The Lever Dilemma

I suppose it could happen to anyone. It’s unlikely, but not impossible. Anyone could happen by a lever by chance. Some people are more likely to than others, naturally, but it could happen.

In natural existence, I generally recommend not pulling the lever. If you don’t know what it does, at least. Even if you do know, there might be repercussions if you are not in ownership of the lever, or if you haven’t obtained permission to change the geotemporal location of most of the lever.

If it is your lever and you know what it does and you intend for it to do what it is meant to do, by all means, pull it whenever you wish.

But that’s not the sort of lever that I happened upon in this tale. I don’t really know who the rightful owner of the Lever was. I might be able to research the name, but I don’t think it really matters. The important factor regarding this lever is not its owner or even really its purpose. The important bit about this lever is whether or not I should have pulled it. I still don’t know.

It was the sort of lever that one doesn’t normally have access to. It was located in the middle of a crowded boulevard, but surrounded by a chunky iron and wire fence and elevated above the average person’s eye level by a set of 8 steep metal stairs. The stairs were the sort with little spikes surrounding gaping holes in the mesh so as to prevent slipping of a utility worker in inclement weather. I’d walked past it many times, but had never been tempted to ascend the stairs and so much as touch the handle. That day was different, of course.

It was the first really fair day in spring, and the streets were stuffed on that Sunday afternoon with cheerful running children, peppy horses pulling carriages, dapper fellows tossing melting slush balls, and grinning ladies testing out their spring jackets. I suppose there were other people too, but the sort that I remember best were the grim police officers, some on foot, and some on staunch horses, all shouting gruffly to make way as somewhere there had been a bit of tomfoolery and suspicious activity. I can’t really blame them though for my curiosity and hesitance to be crushed by the throng of prospective spectators. Besides, I wasn’t the only one to climb those crusty steps that day to get a view of the new trolley car. I was simply the only one there at the wrong time. Or perhaps it was the right time, depending on how you look at it.

Perhaps one could say that I actually saved a life rather than that I killed those people. It doesn’t really matter though. One way or the other, someone most likely would have died at the expense of someone else. And no matter which it was, I would have felt at fault.

Helpful Language Links

I've decided to go out of my way to publish something actually useful here. Unless you have no intention of ever speaking French. Moi, je parle français. I'm sometimes a French teacher. So I've compiled a list of the sites that I use the most when teaching and practicing my own French.

Tex's French Grammar
If you find yourself wanting to study French grammar, or if you're struggling to figure out how to conjugate, or if you're not really sure what conjugate even means, the best site in the world is Tex's French Grammar. There are awesome explanations of all those confusing grammar concepts and a helpful practice tool for conjugating verbs. Plus you get to read all about le conte epique romantique of Tex and Tami and their scheming amis.

Conjuguemos
Another helpful tool for French conjugation is conjuguemos, which is stuffed full of interactive games, graded verb drills, and of course, helpful hints on how to conjugate French verbs. Recent updates require learners to create an admin account with limited activities for free, but it's still a fun way to enjoy practicing conjugation.

Word Reference
Who doesn't know about Word reference? If you don't, you should! This is basically the ultimate online French dictionary with millions of references for words and phrases. I constantly use word reference while doing translations because it has great examples of word usage and everything a French student could want.

Alt Codes
First, for writing, you'll need some accent marks. You can write them with either 4-key alt-codes, or 3-key alt codes. Or another way that I never use because I have most of the 3-key memorized.The following website lists all the Alt Key Codes you could possibly want :)

Pronunciation
If you're ever struggling to remember how to pronounce a French word or phrase, try typing it into Oddcast's free text to speech. Native French speaker approved! If this link fails, you can also search for words at forvo.com. Forvo is like a dictionary, so you might not be able to listen to whole sentences, but there is a vast collection of words with pronunciation and definitions.

Polly Lingual

Games and vocabulary are put together in Polly Lingual, which includes a number of free beginner activities and reasonably priced lessons for more advanced learners. The activities give you a short lesson on how to use various vocabulary words and you can pick from several activities including hangman, whack-a-word, and others.

Lawless French
The Subjunctivisor is probably one of the best tools available for testing to see if you need to use the subjunctive tense or not. Cuz let's face it, subjunctive tense is hard, mostly because it isn't noticeable in English.

Free Rice
For a fun vocabulary tool, check out Free rice. This quiz tool is set up to test your knowledge while offering humanitarian aid to hungry people. Check out their about section for more information, or just keep testing your French vocabulary skills.

