Danke Amy-MiMi!

virus "three-winged" sounds odd for a window, and I have no idea what you want to say :)

I need to call the window cleaner as well, 3 or 4 times a year is money well spent (in my opinion).

I've been contributing to another big project proposal over the last 2 weeks, it had been written by somebody with little time and a mother tongue other than English, and it showed. Some of the funnier phrases were: "...this consortium is composed by XYZ..." and "...aims at overcoming the needs and problems the sector has..."

Hard work, but my boss is super excited about this one (and so am I), and it would take a lot of pressure of me going forward if we succeed. But, I guess we won't know before September, the assessors have 6 months to come to a decision.

Which reminds me, the other big project I was working on in November is due for approval/rejection an March 22, so fingers crossed.

In the unlikely event we were awarded both of them, it would be a major headache... having to hire new people to do all the work, and the hangover after the celebrations ;)

Snowdrops are nearly gone, crocuses are in full bloom, and daffodils are blooming. And then the forecast changes to nighttime frost and rainy conditions... :(

@virus:

Once a year I indulge myself in letting the windows be cleaned by a company. (or, "be commercially cleaned.")

@Wik:

... last 2 weeks. (Period, new sentence) It had ...

super-excited

take a lot of pressure off of me

September; (either semicolon, or period and a new sentence) the assessors (maybe AE vs BE, but I would probably use "evaluators")

In the unlikely event we were are awarded

Autocorrection: ... to being Odin...

Sorry Wik, I don't get the Odin one - could you elaborate, or will that kill the joke?

According to Nordic mythology, Odin gave one of his eyes to drink out of the fountain of knowledge.

By saying I'm Odin, I call myself the one-eyed one, as "in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king"

(I thought this comes from the bible, but apparently not).

Just because I am trying to correct my collaborators in the proposal writing process while making so many mistakes here. Saying that, it is much easier to find mistakes in somebody else's writing than in one's own.

@Jabonah, now that you mention it, "having the windows cleaned" is actually preferable to "letting the windows be cleaned", also in AE, as is "having someone else clean the windows".

@Wik: vielleicht habe ich dich nicht richtig verstanden, als du geschrieben hast, "it would take a lot of pressure of me going forward if we succeed". Meinst du, wenn ihr Erfolg habt, wirst du mehr Druck spüren, oder weniger Druck?

Wenn mehr Druck: it would take put a lot of pressure of on me ...

Wenn weniger: it would take a lot of pressure off of me ...

===============================================

Re #2: Auch in unserem Garten blühen jetzt die Narzissen, sowie viele andere Blumen, deren Namen ich nicht kenne. Auch Oxalis, die eigentlich schöne gelbe Blüten hat, aber die ich nicht gerne sehe, weil sie sich so stark ausbreitet. Wenn man sie wächsen lässt, würde sie in weniger Jahren alle andere Blumen verdrängen. Das ist schon in unserem Hintergarten der Fall, aber ich versuche (vielleicht vergebens), die viele Frühlingsblumen im Vorgarten zu schonen.

Am schönsten aber ist diese Woche der Pflaumenbaum, der jetzt in voller Blüte steht. Er ist für uns das wahre Zeichen des Frühlings.

Three-winged: a window (or better, glass door) with three parts, each ca. 90 by 210 cm. At the moment I can't link a photo but will probably do later. I know that "three-winged" would rather describe a building but couldn't imagine who to describe it differently... (here is a photo for your imagination: https://de.share-your-photo.com/0aefb2dde2)

Martin, thanks you, be cleaned. I knew something was odd. Oh, I've just seen your comment in #7 - even better.

Yesterday afternoon I was enjoying the very nice weather reading a book on the terrace - I nearly got sun-burned! We (I!) always forget to put on sunscreen especially that early in the year...

virus: oh, I see... I wouldn't know how to call this in English. A single piece of window glass is a "pane", but panes can be large or small. We have some windows with three panes, but they are much smaller than your "door-sized" ones.

I always make a point to not use any sunscreen before May. The little sunshine we get in spring is required to get a bit of a tan, so that the few days in summertime don't cause sunburn within 20 minutes.

Martin: you were right the first time, it would take pressure off me if we succeed with the application. Bringing in money is one of my KPIs, and a very obvious one for my boss to look at. Dealing with the workload later is another thing, but I rather get one big project approved than 5 or 6 small ones (which would be an equivalent in terms of income for the company), because a big project is easier to coordinate, and also easier to hire additional staff for.

Thanks a lot for the emergency accommodation. The lack of highlights is OK for me as long as I can find my name in the list of inhabitants. *g*

Is there any news to share about your dog, your daughter and, of course, Mr MiMi? I’m curious, as you might remember.

@ virus: WOW! That’s a large eow of windows to be cleaned. How long is the room? 10 meter? But you’re lucky somehow: When we built our house Mrs RenaRd insisted in lattice windows overlooking the back yard - and years later for the Winter garden as well - which are much harder to clean. She knew it then but couldn’t imagine getting older. Meanwhile she does the cleaning in three steps, i.e. 3 days. Here’s a photo showing the inner window and part of the Winter garden:

https://share-your-photo.com/7f904ac0b0

Wow, RenaRd! That is soo pretty...

*puttingtongueincheek* Should I start to comment on "Meanwhile she does the cleaning in three steps"...? 😉 But no, I am the wrong person to do. My husband hasn't used the washing machine (and some other household items) since we are living in that house (July 2006). And yes, it is about 10 m. The first floor is a large open space including kitchen, dining and living room (plus a small bathroom for guests). On the upper floor we have separate rooms, of course. We adore the space (although cleaning a smaller place would be easier...).

Wik, in your place of the world you are right about sunscreen. But here (and we aren't even close to the mountains, elevation is around 540 m) the sun has quite some power already. In the mountains, of course, it is a must due to snow this time of the year and the height.

@Jabonah, Korrektürchen

I usually write a bit about the holidays ("about holidays" implies generalities, such as the history of Christmas or New Years celebrations, which isn't what I think you meant.)

it gets lost in among all the other stuff ("in among" ist doppel gemoppelt)

advice would be welcomed welcome ("welcomed" ist grammatikalisch gesehen sinnvoll. Jedoch sagen wir "welcome")

@RenaRd, Korrektürchen:

10 Meter Meters

Mrs RenaRd insisted in on lattice windows

@ Jabonah: And I wear a hat (with a brim) if the sun is out, and sunglasses. Otherwise I a) go spotty and b) can't see (and c) I've been told that protecting my eyes from the sun may mean that I have to have cataracts ..

I’ve worked in the health care business for many years, specialized in skin and eye diseases. Since you protect your skin from UV-rays already by wearing hat and sunscreen, I’d like to concentrate on the eyes.

Cataract (die Katarakt in German) is mainly age related, beginning in the 60s. Sun exposure may trigger the disease, but diabetes is a risk factor. The Cataract has lost its horror in the industrial countries since a new lens is easily inserted.

Sun glasses are helpful, as long as they are brown (the rate of yellow is important because yellow is the antagonist of violet/blue) and carries a UV-filter. Glass itself reduces UVB-rays already and is therefore preferable to (stylish) plastics; blue is no option at all. The reason is that behind dark glasses the iris widens – and thus opens the door widely for UV-rays to probably damage the lens, and quite certain the photo receptors of the retina and macular tissue. .

Like blue sunglasses blue eyes are a risk factor, especially for AMD (age related macular degeneration, ending in blindness) that’s what I’m suffering from. So, when you are brown-eyed just make sure to wear appropriate equipment and enjoy the summer.

I hope I didn't sound too schoolmaster-like :o)

@Jabonah, yes, OK, I grant "in among" is used, also in AE; "in amongst" too. It's still redundant, though; I don't think it adds anything to a simple "among".

@RenaRd, du hast geschrieben "I've been told that protecting my eyes from the sun may mean that I have to have cataracts." Ich bin fast sicher, dass das nicht ist, was du sagen wolltest.

@RenaRd, Korrektürchen:

I’ve worked in the health care business for many years, specialized specializing in skin and eye diseases.

Cataract is Cataracts are mainly age related,

The Cataract has lost its Cataracts have lost their horror in the industrial countries since a new lens is easily inserted.

Sun glasses are helpful, as long as they are brown (the rate amount of yellow is important …

Glass itself already reduces UVB-rays already and is therefore preferable to (stylish) plastics …;

… and quite certain certainly the photo receptors of the retina and macular tissue. ..

===============================================

Sagt man jetzt „Katarakt" auf deutsch? Oder wird der Ausdruck „grauer Star" auch noch benutzt?

Sagt man jetzt „Katarakt" auf deutsch? Oder wird der Ausdruck „grauer Star" auch noch benutzt?

I think at least as far as no health professional is involved "Grauer Star" (set expression, therefore the adjective capitalised) is common.

Since Christmas I've been working on an Android version of a computer card game I've written some years ago. Lately I've been stuck several weeks with one last add-on, none of my thoughts worked. With some kind help from a forum I figured out a working solution this day, so I it won't be long anymore until I can enjoy the whole game on my mobile.

Not the best way to enter a discussion, but let me start with a few correctitions (one of the loveliest wrong words I know, like German Notizien) to Martin's last post.

btw, is there any difference between post and posting in this case?

Two probable typos, one in the opening line, the other adds to the rogueness of the surgeon.

For the rest, I would rather say indem instead of wobei. The latter only seems to be characterizing an action as happening at the same time while the former gives more detail to the type of the surgeon's mistake.

