Funny mixes of English in Hebrew

My Son is 3 years old and is learning English (here in Israel) through my speaking it with him.

He understands English well but speaks it very little. What I have noticed is that he takes English words, translating them literally to Hebrew and uses them in Hebrew sentences.

Here are some examples:

Instead of saying that he has "gas in his tush", he took the English word "gas" (short for gasoline) and translated gasoline to the Hebrew "delek".
End result: he has said "I have gasoline in my tush". יש לי דלק בטוסיק

From the the English phrase "room in my stomach" the word "room" (meaning in this case space) was translated to "cheder" (a room in a house).
End result: "I have a room in my stomach". יש לי חדר בבטן.

The word "falling" from the phrase "falling asleep" was translated literally.
End result: "I think I'll tumble asleep". אני חושב שאני אפול לישון

On being divided culturally

This bit by Herb Keinon in the Jerusalem Post really cracks me up:

It's an odd phenomenon, but Israelis often sound downright European in their tendency to see US culture as shallow and meaningless, and to view the US as incurably naive when it comes to the world. It's an attitude that says we - who live in the tough neighborhood - understand how things work; the Americans are hopelessly unsophisticated.

What you end up with, essentially, is Americans in Israel looking down at Israelis, and Israelis looking down on Americans. And one of the hidden beauties of being an American-Israeli is the ability to look down on both with equal measure. It's a great benefit, actually, and one that should be used by the Nefesh B'Nefesh folks to promote aliya.

"Come home, that way you can condescend not only toward Israelis, which you do in the States, but now toward Americans as well."

So long and thanks for the memories

I've just done something I've been planning for a while, though in the end it wasn't as easy to do as I thought it would be. I donated the first half of my SF book collection to the local library. As soon as I can pack and transport the second half, it too will be given away.

These books were the focus of my life for many of my teenage years (probably too much the focus). Needless to say, I read them all; most of them more than once and many of them numerous times.

The collection stopped being updated by around 1990. It included all of Larry Niven's works up to that point. All of Isaac Asimov's SF books. Many books by Robert A Heinlein. And hundreds of other SF (and a few fantasy) books as well.

I considered trying to sell them, though it seems that the amount of work involved to get a significant sum of money would be too great.

And actually I like the idea of the books being available at the local Modiin public library. I hope that many people find them and enjoy them as I had.

stereotypes

A Frenchman is self-assured because he regards himself personally, both in mind and body, as irresistibly attractive to men and women. An Englishman is self-assured, as being a citizen of the best-organized state in the world, and therefore as an Englishman always knows what he should do and knows that all he does as an Englishman is undoubtedly correct. An Italian is self-assured because he is excitable and easily forgets himself and other people. A Russian is self-assured just because he knows nothing and does not want to know anything, since he does not believe that anything can be known. The German's self-assurance is worst of all, stronger and more repulsive than any other, because he imagines that he knows the truth-- science--which he himself has invented but which is for him the absolute truth.

War and Peace, Book 9, Chapter 10
Leo Tolstoy