David Holden:
CLASS OF 1980
Marina High SchoolClass of 1980
San leandro, CA
West Texas A&M UniversityClass of 2008
Canyon, TX
North Star Christian High SchoolClass of 1980
Grass valley, CA
Washington Manor Middle SchoolClass of 1976
San leandro, CA
Dayton Elementary SchoolClass of 1974
San leandro, CA
David's Story
Hi guys and gals,
I graduated in Jan. 1980, left San Leandro and never really looked back...I moved to Austin, Texas and sowed my wild oats (HIPPIE HOLLOW !!) for a few years before joining the Air Force and seeing the world from the back of a C-130. I got out in 1992, right after Desert Storm. After I got out I studied Safety & Environmental Engineering and Applied Linguistics that has gotten me where I am today !!!
I currently make a living as a Safety and Environmental Professional and lingual asset working with the Dept. of Defense out of White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
My wife Maria and I have a new grandson as of Nov. 2007. We live in El Paso, Texas.
My interests revolve around languages, travel, musicianship and dogs (In particular Shar-Pei).
I'm the only pedal steel guitar player in Texas that can write Kanji, play vallenato acordeon, and quote from the Clean Air Act Ammendments of 1990. (As far as I know)
I've played steel guitar in the studio on a couple of records and some of those songs are even on iTunes.
I've been accused of using my linguistic knowledge for evil purposes. I leave you with several gems of linguistic knowledge that I've picked up over the last 20 years:
***ARABIC***
(1) Arabic has 4 different ways to pronounce the letter K, which are transliterated as k, kh, q and the glottal stop :
The beginner shouldn't attempt the glottal stop after eating pork tamales unless having exceptional control of their throat muscles. Otherwise you risk throwing airborne particles of pork on your Arab hosts.
(2) The Iraqi flag says "Allah Akbar" on it. Don't confuse this with "khanziir akbar" which means "Pork is great."
Example:
A: Hey dude, this triple pork burger really hits the spot. Khanziir Akbar !!!
B: I agree. wu wu wu wu wu la la la (chanting). Khanziir akbar !!! Khanziir akbar !!!
(3) Also in Arabic, a standard way of saying "Good Morning" has a saying and a response and is as follows:
A: SabaaH Al-Kiir (Morning of Goodness)
B: SabaaH An-nuur (Morning of Light)
Don't confuse the words Al-kiir (Goodness) with Al-kanZIIR (pork). NEVER, NEVER, NEVER use the word "Al-KanZIIR" while trying to say Good Morning, either as the first sentence or as the reply.
Whatever you do, DON'T do the following because it would be very very offensive:
Example:
A: SabaaH Al-Kiir (Morning of Goodness)
B: SabaaH Al-kanZIIR (Morning of Pork)
A: Wu Wu Wu Wu (Chanting). I must burn my ears with acid now.
I'd be happy to e-mail you these offensive Arabic sayings written in the Arabic alphabet if you contact me. That way you can recognize offensive behavior so you can put a stop to it.
*** JAPANESE ***
(1) The Japanese version of the "Cow Palace" is not called "Palacio de Bacas." (Baca means cow in Spanish, and IDIOT in Japanese.) For example, if you were named Jose Baca and you went to Japan, you'd basically be introducing yourself all day long as JOE IDIOT. (I once had a boss named Joe Baca who had the same warped sense of humor)
Example:
A. Ohayoo, Boku wa JOSE BAKA (Good Morning, I am Joe Idiot)
B. Hajimemashita Baka-san. (Pleased to meet you Mr. Idiot.)
(2) "Texas" is a 4 syllable word in Japanese. In Katakana it's written Te-Ki-Sa-Su, and pronounced Teki-Sauce.
Example:
A. Ohayoo
B. Ahhh..I'm from Te-ki-sa-su
A. No, dude. I meant "Good Morning," not where you're from.
B. Ohhh...sorry Mr. Baka. (laughing to self at Baka's name)
(3) The letter "L" is hard fo...Expand for more
r a lot of Japanese to pronounce. Katakana, the Japanese alphabet used for non-Japanese words, has "R" sounds (Ra, Re, Ro, Ri, Ru) that they'll usually transliterate for words with "L" sounds in them.
So in spoken Japanese, "Pilot" sounds like "pirate" and "take a left at the light" becomes "take a reft at the right." This also explains why CNN is going to be running 24 hour Erektion Coverage (Election Coverage) leading up to the Nov. 2008 vote.
***SPANISH***
(1)In most languages there are sayings. In Spanish, they are called DICHOS. Dichos can be funny, vulgar or something your grandmother would say, but they always have a point.
My favorite Spanish dichos are the "No es lo mismo." form, or "A is not the same as B" :
Ejemplos:
* No es lo mismo huele a traste que atras te huele
* No es lo mismo huevos con sal afuera, que sal con los huevos afuera.
* No es lo mismo la papaya tapatÃa que tápate la papaya tÃa
* No es lo mismo ser el Presidente de Chile, que el chile del presidente.
Disclaimer: Use these carefully. They could get you slapped. I warned you.
(2) Hablando de Español..Speaking of Spanish...While doing business in Latin America, always use correct Spanish. There's a big difference between "Recoger" and "Coger de nuevo." If you want to tell your girlfriend's mother that you're a dog-cather, you won't make points by telling your potential future mother-in-law that what you do all day is "Coger a los perros." (You don't just catch dogs, you also have intimate relations with them !!!)
(3) If you're suffering heat stroke in Latin America, don't walk into a cantina full of guys asking for some cola (unless that's what you're in to )
(4) Also, when you go to a Wal-Mart in Mexico and buy a drink that says SAM'S COLA, make sure that it isn't refering to the flavor of the drink.
Example:
A. Te gustarÃa probar este? (Would you like to try this?)
B. Qué es? (What is it?)
A. Sam's Cola
B. La Cola de Sam??? Guácala !! (Sam's butt?, Yuuuuuuck)
(5) On the same thought, remember the letter ñ is very important in Spanish. Feliz Año means "Happy New Year" while Feliz Ano means a "happy butthole."
(6) "Dalas Nalgas" is not a new NFL expansion team. It is what Dallas Cowboy haters call that team. "Dalas" means "Give them" and "Nalgas" means your A$$. Not everyone in Texas likes the Cowboys.
*** MANDARIN CHINESE ***
(1) In Spanish, "Che Che" is short for José José, but in Mandarin it means "Thank You."
Don't shout to your buddy José across the room in a Chinese resturant unless you want the kitchen staff to start bowing.....
(2) Speaking of Chinese restaurants, a good trick to do is to write this on the fortune cookie: AYUDENME, ME HAN SECUESTRADO EN UNA FABRICA DE GALLETAS CHINAS.... That's Spanish for: "Help !!! I'm being held hostage in a Chinese cookie factory."
When you give this to the Chinese waitress, she won't know what it says and will take it to a Spanish speaking employee to translate. It's always funny to see the response you get.
I can also e-mail you this phrase written out in simplified Chinese characters. Good to print out and make into fortune cookie size messages, and a great way to flirt with the local chinita waitress at your local hometown Chinese buffet.
****************************************
TAKE CARE and remember to always use your knowledge to fight evil and make society better !!!
ESCREVE-ME LOGO...TA !!!
David Holden
El Paso, Texas
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