fit in with a certain group. An example of this would be if someone is at work and needs to talk professionally around their co-workers, but later after work when they meet up with their friends, they change their speech. In this situation the person may change their grammar so that it less professional. Another reason a person might code-switch is not for themselves or their personal security at all. There are times when people code-switch to make the people that they are with feel more comfortable about being around them. For example a person would typically change their language when around children so as not to scare them, and also so as not to teach them bad or vulgar language.

Since code-switching is becoming more and more of a popular thing to do in today’s society, it is being incorporated into many parts of our society. This is because code-switching is becoming more and more practical. While many people in society today agree that it is a beneficial idea, many disagree. Jacomine Nortier of Multilingual Living writes, “People who switch back and forth from one language to the other are considered careless, thoughtless, clumsy, not interested or disrespectful towards their languages”. (http://www.multilingualliving. com/2011/05/19/codeswitching-much-more-than-careless-mixing-multilingual-bilingual-know-rules/). While this may be true in certain circumstances, it is important to understand that people do not necessarily switch languages because they are being careless. They may have a very good reason to switch their language around. This is because people respond better to what is familiar. One man who understands this is current president of the United States, Barack Obama. Back in January of 2009, president elect Barack Obama went to get lunch at Ben’s Chili Bowl. Ben’s Chili Bowl, is a famous restaurant in a historically black neighborhood. After paying for his food, the cashier asked the President if he would like his change, to which he replied “Nah, we straight”. Even a man famous for his politically correct speech and grammar, the same man who was trusted enough to be given power over our entire country, understands the importance of code-switching and making people feel comfortable around you.

I code-switch, on a daily basis. I can even remember when it began. After my first summer at overnight camp, when my language began its transformation from a younger language to a more teenage language, I had started using more words that I had not used in the past. Some of these words were more vulgar than accepted today in public on a regular basis. So, my first experience with code-switching was hiding my newfound language from my parents and teachers. Now I have many different ways of speaking. I speak different ways with my parents; teachers; boss; school friends; school acquaintances; outside of school friends; boy friends; girl friends; strangers; and many more. My language, as with most kids my age, changes at least a little bit with almost everyone I talk to. The comfort level with that person changes. It does not matter whether I am the one that is uncomfortable or they are, but language is something that is meant to be manipulated for the best communication possible.

Furthermore, I believe that code-switching is a fundamental and even vital component of the human language. There are both social and professional benefits to changing the way in which you speak based on who you are speaking with. This is why code-switching is becoming more common throughout the world. It is important for people to feel comfortable throughout all of the different groups in their lives, and code-switching is they a way to stay connected to all of these groups at once.

Works Cited

Alvarez, Louis, and Andrew Kolker. "POV - PBS American Tongues." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

Dem, Gene. "How Code-Switching Explains The World." NPR. NPR, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

Nortier, Jacomine. "Code-switching Is Much More than Careless Mixing: Multilinguals Know the Rules!" Multilingual Living RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.

“I don't want to move! This is so stupid I don't care what you say, I’m staying here with my friends. I'm almost eighteen I can take care of myself!” I don't like yelling at my parents, but this is an exception. They want me to move to Denmark. Sure, Denmark is pretty and I guess it would be fun for like, tourists but I don't want to move there! Permanently. I don't speak Danish. Or German. Or anything close. I'm a seventeen year old white girl. I speak english and spoiled brat on occasion. Now is one of those times.

I don't want to sound spoiled but I just can't go there. I have plans for college, I have friends, I have a boyfriend, I just got my drivers license and a car. There's just too much here for me to leave. I can't just pack up my life and bring everything with me.

The worst thing about moving is that my parents speak Dutch but never bothered to teach me when I was little because they thought “It would never be useful”. Well guess what? They were wrong. Now i'm going to be the only one in this stupid country who can't speak their language and everyone is going to laugh at me.

After a long, worthless fight with mom and dad, I didn’t get my way. I was moving to Denmark and they didn't care what I said. They tried to compromise with me as much as they could but nothing can make me feel better. “We’ll move your car by boat! We’ll homeschool you!” But I don't want any of that. I want to be a normal teenager, in America.

After a month of saying goodbye to my friends and a couple of failed Dutch lessons, it's time to get on the plane for Denmark. After a ten hour flight we finally arrived. The minute we stepped out of the plane I felt out of place. The airport employees were greeting me in their weird language that I didn’t understand. Even my parents started babbling in Dutch. I felt like the smallest person in the world.

It was like a totally different world. There was different fashion, different smells, and obviously, the different language. “Mom, I’m really hungry.” I tried to tell my mom but she wasn't listening, she was too busy soaking up all the amazing sights. “Mom!” I yelled louder.

“Oh, sorry sweetie. I didn't hear you the first time. What did you need?” she said. I could tell she was not too enthusiastic though.

‘“I’m hungry.” I was annoyed but I just wanted to get some food in my stomach.