"das zu reparieren" would read smoother with the infinitive marker um.

The natürlich placed at the beginning of the sentence does not work when a subordinate clause follows on the spur of the moment/immediately after. It does sound too much like the English wording. Things change if you write "Natürlich hatte ich eine gewisse Angst, als ich vor etwa fünf Jahren..." - that is perfectly idiomatic. The alternative is "Als ich vor ..., hatte ich natürlich eine gewisse ..."

Finally, the überhaupt seems irritating. What are you intending to express? Something like all in all or maybe actually? There are possibilities galore to guess and to word what you might mean to say.

***

Currently, my father is going through this lens-changing procedure in the course of two surgical interventions (?). The first one did really leave him happily enjoying his regained sight. Now he's kind of procrastinating and telling the eye surgeon he would prefer to wait for recovery of the side operated so far. That doesn't make any sense to me. I guess, he is just afraid of another cut.

As I myself have been losing quite some of my sharp and clear perception of optical stimulus commonly just called "sight" I can easily commiserate with him. So I would really love to hear more stories with a positive outcome. Allegedly, that should be the vast majority.

Fillips, anyone?

Danke, reverend.

Re: is there any difference between post and posting in this case? "Post" would be more appropriate for mail, so of the two, I would choose "posting". But I would prefer "entry" for this case.

Re „es ging überhaupt ohne Probleme", wollte ich "it was completely free of any problem" ausdrücken.

Re "interventions". Ganz in Ordnung.

Und Korrektürchen:

• recovery of the side operated on so far. (Maybe, recovery of the side already operated on so far)
• losing quite some of my ... sight => either "losing quite some of my ...sight" or "losing quite some a lot of my ... sight" or even "losing quite some of my ... sight", but not "*quite some of my sight".
• optical stimulus stimuli commonly just called "sight"

=======================

So I would really love to hear more stories with a positive outcome.

Ich war ganz zufrieden. Was mich vor der Operation am meisten störte, war der sternformige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto fuhr. Die Erholung nach der Operation dauerte höchstens zwei oder drei Tage. Der Schimmer war weg, und ich brauchte keine Brille mehr beim Auto fahren. Auch nicht beim Lesen. Mit dem rechten Auge, das operiert worden ist, kann ich jetzt gut fernsehen und mit dem linken, das noch wie früher ziemlich kurzsichtig ist, kann ich gut lesen. Also brauche ich für die meisten Tätigkeiten keine Brille. (Die Ausnahme ist es, wenn ich am Computer lese oder schreibe, denn das Bildschirm liegt zu nah für das rechte Auge, und zu fern für das linke.)

Ich bin mit den Folgen der Prozedur sehr zufrieden.

Frage an die Gesellschaft: Ist es besser, wenn ich Perfekt anstatt Präteritum benutze? Siehe auch: Perfekt vs. Präteritum Zum Beispiel: Was mich vor der Operation am meisten gestört hat, war der sternformige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto gefahren habe. Die Erholung nach der Operation hat höchstens zwei oder drei Tage gedauert. usw...

@ Martin; -> Frage an [die Gesellschaft] alle: Ist es besser, wenn ich Perfekt anstatt Präteritum benutze?

It’s a running gag that lawyers, asked for an opinion always answer: It depends. :o)

The same applies for your question: It depends on who(m) you’re asking. We had this discussion in the CC some years ago and I claimed that I (raised in Northern Germany) learned to use the tenses slightly similar to the English rules, i.e. Preterit(Past Tense) for an action in the past (“Ich war gestern im Kino”), Present Perfect for an action that has started in the past and is still going on or ar an adventurous/thrilling event (“Bist du jemals in Paris gewesen`). Some Southern snails called it “posh”, used only in literature but not in daily life. As a matter of fact I find myself using the Present Perfect more and more since I moved to Swabia, like “Ich jabe eben Karl getroffen” even though it wasn’t thrilling at all. 😀

Unfortunately I’m not able to get in touch with my granddaughter today who is very good in grammar.  But other snails may have other answers meanwhile.

Thank you, Amy, for the nice new shell!

Finding one's own mistakes - last week I read a tip by a translator: have Word (or whatever other app does this) read it to you. She uses is for proofreading.

(I definitely will try it out, it sounds like something that will point out to me when I completely forget a word and don't notice it).

Jabonah: if you still look for help with the technical side of the blog, ping me. (I am a slow PM answerer, but I can probably be of help)

Question for Martin, virus and Wik: Why is having a window cleaner a luxury? I pay per pane GBP1 - and I have 15 panes. So, I don't find this very expensive (6 of the 15 panes are floor-to-ceiling panes.

For me it is no luxury also because my windows open to the outside and I live on the west side of my house on the second and third (AE: third and fourth) floor, there is no way I could reach these windows (and beyond that - I don't like window cleaning, so my windows are generally cleaner on the outside than on the inside :)

Regarding Past vs Present Perfect: I think this is more fluid in German than in English, and once you look at spoken/colloquial German, PP takes the lead :)

[I disagree with Renard's hint that "Ich traf eben Karl" would be a common option. I would have to think very hard to use here PT, I would always use PP, however I would use with the Paris question PT: "Warst du schon mal in Paris"]

@RenaRd: ja, ich frage dich. Was würdest du schreiben (abgesehen von anderen Fehlern), (a) order (b)? (Jeder soll für sich beantworten.)

(a) Was mich vor der Operation am meisten störte, war der sternformige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto fuhr. Die Erholung nach der Operation dauerte höchstens zwei oder drei Tage.

(b) Was mich vor der Operation am meisten gestört hat, war der sternformige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto gefahren habe. Die Erholung nach der Operation hat höchstens zwei oder drei Tage gedauert.

@Dixie: es bin nicht ich gewesen, der sagte, ein/e Fensterputzer/in sei ein Luxus. (OT: So kann man es schreiben, aber was würde man sagen, um gendergerecht zu bleiben?)

Hi snails.

Reporting back briefly. That I made myself rare in here (6-gear) is due to two reasons. First, I simply forgot to put a bookmark to the new shell, so I didn't get told that there are new posts. And second, getting no news from the CC didn't strike me as unusual because Mr Goldammer and I have been struggling with Corona for nearly a week meanwhile. After three years, it finally hit us. We have been feeling very low physically, bed-bound for a few days and up if weak meanwhile, and mentally we feel more or less like vegetables. I'm proud to say that I can read again meanwhile, if only easy "reading food", am re-reading the Harry Potter series in small portions a time, which is fun. Sense of taste and smell have gone partially so food does all taste weak and stale.

I will follow now I have found you but won't be contributing much.

war der sternformige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto gefahren habe.

Martin, I am not completely sure what you mean with "sternförmige Schimmer" but my guess would be "ein sternförmiger Schatten or Ring". Plus: Lichter - do you mean the headlights of oncoming cars or any type of illumination like streetlights? In the first case I would then say: "waren die verschwommenen Ränder der Schweinwerfer" or "die undeutlichen Ränder der Scheinwerfer" but I am guessing here (a little).

Amy-MiMi, my thoughts and well-wishes are with all of you! Hopefully, the therapy will give a bit of help.

Goldammer, speedy recovery.

Oh dear, Amy, I am so sorry to read about your troubles. I do hope the therapy can help Mr Mimi, and that you can find some time to look after yourself as well! *big hugs*

Goldammer, what a pain. It sounds like you both had it quite badly. Take it slowly, and build up your strength gradually, is what I would say from experience. And reading children's books is definitely the way forward when you're unwell!

Martin:

When I was at school, they tried to teach us about subtle differences between Imperfekt and Perfekt. They never made much sense to me, as I find that Perfekt is more used in spoken or informal (less formal) German and Imperfekt in written German, although there are some cases where that doesn't apply (however, if I did indeed learn a rule, I've long forgotten it).

I would thus say (a) is more 'literary', while (b) is more 'conversational', so perfectly fine for the CC or when you're telling your friends or indeed your doctor about it. (I know precisely what you mean by sternförmige Schimmer. It's what you also get when you half close your eyes and look at a light, in my experience.)

Plus a couple of correcturitos:

(a) Was mich vor der Operation am meisten störte, war der sternförmige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto wenn ich nachts Auto fuhr. Die Erholung nach der Operation dauerte höchstens zwei oder drei Tage.

(b) Was mich vor der Operation am meisten gestört hat, war der sternförmige Schimmer um Lichter, besonders wenn ich nachts Auto gefahren bin nachts wenn ich das Auto gefahren habe. Die Erholung nach der Operation hat höchstens zwei oder drei Tage gedauert.

Saturday we visited friends in South London who live in a beautiful Victorian house. It was lovely to catch up with them and meet their dog and guest dog, but driving there was not fun (and I wasn't even the one driving! It was easier on the way back in the evening). Between the roadworks (probably local councils finding they've got some cash left that must be spent by the end of the tax year) and the potholes (clearly fixing those is not top of the 'what to spend that cash on' list), it was quite an adventure...

I will go along with Wik:

Amy-MiMi, my thoughts and well-wishes are with all of you! Hopefully, the therapy will give a bit of help.

Goldammer, I wish you a speedy and full recovery.

As far as virus' patio doors are concerned, I'll go with one of the ubiquitous manufacturers of conservatories (= BE for sunroom): These floor-length "windows" are called French doors in BE. Take a look here:

https://norwichwindows.co.uk/conservatories/

Until I blacklisted our phone number, we got calls from various "conservatory specialists" about once a fortnight.

