CSUF Professor Plans Dictionary of Ki-Nubi

You might wonder why anyone would want a dictionary of Ki-Nubi, an Arabic dialect spoken in East Africa.

For one, the last definitive work on it was written in 1894 and that leaves an academic void, contends Cal State Fullerton linguistics Professor Alan S. Kaye, who plans on writing the dictionary when he returns from a research trip to East Africa in January.

“Even the lay person, such as a tourist, might be interested in the book,” said Kaye, who has received a $3,500 grant from an anthropological foundation to research the dialect. “I imagine human curiosity, like climbing a mountain, makes a dictionary like this important.”

Kaye has previously authored “Dictionary of Nigerian Arabic” and “Nigerian Arabic-English Dictionary.” He said the Nigerian government bought a total of 1,000 copies.

Kaye, a Yorba Linda resident, expects to live in mud huts and travel by foot and donkey during his research trip, but said he feels he’ll be able to handle the grind.

He bicycles 18 miles a day to and from the college.

Michael Del Rey of Newport Beach has been getting publicity of late with the “Yuppie” Beverage Hat he manufactures.

The device looks like a batter’s helmet with containers on each side to hold pop cans. The soda is delivered to the mouth via a tube with an on-and-off switch.

Del Rey suggests that disenchanted Coke fans might solve their dilemma by putting old and new Cokes in one of his hats and drink both at the same time.

The 15-girl softball players ages 14 through 17 from the Empire League who returned from a nine-day athletic exchange program in Hong Kong had these experiences to relate, said their coach, Tracy Brennan of El Dorado High in Placentia.

1. They went undefeated in the five games they played.

2. They beat a national team that was undefeated.

3. The Hong Kong players were mostly 20 and older.

4. The Hong Kong catcher was 55 years of age.

5. They learned not to drink the water.

Each of the players raised $1,500 to finance her part of the trip, which also included “rest and relaxation” for two days in Hawaii.

“It was a great learning experience, but we all learned one lesson best,” said Brennan. “There’s no place like home.”

Here’s a stumper. When Westminster Parks official Kelley Worthy arranged to have a purebred white Arabian horse brought to Park West for a grooming demonstration for youngsters, a 7-year-old asked her: “What are the hoofs made from?”

Acknowledgments--Andrea Robinson, 15, of Santa Ana, was named one of 12 finalists from 22,000 entries nationwide for ‘Teen Magazine’s Great Model Search. . . . Fullerton family practitioner Dr. Frank L. Amato, 51, was installed as 96th president of the 2,300-member Orange County Medical Assn. . . . Stephanie Rosenthal, 12, of Mission Viejo, swimming in the 15-and-under category in the recently completed Macabbiah Games in Jerusalem, won five first-place gold medals and one second-place silver medal in the six swim events she entered.