“Oh lets go to that hot dog cart over there!” my mom always talked about how good the hotdogs in Denmark are so good. I guess it can’t be any worse than an american one. Mom and dad had to order for me because I obviously couldn’t read the menu. I felt like a three year old. I was so oblivious to what was going on around me. I couldn’t understand anyone, speak to anyone or get any of my points across. I really felt like an idiot.

In america I could have ordered whatever I wanted. I would have no trouble at all. I didn't even like what mom and dad got me. It was gross so I just gave it to dad. We got into a taxi to take us to our new house. I didn't even know what it looked like yet.

We pulled up in front of a little row house. It was cute I guess but I want to go back home. I just can't imagine myself living here. As soon as college comes, I'm going home. The rest of the night consisted of me unpacking and not talking to my parents. Who, by the way, still sounded like weirdos speaking in Dutch. I was so used to being home and seeing tourists and not understanding what they're saying. Now I was the one out of place.

I stayed at the house, it's not home, for a couple of days but on Monday I was enrolled in the closest Danish high school. I am definitely not excited. Danish school is different than american school, we get there earlier and leave earlier. I still had a little bit of jet lag so waking up at 5:30 was not an easy task. I always wake up an hour earlier than i have to leave so that I can get ready. The school was really close so I just walked a couple of blocks and I was there just on time. I went to the office and they didn't speak very good english so they just wrote down the room number i had to go to on a piece of paper.

When I got to the room everything was strange. I felt like the ugly duckling in the room. I found a seat in the back corner and sat there alone. When I looked around no one was talking they were just reading their books. they all looked like weirdos to me. None of them were wearing makeup or cute outfits. Like, does appearance mean anything to them here? I had all my makeup and stuff on, I looked so out of place.

The teacher finally came in and acknowledged me so I guess he knew I was here. He pointed at me and everyone looked while he started speaking in Danish. Introducing me I guess. But here comes the worst part. When he introduced me he said my name like “Kahreen”. “It’s Karen.” I didn't have the patience for this. But I don't think he understood me because he still said “Kahreen”. Whatever I can't speak Danish so I’ll just fail all of my classes and become an american loser who lives in Denmark with her parents for the rest of her life.

After a couple of days of hell at my new Danish school I couldn't do it anymore. I felt so alone I couldn't communicate with anyone, my parents spoke in Danish, the people in school spoke in Danish and my friends from home were in a different timezone than me. I had no friends and no one to talk to. Home wasn't even comforting since my parents didn't even seem american anymore. I felt like an exchange student instead of their daughter. I gave up trying to be a rebel and started to take lessons on speaking Danish.

After a couple lessons with my tutor, Koenraad, I was getting a little better. He was pretty nice and kind of cute so I guess the lessons aren't that bad. I guess once I get better I’ll feel more at home in Denmark. I guess spoiled brat wasn't working out for me, so I have to replace it with something else.

Jamie Turner

Philly Accents

     A Philly accent is an accent you earn.  

I grew up in Philadelphia and have always been told how distinctive our accents are.  The rest of the world says “water” while we say “wooter”. We also say our “Os” from the back of our throat.  We have many other different accents on different letters and words but that is not the point.  My point is that in order to really have an accent you must earn it.

For some odd reason I have heard people I know don’t have a Philly accent try to fake one and it has really been annoying me lately.  

Recently I was at a family event with my mom’s side of the family.  One of my cousins started talking in a Philly/ Italian accent literally in the middle of a sentence.  Since I am close with my family I knew that my cousin had not just magically developed an accent.  But this story does go along side with my argument that People take pride in a Philadelphian accent.   My cousin obviously wanted to have a Philadelphian accent so people would notice that he has strong roots in Philadelphia.  I think it is quite strange that my cousin tried to do this but it is understandable.

You can’t just wake up one day and say “You know what, I want to have a philly accent this morning and maybe a New York accent a little later.  You either are born with a specific accent or you develop one from being in that area or around people with that accent for a long time.  In order to even say you have an accent you have to just say words how you would say and pronounce words however you feel comfortable saying them.

To earn an accent is to learn what is like to be from or represent your city, neighborhood, or country.  I think anyone who has developed any type of accent should be proud of it.  I think Philadelphia accents represent people who are hard workers.  People with a Philly accent come from city filled with places and things that helped make this country what it is today.  In my opinion I believe a lot of people imagine that growing up in the city is cooler or maybe people think you are a strong person because I know many suburban people think that Philadelphia is a horrible place where you can’t even get out of your car to get into your house.  Yes there are certain place in the city of Brotherly Love that some may feel uncomfortable walking around in the public and things of that nature, but there are neighborhoods like that all over the country.  Anyway having a noticeable characteristic that clearly shows that you have been living in the city makes mislead people from rural or suburban areas think you are tougher or maybe more mature in a sense because of growing up in the city.

Though I feel comfortable in my city some people may not and that could because of a Philadelphia accent.  Someone who is not familiar with the area could hear someone with a Philadelphian dialect speak and think “What a trashy accent.”  A lot of people nowadays have the tendency to judge others as soon as they see that person.  People hear or see something that they aren’t used to seeing or have never heard wherever they are from and automatically decide that they would not  want to associate themselves with those things.  I think that is really a shame because most if not all people I know who live in the city of Philadelphia love it.  There is a vast majority of different cultures, people, places to see. and many more likeable details.  I feel as though everybody or everything deserves a chance before it is shut down.  So to any people who have never been to Philadelphia or any other urban area for that matter, you should really give the people and the community a chance.