Duolingo
I suppose no list of language websites would be complete without duolingo. This free site (and ap) has taken most paid language programs hostage partly due to its fun games and helpful feedback. Personally, I do not endorse this as a language-learning app because it doesn't have the breadth to teach full fluency skills, but it's great as a supplementary app or to refresh your memory on a few French concepts you may have forgotten because it's been 3 years since you spoke any serious French to anyone besides your dog.

Nouvelles en francais facile
A helpful tool for listening and discerning French words is Nouvelles en francais facile. The hosts of this podcast talk about real news stories in French slow enough for a learner to understand most of what they're saying. The interview natural French people and discuss important topics. While there are many French podcasts out there, this one is my favorite so far. The site that hosts this podcast is not in French or English, so unfortunately, I haven't been able to make use of the "quiz" tool, but there are PDF files of the quizes and transcriptions of all the podcasts available on the site, which are very useful.

News in Slow French
Similarly, there exists News in Slow French, which is a regularly broadcast French news program that listeners can subscribe to for all the latest French news. It is leveled beginner, intermediate, and advanced, with French transcripts, including hidden translation tips, and varying pace depending on which level you choose. For the full audio, you have to purchase a subscription, but there is still a lot of great content on the site for free.

Karaoké FLE
This is a fun site where you can listen to French songs and test your listening skills by typing in the French word after they've sung it in the song. In my experience, the program is confused by apostrophes, so it's difficult to get a good score since you have to skip any words which would have included them, but it's still a great listening exercise. There are several difficulty levels and a variety of songs to choose from Karaoké FLE. This is a system brought to you by http://www.bonjourdefrance.com/ which is a cool site with many helpful French language activities.

NRJ
If you like to know what music French people are listening to, check out NRJ Radio. You can get news in French as well as music. French people listen to quite a bit of American music, but if you pick the right station, you can get mostly French music. This link will take you to the "made in France" station, but there are dozens of others.

Il était une histoire
For a bit of a fresh take on learning vocabulary and grammar, check out these fairy tales and legends. The site is full of short stories in various genres that are free to read. If you create a free account, you get access to audio for most of the books, games, research links, and sometimes videos. The stories are from many cultures, European, African, and Asian, so there's a diverse mix of stories to read and interact with.

The French Experiment
For a bit of extra practice in listening and pronouncing French, the French Experiment has a number of lessons and stories that you can read along with. While there isn't much content on this site, if you subscribe to the newsletter, you'll receive weekly website recommendations for great sites in a variety of topics. What content is available on the site is clear and helpful, and definitely a resource for listening practice. The stories available are also pronounced slowly and clearly, and include hidden translations just a click away in the transcript.

French Together
French together offers a friendly course you can pay to participate in, but I'm always after the free stuff, which is what you'll get in their extensive French Vocabulary section. While the vocabulary available focuses pretty heavily on travel French, the format is easy to follow and includes great explanations and cultural hints on how to use various phrases and terms. This is a great resource for augmenting your pronunciation skills.

Memrise
I honestly don't use flashcards much, but if you're a fan of them, Memrise might be the app for you. With beginning and advanced options, this app will help you review reading, listening, and spelling of a set of classically problematic French words and phrases. It also has fun leaderboards and daily goals to help motivate you. Also available as a mobile app.

Talk in French
For some fun entertainment options, check out Talk in French blog. The blogger has some great suggestions for practicing your French. If you're feeling like dropping $10, Frederic also offers a number of audiobooks to help you learn the French language. I personally preferred the free stories available from Il était une histoire. This article has some great film suggestions.

Last FM
Also, search for fantastic French music at Last FM. You can search by artist or style.

Courrier Picard 
Or maybe you'd like to check out this selection of French comics

Poems
Perhaps you'd like to read some classic Quebecoise poetry Or these Children's Poems

Discord
While not strictly educational, I've been able to meet and chat with a number of native French speakers and French language learners on discord. You can join the Franglish server or French Discord Server to get in touch with a random assortment of French-inclined people. There are text and vocal channels in each server. The conversations can get adult-themed, silly, or may be found to have trolls, but are pretty well moderated. If you don't already have a discord account, you will need one to access these chatrooms.

Well, that's all for today. I'd be happy to add more, so let me know if there are any great French sites you've used as a French student or teacher. Thanks for reading!