I promise that is what I heard...

Today we were standing in line at the local chaoshi/grocery store next to a large display of Nescafe when I realized that music was coming from the display.  English music.  English music with lyrics that went a little something like this...

Open up your mind and you can be anything you want to be.

If you're a man, you can even be a mother.

The Captain doesn't believe me, but I promise that is what I heard...

In other news if you have ever slumber partied with me, which should only be the female readers of this blog, then you might know that I am an avid sleep talker.  Yes, it's a nice hobby.  Well this morning I received a nice surprise from the Captain when he told me that last night I was sleep talking...in 普通话！ I was shocked and elated!  Maybe all this studying is starting to take root.  My first response, "We're my tones correct?"  He told me he didn't know, he was sleeping...

By the way to anyone who reads this is it more annoying when I try to write what I want to say in hanzi  like this 我想买一个东西。Or in pinyin like this Wo xiang mai yi ge dongxi. 

Did you know...

That a potato ricer makes really good salsa...

That the word zhou can either mean juk/rice porridge or week...but you really need to be able to read characters to know which one is which...

That when you disappoint your spouse it is sometimes hurts you so much that it can be physically painful...like when you don't take their work email out of the auto-fill cache in your mail box...

That imitation crab sticks cost about 25 cents for 10 around these parts...I'm not sure I really want to know why...

That our city recently got cream cheese and that I most certainly ordered two boxes which I look forward to consuming in many different delightful ways...

That I miss friends and family in the states and would love to see my little sister's new hair cut in person...

That I also am really bummed that I am going to miss this...and that if I was still in Dallas I would have my calendar marked and already be planning on what Seattle's Best drink I would be ordering while standing in line to wait for my cookbook to be signed...

That I am now craving a Cherry Amaretto latte...doesn't that sound delicious...

That tonight I am going to a Yoga class taught in 普通话 and that sometimes when I go to Yoga here it involves ropes...

That lately when I've been craving a nice, slow stroll through a bookstore I just go to this website...and that it usually does the trick...maybe if I just make a Nescafe coffee pack I'll have that just stepped away from the Barista feeling...

42 apples...and counting

Today in class my teacher asked: "Ni xiang chi le dou shao pinguo?"  Or something like that...I have a hard time recalling correct word order and sentence structure.  But what I don't have a hard time with is opening my mouth and saying the first thing that comes to mind.  Three seconds later when I realized that no one else in my class planned to answer I opened my mouth and let the first number that came to mind pop out.  Do you know what I said?

Si shi er pinguo

If you read this and know the proper sentence structure for asking how many apples you would like to eat, please reply promptly.  If you read this and actually thought that eating 42 apples was a good idea please reconsider.  If you read this and could relate because you also get random Chinese numbers or phrases trapped in your mind then don't worry, you are not alone.  

Non-Verbal Communication...

There is a little boy who lives in our stairwell who I adore.  He was one of the first kids in our apartment complex to try out his English with me. "Helloer" he says.  He also lets me try out my language with him.  "Ni Hao" I say.  

One time I came home in the rain and bumped into him in the door way.  It actually startled me a bit and so I said, very badly, "Wo bu zher dao ni zai zher."  (I'm not sure that's the correct grammatical structure.)  He just smiled, I think he was scared of me.

Today I saw this little boy and he said "Helloer."  I said, "Hello, how are you?"  I watched him take a deep breath and say "Hello, how are you."  I said, very badly, "Ni shuo YingYu, hen hao." Maybe he understood my sentence, even though I sure it was badly pronounced.  Or maybe my willingness to speak his language brought another phrase to mind because then  he said. "Helloer, I am fine t(S)ank you," and proceeded to bow very deeply.  

You want to know something?  This little boy and I are on the exact same page when it comes to language.  We both want to speak it, but don't always do the best job.  And we both use awkward body language to try and convey meaning when perhaps we should just stand still.  Of course his body language may have been a little more appropriate then mine.  My current body language involves bobbing my head as I try to remember which word to pronounce with which tone.  I look a little weird.  If we lived in India though this probably wouldn't be such a problem.  

My little friend gives me hope though.  And he also reminds me that language is about the ability to communicate.  And the ability to communicate provides the ability to have relationships.  And relationships are why we are here...