Now while I have been doing this project I have been wondering “Where and how was our accent developed?’  There is no way to tell how or when an accent was developed.  But I can tell you that from farther research Philadelphians have a similar accent to New York and places like Reading, Pa. Baltimore, Md. and Wilmington, De.  These dialects are referred to as “The Mid- Atlantic Dialect”.  It would only make sense that these places are very close to each other compared to other places in the country or even the world.  My theory is that European immigrants brought their home dialects to America and they got all mixed- matched together.  All of the place I listed are also on the East Coast.  Another thing to note about the East Coast is where the majority of our Country’s pioneers came from.  I think that also explains why there is no particular West Coast dialect or accent.  These accents were thrown into a melting pot and made into their own individual accent.  That is what makes them what they are today.  

The role of the individual in systems is to understand their surrounding how to act accordingly.

The definition of code switching according to Dictionary.com is “ the alternate use of two or more languages or varieties of language, especially within the same discourse“ Code switching is when you change the way you talk based on the atmosphere of people around you. Code switching can be done by anyone without you even knowing. When you introduce yourself to someone the first thing you look at is how they address themselves or how they present themselves to you. For some people code switching is a social thing. Meaning they feel obligated to do so without being judged  based or misunderstood.

Saturday mornings I take a STEM - Program called Urban Youth Naval Engine Program. This is a 22 week program for students from grade 9 -12, encouraging students to pursue a career in the science, technology, engineering and or mathematics field. Within my 22 weeks of attending this program, I met a person by the name of Mr. Chuck. He looked liked a normal man, about 5’7½’’, mid 50’s. He was a laid back, cool guy. When he introduced his self he said “ Hey what’s up my name is Chuck Williams! “ No big fancy title just plain old Mr.Chuck. As he began to talk he told the class about his childhood. He would talk he would use the words “ yo” and “yea”, informal language.

Informal language can be described as abbreviated language,  such as “slang”. Your informal language is spoken around the people you know and are comfortable with. At  times when you code switch you  catch yourself doing it without even knowing it because you are a custom too it. For example when you talk to your friends you greet each other with a “hey”, “wassup” or even “yo”. When you ask for something you “say pass me the...“ or “get me this and that.” Its like you’re asking for something but you’re not really asking, you’re telling.

The definition of language according to Dictionary.com is “ a body of words and the systems for their use common to people who are of the same community or nation, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition.” Language is a form of communication. No matter where you are around the world, there will always be a language you have to adapt to. When you are born one of the first things you are taught is a language. Whether it is formal language or informal language.

Formal language is proper english.  You tend to speak formal language when you are talking to someone of high power, like a teacher or principal.  When you are in school you tend to be accustom to using formal language. Your formal language is a form of politeness. Words such as “please” and “thank you” would be an example.

While listening to Mr. Chuck, he then formally introduced himself as Dr. Charles “Chuck” Williams. Ph.D. I was highly surprised because of how he presented his self. This man dressed with jean shorts, a hoodie, and a fitted hat cocked to the side would be a doctor. He told his how he struggled being in a single parent home.

Is code switching good or bad ?

When you are in a professional setting, you code switch. When you apply for a job you have to go to a interview so they can evaluate you in person. When you introduce yourself as any individual, you say “Hello my name is..”, you wouldn’t say “Wassup my name is ..”. Your goal is to set a good impression on the person who is interviewing you so you show that you are qualified for the job. By a person code switching there are able to change their way of language to have effect one person. Code switching is not a bad thing, because you’re goal is to leave abbreviate impression about your self.

The average teenager I would say code switches like I do. Text message “language” is almost code switching. You abbreviate formal words to make them short and easy to understand.  The way we speak to our friends will never be the way we speak to our parents. If we did it, it would be to a certain point but never go overboard with the way we lead into a conversation.

What is the relationship between language and power?

The relationship between language and power is strong. You could know every language in the word and have to power. You could have all the power and only know one language. The objective is to have your voice be heard and understood through many of languages. It is ideal to learn more than one language in life. Throughout Pennsylvania every high schooler in the Philadelphia School District has to take a mandatory two years of spanish. I think this is encouraged because as you grow older and mature you begin to meet new people from all over. The key lesson that is being too here is communication. As long as you can communicate with someone in some shape or form that is the power to your language between one another.  

What might the language you use say about yourself ?

The language I use would say about me is that I code switch when needed. A conversation between a friend and I would be informal because we are kids we see each other as a equal level of authority. We value each other the same because we are equal. However  if I were to be texting my mom it would be in a different mind state because she is of higher authority than I am. I believe I code switch because in general the way you talk is how people will identify you. If you ever go into a line up room when you under arrest, you are identified by appearance and voice.

In conclusion to this personal essay I would agree that every person sometime in there life has code switched before. You will never know you do so unless someone is telling you that you did it or you have someone record you.

