I’ve thought about learning a second language but wanted to do it for the right reasons. I felt that it should be practical and something I would actually use. This started a few years ago when Mary and I visited Paris. I was embarrassed that we could not communicate and they made little or no effort to speak English…so I thought before we would ever visit another country we could take the time to learn some basics of the language.
Since we are not planning on visiting a foreign country any time soon…the idea of learning another language has kind of fizzled out…..until yesterday.
We both like Mexican food and when we order, I request some sliced jalapenos for me to use as desired. Usually they bring way more than I need so I often tell the them they could just sprinkle some on top of the dish.
Apparently something got lost in translation between the waiter and the cook.
I ordered steak fajitas, asked for some jalapenos and mentioned that they could just throw a few on the fajitas. They apparently took that to mean they should slice some up and sir-fry them along with the other veggies. When the plate arrived I assumed they had forgotten the jalapenos and what I was seeing was actually green bell peppers. So I put a bunch of the veggies into a tortilla…then took a bite. As I was chewing the fire began to build in my mouth and by the time I realized I was eating jalapenos (seeds and all) it was too late. Ice water or diet coke did not work. I was sweating and tears were in my eyes – I even borrowed some sour cream from Mary to try to stop the pain.
So now I have a motivation to learn Mexican Spanish. Sounds like it might come in handy.
