Two days left until my last first day at McGill.

I've bought all my textbook already. $600 that I could've spent on so many other books that I would actually love to read. The English translation of "Good-bye Tsugumi" will have to wait a bit. At least until I get my OSAP money.

So I'm spending the 2 days tidying up the apartment and getting binders and books ready for the new school year. I'll be home in less than a year!

明後日、学校のはじめの日です。

私はそれまでレラックスするよ。

日本語の研究もする。

내일모레가 학교 첫날입니다.
나는 그때까지 쉴껍니다.
일어공부도 하고요.

The day after tomorrow is the first day of school.
Until then, I will relax.
I will also study Japanese.

Lendemain est le premier jour d'école.
Jusqu'à ce temps-là, je vais me relaxer.
Je vais étudier le japonais aussi.

My mother is right. I live for self-improvement. ^_~

Is this the explanation for all those Twilight readers?

Ah, Zetsubou sensei, you are wise. あ、ぜつぼう先生は賢いですね。
Well, I don't suppose everyone can have a childhood rich in literature. *snicker*

New Japanese word today: 賢い　（かしこい）　－　adj. Wise

French vocab exercise 008

Exsultate, jubilate,
O vos animae beatae
exsultate, jubilate,
dulcia cantica canendo;
cantui vestro
psallant aethera cum me.

Rejoice, for exams are over!
I had my one and a half day of leisure, which was spent inevitably on cleaning the apartment, which I hadn't been doing for 2 weeks. I still want to scrub down the fridge and it's gnawing away at my brain, but I'll have time enough tomorrow to get that done.

I have to work harder at my French now, because I don't have classes anymore where I can use it. There's a good chance that I might get Francophone clients when clinicals start next week. I hope they're understanding of the fact that I don't really know many medical terms. ^_^;;

About the vocab exercise today, I like to think of it as part of the story between le Dr Maillat and Madame Pompadou. Just a hint of what happened between them before the very first exercise where he left her. I know. I'm goofy and nonsensical.

-accabler: to overwhelm, to overcome
accabler qqn de: to overwhelm someone with
accablant: oppressive, damning, exhausting
accablement: dejection, despondency

-accalmie: lull, temporary improvement

-accaparer: to monopolize, to carry off
accaparant: demanding
accaparement: monopolization

-accéder: to accede to, to give rise to, to reach
accédant à la propriété: a new homeowner

-accélérer: to accelerate, to increase
s'accélérer: to beat faster
accélérateur: accelerating, accelerator
accélération: acceleration
accéléré: fast

De plus en plus, la vitesse de sa parole accélérait et ses pensées sont devenues plus désorganisées. Il n'y avait pas d'accalmie de l'aboiement. Il ne pouvait plus tolérer la tempête de sa mauvaise humeur et il est sorti pour échapper à sa colère accablante. Dehors, ses émotions ont accédé à la décision la plus difficile de sa vie. Il ne pouvait pas permettre à lui de accaparer toute son énergie. Il devait partir.

Translation:
More and more, her speech accelerated and her thoughts became more disorganized. There was no respite from her ravings. He could not tolerate the storm of her temper any longer and he left to escape from her overwhelming anger. Outside, his emotions gave rise to the most difficult decision of his life. He could not allow her to monopolize all of his energy. He had to leave.

French vocab exercise 007

Ooh~ look! It's French vocab exercise 007! This means, of course, that I have to write something James Bond-y. Luckily, the next 10 words seem to work out pretty well for this kind of thing.

