ofthewedge

rooting around for grubs in diverse soils

FT

  • Greek stuff, or, Hélas Hellas

    Once I went to a post office on a Greek island. I asked the man at the counter whether he spoke English. Looking at me blankly with bored, heavy eyes, he lifted his chin with a slow jerk: όχι. No. A younger me would greet the triumph of Syriza with unalloyed glee. With my more Read more

  • Cunning linguists

    I want to understand you, I study your obscure language. Pushkin It is always gratifying to read something that chimes sympathetically with your own experience. Living in Brussels and speaking bits of sundry other European languages, I rather dread the ‘It’s ok we can speak English’ interjection, so ubiquitous among Euroland’s hyper-educated non-native speakers. Germans do it a lot (believing Read more