A Universal Language

Dear Readers,

I have come to the conclusion that in every language teenagers have a language all other teenagers can understand. Do not deny it, do not contradict me, because I have tested this theory twice and it has held true thus far.

True, testing the experiment twice would not validate a scientific hypothesis, but it will do for my purposes.

Two of my very best friends are bilingual: One speaks Vietnamese and English and one speaks Finnish and English.

When they are talking in school or to their friends they always speak in English but when they are talking to their parents they speak in their parent's native language, Vietnamese or Finnish. Yet no matter what language they are speaking, there are times when I can almost tell what they are saying, despite not being able to speak Vietnamese or Finnish myself. And I have determined that I can understand them because they have slipped into a third language, a language many people don't even know they speak.

Teenager.

In my opinion, all teenagers have a universal language. Words like, "Yes ma'am, Uh-huh, No ma'am, mmm-hmmm, nope, sure, Do I have to?, *sigh* fiiinnee," sound the same in every language. The tone of voice, the slight look upward like maybe God could explain why your parents are taking so long to get the point, the look over to your friends that says "Save me, please!", it's that stuff that defines the teen language. It works with other words too like "Thank you!, I love you guys!, This is awesome!" , coupled with the bright eyes of someone who just got what they wanted, the beaming smile of someone who, at that moment, is truly grateful to have such terrific guardians, the bounce in one's step when they finish talking.

It's funny to me how unimportant actual words are in this language. It's really about how the person sounds and looks at that moment. But then again, I think that's true of every language. If all we had were words we probably wouldn't understand everyone very well at all. It's the body language and tone of voice that really defines a conversation.

It's like how babies have their own language. They all seem to understand each other fine before we teach them words and meanings. Furthermore, parents seem to understand their kids, at least some of the time, before they learn to talk. Babies have a way of communicating that really has nothing to do with the gurgles they can pull off at that age, and more to do with pointing and laughing and smiling.

And crying. Lots and lots of crying.

By tone of voice and facial expression you can determine, in any language, whether the words are good or bad, angry or excited, sad or ecstatic. And with Teenager you can determine bored or slightly annoyed, emotions that seem to be the trademark of adolescents.

Then again gratitude and happiness is also easily determined, if my experiments are to be trusted, so maybe those should be our trademarks too.

...No? You don't agree? *sigh* fiiiinnnneeee.

Sincerely,

Elle

Dn't 4get 2 Vote :)

Dear Readers,

I think its really interesting how campaigns nowadays are starting to take up the social media approach to getting votes. That's not to say that I'm surprised.  Word of mouth, newspapers, radios, television, these were the "new" social media of the world at some point and people quickly started using them to spread their agenda. Youtube and Facebook are the social media of the now and it makes sense that they would be what politicians (and others) are using to gather followers. I'm not saying radio, television, etc. are outdated. It will be a long time before that happens, if it ever happens. But I think that Youtube and Facebook and Twitter are great ways to keep your constituents up to date with what you are doing, what they need to be doing, and what you hope EVERYONE will be doing in the near future. Plus, its an amazing way to connect with a younger group of possible voters. A lot of young adults are a people of instant gratification: It's our information, and we want it now! We don't want to have to search for you every time we want to know what you are doing. We want your info instantly pumping into our phones/ipads/ipod touches. We're lazy. I admit it. Some may say that it is a sad state of affairs when you have to resort to making sure your political agenda can sync up with a cell phone to garner attention but I say its reality. If you ask a lot of people (not me *cough cough*) if they wanted to recieve information about a political canidate, they are going to ask you "Is there an App for that?". I'm glad to see that candidates realize there is indeed an App for that, and its name is Twitter and Facebook. Make it possible to become a fan or follow you, and suddenly you've opened a door to a bunch of potential voters.

Now obviously I'm a proponent of the social media craze in regard to politics, so I was really excited when I got involved with a women running for District Representative in my state who needed someone to be in charge of her campaign's facebook page. Awesome! I get to be the person who makes sure that everyone knows whats going on, getting the couch potatoes out there involved in the political process! I'm going to be doing other stuff as well, walking around streets and passing out info, but I have to say this is the thing I'm excited about, using cool technology to better the world in some way by getting this really intelligent, qualified, awesome lady elected to office. Its going to be a really amazing process, I can already tell.

Sincerely,

Elle