-absurde: absurd, preposterous
absurdement: absurdly
absurdité: absurdity

-abuser: to deceive, to mislead
abuser de: to overuse
s'abuser de: to be mistaken
abus: abuse, indulgence, excess, misuse
abusif: excessive
abusivement: unfairly, wrongly

-abysse: abyss

-acabit: type
de cet acabit: of that type
du même acabit: two of a kind

-acacia: acacia

-académicien: academician, academic
académie: academy
académisme: academicism

-Acadie: Acadia
Acadien: Acadian

-acajou: mahogany

-acariâtre: sour, bad-tempered

-acarien: acarid (mite of the Acariae family)

Bond attendait son contact dans un café démodé et douillet sur une petite rue à Caire. En traçant le grain de l'accoudoir d'acajou usé, il s'est rappelé la rendez-vous avec M. Le vieil homme avait été particulièrement acariâtre ce jour pluvieux à Londres. "Quelques bêtises absurdes des arbres d'acacia et des acariens. J'imagine qu'il n'est rien du tout, mais la Station E a demandé que nous l'aidions à enquêter. Tu ferais mieux d'étudier le truc avant que tu partes."

Le Chef d'état-major avait envoyé un gros classeur des espèces importantes d'Acacia en Egypte, mais Bond l'avait rejeté pour réfléchir à l'importance de quelques arbres détruits dans le gros jeu de diplomatie mondiale et d'intrigue internationale.

Bond a été momentanément étonné quand un homme s'est assis à la table sans se présenter. Il avait été complètement discret malgré son habit d'un académicien du tweed léger dans le marché chaud et sec. Bond a décidé que le chef de Station E était un homme qu'on ne devrait pas sous-estimer.

"Pierre de Monts," a dit une voix douce avant d'appeler un garçon pour commander deux cafés turcs simples.

"Bond. James Bond." Il a examiné les yeux verts souriants qui contrastaient le reste de son visage impassible. Bond a essayé de se souvenir des détails dans le dossier de De Monts. Il était né à Cole Harbour, une petite village près de Dartmouth, en face du port de Halifax. Qu'est-ce qui a incité cet Acadien à traverser à l'autre côté du monde et devenir le premier homme pour le Service Secret en Egypte ?

"Alors, êtes-vous au courant de l'acacia, M. Bond ?"

"Si je ne m'abuse pas, les Égyptiens anciens ont cru que l'acacia de Saosis était l'arbre de vie."

"Ah oui, l'arbre dans lequel la vie et la mort sont entourées. Mais je parle des aspects pratiques plutôt que la plante mythologique qui retient les morts de l'abysse."

"Je sais que la gomme arabe vient de l'acacia."

"De deux acabits, en fait : Acacia sénégal et Acacia seyal. La gomme arabe est utilisé dans tout des sodas aux feux d'artifice. Jusqu'à 1990, le Soudan a produit 80% de la gomme arabe du monde, mais il est récemment tombé à moins de 50%. Quand même, ils sont le plus grand producteur et je crois qu'ils veulent maintenir leur contrôle n'importe quoi."

Translation:
Bond waited for his contact to arrive in the old-fashioned, but cozy café on a side street in Cairo. Tracing the grain of the worn mahogany armrest, he thought back to the meeting with M. The old man had been particularly sour on that rainy day in London. "Some bloody nonsense about acacia trees and mites. I daresay it's nothing at all, but Station E has requested that we help investigate. You'd better read up on the stuff before you leave."

The Chief of Staff had sent a thick folder about the major species of Acacia in Egypt, but Bond had tossed it aside to mull over the significance of a few destroyed trees in the high stakes game of world diplomacy and international intrigue.

Bond was momentarily taken aback when a man sat down at the table without introducing himself. He had been completely inconspicuous in spite of his academic's garb of light tweed in the hot, dry market. Bond decided that the head of Station E was a man who should not be underestimated.

"Pierre de Monts," said a mild-mannered voice before calling a waiter over to order two plain Turkish coffees.

"Bond. James Bond." He looked into the smiling green eyes that contradicted the rest of his impassive face. Bond tried to remember the details of de Monts's dossier. He had been born in Cole Harbour, a small town near Dartmouth, across the harbour from Halifax. What has prompted this Acadian to move halfway across the world and become the lead man for the Secret Service in Egypt?

"So what do you know about the Acacia, Mr. Bond?"

"If I'm not mistaken, the ancient Egyptians believed that the acacia tree of Saosis was the tree of life."

