Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
to check it, and asked her:

Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?
Loud and clear.

was her answer. She is 78, and I am 75, and her language tends to be
conservative.

I invariably say "Sorry" if I inconvenience someone.

It just goes to show how English is a sort of parallel language in
Denmark.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

Bertel Lund Hansen <gadekryds@lundhansen.dk> wrote:

> Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
> doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
> to check it, and asked her:
>
> Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?
> Loud and clear.
>
> was her answer. She is 78, and I am 75, and her language tends to be
> conservative.
>
> I invariably say "Sorry" if I inconvenience someone.
>
> It just goes to show how English is a sort of parallel language in
> Denmark.
>

That brings to mind one of my early trips to Danmark. My Danish brother
in law and I were at a pub and I felt the need to make room for more
Tuborg. While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by the
fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said "Undskyld, jeg
kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I can speak English"
rather putting me to shame.

In my defence I maintain that Danish people are much more exposed to
English by imported TV programs than we English are exposed to Danish.

--
^Ï^. Sn!pe, PA, FIBS - Professional Crastinator

My pet rock Gordon just is.

On 28/04/2024 15:19, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
> doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
> to check it, and asked her:
>
> Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?
> Loud and clear.
>
> was her answer. She is 78, and I am 75 ...
>

Good Lord. So how old is your father?

occam wrote:

>> Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
>> doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
>> to check it, and asked her:

> Good Lord. So how old is your father?

100 years since 2024-02-16 and doing well considering. He and his
girlfriend of 91 years are living in their own house with just some
cleaning help once a week. They don't run as fast as they did before,
though.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

On 28/04/2024 16:36, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> occam wrote:
>
>>> Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
>>> doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
>>> to check it, and asked her:
>
>> Good Lord. So how old is your father?
>
> 100 years since 2024-02-16 and doing well considering. He and his
> girlfriend of 91 years are living in their own house with just some
> cleaning help once a week. They don't run as fast as they did before,
> though.
>
Have you read /The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and
Disappeared/ by Jonas Jonasson?

--
Ray
UK

Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:

> occam wrote:

>>> Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
>>> doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
>>> to check it, and asked her:

>> Good Lord. So how old is your father?

> 100 years since 2024-02-16 and doing well considering. He and his
> girlfriend of 91 years are living in their own house with just some
> cleaning help once a week. They don't run as fast as they did before,
> though.

I agree with "Good Lord" and with "doing well"! Does your King send
birthday cards for hundredth birthdays?

Obaue: We'd say "100" or "100 years old" but not "100 years", as far
as I know. In particular, "wife/husband/etc. of n years" is a fixed
phrase meaning the person has been married etc. for n years. I'd
recommend "his girlfriend, who's 91,". You can also say "his
91-year-old girlfriend", though that allows a joke about his other
girlfriends.

--
Jerry Friedman

musika wrote:

>> 100 years since 2024-02-16 and doing well considering. He and his
>> girlfriend of 91 years are living in their own house with just some
>> cleaning help once a week. They don't run as fast as they did before,
>> though.
>>
> Have you read /The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and
> Disappeared/ by Jonas Jonasson?

No, but I have seen the Swedish film.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

jerryfriedman wrote:

> I agree with "Good Lord" and with "doing well"! Does your King send
> birthday cards for hundredth birthdays?

Yes, he does, and my father is proud that that was one of the first
things he did as a king.

> Obaue: We'd say "100" or "100 years old" but not "100 years", as far
> as I know. In particular, "wife/husband/etc. of n years" is a fixed
> phrase meaning the person has been married etc. for n years. I'd
> recommend "his girlfriend, who's 91,". You can also say "his
> 91-year-old girlfriend", though that allows a joke about his other
> girlfriends.

Thanks.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

> ... While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by the
> fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said "Undskyld, jeg
> kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I can speak English"
> rather putting me to shame.

Reminds me of an experience I had on a Swiss train in 1989, which
I've related here before... ah, here it is.

We were traveling around the district for 3 days on the beautifully
scenic Rhaetian Railway, and it seemed a good idea to buy the regional
pass that was valid for any 5 days in a 15-day period. Unlike some
travel passes, this one had to be marked by the conductor the first
time it was used on each day.

On the third day, when we boarded the first train and I showed the
passes to the conductor, he said, "Dritte tag?" I knew that was
"Third day", so I said, "Ja." And he then uttered a paragraph of
German that might have been 50 words long. I was totally lost and
all I could come up with was "Ich spreche nicht Deutsch" -- I don't
speak German.

