Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:   
      
   AH>  When you've made a typo or whatever, you often find it   
   AH>  yourself upon further reflection.   
      
   ak>  This is not a reflection   
      
      
             Hmm... I guess I should have used a different wording there.  What I   
   had in mind doesn't necessarily require long and careful thought, but by using   
   the stock phrase "upon further reflection" I implied that it did.   
      
      
      
   ak>  It is not easy to find a pretext to say something in the   
   ak>  language you learn.   
      
      
             Of course.  You're striving for fluency, therefore you don't want to   
   get too hung up on whether you spelled this or that word correctly.   
      
             At any rate, I've often seen you correct your own errors after a bit   
   of time has gone by.  Whether you're re-reading this material because somebody   
   has quoted it or because there is no more recent material in the message base,   
   the net result is the same.  The subject matter of conversational English need   
   not be... and seldom is... very profound.  But I must say I think you're doing   
   rather well re finding an interesting variety of subjects to write about.  :-)   
      
      
      
   AH>  If either of us had corrected your spelling in accordance   
   AH>  with what we thought you wanted to say without any further   
   AH>  comment you and/or other readers might be unaware that   
   AH>  "cap" is a perfectly good English word too. :-)   
      
   ak>  I think everybody knows that there are cups and caps.   
      
      
             Maybe, maybe not.  The majority of the Russians posting in this echo   
   ... including you... are advanced students of English.  We can't tell who else   
   might be reading our messages until they've posted something, however....  :-)   
      
      
      
   ak>  I just remembered that Aussies often pronounce "a" in a   
   ak>  different way than the people in the UK do. IMHO, it can   
   ak>  be heard when they say "fAce", "explAin", "SpAin" etc.   
      
      
             I know what you mean... but in these examples they're using the long   
   "A".  Not all Aussies sound like the Crocodile Hunter.  And Eliza Doolittle in   
   PYGMALION/MY FAIR LADY apparently did much the same thing... [chuckle].   
      
      
      
   ak>  I read some materials on the Australian pronunciation   
   ak>  and found out that "cap" in Australia sounds exactly   
   ak>  as "cap" in the UK.   
      
      
             Just as I'd expect.  A university student from Melbourne confused me   
   recently, however, with the way she pronounced the short "e".  Fortunately for   
   her I've had experience as a teacher with Canadian kids who pronounce the same   
   vowel differently in certain words.  When I'm called upon to demystify phonics   
   for them I can do that.  But in general I cut adults a bit more slack....  ;-)   
      
      
      
   AH>  Vowel sounds may differ from one language to another, and   
   AH>  in English they may vary from one dialect to another.  But   
   AH>  all of the Aussies I've met in person distinguish between   
   AH>  the short "a" & the short "u" just as I would. ;-)   
      
   ak>  Yes, short "a"s, like in cap/cup. But when they say "cAse",   
   ak>  "bAse" -- "A" sounds differently IMHO.   
      
      
             Canadians often refer jocularly to such people as speaking "Strine",   
   especially when they inform us they come from "AustrEYElia"....  :-)   
      
      
      
   ak>  Although, in Australia, there can be different dialects.   
      
      
             I think there are probably regional and/or socioeconomic differences   
   ... as there are in Canada... but whether they'd be considered *dialects*, I'm   
   not sure.  Maybe Paul can tell us more about that....  :-)   
      
      
      
      
   --- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)