@ Martin.RE flickering stars (or a flickering half circle )

-> The first is a retinal answer to changes of the IOP (intra ocular pressure), the latter is called eye migraine and disappears after a few manutes.

------------------

There are lots of different lenses, especially regarding the method of fixation. One can’t accommodate (change the thickness of the lens) with an intra ocular lens anymore; hence many need glasses for either reading or driving afterwards. Important: The earlier (in age) the operation takes place, the better. The grey lens of people beyond the age of 80 is often so rigid that it is hard to extract it without damaging the tissue around..

I developed a Cataract within 6 months after a series of injections of cortisone into the bulbus at the age of 64 under local anesthesia only. Perfect. My wife got IOLs at the age of 66 under Propofol®. Perfect. That leads me to the second important point: any ophthalmologists promise to lnow what they are doing but I ‘s prefer one that does at least a dozen Ops a day. MO;.

----------------------

Regarding the use of German tenses: Here’s an excerpt from a ZEIT feature:

>>Beim Sprechen wird (aber) meistens das Perfekt verwendet (..) Außerdem ist es in Norddeutschland üblich, zwischen Präteritum und Perfekt zu wechseln, wenn man über Vergangenes spricht (Ich wollte gestern nur schnell auf ein Bier in meine Stammkneipe; es ist dann aber doch spät geworden). Nur in einer Situation ist das Perfekt obligatorisch: Wenn man über etwas spricht, das gerade passiert ist und noch einen Einfluss auf die Gegenwart hat (..)Es gibt auch ein paar Verben, die bei bestimmten fixen Formulierungen öfter mit Präteritum als mit Perfekt benutzt werden: Ich fand den Film, der gestern im (Fernsehen lief, wirklich sehr gut.Aber: Ich habe meinen Schlüssel gefunden und bin nach Hause gelaufen.) (..) Auch bei Modalverben ist das Perfekt selten. Bei diesen benutzt man beim Sprechen lieber das Präteritum: (Sie musste am Wochenende arbeiten und konnte keinen Sport machen.)<<</i>

--------------

OMG, Amy-MiMi, I was afraid you had to fight the winter storm. But fate has hit you even harder. You know I’m not good in praying but I give you a big hug and wish you strength in the forthcoming times. A sign of life from time to time would b appreciated.

Danke Jabonah und RenaRd für die Vorschläge darüber, wenn man Perfekt und wenn Präteritum benutzt. Mich freute es zu lesen, dass es in Norddeutschland üblich sei, zwischen Präteritum und Perfekt zu wechseln, wenn man über Vergangenes spreche (#33). In der Zukunft werde ich nicht so viele Gedanke darüber machen, welches die beste Form ist, sondern nur das benutzen, was mir zunächst einfällt. 🙂

@Jabonah: danke für die Verbesserungen (#31). Aber ich habe eine Frage:

Ich schrieb: „besonders nachts wenn ich das Auto gefahren habe" und deine Verbesserung war „besonders wenn ich nachts Auto gefahren bin." 

Let me write in English; it's easier to explain. Isn't it the case that there is a difference in German usage between"went I went by car" and "when I drove the car"? The first is rendered (I thought) as „als ich mit dem Auto gefahren bin" and the second as „als ich das Auto gefahren habe"? I think I had learned, when taking direct action as a driver, the perfect tense is formed with „haben". Was I wrong? (It's when I was the driver after dark that I had experienced the most serious problems with my cataract.)

@Amy-Mimi: yes, please let us hear from you -- no matter how briefly -- from time to time. And certainly don't feel an obligation to write in German. (Ich weiß, wenn ich versuche, auf Deutsch zu schreiben, daurert es mindestens fünf mal länger, als auf Englisch.) 

@Amy-MiMi: Please feel yourself thoroughly hugged. Also from me best wishes to you and your family. Especially a lot of strength for you as you carry- currently - the main part of both the physical and mental responsibility and worry. If you want to offload once in a while - come to the CC and we will listen.

Virus - thank you for explaining the haben/sein - I could not find anything on Sunday, but I found today something here (in English).

RE use of the German modal verbs “sein” and “haben”

I totally agree with Jabonah amd Dixie but like to add a German site I found:

https://www.sprachschule-aktiv-muenchen.de/pe...

Danke, Jabonah, Dixie, und RenaRd. Das ganze ist wirklich eine Sache für das Sprachlabor, und ich werde -- aber etwas später -- eine Diskussion dort über das Thema eröffnen.

edit: hier ist's: related discussion: als ich gefahren bin / als ich gefahren habe

Wenn die Diskussion hier bleibt, ist das erstens eine Ablenkung von der normalen Plauderie, und zweitens werden andere, die sich für das Thema interessieren könnten, sie nicht sehen.

How are you, Jesse? Are you still in Mallorca and if so, are you skiing or shoveling snow? I just heard in the news that in the mountains of Mallorca there are up to 8 Meters of snow. Unbelievable!  Take care of yourself and your family,

Do we know each other good enough? So, how dare you to pull my leg, Reverend?

I just misread: I’m of the darling type… so, in my mind you are now The reverend sir, Mr Darling 😄

Oh, and RenaRd: I’m pretty sure it’s “how dare you pull my leg”, without “to”

Oh, the dear Very Reverend Amadeus Darling would make a love literary character. (You may also use Theophilos as a first name).

But that's not me, in no respect. I gain much more respect by being a normal human being, and being a being is a nice way of being.

RE #47: es wagen, etw.zutun

to dare (to) do sth. 

Thanks for the correction, anyway.

@ WIK: As to waves: Mit den europäischen Umweltsatelliten ERS-1 und -2 wurden im Rahmen des MaxWave-Projekts weltweit Radarmessungen vorgenommen und dabei in drei Wochen zehn Wellen gemessen, die mehr als 25 m Höhe hatten (Wikipedia®, Monsterwellen)

Verschiedene Korrektürchen:

@RenaRd:

Do we know each other good well enough? So, how dare you to pull my leg

@Reverend: make a love lovely literary character

But that's not me, in no any respect. (or, in any way). (Or, in no way is that me.)

@Wik: I would be interested in how he is doing, (comma here) now that renewable energies are energy is so important.

=============================

Heute fliegen wir nach Portland, um meine Tochter, ihren Mann, und ihre Töchter (16-jährige Zwillinge) zu besuchen.

Briefly sliming through, being shocked at the news from Amy-MiMi. I am so sorry to hear all this! I am thinking of you all and wishing you strength.

Mr Goldammer and I are up and about, but still very easily tired whenever we do something a bit more active. After two short reconvalescence walks in fresh air which did us good, we overdid it yesterday. A 4 km walk including ascending a hill was clearly too much and left us exhausted....and I'm still testing positive. So I might have to cancel another church service I'm supposed to hold on Sunday (had to cancle one last Sunday...)

(As not all of you might know: I'm a Prädikantin, i.e. a voluntary - but trained - lay preacher in my Protestand home church)

I mean, the regulations for isolating yourself with Covid have all been stopped, so I could go out and do everything, but I still think it irresponsible and decided not to, if I'm still positive on Sunday.

So, I'm now going back to sit in front of the open fire a bit more, read Harry Potter for a while or listen to a podcast and knit. I'm reading along but not contributing much in the ongoing language discussions....

Martin, thank you as usual!

Portland, Oregon? A few years back there was a famous craft brewing culture in Portland. Are small independent breweries still common there? Ireland's craft brewers often start up as enthusiastic amateurs who turn their hobby into a business. But once they have built their brand and start to turn over volumes, the businesses are bought up by the big brewing companies.

Goldammer, I hope you get better soon! Not being able to go for a long walk would be rather problematic for me. The dog has turned into an exercise-addict. Mrs Wik did a lot of the walking with him over the last few weeks, (I do the early morning one, though, it's nice to get a few steps in before work), and between this and the housework and shopping regularly clocked up over 20 000 steps per day.

It’s good to read that you’re almost back on track, Goldammer,. I understand that it’s hard to be housebound for people who are used to walk and climb the Swabian Alp. As for me I like to sit in my chair in ,y study, reading, listening to music, browsing the web, chatting at LEO’s, etc. But, to be honest, from time to time I’d like to go for a walk – now that I’m not able anymore. Hence I hope you’ll be able soon,

@Wik #55: Are small independent breweries still common there? (Portland, Oregon)?

Ja, Portland, OR, 920 km nördlich von San José. Ich habe meinen Schwiegersohn gefragt, ob Portland für kleine Brauereien bekannt ist, und er sagte ja, das ist es. Er hat aber (ungefragt) zugefügt, dass unter allen amerikanischen Städten Portland die größte relative Anzahl von Strippern hat. (!) (Oder muß man „Stripperinnen" sagen?) Diese Tatsache habe ich aber noch nicht überprüft.

Was mich aber aufgefallen ist, waren (war?) nicht die Strippers, sondern wie höflich die Autofahrer:innen waren. Wenn du dort spazieren gehst und zu einer Ecke kommst, vor du den ersten Fuß in die Zebrastreife tust, halten die Autos und warten auf dich. Und als wir irgendwo gefahren und zu eine Kreuzung gekommen sind, wo wir abbiegen mußten, warteten sekundenlang wir und der entgegenkommende Auto, jeder auf den anderen, bis einer von uns ganz langsam und vorsichtig endlich angefangen hat weiterzufahren.