And he replied "Aber sie verstehe es" -- but you understand it. And
that sentence, I did! But we continued the conversation in English
anyway.
--
Mark Brader | "My mind is like a steel trap; it snaps closed
Toronto | and is almost impossible to pry open"
msb@vex.net | --Michael Wares

My text in this article is in the public domain.

On 29/04/24 07:44, Mark Brader wrote:
Sn!pe wrote:

>> ... While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by the
>> fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said "Undskyld,
>> jeg kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I can speak
>> English" rather putting me to shame.

After making a few bloopers in Belgium, mostly to do with addressing
people in the wrong language, I was advised that I should always speak
to strangers in English.

> Reminds me of an experience I had on a Swiss train in 1989, which
> I've related here before... ah, here it is.
>
> We were traveling around the district for 3 days on the beautifully
> scenic Rhaetian Railway, and it seemed a good idea to buy the
> regional pass that was valid for any 5 days in a 15-day period.
> Unlike some travel passes, this one had to be marked by the conductor
> the first time it was used on each day.
>
> On the third day, when we boarded the first train and I showed the
> passes to the conductor, he said, "Dritte tag?" I knew that was
> "Third day", so I said, "Ja." And he then uttered a paragraph of
> German that might have been 50 words long. I was totally lost and
> all I could come up with was "Ich spreche nicht Deutsch" -- I don't
> speak German.
>
> And he replied "Aber sie verstehe es" -- but you understand it. And
> that sentence, I did! But we continued the conversation in English
> anyway.

Once in Antwerp I was searching for a public toilet. I said to a garage
attendant "Spreekt U Engels of Frans?" He replied "Maar U spreekt
Nederlands, mijnheer" and would not speak to me in anything but that
language. I had to cross my legs.

On another occasion, also in Antwerp, my wife sent me to a bakery to
pick up some bread she had ordered the day before. She got me to
practice a rather long sentence in Dutch to explain who had ordered the
bread. I must have got it right, because the woman at the bakery assumed
that I was fluent in Dutch and started a long conversation. I just stood
there saying "Ja" and "Nee" at intervals. I had no idea what she was saying.

--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW

On Sun, 28 Apr 2024 15:19:26 +0200, Bertel Lund Hansen
<gadekryds@lundhansen.dk> wrote:

>Yesterday I called my dad, but he had trouble hearing me (which he
>doesn't usually). I have just bought a new mobile, so I rang my sister
>to check it, and asked her:
>
> Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?

I could read that. Afrikaans is:

Kan U hoor wat ek se?

Same phrase, different spelling.

--
Steve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa
Web: http://www.khanya.org.za/stevesig.htm
Blog: http://khanya.wordpress.com
E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org full stop uk

On 2024-04-28 23:10:37 +0000, Peter Moylan said:

> On 29/04/24 07:44, Mark Brader wrote:
> Sn!pe wrote:
>
>>> ... While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by the
>>> fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said "Undskyld,
>>> jeg kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I can speak
>>> English" rather putting me to shame.
>
> After making a few bloopers in Belgium, mostly to do with addressing
> people in the wrong language, I was advised that I should always speak
> to strangers in English.

We went on a working trip to Brussels in about 1993. Our host was a
francophone Bruxellois, but we went with him to talk with some people
in Leuven, and were advised to speak only in English, so we did. A
couple of years later we were at a meeting in Barcelona, and I was
surprised to come across the head of the Leuven group happily chatting
in French with our Bruxellois friend. Afterwards I asked him about this
and he said the rules only applied inside Belgium. Elsewhere you could
speak whatever was more convenient.

--
Athel -- French and British, living in Marseilles for 37 years; mainly
in England until 1987.

On 29/04/24 16:12, Athel Cornish-Bowden wrote:
> On 2024-04-28 23:10:37 +0000, Peter Moylan said:
>
>> On 29/04/24 07:44, Mark Brader wrote: Sn!pe wrote:
>>
>>>> ... While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by
>>>> the fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said
>>>> "Undskyld, jeg kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I
>>>> can speak English" rather putting me to shame.
>>
>> After making a few bloopers in Belgium, mostly to do with
>> addressing people in the wrong language, I was advised that I
>> should always speak to strangers in English.
>
> We went on a working trip to Brussels in about 1993. Our host was a
> francophone Bruxellois, but we went with him to talk with some people
> in Leuven, and were advised to speak only in English, so we did. A
> couple of years later we were at a meeting in Barcelona, and I was
> surprised to come across the head of the Leuven group happily
> chatting in French with our Bruxellois friend. Afterwards I asked him
> about this and he said the rules only applied inside Belgium.
> Elsewhere you could speak whatever was more convenient.