"Ah yes, the tree in which life and death are enclosed. But I'm talking about the practical aspects rather than the mythological plant that pulls the dead back from the abyss."

"I know that the gum arabic comes from the Acacia tree."

"From two types, in fact: Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal. The gum arabic is used in everything from soft drinks to fireworks. Until 1990, the Sudan produced 80% of the world's gum arabic, but it has recently dropped to less than 50%. Even so, they are
the largest single producer of the stuff and I believe they mean to maintain their control no matter what."

Notes:
1) I write what I can with those words and this was what came to my mind, so don't blame me if it doesn't make a lick of sense, okay? I had to research the genus Acacia and Egyptian mythology for this thing on top of trying to write a Bond intro in French!

2) There's a line stolen straight from Seinfeld in there. Guess where it is!

3) Bond's contacts are usually people who seem to blend into the environment and stand out at the same time. I had to mention an Acadian in there, so why not describe someone I already know? ^_^ Pierre de Monts was the Governor of Acadia, who established the first French settlement in North America. (Thanks, Wikipedia!)

4) Many thanks to Josh for describing the location of Cole Harbour so succinctly.

5) Bond loves Turkish coffee.

6) All that arabic gum stuff is from some quick research on Wikipedia.

French vocab exercise 006

Two vocab exercises in one day? Gasp!
I just can't seem to study French without getting bored, so I figure this is a distraction that still contributes to my learning.

This composition is a continuation of the first exercise with a dash of the second thrown in. It's very soap opera, but one does what one can with five words.

-absolu: complete
absolument: entirely

-absorber: to soak up, to blot
absorption: swallowing, taking, apsorption, assimilation

-absoudre: to absolve
absolution: absolution

-s'abstenir: to abstain, to refrain
abstinence: abstinence

-abstraire: to abstract
s'abstraire: to cut oneself off
abstraction: abstraction
faire abstracton de: to take no account of, to ignore, to disregard
abstrait: abstract
abstraitement: abstractly

Le Docteur Maillat était absolument absorbé par ses pensées quand l'abbot l'a trouvé dans la chambre d'audience. "J'ai entendu que vous vouliez me voir, mais je ne vous connais pas, Monsieur."
Le Docteur l'a interrompu, "Pardonnez-moi pour avoir venu sans introduction, mais j'ai découvert que vous étiez présent quand Madame Pompadou était mourante."
"Abstenez-vous de continuer votre histoire, Monsieur. Je ne peux pas tromper la confiance d'un âme au supplice, mais je vous offre l'absolution pour vos actions."
Le pauvre homme s'est mis à genoux pour l'implorer, mais l'abbot a fait abstraction de son douleur et est sorti sans un autre mot.
Après quelques minutes de silence, le Dr Maillat a pris contrôle de ses émotions, s'est levé lentement et est sorti de la chambre.

Translation:
Dr. Maillat was completely absorbed in his thoughts when the abbot found him in the audience chamber. "I heard that you wanted to see me, but I do not know you, sir."
The doctor interrupted, "Excuse me for having come without an introduction, but I found out that you were present when Madame Pompadou was dying."
"Refrain from continuing, sir. I cannot betray the confidence of a soul in torment, but I offer you absolution for your actions."
The poor man dropped to his knees to beg, but the abbot ignored his pain and left without another word.
After a few minutes of silence, Dr. Maillat controlled his emotions, stood up slowly and left the room.

Ah, where do I get such stuff? All of a sudden, I want to read Count of Monte Cristo again.

French vocab exercise 005

Health and Physical Assessment exam went pretty well, although I think I could have studied the chapter on breasts a bit better. Ah wellity wellity...

The next exam is French Grammar on Friday, so I think this is a pretty good way to study. Next 10 words from the dictionary!