Work Cited

• "Another View - Code Switching."YouTube. YouTube, 1 Oct. 2010. Web. 31 Oct. 2013. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSUMnOVlp1M>.

• "language." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2013. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/language>.

• "code switching." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 1 Nov. 2013. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/code+switching+?s=t>.

My friends and I came into our fourth grade class and we couldn’t help but notice a new kid. I asked my friend if she knew who the new kid was but she was just as clueless as I was.

“I dare you to go up to her and say hi,” said one of my friends while laughing.

So I walk up to the girl,  said hi and introduced myself, but she sat at her desk with a blank look and finally responded in Arabic saying, “Ante ba tihikee arabi?” (Do you speak Arabic?)  

At that moment I responded saying, “Ayi, salam.” (Yeah, Hi.)

She asked me what my name was and where I was from, then told me her name was Abeer and she moved here from Iraq. I then went back to my friend, after this little exchange.

“So what did she say?” she asked all excitedly.

I translated the conversation to my friend that was exchanged between me and Abeer. I felt so eager and proud of myself for being able to talk to someone who only spoke Arabic, then being able to translate to my friend.

Eventually, my 4th grade teacher ended up sitting me next to Abeer to help her with her English but I started to notice that her Arabic wasn’t the same as mine. I mean I understood her but the way she worded her sentences and the words she used were different. It felt as though I wasn’t making sense to her. Sometimes I would find myself asking her to repeat things over and over, trying my best to grasp the familiar words I understood. Then one day we got into an argument and she told me that she doesn’t even understand me half the time and that I spoke some other type of Arabic. This was not the first time I came to the realization that not all Arabic I knew, was the same as everybody else’s Arabic.

I felt really bad and it had me thinking in frustration, it took me some time to realize that the type of Arabic she was speaking wasn’t the type of Arabic as I was familiar to. The way she combined words when she spoke and how the words were pronounced with a strong thick accent. After a couple of weeks I went home and asked my mom what kind of arabic we spoke. She told me that all Arabic was the same, but I still didn’t get it. Was the type of Arabic i’ve been speaking all my life fake? My dad came home from work and I paid close attention to how he spoke Arabic. It was no different than how I was speaking to Abeer. I remember asking him why my Arabic sounded so weird. He would tell me that it was no different from his but the dialect. Every Arab country has a different dialect. Yemeni people talk different than people from Iraq or Sudan would.

I remember going to Arabic school since I was three years old. I’ve been to eight different Arabic schools over my lifetime. One day I came to school and I had a bit of a cold and one of my teachers noticed and asked,

“Ya bintee ante ayana?” (Sweetheart are you sick?)

I was a bit startled by what she asked because I thought the teacher said, “iryan,” which means naked because I’ve never heard of the word “ayan” so I quickly responded saying

“La.” (No.)

Then shaking my head in disbelief and shock.

At the end of the day my teacher was talking to my mom telling her how I was doing in class, then mentioned that I might have a little cold. When we got in the car to go home I told my mom, “Hakee moo alima sal atnee lo ana iryana.” (My teacher asked me if I was naked.) I was a bit confused so she explained that my teacher thought I was coming down with a little cold  and that she didn’t ask if I was “iryna” but if I was “ayana” which meant sick in the Sudanese Arabic dialect. Ever since, I started to notice the different types of words that people around me would use compared to the ones I used. Little things like pronunciation and words that have different meanings in different cultures.

As the oldest child my mom relied on me a lot when it came to translating because my dad would be at work for most of the day. Everywhere she went, I went. I would be that little girl who would stand by my mom translating and explaining every word that was said to her. I was her mini personal translator. I remember once when I was around the age of ten, I went to the hospital and had badly injured my arm after being pushed in a soccer game. My mom’s english was slowly improving over time but her accent was a bit of a problem because it was pretty thick and broken. Then when it came time to give your information and answer questions, it took awhile for the nurses to gather the information needed, but they later on found a translator. Me. It’s these little scenarios that got me thinking about how much language was important in society. Without it, going about daily tasks in our everyday lives would become a bit more challenging.

There are different scenarios and situations where dialects are found and can cause some confusions like in “All American Tongues,” the people in the movie all spoke english but each and every person had some sort of different dialect and pronunciation. Some of the accents were so deep that it was a bit of a struggle to understand what the person was saying. Our brains play a role in this by catching different speech patterns we're familiar to at a young age. For me that meant learning different dialects over time because as a child I was accustomed to one type of Arabic. Slowly over time I began to recognize them more and more.  In the Arabic language there are many many different types of dialects, just like the English language, and every other language out there. Today I can fluently speak and understand almost every type of dialect the arabic language has to offer.

Have you ever had something you couldn’t do? Something you couldn’t say? That’s me, that’s who I..... or at least who I was. Ever since I got my braces, the things I used to say, I say no more. One time during Freshman year, I said a word that I hadn’t used in a while. This word was so simple, and the fact that I couldn’t say it made me livid. It was so embarrassing. I tried, tried, and I tried again, but I couldn’t pronounce it correctly. It got to the point where my entire class made fun of me. God, I hated these braces. Eventually it got better, but until that happened, I was the butt of the joke.