It's like Baptists and alcohol. They can drink, but only if nobody from
their church is watching.

--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW

Sn!pe wrote:

>> It just goes to show how English is a sort of parallel language in
>> Denmark.

> That brings to mind one of my early trips to Danmark. My Danish brother
> in law and I were at a pub and I felt the need to make room for more
> Tuborg. While standing at the urinal I was addressed in Danish by the
> fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and said "Undskyld, jeg
> kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I can speak English"
> rather putting me to shame.

I don't think that he put you to shame. Which answer did you expect?

But we may have a problem. If foreigners try to speak Danish and do well
enough to be understood, I think that many of us will switch to English
automatically all the same. It even happens when Swedes, Norwegians and
Danes meet. That is a great shame.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

Steve Hayes wrote:

>> Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?
>
> I could read that. Afrikaans is:

I was quite confident that you'd all understand it. That's why I didn't
translate it.

> Kan U hoor wat ek se?
>
> Same phrase, different spelling.

As in English - the same words in the same order. We do after all have
common language roots.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

On 28/04/2024 18:20, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> jerryfriedman wrote:
>
>> I agree with "Good Lord" and with "doing well"! Does your King send
>> birthday cards for hundredth birthdays?
>
> Yes, he does, and my father is proud that that was one of the first
> things he did as a king.

Hmm, another ambiguity has crept in here. "...that was one of the first
things the King did after ascending to the throne."

Otherwise we'd all be congratulating your father on becoming king.

>
>> Obaue: We'd say "100" or "100 years old" but not "100 years", as far
>> as I know. In particular, "wife/husband/etc. of n years" is a fixed
>> phrase meaning the person has been married etc. for n years. I'd
>> recommend "his girlfriend, who's 91,". You can also say "his
>> 91-year-old girlfriend", though that allows a joke about his other
>> girlfriends.
>
> Thanks.
>

In article <l9919oFe8jsU1@mid.individual.net>,
occam@nowhere.nix says...
>
> On 28/04/2024 18:20, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> > jerryfriedman wrote:
> >
> >> I agree with "Good Lord" and with "doing well"! Does your King send
> >> birthday cards for hundredth birthdays?
> >
> > Yes, he does, and my father is proud that that was one of the first
> > things he did as a king.
>
> Hmm, another ambiguity has crept in here. "...that was one of the first
> things the King did after ascending to the throne."
>
> Otherwise we'd all be congratulating your father on becoming king.

and we'd all be addressing Mr Hansen as Prince Bertel.

Janet

Janet wrote:

> and we'd all be addressing Mr Hansen as Prince Bertel.

Actually Crown Prince. Feel free to do so.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:

> Janet wrote:
>
>> and we'd all be addressing Mr Hansen as Prince Bertel.
>
> Actually Crown Prince. Feel free to do so.

My mistake. My elder sister would be Crown Princess, but we used another
word about queen Margrethe which directly means "throne-follower". If we
will use the same word about a future princess, I don't know.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

* Janet <MPG.4099756aed857d24989c65@news.individual.net> :
Wrote on Mon, 29 Apr 2024 10:14:53 +0100:
> In article <l9919oFe8jsU1@mid.individual.net>,

JFTR This article ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ seems to be missing from
e-s.org

> occam@nowhere.nix says...
[...]
>> Hmm, another ambiguity has crept in here. "...that was one of the first
>> things the King did after ascending to the throne."
>>
>> Otherwise we'd all be congratulating your father on becoming king.
>
> and we'd all be addressing Mr Hansen as Prince Bertel.

In article <v0ntuj$1mr5o$1@dont-email.me>,
gadekryds@lundhansen.dk says...
>
> Janet wrote:
>
> > and we'd all be addressing Mr Hansen as Prince Bertel.
>
> Actually Crown Prince. Feel free to do so.

I have not googled Crown Prince Bertel so just wondering
what level of wealth, royal privileges, service and global
status your wife enjoys? Will she be crowned Queen one
day?