Some smaller correcturitos, Martin:

Was mich mir aber aufgefallen ist, waren (war?)* nicht die Strippers, sondern wie höflich die Autofahrer:innen waren. Wenn du dort spazieren gehst und zu einer Ecke kommst, bevor du den ersten Fuß in die auf den Zebrastreifen tust setzt, halten die Autos und warten auf dich. Und als wir irgendwo (hin?) gefahren und zu einer Kreuzung gekommen sind, wo wir abbiegen mußten, warteten sekundenlang wir und der das entgegenkommende Auto, jeder auf den anderen, bis einer von uns ganz langsam und vorsichtig endlich angefangen hat weiterzufahren.

*not sure! 😉

For the record: Mr virus (no jokes about my nick, please!) is suffering from Covid19. Fever, either sneezing or nose clogged (?), headache... our (scuba-diving) friend from Germany recommended Paxlovid. But - she is a pharmacist and therefore it is easy for her to get any medicine she wants. In Switzerland, you need a prescription and, moreover, this drug is only distributed by a few selected pharmacies. So I bought some paracetamol...

I am still negative, working with face mask. Keep fingers crossed, my husband wants to leave for France on the weekend.

All the best to all other snails and their families!

Mr Goldammer and I are, as you know, recovering from Covid at the moment. After two weeks, we are nearly "back to normal". We are still a bit easier exhausted by physical activity than before the illness, and smelling and taste are coming back slowly, too. We didn't take any medication apart from ibuprofen during the (2 days) of fever. It took about 1.5 weeks until rapid tests were negative again. As long as they are positive, one is still spreading viruses, so, we (voluntarily) isolated ourselves during that period.

We also experience that the recovery isn't "linear" - we still have days when we feel very low and easily exhausted, short-winded and generally lethargic. To be honest, I wouldn't have felt like travelling on the third day after the fever had gone down - that was a period when I still felt a bit like vegetable (also mentally, I invented the term "Corona dementia" for it....) and was happy to be out of bed, but not able to do more than sitting somewhere, reading or "Handy-Daddeln", listening to a podcast and the like. Even knitting was too demanding....

@Martin: if you refer to female strippers only, you'd indeed say "Stripperinnen".

My suggestions for the second paragraph:

Was mich  mir aber aufgefallen ist, waren (I'm quite sure it's "waren") nicht die Stripperinnen, sondern wie höflich die Autofahrer:innen waren. Wenn du dort spazieren gehst und zu einer an eine Ecke *) kommst,(I'd use a : here) noch bevor du den ersten Fuß in die Schritt auf den Zebrastreifen tust machst, halten die Autos an und warten auf dich. Und als wir irgendwo gefahren und zu im Auto an eine Kreuzung gekommen sind, wo wir abbiegen mußten, warteten sekundenlang wir und der  das entgegenkommende Auto, jeder auf den anderen, bis einer von uns schließlich ganz langsam und vorsichtig endlich angefangen hat weiterzufahren. angefahren ist.

*) I was wondering why a corner implies a crosswalk? I might have said: ...an einen Zebrastreifen / Fußgängerüberweg kommst...

*) I was wondering why a corner implies a crosswalk? I might have said: ...an einen Zebrastreifen / Fußgängerüberweg kommst.

Because that's the way it is in the Pacific Northwest [I cannot remember what CA was like, hence the restriction]- if you have a junction of any kind, there is normally a crosswalk.

I agree on the crossings with cars, too. They are all very patient. I very much appreciated that when I started to figure out how exactly four-way-stops work in reality. I knew the theory but found them very daunting.

Best wishes to all the not-feeling-well snails and to their better halves...

I'm feeling a bit off as well, but I'm pretty sure it is due to work stress, and lack of sleep. It's been quire a few tough weeks.

I harvested the first green leaves from the garden, the winter-hardy seeds I planted in September/October. I might be wrong, but I think the little light we have here in wintertime just prevents the sprouting, even if temperatures are not as cold as in Germany. I will seed courgettes this year, having given up on tomatoes.

Speaking of which, Jabonah, how is the vegetable/salad situation in your neck of the woods? It's still quite ok here, in spite of all the doom and gloom messages. There was a day I only had a choice between 3 different types of tomatoes, and raspberries are hard to come by... naturally, it's March after all. Inflation for food items is gruesome at the moment, according to the statistics the average grocery shop was 14.5% up, year on year. I was rather shocked the other day at what I had to pay, and I'm not looking forward to the next electricity bill.

Ah, thanks for the reminder, Jabonah (and stealing from Wik):

Best wishes to all the not-feeling-well snails and to their partners

I'm not Jabonah but the fruit/veg situation is not too bad here. I have not seen many fresh tomatoes, but that's about the only thing that seems to be missing consistently. Peppers were for a week hard to come by but that improved. As far as I could see salads were fine, the shelves looked fine (I generally only buy lamb's lettuce or rocket [AE: arugula], and I had no problems). I noticed that cauliflowers are rather small, but that suits me. I would assume anyone cooking for a family would not be amused.

Food prices are bad, but Waitrose (I know, no help in Ireland) is running currently a campaign that they lowered prices. And they definitely did for coffee. I hope they keep those prices.

@virus (#60):

nose clogged => stuffed nose

working with face mask => working with a face mask

Keep fingers crossed => Keep your fingers crossed / (I'm) keeping my fingers crossed

@Goldammer (#61)

We are still a bit easier exhausted => We are still a bit more easily exhausted

@Wik (#65)

I will seed courgettes => I will plant courgettes (zucchini auf AE)

the average grocery shop was 14.5% up => the average grocery bill was up 14.5% up

=======================

Re "the cheapest eggs have gone up from £1 to £1.25." (#67). In unseren Märkten kosten zur Zeit Eier ab $3,60 pro Dutzend, d.h. dreimal so viel als bei Jabonah. Ökoeier (ist das ein Begriff?) - d.h. Eier von Hühnen, die nicht in Käfigen leben und die ungespritzes Futter fressen, kosten oft zweimal so viel. Lebensmitteln in Kalifornien sind sehr teuer, teuerer als z.B. in Ohio (wo mein Sohn für mehrere Jahre wohnte), auch wenn sie hier in Kalifornien wachsen.

Can a tube / a hose be clogged? Or the sink? Ja, ja, und ja; nur nicht Nasen.

Oops - somehow this thread has taken off without me noticing. So, all the best wishes and a warm knuddel for Amy, hopefully a full recovery for Goldammer & husband, and no, RenaRd, 8 meters of snow in one or two days cannot happen anywhere, let alone in Mallorca.

We missed the 8 cm by a few days, but our friends there wrote about being snowed in and waiting for the rescue teams with St Bernard's dogs, you know those with a little barrel of rum (or, in that case, Suau) around the neck.

Our relocation keeps us really busy these days. The new apartment is moving towards completion (the contractually agreed handover date is 30 June), and right now, almost every day we have a meeting with our interior architect (an incredibly useful investment, unless you are really good at those things yourself), as well as the various contractors for electricity, parquet, sanitary facilities, kitchen company, painter & decorator etc. to decide on those things that we would like to have different from the standard.

The interesting period will be May and June. We have to leave our house on 30 April, and we'll have to stay with family and friends for those two months. The movers will keep the furniture in storage. Reisegeyer has already warned us that he will leave us if we dare to put him in storage as well, but we would never do that anyway.

...Bioeier...

Indeed, it is. Five vowels in a row. I love it.

Wik, I can't believe you were naive enough to talk about moving house within earshot of your appliances???

Zum Thema verstopfte Nase (#60; ##71-79). Laut Google Ngram, stuffy > blocked > stuffed > clogged. In AE wird "stuffy nose" viel häufiger verwendet als die Alternativen.

Und zum Thema Wetterwarnungen (#80), in Kalifornien werden wir jetzt gegen einen neuen „atmosphärischen Fluß" gewarnt, der heute Nachmittag verhältnismässigen warmen Regen bringen soll. Die Angst ist, dass der Regen den Schnee verschmelzen lässt, der in Januar in den Bergen metertief gefallen ist und dass das Schmelzwasser dann die Täler überflutet.

Man warnt auch davor, dass Dächer, die jetzt mit Schnee bedeckt sind, durch das zusätzlichen Gewicht des Regens einstürzen könnten.

Martin:

...in Kalifornien werden wir jetzt gegen einen vor einem neuen „atmosphärischen Fluß" gewarnt, der heute Nachmittag verhältnismässigen warmen Regen bringen soll. Die Angst ist, dass der Regen den Schnee verschmelzen *) lässt, der in  im Januar in den Bergen metertief  meterhoch gefallen ist **) und dass das Schmelzwasser dann die Täler überflutet.

Man warnt auch davor (in my feeling a bit more colloquial: Es wird auch davor gewarnt,), dass Dächer, die jetzt mit Schnee bedeckt sind, durch das zusätzlichen Gewicht des Regens einstürzen könnten.

*) verschmelzen = coalesce, conglomerate; schmelzen = melt

**) alternative: ...dass der Regen den meterhohen Schnee schmelzen lässt (oder zum Schmelzen bringt), der im Januar in den Bergen gefallen ist.

Danke, Goldammer!

Weiter zum Thema verstopfte Nase (#60; ##71-81). Heute besuchten wir meinen Sohn und seine Familie, wobei ich ihn und seine Frau darüber gefragt habe, was sie zur „verstopften Nase" sagen. Beide hat -- unabhängig -- geantwortet "stuffed-up nose". Ihnen gefällt mein Vorschlag "stuffed nose" nicht, und sie sind auch darüber geeinigt, dass "clogged nose" auch nicht benutzt wird.