-abricot: apricot
abricotier: apricot tree

-abriter: to shelter, to house, to shade
abrité: sheltered
abrivent: windbreak
abri: shelter, refuge
à l'abri: in a safe place
à l'abri de: sheltered/hidden from
Abribus: bus shelter

-abroger: to repeal, to rescind, to abrogate
abrogation: repeal

-abrupt: steep, abrupt, sheer
abruptement: abruptly, brusquely, curtly

-abrutir: to turn into an idiot, to stupefy
s'abrutir: to turn into an idiot
abruti: idiot
abrutissant: mindnumbing
abrutissement: mindless state

-abscisse: abscissa - x-coordinate of a point

-abscons: abstruse

-absenter: to be absent
absence: absence
absent: absent or absentee

-abside: apse
absidiole: apsidiole

-absinthe: absinthe

J'ai tombé sur l'abruti abrité sous un abricotier. Il était mort ivre à l'absinthe. Je l'ai secoué par les épaules et il s'est réveillé abruptement. Le pauvre rustre serrait un papier jauni par le temps dans ses mains tremblants. Il a dit, "Ont-ils abrogé la loi contre des pirates? Monsieur? Aidez-moi." J'ai pris le papier, qui était une carte d'un église. Une abside était marqué d'une croix rouge à côté de laquelle quelqu'un avait gribouillé, "Mais où est l'abscisse?" J'ai rendu le papier à l'homme qui marmonnait tout seul. J'ai cueilli un abricot de l'arbre en prenant une petite bouteille de ma poche. J'ai tapoté quelques gouttes de la liquide qui sentait l'amande sur le fruit que j'ai donné au fou. Il l'a englouti à toute vitesse. Peu après, j'étais tout seul sous l'abricotier dans le champ jaune.

Wow. I really don't mean for these things to be so bloody bleak. It started off like a pale imitation of Alphonse Daudet, with the rustic atmosphere and such. A better imitation would be, you know, better written and probably in passé simple, which I don't know how to use quite yet. Ah well. Perhaps another time.

Translation:
I came across the fool, sheltered under an apricot tree. He was dead drunk from absinthe. I shook him by the shoulders and he awoke abruptly. The poor brute held a piece of yellowing paper in his trembling hands. He said, "Have they repealed the law against pirates? Sir? Help me." I took the paper, which was a map of a church. An apse was marked by a red X next to which someone had scribbled, "But where is the x-coordinate?" I handed the paper back to the man who was now muttering to himself. I plucked an apricot from the tree while taking a small bottle from my pocket. I tapped a few drops of the almond-smelling liquid on the fruit and gave it to the madman. He gobbled it up quickly. It was not long before I was all alone under the apricot tree in the yellow field.

French vocab exercise 004

On continue avec les 10 mots qui suivent dans la dictionnaire. Je remercie Lilian pour l'expression "de jour en jour". ^_^;;

-aboucher: to butt, to join up
s'aboucher avec: to get in touch with...

-abouler: to hand, to give over
s'abouler: to come along

-aboulie: aboulia - a symptom of mental disorder involving impairment or loss of volition

-aboutir: to succeed
aboutir à: to end at/in, to lead to, to result in
abouti: successful
aboutissement: outcome, result

-aboyer: to bark
aboyer après/contre: to yell at

-abracadabrant: bewildering

-abrasion: abrasion, wearing off
abrasif: abrasive

-abréger: to curtail, to cut short, to shorten
abréger les souffrances de qqn: to put an end to someone's suffering
abrégé: summary, abstract, epitome

-abreuver: to water
abreuver qqn (d'insultes, d'éloges) : to shower someone (with abuse, with praise)
abreuvoir: drinking trough, watering place

-abréviation: abbreviation


Un rapport par une infirmière dépourvu de tact:
La cliente souffre de la démence sérieuse qui s'aggrave de jour en jour. Une de ses symptomes est l'aboulie, à cause de laquelle une infirmière doit être présente pour tous les repas et l'aider à manger. La disposition de la cliente peut changer dans un instant et son comportement peut devenir tout à coup abrasif. Il y avait plusieurs occasions où elle a abreuvé l'infirmière d'une collection abracadabrante d'insultes. Son humeur empire chaque fois qu'elle s'abouche avec sa famille. Une abréviation de la dernière rencontre entre eux est comprise dans sa courbe. L'infirmière a dû abréger la visite, parce que son fils a dérangeait tout le monde dans l'institution. Après que sa famille est partie, l'infirmière en chef a parlé à la cliente au sujet de réduire la nombre de leur visite. La cliente a aboyé contre l'infirmière en chef, mais on a finalement abouti à la convaincre de s'abouler.