One day, a couple of my friends and I were having a conversation. I don’t remember what it was about, but I went to say this word and all I got in response was a room full of laughter.

“WHAT? Can you say that again?”

“What are you talking about?” I uttered with a face of confusion. I was so lost as to what they were talking about. Thinking to myself, What are they talking about?

“Repeat your sentence,” another said.

“When you get married you should be......,” and then I knew what they were talking about. I knew my braces had changed the way I spoke, but not to the point where it was noticeable. So I said it.

“Purr.”

I said it again just to be sure that this is what they were laughing at. As soon as the word left my lips, the room erupted again. At first it was a little funny, but then it got annoying. Every time I said something, someone else would end up asking me to say the word again.

“Can you say ‘purr’ again?”

It really got to the point where I just eliminated it from my vocabulary. Clearly that wasn’t the word I was trying to say, but everyone wouldn’t listen to that part. Not having someone to listen to me, and to have everyone laugh at me, caused me to cry. I wasn’t crying because they were laughing; it was because I felt defeated.

When I went home,  I told my mom about the situation. After hearing what I had to say, she just told me that sometimes there are certain challenges people have to overcome. Everyone can’t be perfect at everything. I knew that my mom knew the struggle I was going through because she has had similar situations occur in her life.

Although I got to talk to my mom about it, I still felt some type of way because she wasn’t in my predicament. I felt lonely because I thought I did not have anyone my age to relate to. I understand that she could understand, but I wanted to not feel the way I did. I felt upset and defeated. I hate not knowing how to do something. Knowing that I couldn’t say, the word, not only affected my speech, but the way I was thinking.

After realizing that I couldn’t say the word, I got upset. “Upset” is really an understatement. Sometimes I cried, but that was in the comfort of my home. Then I started to think, I’m just like a baby, so why not learn to say it and adjust to my braces. So when I was alone I would concentrate on saying that one word.

“Purr. No! Peerrr. No.”

Sometimes I even got mad with myself and would go days without trying to practice. But I knew that if I wanted to say that word again, I would have to continue to try. After a while I got better and I felt confident about it. So I had a conversation with a friend and she decided to bring oiiup that topic.

She said,“......hahaha that’s why you can’t say.....”

Knowing that I could actually say the word without much effort, I laughed and said, “Why can’t I? Pure.”

When I said that, it shut her up and she was surprised. I was a little surprised, too. Not only that, but I was proud that I could actually do it. Knowing that I could say the word, “pure,” I felt some confidence coming back. I was strengthening my resilience to bounce back from that situation, and obstacles like that.

Now that I am a sophomore, I can relate this situation to a clip that I recently watched. The clip is titled, “American Tongues,” by James Baldwin. The clip talks about the different ways that Americans speak. James Baldwin traveled across the country and got different individuals to say certain things. When my peers heard me say the word, “pure” wrong, they didn’t realize that my braces caused an accent. The way I spoke was because of the complications that I have had. That is how the different Americans in the clip portrayed one another. They said each other was wrong, but didn't realize they were all correct, but had different ways expressing it.

Looking back on freshmen year, I feel as though the incident was a barrier that I broke through. Now that I know that it’s okay to fail, just as long as you can come back from it, makes me a better person. This has helped me for situations to come and has helped me have a better outlook on obstacles. Adjusting to my braces was not easy, but I am glad to have them. At first they got me upset because I could not say what I wanted, but later on it showed that even with the circumstances that I have, I could make the best out of it.

When I’m with my friends at School of Rock, I use an extra set of vocabulary to talk with them about music.  While we all are totally comfortable with casually using the words “key”, “chord progression”, “pinch harmonics”, and “bars” when discussing the songs we’re on, or the songs we are helping each other learn, our musical language may be incomprehensible to people who do not play music.  A few months ago, I was sitting at the dinner table with my parents, and somehow my dad (also a musician) and I started talking about harmonics, and their placement on the neck of the guitar/bass.  Although to us we seemed to be having a common conversation, at one point we turned to my mom, and her only words were, “What in the world are you talking about?”  I think experiences like this have helped me realize how many different “linguistic identities” I have, all based on my environment and who I am with.  If I had been having that same conversation with someone at School of Rock, nobody would have thought twice about it, much less paid any attention to it.  However, as soon as I was removed from the environment of School of Rock and being with my friends there, the nature of the conversation in relation to my surroundings was completely changed.  I have my own identity that goes with my friends at School of Rock, but also connects me with other musicians in general through the language I have the knowledge to use.    

Another “linguistic identity” of mine comes out when I am with my friends in and from school.  While some of our casual vocabulary would be easily understandable by most kids our age, it still would be cryptic to many adults.  I had never even thought of the language I used with my friends as being different from what I used in the rest of my daily life, until I started writing this piece.  This kind of late realization shows how different someone can seem to people in a larger community, when in a small community they are seen as normal, and see themselves as normal.  Two good examples of the kinds of phrases that are used frequently by high school students that may seem to make no sense to adults are “on point” (means something is good) and “out of pocket” (means something/someone is behaving too crazily, and should stop).  When I asked my mom what she thought “on point” and “out of pocket” meant, her responses were, “hit the nail on the head,” and “out of money.”  Although both phrases do mean something to adults like my mom, both mean completely different things to my peers and I.  The identity I use with my peers versus my superiors might be undetectable, if it weren’t for the linguistic differences between the two identities.  