Martin:

Weiter zum Thema verstopfte Nase (#60; ##71-81). Heute besuchten wir meinen Sohn und seine Familie (no error, but haben wir meinen Sohn und seine Familie besucht is more common), wobei ich ihn und seine Frau darüber (if anything then: danach) gefragt habe, was sie zur „verstopften Nase" sagen. Beide hathaben -- unabhängig -- geantwortet "stuffed-up nose". Ihnen gefällt mein Vorschlag "stuffed nose" nicht, und sie sind sich auch darüber geeinigteinig (or: sie haben sich darauf geeinigt, but that would rather be searching actively for an agreement), dass "clogged nose" auch nicht benutzt wird.

Danke, Pottkieker.

Ich hatte sogar angefangen „Beide haben geantwortet" zu schreiben, aber dann (leider!) habe ich das zu „Beide hat" geändert, weil ich gedacht habe, „Vorsicht! auf Deutsch nimmt »beide« das Singular". Falsch!! (Ich hatte an das Wörtlein „beides" gedacht. Beides hat aber beide haben. 🙂 https://blog.leo.org/2021/02/15/singular-oder...

OT - Heute früh haben wir in den USA unsere Uhren auf Sommerzeit umgestellt. Gäääähn!

OT - Heute früh haben wir in den USA unsere Uhren auf Sommerzeit umgestellt. Gäääähn!

Oh, Thanks! Good to know otherwise I would be late for a bunch of meetings :) I thought it is only next week.

@Martin: „Vorsicht! auf Deutsch nimmt »beide« das Singular"

Instead of "nehmen" better use "brauchen / benötigen / erfordern". Furthermore, "Singular" is male, thus "den Singular".

I heard a blackbird singing this evening. Spring can't be far away. Yeah!

Danke, Jesse!

@Dixie, "I thought it is only next week" => I thought it would be (or "would start") next week / I thought it wouldn't be until next week / I didn't think it was until next week.

Und wann beginnt Sommerzeit bei euch?

Übrigens, hier in Kalifornien plädieren viele dafür, dass Sommerzeit abgeschaft wird. Oder, besser gesagt, dass Winterzeit abgeschaft wird, und dass wir das ganze Jahr mit Sommerzeit bleiben. Erstens, wir hassen es, wenn Winterzeit anfängt und der Spätnachmittag plötzlich dunkel wird. Und zweitens, der Übergang von Winterzeit zu Sommerzeit (wie er (es?) diese Woche der Fall war), wenn man eine Stunde Schlaf verliert ist sehr schwierig für alle, aber besonders für Familien mit jungen Kindern, die zu einer bestimmten Zeit in die Schule oder (noch schlimmer) in die Vorschule gehen müssen.

In Europe, Daylight Saving Time always starts on the first Sunday after the spring equinox (usually the last Sunday in March) and ends on the last Sunday in October.

And, yes, we have the same discussions here. As for myself, I'm in team "eternal summer", and, as I'm used to travelling across time zones, the one-hour difference is only a minor nuisance for me. But many of my fellow countrymen see things differently.

As a matter of fact, a few years ago, there was a survey across Europe, where a sizable majority voted for abolishing DST. But nothing ever came of that, and as far as I remember: (1) The survey did not specify whether people would prefer eternal summer or winter time, (2) only a small minority of Europeans replied at all, (3) of these, two thirds were German, which seems to imply that the other people don't really care one way or another.

However, apart from children, it's mainly farmers who complain that their animals can't really cope with the time change, and in summer they just have to get up even earlier to milk their cows.

Correcturitowise: No comments about your #92. A few unusual, but not wrong wordings. The only one I would really change is: "...und dass wir das ganze Jahr mit bei der Sommerzeit bleiben." Ah, yes, and "abgeschafft" has two "f".

In that respect, I'm a traditionalist, i.e. also in team winter time. I was happy with that scheme before they introduced summer time. Also, a problem that I see with summer time is that in the early and late days of summer time, with the typical early school starting time in Germany, kids have to get up and go to school in the dark which is quite horrible, I think.

I believe with this survey, one of the problems was that in other countries than Germany, information about the survey wasn't communicated very well, so hardly anyone knew that it was held at all. Also that, afaik, one could only participate online which led to a sample of participants which was far from representative.

Correcturitowise: families with young children are - afaik - mostly described as Familien mit kleinen (rather than jungen) Kindern in German.

....wie es/er diese Woche der Fall war: I'd say ...wie es ...der Fall war.... - or even better, simply ....wie diese Woche wieder.....

And yes, I also heard that one of the other main problems is for farmers and their livestock who are both stressed very much by changing the times twice a year.

typical early school starting time in Germany, kids have to get up and go to school in the dark which is quite horrible,

I am not completely clear what you mean Goldammer. There is a time of the year where it is dark, but the change will then just move a little bit - I can remember going to school in the dark, before the introduction of summer time. And it is already light at 6 am now and I would say kids would not get up earlier?

[This might be of course due to you living in the south of Germany, so there is a difference in the length of the day]

I generally do not care what they do, but I do like the extra hour in October.

Wik, I think you should have a chat with your appliances provider. (No snow here, just very cold rain this morning, but we are back to sunshine)

"I heard a blackbird singing this evening." (#89) Und ich, gestern, zum ersten mal nach dem Winter, eine Spottdrossel ("Mimus polyglottos" - a mockingbird - ), ein sicheres Zeichen des Frühlings. Die Hügeln um das Santa Clara Valley sind wieder grün und jetzt blüht der kalifornische Mohn ("Eschscholzia californica") überall. Bald erblüht der Jasmin ("Jasminum officinale") mit seinem himmlischen Duft - dann weiß ich, dass der Frühling tatsächlich gekommen ist.

Very nice, Martin, Makes me want to be there and see it. A few very minor comments:

• "Die Hügel" ohne "n"
• "Bald erblüht der Jasmin" This is perfectly correct, but quite lyrical and poetic. In day-to-day language, I might say "bald blüht (dann auch) der Jasmin", or "bald blüht der Jasmin auf".

For the second one, other GNS might even not agree with me.

No contractor appointments for our new apartment today and tomorrow - I only have a chess appointment at midday. There's a guy I have known (literally!) for twenty years over the internet. We have never seen or spoken on the phone to each other, we know one another exclusively by writing, and for a few years, we've been playing chess regularly on the Lichess platform. (I have a déjà vu - did I write that before?). For tomorrow, the weather forecast is good, so I guess my wife and I will go to some nice place to walk and enjoy the awakening of spring in nature. Maybe Jagsttal, or Black Forest. Let's see.

Bald erblüht der Jasmin" This is perfectly correct, but quite lyrical and poetic. In day-to-day language, I might say "bald blüht (dann auch) der Jasmin", or "bald blüht der Jasmin auf".

I agree that erblüht is rather lyrical and like the first suggestion. I disagree on aufblühen. Aufblühen has a very different meaning and would assume the jasmine was struggling the last few months in one way or another.

Your plans for tomorrow sound very nice, Jesse. I remember the Black Forest from my youth and I generally like walking in forests and hills/mountains. So enjoy!

Why Dixie, would I talk to my appliance supplier?

It was an off the cuff remark and I can only assume I meant: your appliances all go on strike at the same time, I don't like it. (and I bought mine all at the same store, so that might have impacted it, too) but it was more a joke :)

You've got the Wicklow mountains and Glendalough (I really like it, although I'd like it more without all the tourists :) ), so that is nearly like the Black Forest

Good luck with the call, enjoy the very long weekend. Enjoy the parade if you plan to watch it (I assume there is one):

I'd say aufblühen is more specific (somehow). I've been observing the jasmine in the conservatory. It's got lots of buds and is just sitting there! Aber bald blühen sie bestimmt auf :-)

I'm not really fussed when it comes to winter or summer time, but I would prefer no changes. I'm finding the hour's difference much more difficult to cope with than the hour's difference when we go to the continent, for some reason. So if they ("they") could just make up their minds and stick with whichever, that would be fine by me.

And I thought, Goldammer, you meant that German schools start earlier in the day, so the children have a longer time during which they go to school in the dark. We usually started around 8 a.m.; in one school it was 7.45, in another 8.20 - but in the UK it's usually around 9.

Did I mention we went to Oxford last Friday to pick up the teenager and assorted bags? And take in the Labyrinth exhibition at the Ashmolean - which was really interesting, not least because our next holiday will be to Crete.

And in other news, we have adopted another cat (now there are three). A little white-and-black lady, very soft, quite sociable and relaxed. Such a difference from the meebling and highly-strung Messrs Black and Black!

I can see that I'll have to do the majority of the gardening on Saturday, with such an important rugby match coming up. Ah well :-)

I'm finding the hour's difference much more difficult to cope with than the hour's difference when we go to the continent, for some reason

Funky, I am completely the other way around.

Is it already mid-term for the uni, or why did you pick up your teenager?

@Wik: I added Glendalough because of all the trees. The Wicklow mountains are quite bare, but it is nice walking there, and not as high as the Black Forest ;)

Enjoy the rugby, do you have tickets (Lansdown? Croke Park?)

Verschiedene Korrektürchen:

@Goldammer (#103): it would mean that the time span when children have to get up and go to school while it is still dark is would be much longer.

@Jabonah (#105): So if they ("they") could just make up their minds and stick with whichever one or the other, that would be fine by me.

Did I mention we went to Oxford last Friday to pick up the our teenager and assorted bags? ("The teenager" is borderline derogatory, which I assume was not the intent.)

our next holiday will be to in Crete.

meebling? (A nice neologism, but not a word I recognize.)

