Rhiannon Brooksbank–Jones is planning on taking Korean Studies at university this coming fall. Not our first choice, by a longshot, but to each his own.
Brooksbank-Jones has taken a shine to her future studies in a big way. Not only is she planning on living in the country upon graduation, she went and had her tongue lengthened in order to speak the language better.
OK, maybe “taken a shine” wasn’t the proper term. How about “became totally obsessed?”
While taking language lessons, she struggled to pronounce certain sounds in Korean.
It was blamed on Rhiannon, of Beeston, Notts, having a slightly shorter than average tongue, caused by an unusually thick lingual frenulum – the flap of skin that joins the underside of the tongue to the floor of the mouth.
Her parents agreed to her having a lingual frenectomy, a 15–minute operation under local anaesthetic that involved an incision in the flap of skin. Rhiannon admitted that it was “agony at first” but her tongue is now about 1cm longer and she can say words that were impossible before.
Enjoy living in Korea with your new extended tongue, Rhiannon. I hear the northern part of the country is lovely this time of year, thanks to Kim Jong-il’s loving hand and supreme leadership.
