06-09-2011, 04:31 AM
Basically, there are a lot of very nerdy folk closeted in their mothers' basements dreaming of where to put their ictus -- but no matter what they try to tell you, scansion is NOT an exact science. There are about twelve main systems, all different, and myriad others that are occasionally accepted, occasionally discredited, essentially nitpickery. That's why I try not to get into scansion when teaching meter and make it as basic as possible, using the tried and true method of "da-DUM for iamb, DUM-da for trochee" 
Over the years, I've learned to "blank" my accent as much as possible while writing to make sure that my pronunciation is going to match up with pretty much anyone's (well, anyone who speaks proper like). If I'm eliding (squishing together) two syllables, I'll make it clear in the way it's written, otherwise everything is pronounced fully.
For the time being, count feet. Don't worry about syllables. You count feet by the number of strong stresses, or the number of times you'll tap on the desk when you're reading aloud, or metronome ticks, or whatever works for you.
Over the years, I've learned to "blank" my accent as much as possible while writing to make sure that my pronunciation is going to match up with pretty much anyone's (well, anyone who speaks proper like). If I'm eliding (squishing together) two syllables, I'll make it clear in the way it's written, otherwise everything is pronounced fully.
For the time being, count feet. Don't worry about syllables. You count feet by the number of strong stresses, or the number of times you'll tap on the desk when you're reading aloud, or metronome ticks, or whatever works for you.
It could be worse