My third “linguistic identity” is a good demonstration of a mixture between one I use with peers and one I use with adults––the one I use with my parents.  Parents, if you think about it, hold a very unique place in most teenagers’ lives.  Of course, they are my elders, and they have authority over me.  But I have also lived with them for 15 years, and therefore am more comfortable speaking casually around them than any other authority figure in my life.  Being this comfortable would usually mean using all of the same jargon I use with my peers, but there is also the age gap, bringing with it a vast cultural difference.  While I feel just as comfortable cursing around them as I do around my peers, I wouldn’t use the phrase “out of pocket” in a conversation with my parents, because–as is shown above–it wouldn’t make any sense to them in the context I would use it in.  I think this identity is very important to me, because it has drastically evolved and changed throughout my life along with the level of the language I use, even though I’ve been living with my parents the whole time.  

The last main “linguistic identity” in my life is the one I use when I’m speaking to adults that I’m less comfortable with–teachers, family friends, and people I’ve just recently met.  With them, I never use any of the jargon I do with my friends, and I certainly wouldn’t even consider cursing around them.  Around these adults, I am almost a completely different person, unfortunately one with less character.  Within my friend group, my schtick is being jokingly irritable, which is often really fun.  However, around adults I have just met I will usually have a big smile on my face, and try to politely agree with most of what they say.  When I text my friends, it’s often very informally structured, and most of the time I’m talking about something funny.  However, when I email one of my teachers it is often about something somewhat serious, and I can make myself sound like a graduate student emailing her professor about something.  I always use a more sophisticated vocabulary when communicating with my teachers through emails, though I use a pretty average vocabulary in person.

Thinking about one’s separate “linguistic identities” can really help you realize how well humans are at adapting to different types of situations.  Usually when people think about our abilities to adapt they think of physical evolution and survival instincts, but there is a much faster and everyday type of human adaptation, which you can see through paying attention to those different identities.  Language and identity is an extremely interesting issue, and one that authors and people in general have struggled with for a long time.  Thinking about language as something that directly connects to identity really helped me see another side of the life I live every day.

“Babciu boje sie troche.”, I said to my grandma.

“Nie boj sie. Wszystko bedzie dobrze. Mama bedzie z wami caly czas. Bede za wami tesknic ale wiedz ze zawsze bede tutaj dla was jak bedziecie mnie potrzebowac. Niezapomnij polskiego, bo twoj jezyk jest twoja osobowoscia.”

These were the last words I heard my grandma saying before we left. She told me my language is my identity and I should not forget it. My language is my identity. If I did not know it, then I would not be the same person as I am now.

I am unique because I am from a different country. I have an accent and I know about a different environment in a different country. I will always speak my language with my family, or friends because if I did not do that, I feel like I would lose something inside me. I would be empty inside. Everything that has to do with my language, which is Polish, reminds me with my memories when I was little. These were my best memories because I spent them with my close family that I really love.

I was thirteen years old when I moved to the U.S. I lived with my grandparents, and my mom was already in the U.S. working. She took us here so that we have a better future. In 7th grade I went to the Catholic school “Our Lady of Port Richmond”. A lot of people said it was a good school. My mom and I thought it would be a great school for me, and they also had an ESOL class, but I did not expect some other things to happen.

“Haha look at her. She does not know any English. She is so dumb.”

“I know hahaha. She is so stupid and ugly.”

That was my first day of school. These are the only words I remember coming out from some guys’ mouths. I was really shy and did not know what is going on around me. I did not know their language. I only knew a few words. Everyone used to laugh at me just because I did not know words in their language, or just because I could not pronounce words correctly yet. It was really hard for me to pronounce words at the beginning. I had to learn how to pronounce “r” because in Polish you roll “r”, just like in Spanish. After I talked with teachers, they apologized. They knew they made a mistake because I could see it on their faces.

“We are really sorry. I know we made a mistake by calling you names when we saw you or even after school. We will not do that anymore. I guess.”

It was still confusing that they said “I guess”. This made me think a lot, but I did not care if they talked about me after school. I only cared if they talked about me at school. After school I always went home to do my homework, and learn English. It was hard for me, but I tried my best.

After this experience with students laughing at me I got really shy. I was really closed and I did not want to talk to anyone from school because I thought the same thing would happen. Almost all students laughed at me because I did not understand, or could not pronounce words. I could not understand why they did that. If they were in my place they would feel like me. Looking back now I was a really scared/shy person. You could say I was even avoiding people just not to talk to them. Right now I feel actually confident with my language and my accent. Before if someone would ask me about my accent I stopped talking because I knew they are paying attention to it. Now, I feel good with talking in English and having my accent. It actually makes people to know more about me. In 8th grade I went to McCall school where I started talking more. I did not feel confident exactly, but I opened up more. When I got to SLA I started talking a lot. When I am with my friends now, I could talk and talk. Even right now, I am mixing Polish and English together when I talk to my mom in Polish. I keep getting confused which words are which ones.