I'll have to do the majority most of the gardening

@Dixie (#106)

Funky Funny (I assume just a typo)

Als ich in den fünfziger Jahren in New York Schüler war, war es die Sitte (das Gebrauch?), dass wir zu St.-Patricks-Tag mindestens ein grünes Kleidungstück tragen mussten, egal ob wir irischer Herkunft waren oder nicht. Wenn du vergessen hattest, grün (Grün?) zu tragen, durften die andere Schüler dich kneifen. (Ich glaube nicht, dass die Schülerinnen das auch machten.) Wir haben sehr schnell gelernt, auf das Kalendar zu achten und am 17.3. grün zu tragen.

Heute morgen traf ich Freunden und Freundinnen zum Kaffee, wie wir es jeden zweiten Freitag machen. Natürlich habe ich grün getragen!

---

Frage zur Grammatik: Ist es richtig, wenn ich folgendes schreibe: Wen vergessen hatte, grün zu tragen, durften die andere Schüler kneifen?

Ist es richtig, wenn ich folgendes schreibe: Wen vergessen hatte, grün zu tragen, durften die andere Schüler kneifen?

Mit Wer vergessen hatte, grün zu tragen, den durften die anderen Schüler kneifen. wärst Du auf der sicheren Seite. Ich glaube nicht, dass man da "wer" und "den" zusammenziehen darf.

Wer vergessen hatte grün zu tragen, den durften die andere Schüler kneifen.

This would be the correct version, in my humble opinion. I deleted the comma after "hatte", as I don't see a reason for it. Martin, "wer" is the Subjekt in the Relativsatz, and hence needs to be Nominativ. The word the Relativsatz is related to "den" (I think it is not possible to ommit it in this sense) of course is Akkusativobjekt, but this doesn't affect the Casus of the Subjekt.

Dixie, the match is in the Aviva Stadium (Landsdown Road), which is partly owned by the IRFU. It would probably cost more to rent Crocker from the GAA than the additional 20k tickets would bring in. Anyway, since Ireland are going for the Grand Slam, and the first it would be that is won on home soil, tickets are like gold dust. Even in a normal year one needs to be a member of IRFU, or have connections, to be able to get tickets, and the cheapest ones were priced at 135€ before the start of the tournament. It is a bit mean, the Irish head coach is an Englishman (fair play, he has done a fabulous job over the last few years), but his son is captaining the English team... I guess they are both professional enough to deal with this, but the family might be a bit conflicted.

#112 Don't wonna be "besserwisserisch", but as Martin--cal wants to learn propper German: "Wer vergessen hatte grün zu tragen, den durften die anderen Schüler kneifen."

Not much to tell from my place, I'm looking forward to m first apprentice, screening applications right now.

I'm never to sure about comma placement regarding Infinitiv mit zu. But as the word grün refers to the verb, it seems to me that there needs to be a comma.

https://www.duden.de/sprachwissen/sprachratge...

(Last paragraph)

Danke, Pottkieker und Wik. Aber noch eine Frage von #110. Würdest du sagen „Als ich Schüler war, war es die Sitte (usw.)" oder „war es das Gebrauch" oder etwas ganz anderes? (Auf Englisch, "when I was a kid, it was the custom …")

@Wik (#112) and the first it would be that is won => which would be the first time that it is won

(#121) "Ireland have to win to the Championship, the Triple Crown and the Grand Slam" ??? (Etwas ist da los, aber ich kann es nicht korregieren, weil ich nicht weiß, was du gemeint hast.)

@Goldammer (#119), vielleicht "maneuvered themselves to the bottom of the league"

#122, Martin: Aber noch eine Frage von #110. Würdest du sagen „Als ich Schüler war, war es die Sitte (usw.)" oder „war es das Gebrauch" oder etwas ganz anderes? (Auf Englisch, "when I was a kid, it was the custom …")

...eine Frage zu / hinsichtlich / bezüglich #110... Regarding the question:

• "...war es Sitte" (without the article) is quite good.
• "...der Gebrauch", and I don't think you can use it here.
• "...war es üblich..." is another good alternative.

Etwas ist da los, aber ich kann es nicht korregieren

• Better: "Etwas stimmt da nicht..:"
• ..korrigieren...

"maneuvered themselves to the bottom of the league": That sounds like idiomatic English, but "to maneuver" is - for me - associated with deliberate activity, of which we have not seen much in yesterday's match against Wolfsburg.

Maybe Martin wanted to say "... war es Brauch ... ", but that sounds quite archaic.

https://www.dwds.de/wb/Brauch

All of the alternatives in #124 are good.

One more note on Martin's correcturitos: Sometimes they aren't necessary because what is being corrected is British English usage. Bear that in mind.

If you wait long enough then someone else makes your preferred suggestion:

.eine Frage zu / hinsichtlich / bezüglich #110... Regarding the question:

• "...war es Sitte" (without the article) is quite good.
• "...der Gebrauch", and I don't think you can use it here.
• "...war es üblich..." is another good alternative.

I am very much in favour of "war es üblich" it somehow fits best.

I was also always told about the custom and in my first year living in the US people thought it weird I did not know about it (having lived before in Ireland).

[and I never took up the custom as i don't wear green]

Something to consider regarding maneuvered -> manövrieren : I don't think they are perfect matches (I would not call them false friends, either, but there is only a certain overlap in meaning) I can maneuver myself in a corner or a tough spot, and I would not do this intentionally. At the same time I would not say that Ireland maneuvered themselves to the top of whatever table in the rugby league :).

I think also maneuver is used more in English than manövrieren in German (this is my estimate and I don't speak or read that much German, but from what I see/hear/write)

Today is Mother's day in the UK (wished towards Jabonah, I hope the teenager remembered :) ) . As i found out this year, it is calculated based on Lent. Useless titbit I came across.

In case anyone missed it: Ireland won the Grand Slam if I read the news correctly.

as he is trying to help, which is much appreciated

Yes, of course Martin's help is appreciated, I was just reassuring some of you that your English isn't faulty, just British ;-)

Danke, Jesse, Pottkieker, penguin, Dixie, Jabonah. @Pottkieker, es freut mich, dass du dich in #124 die Mühe nicht gespart hast; das war sehr hilfreich.

Jesse-Pinkman hat Recht, als er gesagt hat, " 'to maneuver'  is associated with deliberate activity". Ich habe das "maneuvere" in "maneuvered themselves to the bottom of the league" aufgefasst als ironisch gemeint.

@Wik: The Triple Crown is an additional trophy (no comma here) which is awarded if any team of the four "home nations" (England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland) beats the three other ones others.

@Jabonah: Someone somewhere dyes their river green. ("somewhere" cannot function as a noun.)

Although it’s even weirder that it seems to have become a thing in the UK as well

I’m surprised every time when I hear about things done in the US for St Patrick’s Day

What I find rather amusing is that the US are using Irish sayings that are not Irish sayings (rhymes, wisdoms, etc). It is quite funny to then take these sayings and ask an actual Irish person about it.

(The tv show Blue Bloods is a great source for this)

I did not see one bit of St Patrick's day in my corner of the UK. Nothing green, no shamrock, no leprechaun, nada, niento, intet, nix. Must have been too close to Mother's day for the shops.

Furthermore – actually, I do find it surprising that it is celebrated on the same day in Eire and the UK, Wik. In (other) Catholic countries, it’s father’s day today, and while they don’t often coincide, it did confuse me a bit when I looked at facebook this morning 😉

Ah, a lot of today's Mother's Father's whatever's day is sales driven, and Ireland traditionally is an appendix to the UK.

With regard to spring... I'd be happy to cut my grass now, my father in law is coming this weekend (Mrs Wik is taking me out for a fancy dinner), and he's likely to comment. But it's just too wet to to cut...

.*jumping in like only snails can do*

Just for the fun of it, Martin: Die Bache is am animal you know as “wild sou” (also called “Wildsau” in Germany). Furthermore there are idiomatic phrases you will not find in Duden but in Swabia (bache) and in the Ruhrgebit (a,navh)

- Du bist doch nicht ganz bache  –> Du spinnst doch!  -> Are you nuts?

- ambach – Was ist ambach? -> Was ist los Was geht ab? -> What’s cracking?

RE: "Aller guten Dinge sind drei".

IMO, the genitive (Aller guten Dinge) implies that good luck always comes thrice. Regarding the Germanic jurisdiction see also:

https://de.wiktionary.org/wiki/aller_guten_Di...

Meanings might have varied over the centuries; I personally know the sentence best from drinking with friends animating each other: Step 1) Let’s have a small drink after work. Step 2) You can’t stand on one leg only. Step 3) All good things come in threes.

As a native Swabian, I must add:

Bache = Wildsau and

bachǝ (with a "schwa", an unstressed vowel somewhere between a and e) (nuts) are pronounced differently. bachǝ btw is the past participle of bachǝ (sounds exactly the same as its participle!), backen, to bake.

Also, singt ihr „Bachǝ bachǝ Kuchǝ, Bäckǝ hat gerufǝ" ?

@virus: einige Korrektürchen:

I've stayed in the US some time being a (voluntary) houswife in charge with shopping and cooking (first time, 2003, with a two-year old at home). => I stayed in the US for some time (or, for a while) as a (voluntary) housewife in charge of shopping and cooking (for the first time in 2003, with a two year old at home.)

... because I've got used to them => in AE, either ... because I got used to them or (better in this case) ... because I've gotten used to them. (BE may be different here.)