Asking for a friend

M****n

On 29/04/24 17:20, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> Sn!pe wrote:
>
>>> It just goes to show how English is a sort of parallel language
>>> in Denmark.
>
>> That brings to mind one of my early trips to Danmark. My Danish
>> brother in law and I were at a pub and I felt the need to make room
>> for more Tuborg. While standing at the urinal I was addressed in
>> Danish by the fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and
>> said "Undskyld, jeg kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I
>> can speak English" rather putting me to shame.
>
> I don't think that he put you to shame. Which answer did you
> expect?
>
> But we may have a problem. If foreigners try to speak Danish and do
> well enough to be understood, I think that many of us will switch to
> English automatically all the same. It even happens when Swedes,
> Norwegians and Danes meet. That is a great shame.

Someone I knew went to Denmark in the hope of improving his mastery of
Danish. It didn't work. He was greatly frustrated because everyone spoke
English to him.

Something similar interfered with my learning of French. The people I
was speaking with spoke English too well. Whenever I hesitated over a
French word, they immediately switched to English.

I was once in a train in Belgium, and I said something in English to
another passenger. He immediately answered me in Flemish. I could see
the wheels going around in his head: "If he speaks English, he must be
Flemish."

--
Peter Moylan http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW

On 2024-04-29 12:48:46 +0000, Peter Moylan said:

> On 29/04/24 17:20, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
>> Sn!pe wrote:
>>
>>>> It just goes to show how English is a sort of parallel language
>>>> in Denmark.
>>
>>> That brings to mind one of my early trips to Danmark. My Danish
>>> brother in law and I were at a pub and I felt the need to make room
>>> for more Tuborg. While standing at the urinal I was addressed in
>>> Danish by the fellow next to me. I had practised my Danish and
>>> said "Undskyld, jeg kan ikke tale dansk." He said to me "No, but I
>>> can speak English" rather putting me to shame.
>>
>> I don't think that he put you to shame. Which answer did you
>> expect?
>>
>> But we may have a problem. If foreigners try to speak Danish and do
>> well enough to be understood, I think that many of us will switch to
>> English automatically all the same. It even happens when Swedes,
>> Norwegians and Danes meet. That is a great shame.
>
> Someone I knew went to Denmark in the hope of improving his mastery of
> Danish. It didn't work. He was greatly frustrated because everyone spoke
> English to him.

25 or so years ago my daughter spent some weeks in a mathematics
department in Chile hoping to make her Spanish more colloquial (she was
already fluent). That didn't work either: in the past most Chilean
mathematicians had studied in France and preferred to speak to her in
French.

> Something similar interfered with my learning of French. The people I
> was speaking with spoke English too well. Whenever I hesitated over a
> French word, they immediately switched to English.
>
> I was once in a train in Belgium, and I said something in English to
> another passenger. He immediately answered me in Flemish. I could see
> the wheels going around in his head: "If he speaks English, he must be
> Flemish."

--
Athel -- French and British, living in Marseilles for 37 years; mainly
in England until 1987.

Janet wrote:

> I have not googled Crown Prince Bertel so just wondering
> what level of wealth, royal privileges, service and global
> status your wife enjoys? Will she be crowned Queen one
> day?

You know perfectly well that it was a joke, but I'll give you a serious
answer.

We have a Crown Prince - again I might add. His name is Christian. Being
Crown Prince means that he will be king one day unless he dies before
his father, in which case Isabella will be Crown Princess.

When King Frederik was Crown Prince, he received around 21 million
kroner (year 2021), approximately £2.42 million. This was to cover his
whole family plus expenses to staff and general household.

The present Crown Prince Christian (18 years old) will get something
like 9 million kroner - £1 million.

The privileges are that they can't be prosecuted unless the King says
so, they will enjoy extended service wherever they go, and they get to
be titled "Your Royal Highness" and "Crown Prince(ss)". All children of
the King are Royal Highnesses and Princes or Princesses. I believe that
it's pretty much the same in the UK.

Their non-privileges are that they can't marry without the consent of
the government and the same goes for travelling abroad.

--
Bertel
Kolt, Denmark

On 29-Apr-24 8:24, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:
> Steve Hayes wrote:
>
>>> Kan du høre hvad jeg siger?
>>
>> I could read that. Afrikaans is:
>
> I was quite confident that you'd all understand it. That's why I didn't
> translate it.
>
>> Kan U hoor wat ek se?
>>
>> Same phrase, different spelling.
>
> As in English - the same words in the same order. We do after all have
> common language roots.

Whilst in a (mostly) monoglot household, I find that my wife rarely
understands me.

"Eh?"
"What?"
"What was that?"
"Stop mumbling!"
etc.

--
Sam Plusnet