A report by a tactless nurse:
The client suffers from severe dementia which worsens day by day. One of her symptoms is aboulia, due to which a nurse must be present for all meals and help her to eat. The mood of the client can change in an instant and her behaviour can become abrasive suddenly. There have been many occasions when she has showered the nurse with a bewildering array of insults. Her mood worsens every time she comes into contact with her family. An abstract of their last encounter is included in her chart. The nurse had to cut the visit short, because her son was disturbing everyone in the institution. After her family left, the head nurse talked to the client about reducing the number of visits. The client yelled at the head nurse, but we finally succeeded in convincing her to come along.

You just know there's an incidence report somewhere that's written like this and it's very sad.

French vocab exercise 003

Wow, these compositions are bleak, aren't they? This is what you get when all your words start with the Latin prefix of "a" or "ab". Go go Latin and Greek in Scientific Terminology! (U of T CLA 201 for those of you who are interested. Professor Traill is an awesome man.)

On utilise 15 nouveaux mots aujourd'hui.

-abhorrer: to loathe, to abhor

-abîmer: to spoil, to damage
abîme: chasm, abyss
s'abîmer la santé: to ruin one's health
s'abîmer dans (ses pensées, le désespoir): to be lost in thought, to be plunged in despair

-abjection: utter humiliation, vileness

-abjurer: to recant

-ablation: removal, ablation
ablette: bleak

-ablution: ablution

-abnégation: self-denial
avec abnégation: selflessly

-aboiement: bark, ranting, raving

-abolir: to abolish

-abominable: abominable

-abonder: to be plentiful
abondant: abundant

-abonner: to subscribe
abonné: subscriber

-aborder: to accost, to walk up to
abord: manner
abordable: reasonable, affordable
abordage: boarding

-aborigène: aboriginal

-abortif: abortive

Si le personnage Jackie Chiles était français:
"J'abhorre ce qu'on fait aujourd'hui dans ce tribunal! Mon client, un humble aborigène, est accusé de troubler l'ordre public! Il a été soumis à l'abjection! Il s'est abîmé dans le désespoir! C'est abominable que l'accusateur a abordé mon client, un sûr abonné du journal, dans un bibliothèque où il se délectait de l'abondance des livres! Mon client a été soumis à l'aboiement de l'accusateur, qui est atrocement libre! Il n'est pas accusé de troubler l'ordre public! Il n'affronte pas une période d'abnégation ablette pendant que mon client est au bord d'un abîme! L'ablation de mon client du domaine public montre que notre société a désespérément besoin d'une ablution. Nous devons abolir cette soi-disant justice, qui est difforme, abortive, prématurée, absurde! L'accusateur doit abjurer, renoncer et abroger! Nous devons punir le vrai criminel! Merci."

Translation - A speech of Jackie Chiles (from Seinfeld) in court:
"I abhor what we are doing today in this court! My client, a humble aboriginal man, has been accused of public disturbance! He has been put through utter humiliation! He has been thrown into the depths of despair! It is abominable that the accuser would accost my client, a faithful newspaper subscriber, in a library where he was reveling in the abundance of books! My client has been subjected to the raving of the accuser, who shockingly stands free! He has not been accused of public disturbance! He does not face a period of bleak self-denial while my client stands on the edge of an abyss! My client's removal from a public domain shows that our society is in desperate need of an ablution. We must abolish this so-called justice, which is malformed, abortive, premature, preposterous! The accuser must recant, abnegate and abrogate! We must punish the real criminal! Thank you."

