Say what?

Good evening people!

Well, today, I am going to tell you about one of my favourite language learning games, which you can play basically anywhere. All you need is love. No sorry. All you need is an MP3 player, or somebody playing the radio. It's also a good way to help time pass when you are forced to listen to somebody's music which you can't stand. Provided it's in English, of course.

This is not going to work with your grandmother's latest André Rieu record. Obviously. But you can try it out with your neighbour's old Nirvana CD, which he plays over and over (and over again) every night since his thirteenth birthday. You've been living here for five years now, and there has not been a single hawaha now entertaiiiiinaaaa-free night. I'm not against Kurt Cobain, as such, reader, please understand. But enough is ENOUGH!!! A microphone is not a spittoon!! (I just found this word in a dictionnary, I did not know it existed... ha ha!! Spittoon!! I have to use it again soon... I can't see why I would, though...)

The point of the thing is to listen to the lyrics very carefully. Well, OK, everybody has had this idea before me, more particularly all the high school English teachers, at a loss for themes that might interest their students. Didn't we aaaaaaaall sing along (and out of key) to "Imaaaadjinn all ze pippoll...." (yes, I think I told you already... I come from France...) But really, it's fun to do, and although you might not be able to re-use the vocabs you get there in your next "Defining Britishness" essay, it can still help you understand some people. Who have been drinking too much. Or got all their teeth knocked out...

It's pretty funny, also, to actually find out what all those singers are talking about! Sometimes it's pretty surprising. Which also means of course that you might have very bad surprises and never want to hear about some songs again. It did that to me with some of the Black Eyed Peas songs. I should have known... And it's also funny to realise how little the melody sometimes has to do with the lyrics. You don't want to play a song saying "I hate you, you betrayed me, I hope you'll die soon, and never want to see your face again" at your wedding, just because the piano background sounds like Elton John. I was actually surprised at how many American song lyrics have a strong religious meaning, for example.

Well, I think it's time for me to go to bed now, I've been speaking German too much today, and now feel like Arnold Schwarzenegger had slapped me hard across the face with a Duden... So good night! Hope you'll all have nice dreams!!