A lot of people changed around me. My old friends left and I got to know new people. I kind of changed too. I am not as shy as I was three years ago. Now, I am confident about myself because of what I went through. I do not care what people think about me. If I worried, then I would just be depressed. People should be themselves and not care about what others think. We are different from each other, and that’s what matters because if we would be the same, our world would be boring.

My first day at SLA was different for me. I was really nervous because I did not know anyone besides one friend from my old school. I knew people will realize that I am not from here. I did not want to go through the same thing again. When I met my friends they realized it.

“ You have an accent? Wow, that’s so cool!”

I did not expect people to think and say they like my accent. I would think they will say I sound weird. They accepted me unlike others at my old school. My friends were surprised that I am from a different country, and thought that was really awesome. They wanted to know everything about me and how Poland looks like. I felt really good because someone accepted me the way I am. They did not make me change myself because I would not belong, or be the same as them. They wanted me to share with them my stories when I was in Poland. I also got to know them better too. I realized there are a lot more people from different countries at SLA. I did not feel left out. This school made me a better person, and I opened up to be a more confident person.

This quote is from a book called “How to Tame a Wid Tongue.” by Glona Anzaldin. “So if you want to hurt me, talk badly about my language. Ethnic identity is twin skin to linguistic identity- I am my language.” This quotes refers to my life too. I really do not like when people talk about my language, or my country in a bad way. It hurts me inside. A person that wrote this essay I could say wrote a little bit about my life. My story is really similar to this quote. Also there is this book called “Girl in Translation”. It is about a girl that is from Hong Kong. She also came to the U.S. without knowing a language. It kind of reminds me of me.

If I could compare school now and three years ago it could be completely different. Three years ago I felt really scared about it. Almost no language, and no friends here. If I had my friends with me it could be different, but I did not have them. All of them stayed and lived in Poland. I only had my sister and my mom. They were my closest friends here. Right now I feel like I am a new person. I know English and I can communicate with people. I have a lot of new friends that I can trust. My family is really helpful and they help me whenever they can. My feeling changed about it because I do not really care what people think about me. I know that even though they think I might be stupid, I am not. I worked really hard to have everything that I have now. New friends, new language, and a new environment. These were really hard three years, but right now I am really happy I live with my closest family.

Sources:

- Anzaldin, Glona “How to Tame a Wid Tongue.”

- interview with my mom and dad

- Kwok, Jean “Girl in Translation.”

All I want to do was fit in. Not so much with the school community, but with my race. I feel like an outcast around them.

The name’s Chase. I’m mixed. My mom is African American but my dad is white. They have been together for 14 years. I didn’t come around until later in their marriage. My mom is a doctor for Ferguson Wyatt Hospital, while my dad is a lawyer for Mc Robinson law firm. They both are good at their jobs. Good enough to get bonuses and own a big mansion in the suburbs.

We live in the suburbs of Philadelphia. I like living here. It is nice and quiet. kids playing in the street, and friendly neighbors. I can’t complain.

I always went to schools out in the suburbs. My parents wanted me to have a really good education, so they sent me to the top schools. Schools where there were no fights, kids get A’s and B’s, and no one gets detentions.  When I went to middle school, I went to one of the best schools in the suburbs. Guess who sent me. My parents. Why? Because they want me to get a damn good education.

I never feel right in those schools. It feel like the teachers and student are robots. I always have to do what they tell us to do. No back talking, no retaliation. That wasn’t me. So when high school came around, I wanted to switch things up.

One Thursday night, during dinner, I asked my parents to send me to a high school in the city.

“Chase, why would you want to do that when there are high schools nearby that are extremely outstanding” my mother asked me.

“Yeah son, I think it would be best for you to keep going to school out here,” my dad chimed into the conversation.

I didn’t want to do the same thing again. “I want to try something new this time. I can’t always do the same thing in life,” I told my parents.

I wanted to go to high school in the city because I could learn so much compared to what a suburban school could teach me. There were more ethnicities, and new teaching styles. I wanted a new me. I wanted a new environment.

Days later, my parents decided to let me go into the city for high school. I was ready to try new things. After an anxious and nervous weekend, thinking about what the school would be like. The first day school started.. I had to get up at 5:00 to get ready and leave the house before 6:00 because it is a thirty minute drive to get to the city.

When we arrived to school, my mom told me, "son be careful and pay attention to your surroundings". Then she told me have a good day and drove off to work. I didn't know why she told me this. Was she warning me to watch my surroundings because I was going to a new school or because I was in the city where with so many people. But, I wasn't worried about her, I was worried about how my first day would be.