This was really hard, because I had to make the writing as flamboyant as possible while using all these negative words I happen to be blessed with today. The thesaurus came in very handy and Josh helped me word the sentences properly so that it's as close as possible to the real thing. I bolded and italicized certain words so that you could get a sense of how the character talks. Yay, it's done! Whee!!!

French vocab exercise 002

I'm a bad person. I skipped French today, because it was windy and cold and I didn't fancy going all the way there just to roll my eyes while other students ask endless questions about points of grammar that aren't all that complicated. Am I conceited? Well yes. But plusque parfait isn't the most difficult of conjugations, okay? Just sayin'.

As a penance (skipping right ahead before someone beats me over the head for my insolence), I'm going to use 10 words instead of 5 today.

-abat-jour: lampshade

-abattre: to cut down, to knock down
abatis: (Québec term) land being deforested for cultivation
abattage: slaughtering, felling
abats: offal, giblets
s'abattre: to collapse

-abbaye: abbey
abbé: abbot
abbesse: abbess

-abcès: abscess
crever/ouvrir/vider l'abcès: to make a clean breast of things

-abdiquer: to abdicate, to surrender

-abdomen: abdomen
abdos: abs, stomach exercises

-abécédaire: primer, alphabet book

-abeille: bee

-aberrant: deviant, ridiculous, absurd
aberration: aberration

-abêtir: to dull the mind of
s'abêtir: to become mindless or half-witted


L'abbé regardait l'abeille qui bourdonnait doucement sur l'abat-jour. En ce moment-là, il enviait l'abeille, qui ne s'inquiétait pas de la guerre et l'abattage dans le pays. Le roi avait refusé d'abdiquer il y a trois jours, et les rébelles avaient abattu le palais en représailles. Ils ont capturé le dauphin, un petit enfant qui étudiait l'abécédaire encore, et l'a poignardé dans l'abdomen pendant que sa mère regardait. La reine s'est abêtie de l'épreuve. En ce moment même, les rébelles brûlaient le roi en effigie et l'appellait un abcès du pays. L'abbot a été écoeuré par leur prétention. C'était un aberration dans l'ordre des choses. Il s'est levé de la chaise et a écrasé l'abeille entre ses doigts.

Translation:
The abbot stared at the bee which buzzed softly on the lampshade. For a moment, he envied the bee, which was unconcerned by the war and slaughter in the country. Three days before, the king had refused to abdicate and the rebels had torn down the palace in retaliation. They captured the crown prince, a small child still learning his primer, and stabbed him in the stomach while his mother watched. The queen had gone insane from the ordeal. Even now, the rebels burned effigies of the king and called him an abscess of the country. The abbot was disgusted by their claims. It was an aberration in the natural order. He rose out the chair and crushed the bee between his fingers.

I guess I was inspired by the "A Game of Thrones" series. ^_^

French vocab exercise 001

Alright, I need to work on my vocabulary a lot and right now, I'm not getting a chance to learn more of it. So I must rely on the old-fashioned elementary school spelling homework exercises. I'm going through my brand spanking new Larousse and writing a brief paragraph using 5 new roots every day. I'll try my best to be entertaining (when am I *NOT*, I dare you to tell me).

Here are the first 5:

-abaisser: to lower, pull down, let down
abaisse: piece of rolled-out pastry
abaisse-langue: tongue depressor

-abandonner: to abandon
s'abandonner: to let someone go, to open one's heart

-abaque: abacus

-abasourdir: to stun

-abâtardir: to cause to degenerate

La dame a laissé tomber son abaque avec incrédulité. Elle a été abasourdie quand le Dr Maillat l'a abandonnée. Il l'avait charmée avec son gentil emploi de l'abaisse-langue et elle s'était abandonnée librement. La trahison a abâtardi sa santé et elle est morte, en maudirant son nom.

Translation:

The lady dropped her abacus in disbelief. She was stunned when Dr. Maillait abandoned her. He had charmed her with the gentle use of his tongue depressor and she had opened her heart freely. The betrayal caused her health to degenerate and she died, cursing his name.

Not bad, huh?