It's that time of year again..

That's right, it's fresher's week! I knew it was coming but somehow it has still managed to  surprise me. I'm looking forward to the BandSoc first social but apart from that fresher's is just a big noisy mess on campus after the peace and quiet I've been used to! At first I thought it was kinda cute, seeing the newbies arrive with their entourage of parents and younger siblings. My views quickly changed after I did a 12 hour day in the office and got the bus home where I was surrounded by puke and condoms and the sound of feet pounding on the top deck of the bus.

I think it's time I passed my driving test...

Last week was internationals week and so there has been a massive influx of international students. There have been a few tell-tale signs of people unused to the UK. I saw one guy with his top-notch SLR camera taking photos af magpies and pigeons, and another chap on the hopper bus frantically pointing out a field of maize to a friend. This made me think it must be really weird to live and study in a strange country. I think I'd like to try it, even if it was just for a year or so. Then I can point out weird-looking crops to the locals who would think I was crazy too :)

Buuut then there's the language issue. I'm okay at picking up choice phrases but there can be odd results if you pronounce things wrong or get the words in the wrong order. Recently I saw a link on a friend's facebook page to a site called Bad Translator. It translates a phrase into many different languages and is a bit like a multi-lingual, online Chinese whispers game. For example I entered the phrase "I love doughnuts more than life itself" and 20 random language translations later ended up with "More than a ring of life". Things like this amuse me more than they probably should and can keep me entertained for a long time.

I'm also happy to while away the hours on websites such as www.engrish.com sniggering at messages which take on a whole new meaning when badly translated. One such example being "Safeguard the scenic spot. Show your mercy" which I guess should properly translate to "Take care" or something..

 
But anyway, I found a pen recently with some classic badly-translated English. There's a photo of it at a jaunty angle at the bottom of this page. Here is what it said:

• Available for any surface
• Please close the cap after use
• Special ingredient of ink, permanent and less effect of pollution
• Keep out of children
• Convenient to mark
• May not be washed if staining clothes incautiously

You gotta admit. 'Keep out of children' is pretty good advice!