I walk in the front door only to see that it was a normal school. Kids were talking. It was peaceful. I liked it. I can tell that I was going to get along with the people there. My first class was world history. The teacher’s name was Mr. Timothy. He seemed nice. As I looked around the class to find a place to sit , there was only one seat left in the back with a group of black kids. I had no problem sitting in the back of the class. My problem was the kids. They were loud. They were all over the place. That was the first time that I was scared of the school and the kids in it. This was not like my old school. At my old school, kids were calm and knew how to act.

After Mr.Timothy’s class,I thought maybe I should take a look at how the kids acted. Maybe  fit in better in the school.

During lunch, I closely payed attention to some kids conversations. I thought talking like them, I would better fit in with them. I turned over to my right in order to hear a conversation with two girls.

One girl said, “I can’t believe he would do this to me. We have been together too long for him to do something like this”. I guess her boyfriend was cheating on her or he just broke up with her. I was surprised that she wasn’t crying much. Usually, if something like this happened to a girl at my old school, they would cry some much to fill a river just over something like this.

The other girl said to her,“It’s alright Catherine. You can’t let this put you down. If he wanted to do this then that’s what he chose to do”.

“Yeah, you’re right. I guess I can get over it,” said the girl who was crying.

I stopped listening to that conversation and I moved on. I kept on listening to other student’s conversations, but they were all the same things. Sex, grades, teachers they hate, what someone did to someone else. I can say I did pick up some words and phrases that might help me for about the first week.

It started to get bored listening to the same things. Until, the kids from the back of Mr.Timothy’s class came in the cafeteria. They were so loud and obnoxious, just like in class. They sat down not too far from me. Which was good because maybe I could learn something from them.

There were five of them. Three girls and two boys. One of the girls said, “Yo, what’s up with you and Tom, yo. I heard y’all were about to fight”.

“Naw man. I was about to fuck him up cause he wanna be talking all this shit. He know I can whoop his ass, then he will get knocked the fuck out. Real shit. I can even get my niggas from around my hood. I know people here will ride for me so I don’t give a fuck what he has to say,” one of the boys responded.

I was surprised. I have never heard so much profanity in my life. I’ve heard it maybe once or twice when my parents were arguing or when I someone in my old school hurt themselves. But no one said that much profanity in a single sentence. No one.

I turned my attention back to the conversation.

The same girl asked the boy, “So what’s good with you and Courtney? Y’all still together”?

“Man, fuck that bitch! I don’t care about her no more. All she was was a hoe.”

Now that really caught me by surprise. Never have I heard someone disrespect a woman like that. My mother taught me to respect everyone. She said to treat women the way I want to be treated. But I thought to myself, maybe he didn’t mean it. Maybe she was acting like a hoe. I don’t even know what that is. A hoe? Isn’t that a gardening tool? So she was acting like a gardening tool? Now I was really confused. This guy might help me fit in as bad as that sounds. But maybe him and his friends are my only chance for acceptance.

When school was over and my mom picked me up after school, she asked, “How was your new school Chase? Do you like it? Did you learn anything new today?”

Oh, I learned new things today. I didn’t want to tell her what I learned today so I just said, “I had fun today. I like the school.”

“Oh how wonderful! I’m glad you liked your school”.

Later that night, in my room, I practiced some of the words and phrases I heard from today.

“Chill nigga.”

“You fraudin.”

“Bitch, sit ya’ dumbass down.”

“Whatchu mean cus.”  

The grammar was hard to remember. “Your” turned out to be “ya”. “Whatchu mean” turned out to be “what do you mean.” And “cus,” from the looks of it, means “cousin.” I guess. The next day, I made an attempt to talk to them. I pretended to need help.

“Could you help me with this problem”?

“Sure. Whatchu need help with?”

I was surprised that he helped me. After he helped me, I asked him what was his name. He said his name was Antoine. I was cool with him. At lunch, I sat at the same table by myself just like yesterday. When Antoine saw me, he invited me to sit with his friends and him. I took this chance to learn more.

I learned more about Antoine and his friends. The three girls were Charise, Tiffany, and Taylor. The other guy was Freddy. Charise was the oldest and Taylor was the youngest in the group. They were very nice to me. I fit in with some kids. I knew now that I need to keep learning new words from them so I can be one of them.

As days and weeks went on, I became one of them. My grammar changed. I started saying what they said. Words changed. They weren’t proper anymore. I thought what I was doing was right. I never noticed it started to change at home.

I was talking to my mom one night. And everything I learned came out all at once. She said that I was changing. I thought she meant that in a mean way.

I said to her, “whatchu mean by that!”  

With a confused look on her face she replied, “what did you say”?

“Whatchu mean” I repeated.

“Did you mean ‘what do you mean by that’, Chase?”

I thought a minute about what I said. I remembered she doesn’t know what that meant.

“Oh. Sorry I meant ‘what do you mean about that”.

Later on during the conversation I made another mistake.

“You started fraudin. I never said that.”

“Chase, what does that mean? Are you ok? Is there something that I don’t know of?”

It was at that moment knew that I shouldn’t use that language in the house. I knew I could only say these words and phrases outside at school because my parents would not understand and think that I am crazy. From that day on, that’s how it was. In the house, I would speak proper. But at school, I was a different person. I would use slang.