The more I am curious ... => ??? For this reason, I am curious ???

Heute waren wir bei unserem Sohn und seiner Familie für seinen Geburtstag und sind spät zurückgekommen, weshalb ich jetzt keinen größeren Beitrag schreibe 🙂

Catgut. (Kein "S").

@Wik: The brand I use costed cost between 35 and 45€ per string.

Wenn ich nur selber die Klaviersaiten austauschen könnte! (Ich habe immer noch nicht mein Klavier reparieren lassen, das ich früher selbst ruiniert habe.)

Yes, catgut, but not made from cats!

Well, why shouldn’t you find a friendly shop closer to your new home, Jesse (although of course you should go and meet Goldammer for coffee no matter what)? Depending on the owner/shopkeeper/expert at hand, you could always mention how much you like this kind of place and that you never learnt to string your guitar in order to have an excuse to visit the shop near your previous home ;-) ?

Our holiday in Crete was pleasant and relaxing. When I say Crete, we mostly stayed in and around Iraklio, Mr J having decided (to my great relief and delight) not to drive around this time but take it easy for a few days. As the city has lots of museums, independent shops, and eateries, that wasn’t a problem at all. The only problem was that there was a building site opposite our Airbnb, and work started between 7.30 and 8 a.m.! So no relaxed lie-ins, unfortunately (but on the plus side, they usually clocked off around 2 p.m., which meant we could sit in the lovely little courtyard enjoying the perfume of the lemon tree in the afternoons).

Nice story, Martin. I actually always liked these public Easter things for the kids in the US.

It is very wet and cold here today, not very mid-April (or maybe it is with the rain)

Some corrections below.

Heute morgen habe sah ich viele Leute im Park am Ende der Strasse gesehen, und als ich da hingegangen bin, um zu sehen, was da los ist [passiert is not wrong, but I would then more expect an accident than a party]passiert, habe ich gemerkt, dass es ein Osterfest war: die Kinder sollten Ostereier (aus Kunststoff) suchen und sammeln. Wir haben da Da haben wir (meine Frau und ich) einige Nachbarn und Nachbarinnen getroffen.

Wir haben mit einem Ehepaar gesprochen, das ihr kleines Baby dabei hatte, das wir zum ersten Mal sahen gesehen haben {Beats me why, probably because it is a once-off, you could say: wir haben es dort zum ersten mal gesehen). Wir haben erwähnt, dass unsere Enkelkinder meine Frau als „Oma" nennen (ich bin „Baba"), und der Mann sagte uns, so wird eine Großmutter auch in Indonesien, woher er kommt/ von wo er stammt, genannt. „Genau wie auf Deutsch?" habe ich gefragt. „Ja, das Wort kommt von den Holländern" hat er mir gesagt. Interessant!

(Übrigens hat seine Frau, die aus von den Philippinen kommt, uns gesagt [not wrong, but I would say: erzählt], da sagt man „Lola" zu „Oma". Schönes Wörtchen!)

Heute morgen habe ich viele Leute im Park am Ende der Strasse gesehen, und als ich dahin gegangen bin zu sehen was da passiert, habe ich gemerkt, dass es ein Osterfest war: die Kinder sollen Ostereier (aus Kunststoff) suchen und sammeln. Da haben wir (meine Frau und ich) einige Nachbarn und Nachbarinnen getroffen.

To me this is interesting because when we stayed in San Jose from March 2012 for ca. ten weeks it strucked me that Easter obviously wasn't something special in the US. Hardly any Easter decoration, no Easter Monday, and business like usual. Only Easter break (which our child - at the age of 10 - spent with some special courses*) was exactly that - a break. But no holiday whtasoever.

*Two courses: The "Barbie's smash lab" where they learned how to destroy Barbie puppets e.g. by using liquid nitrogen or by riding a car over it (quite some girls in that course!) and "The junkyard wars" where they were constructing little solar cars or bridges made from popsicle sticks. Hilarious. From that time our child was talking "Californian English". (This is a long time ago and now she is "stiff upperlip" English - the motto is "American English is no accent but an accident". Sorry, left ponded friends!!)

@Dixie: danke! Mein erster Impuls war tatsächlich, „Heute Morgen sah ich viele Leute ..." zu schreiben. Aber dann dachte ich, - nein, ich soll das Präteritum benutzen und das Perfekt vermeiden. Vielleicht werde ich beim nächsten Mal meinem ersten Impuls folgen...

@virus: (Korrektürchen): when we stayed in San Jose from March 2012 for ca. some / about ten weeks starting in March, 2012, it strucked struck me that Easter ... ("circa" is seldom used in casual writing, and the abbreviation "ca." practically not at all.) (And "from" seems awkward without a "to" following; e.g. "from March to May, 2012".)

Ja, hier ist Ostern nicht so wichtig wie Halloween, von Weihnachten ganz zu schweigen. Ich habe einen Garten gesehen mit einem großen Osterhase, aber das war alles. Und du hast Recht: Ostermontag ist ein Arbeitstag für fast alle. Aber die Sitte, Ostereier zu verstecken, damit die Kinder sie suchen und sammeln, ist doch weit verbreitet.

Sorry to disagree with Dixie, Martin....

BUT I would clearly prefer the perfect form here: Heute habe ich viele Leute gesehen

I think for relating an anecdote, it is the right form. But I couldn't say why.

Something else I was stuck with was ....ein Ehepaar....das ihr kleines Baby dabei hatte....

imo, it should either be

...ein Ehepaar....das sein kleines Baby dabei hatte...

or

....ein Ehepaar.....die ihr kleines Baby dabei hatten....

Although grammatically incorrect, since "Ehepaar" is singular, I would prefer the second form.

And something tiny: ...mit einem großen Osterhasen....

@Goldammer: danke. Und bezüglich „Ehepaar" - ganz klar habe ich die zwei Möglichkeiten durcheinander gebracht.

@ WIK: Are you waiting in excitement for the US President’s visit in your area? What’s on the News ticker? :o)

@ virus: 1989 in Disney World/FLA. We had lunch in a Japanese resstaurant talking English, when a chap sitting right hand bent over to me “Pardon me. I heard you talking and perceived your accent. Are you British?” I replied “No, I’m German”. “Oh, I see” he went on and added as if I were British “You know, these Americans, they ruin our language!”

*sending a kowtow of excuse to our American friends*

@ Goldammer: I think for relating an anecdote, it is the right form. But I couldn't say why.

I recall Robert—US explaining donkey’s years ago that using the perfect tense shows a bit of affection and respect. Hs example was; I reads your book yesterday” means a fact, but “I have read your book” means “.. and I liked it”. Or so. Maybe you remember the same.

Oh well, RenaRd, I really do not recall this from Robert - my memory is horrible, and I very much admire people who recall such details from "donkey's years ago".....but who knows, you may be right and the information sits somewhere in a corner of my brain and gives me that "feeling"...

(Question to ENS: I looked up the phrase with donkey's years and found mostly phrases which refer to a span of time like "seit einer halben Ewigkeit" or "ewig und drei Tage".

Can it also be used for a point in time far ago, as RenaRd did, "...donkey's years ago..."?

@RenaRd & Goldammer: ich kenne den Ausdruck „donkey's years ago" überhaupt nicht: nie gehört, nie gelesen, und sicher nie benutzt. Vielleicht sollt ihr die Frage in das Sprachlabor beitragen (posten? schreiben?).

Martina-cal und ich müssen sehr schnell unsere Pläne ändern. Wir hatten es vor, Ende April nach Deutschland zu reisen und von dort, für zwei Wochen mit einer deutschen Reisegesellschaft eine Reise nach Israel zu machen. Danach sollen wir noch zwei Wochen in Deutschland bleiben, um Familie, Freunde und Freundinnen meiner Frau zu besuchen.

Heute Morgen habe ich aber eine Email von der Reisegellschaft bekommen, die sagt, „soeben wurde die Entscheidung getroffen, dass Ihre Reise abgesagt wird. Das offizielle Absageschreiben wir [sic] momentan erstellt."

Also müssen wir jetzt schnell andere Pläne machen. Wir werden ganz bestimmt nach Deutschland fahren. Jene Reise ist schon gebucht! Aber was wir für die esten zwei Wochen Mai machen werden bleibt momentan ganz offen.

Ironischerweise ist das das zweite Mal, dass unsere Israelreise abgesagt werden musste. Das erste Mal wäre für unsere 50. Hochzeitstag gewesen, als wir eine Reise ab April 2020 gebucht hatten. (Wer kann erraten, weshalb jene Reise abgesagt worden ist?)

Good morning, Martin, let me play the role of "correcturito officer" today:

• Vielleicht sollt ihr die Frage in das Sprachlabor beitragen (posten? schreiben?) => (1) solltet, (2) im Sprachlabor ansprechen / diskutieren
• Wir hatten es vor, Ende April nach Deutschland zu reisen => without the "es"
• und von dort, für zwei Wochen => lose the comma, please, unless it's meant as an "Einschub", in which case there should be a second comma after "Wochen".
• Danach sollen wir noch zwei Wochen in Deutschland bleiben => sollten, or better: wollten
• ...Email von der Reisegellschaft bekommen, die sagt => die besagt, or more idiomatic: mit der wir darüber informiert werden,
• wäre für unsere 50. Hochzeitstag => für unseren 50. Hochzeitstag

What a bummer! So sorry for you, I'm sure you were looking forward to that trip. I hope they'll at least refund you the down payment, and I also hope there'll be another opportunity next time. As we recently discussed next door: "Aller guten Dinge sind drei!"

