In which ASL makes everything AWESOME.
Feb. 19th, 2010 08:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
seanan_mcguireYesterday, I was demonstrating to a friend of mine (who finds my fascination with ASL charming, if odd) that I can now sign "Behold! For now I wear the human pants!" My grammar is a little wonky, but I'll be seeing Judi in a few weeks, so right now I'm just working on getting the signs committed to muscle memory.
A Deaf gentleman about my age saw me signing, and got very excited. He came over, and signed, "You know ASL?" (In the case of signs that I don't know myself, but whose meaning was evident from context, I'm including them to form actual sentences.)
I signed back "A little." Emphasis on "little."
He asked what I knew...so I showed him. Around the time I hit "working in a mine for our robot overlords" and "did I say overlords? I meant protectors," he started to look, well, dubious. Like there was a chance I thought I knew some ASL, when really, someone was messing with me.
Then I signed "The Turtle can't help you."
His eyes widened, and he proceeded to finger-spell "IT?" I nodded. He made an "S" sign, followed by a gesture like putting on a crown. I nodded again. He got even more excited, especially since now he knew I actually understood my messed-up assortment of signs. He had me teach him "robot overlords," and he taught me the sign for "weird."
ASL and Stephen King: bringing the world closer together. The best part is that, for once in my life, I can legitimately say that the Turtle did help us.
A Deaf gentleman about my age saw me signing, and got very excited. He came over, and signed, "You know ASL?" (In the case of signs that I don't know myself, but whose meaning was evident from context, I'm including them to form actual sentences.)
I signed back "A little." Emphasis on "little."
He asked what I knew...so I showed him. Around the time I hit "working in a mine for our robot overlords" and "did I say overlords? I meant protectors," he started to look, well, dubious. Like there was a chance I thought I knew some ASL, when really, someone was messing with me.
Then I signed "The Turtle can't help you."
His eyes widened, and he proceeded to finger-spell "IT?" I nodded. He made an "S" sign, followed by a gesture like putting on a crown. I nodded again. He got even more excited, especially since now he knew I actually understood my messed-up assortment of signs. He had me teach him "robot overlords," and he taught me the sign for "weird."
ASL and Stephen King: bringing the world closer together. The best part is that, for once in my life, I can legitimately say that the Turtle did help us.
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Date: 2010-02-19 04:34 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2010-02-19 04:46 pm (UTC)It's right up there with singing selections from Wicked on the escalator :-)
Fantastic stuff.
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Date: 2010-02-19 04:41 pm (UTC)Despite some people having apparently already read the story, it was still a big hit. Just so you know, you keep my audiences entertained even when you're not there. :)
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Date: 2010-02-19 05:32 pm (UTC)And they didn't even bring us a flying car.
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Date: 2010-02-19 04:46 pm (UTC)Also, I need to learn ASL. It's been on my list of things I want to do for, like, ever.
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Date: 2010-02-19 05:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2010-02-19 04:48 pm (UTC)I have to laugh--most Deaf folks get "Hi...my name is _______" or "Do you read lips?" from neophyte signers. That guy's probably telling all his friends about his conversation with the Hearing woman with the robot overlords. And I bet it's making ALL their days!
Did he teach you "weird" with 3 fingers that scrunch up and release as you move your hand across your nose, or "weird/strange/odd" where you rotate your hand in a C shape 45 degrees in front of your nose? Just curious...
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Date: 2010-02-19 05:10 pm (UTC)* Okay, so usually more politely. But it's some of the bits of Japanese I remember is how to say 'read/listen/watch this, please', and 'repeat this louder/again/slower, please'.
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Date: 2010-02-19 05:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-19 11:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-19 05:14 pm (UTC)Very awesome. And yeah, very amused that you work on Coulton lyrics :-}
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Date: 2010-02-21 07:40 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2010-02-19 05:43 pm (UTC)How I'm going to fit that re-reading in I just don't know, because some people just insist on writing new books that I need to read, too.
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Date: 2010-02-21 07:41 pm (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2010-02-19 06:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-21 07:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-19 06:02 pm (UTC)Next time I see you, remind me to teach you how to sign "Nice boots, wanna f***?"
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Date: 2010-02-19 06:45 pm (UTC)(I thought that was redundant in certain contexts?)
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Date: 2010-02-19 07:20 pm (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2010-02-19 07:58 pm (UTC)At some point, technology like Natal is going to get good enough to recognize ASL. And then someone will make that the spellcasting system for a popular online role-playing game. And then there will be massive growth in the number of people who can sign “Kill it with fire!” and similar phrases.
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Date: 2010-02-20 04:07 am (UTC)(no subject)
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Date: 2010-02-19 08:33 pm (UTC)My (british - I don't know how different it is from ASL) sign language skills are limited to an assortment of animals, 'ruler', and 'birthday'. I think I need to learn some fun things. And joining words, so I can make a complete sentence.
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Date: 2010-02-19 10:36 pm (UTC)I hope I meet you sometime to learn the British sign for "birthday," because that's a sign that changes regionally, and I like to collect ways to sign it.
(I feel so very clueless when watching the signing on Four Weddings and a Funeral.)
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Date: 2010-02-20 01:44 am (UTC)You are full up of rawk and win. I bow to your greatness.
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Date: 2010-02-21 07:45 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-02-20 03:46 am (UTC)--The professor who recognized Humboldt's parrot from Vixy's "Strange Messenger."
--The counter band dog
--This!
Lola
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Date: 2010-02-21 02:05 am (UTC):D
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