Well, the reason for the cancellation in April 2020 is not a hard one to guess. This time it's due to the unstable situation between Israel and the Palestinians, I suppose?

As for the first two weeks in May, let us know what you decide to do, maybe there'll be a chance for a spontaneous micro LEO meeting. We won't have a home during that period (leaving our old house on 26 April, moving into the new apartment end of June) and we'll be living as nomads somewhere between Stuttgart, Mosel river and Dortmund. But if we happen to be in the same area at the same time, I'd love to have dinner and a chat.

And if you need suggestions regarding what to visit and where to go, I'm sure the LEO community will shower you with ideas.

@ Martin, RE Wer kann erraten, weshalb jene Reise abgesagt worden ist?

As Jesse already suggested, the problems are still the same and far from being solved. https://edition.cnn.com/2023/04/08/middleeast...

Nevertheless, it’s a pity that the journey to Israel has been cancelled, especially after you’d waited so long. I hope you find an appropriate alternative in the short time given.

@ penguin: RE for donkey’s yeas

You’re right, and I remembered it when I read it. Thanks for the hint.

---

PS: I’ve got to make it short henceforward. My sight is worsening: My macula is more or less dissolving, g and paques of mouches volantes are floating through my glass bode which makes me feel dizzy.

RenaRD: Misunderstanding. The one I said was easy to guess was in April 2020 - and that must have been COVID. This time (2023) it's the political stability, or rather the lack thereof.

And I'm very sorry for your eyesight. All the best, and may your doctor(s) find a way to at least slow the development.

And should you find yourselves in southern England, do let me know. It would be nice to meet up.

I would second that and - considering you are in Europe at the beginning of May - there is a tiny event going on in London, where you can share with a fellow Californian (from Montecito - I had to google that, lol) your impressions of the whole event.

My best wishes to RenaRd - I hope the doctors can slow this down.

Thanks for your sympathy, but

I’ve got to make very clear that there is no reasonable treatment at my stage of disease any more. There are lots of treatments in order to slow down neo-vascularisation in wet AMD (new blood vessels try to provide the macular tissue and thereby affect the tissue), and I’ve been going through almost all of them – painful, dangerous, partly experimental.

I lost the sight of my left eye within 4 months only around Christmas 2002 by AMD. My right eye started to show the same symptoms in spring2004, but now innovative therapeutical approaches and Ophthalmologists – primarily Prof. Gümbel. BWK Ulm – managed to sustain my reading ability over a span of ten years. When in 2014, while I lay in a hospital a drop of blood formed upon the macular tissue the score dropped to 10. And that was it. Assume my recent score to be below 7.

If you want to imagine what I see take a look at the sample shown in this article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macular_degeneration 

@Jesse, danke für die Korrektürchen!

@RenaRd, Jabonah, Dixie: danke, aber es ist wirklich nicht so schlimm - und sicherlich keine Überraschung, dass die Reise abgesagt worden ist; Martina-cal und ich haben unseren Freunden und Frendinnen schon gesagt, dass wir in Mai eine Reise nach Israel machen würden, wenn sie nicht abgesagt wird. Es war uns seit Wochen schon klar, als die Lage dort sich immer verschlechtet, dass die Reise möglicherweise nicht stattfindet. Wir überlegen jetzt, was wir sonst machen sollen.

@RenaRd, es tut mir so leid, dass du mit dem Verlust deiner Sicht leben musst! Zum Glück, hast du eine Möglichkeit gefunden, noch bei uns zu bleiben. (Benutzt du eine text-to-voice App?)

@ Martin: RE Benutzt du eine text-to-voice App

No I don’t. In fact your question is a tricky one. Afaik “App” is used only for programs on a Smart Phone, first used by Apple®. That’s why my answer was No. But I’m using “Natural Reader” on PC all day long for reading online-News, Wiki-articles – for everything that’s not video or audio. And it’s an important part of my written communication: I write most texts (like this one) with Word®, which underlines most of my typos, try to correct those by using a magnifying glass, and finally mark the whole text for my Reader to read it in the given language.

RenaRd: I think we are both a bit outdated, concerning the meaning of "app". I, too, always thought that it only applied to little programs for smartphones. But I learned that meanwhile, it is also used for programs on a PC - and, to be honest, I can't tell you the difference between a "program" and an "app" that is being used on a laptop or computer any more.

Maybe one of the other snails can enlighten us? Is there a difference at all, and if yes, what?

Can you use "Natural Reader" to have it read out our postings here on Leo for you?

Gestern sind Martina und ich an das Meer gefahren, und zwar zum Strand, wo vor drei Monaten eine Seebrücke durch die Sturmwellen zestört worden ist. Viele Häuser, die am Rand des Strandes sind, hatten einige Schaden. Und in allen Fällen wurden die Treppen beschädigt, die vom Haus herunter an den Sand fuhren. Ein Campingplatz am Rand des Strandes war vollkommen zestört. Als wir da waren, arbeiteten Bulldozer und Bagger daran, den Schrott wegzuräumen. Es wird viel Zeit dauern, bis man dort wieder zelten gehen kann. (Sagt man „zelten", auch wenn man in einem Wohnwagen bleibt?)

Es waren viele viele Holzklötze und Treibholz am Rand zu sehen, hauptsächlich redwood (Küstenmammutbaum / Sequoia sempervirens), unter welchem Wurzelknoten ("burls") mit ihren schönen rötlichen Muster auch zu finden waren.

Einige Kürstenvögel, deren Namen ich nicht kenne, (Schnepfenvögel vielleicht), die ihren langen Schnabel in den nassen Sand hineinsteckten, um irgendeine kleine Würme zu suchen, und tatsächlich einige finden und fressen. Ulkig! Man kann lange Minuten stehen und beobachten, wie sie über den nassen Sand laufen und dann weg laufen, wenn die nächste Welle kommt.

Aber das schönste war, als ich plötlich gemerkt habe, dass eine kleine Schule Delphine vorbeigeschwommen sind (ist?). Das sieht man wirklich ziemlich selten in Monterey Bay, aber das Herz springt, wenn man solchen eleganten Tiere im Wasser sieht.

Hi Martin,

may I?

• an das Meer gefahren ==> ans Meer (after "an das" I would expect a further qualification, e.g. "an das Meer, in dem ich im Sommer immer geschwommen bin")
• hatten einige Schaden ==> Schäden (in this case it's countable)
• Treppen beschädigt, die vom Haus herunter an den Sand fuhren ==> ... zum Strand führten
• Es wird viel Zeit dauern ==> Es wird lange (Zeit) dauern. (What does work is: Es wird viel Zeit brauchen / in Anspruch nehmen / benötigen).
• Sagt man „zelten", auch wenn man in einem Wohnwagen bleibt? ==> No, you don't You may use "campen", however. Pronounced as in English.
• unter welchem Wurzelknoten [...] auch zu finden waren ==> Please move the "auch" behind "welchem"
• Kürstenvögel ==> I guess that's just a typo.
• um irgendeine kleine Würme zu suchen ==> um irgendwelche (plural!) kleinen (Akkusativ) Würmer zu suchen
• und tatsächlich einige finden und fressen ==> you may want to rephrase that part, it doesn't work at all: und einige haben sie tatsächlich gefunden und gefressen.
• Man kann lange Minuten stehen ==> Even though perfectly clear, that's not idiomatic. Just lose the "Minuten".
• weg laufen ==> weglaufen (or: wegrennen, because you had just used "laufen" in the same sentence)
• dass eine kleine Schule Delphine vorbeigeschwommen sind (ist?) ==> ist.
• aber das Herz springt ==> aber das Herz schlägt höher
• wenn man solchen eleganten Tiere im Wasser sieht. ==> ...solche (without the "n")... (declination of adjectives through the cases is really, really hard.)

Hi Martin,

yes, but they are mostly really small errors on a high level of language proficiency. And as I said, declination of adjectives is really a tough one.

Um besser schreiben zu können, gibt es wirklich keinen Ersatz dafür, in einem Land zu leben wo man täglich die fremde Sprache hört und benutzen muss.

That is very true.

In other news: One more week in our old home. We're getting a bit itchy now whether everything is going to work out as planned. Now of all times my wife has caught a quite pesistent bronchitis; she has been coughing more or less non-stop over the last days and, worse, nights. I've convinced her to finally see the doctor today.

My mother gives us cause for worry; yesterday she called again to say that she doesn't know anymore how to use her washing machine, which we already explained to her a few weeks ago. It's one she has been using for several years, so this is really her memory going down the drain. We'll have to write her instructions which we are going to leave on the washing machine, but that's just a temporary solution, I imagine.

@Jesse, einige Vorschläge für dich:

We're getting a bit itchy now whether everything is going to work out as planned. => "Itchy" isn't the right word here. You would say "itchy" when you are ready to start a trip, or make a significant change (like moving), and are tired of waiting. For example, We're getting a bit itchy waiting around for moving day. But for your sentence, I'd say We're getting a bit worried / concerned about whether everything is going to work out as planned.

she has been coughing more or less non-stop over the last days => You need something between "last" and "days", e.g. "last several days" or "last few days". I'd also change "over" to "for". That is, ...for the last few days. (Gute Besserung! und schnell!)

I've convinced her to finally see the doctor today. = > Probably better expressed as "I finally convinced her today to see the doctor." (I hesitated between the past and present perfect; but nevertheless I would say "I finally convinced her..." Maybe that adverb "finally" cuts off any lingering effect of the action.)