Don't you love it when you ask a retorical question like "how you doin" and some clown starts telling you all of their ailments? So I had a little, Butch and Sundance Revenge, life goes on.
I have to tell my latest encounter with time!
I was invited to a small dinner party, not the one Joeline was talking about, by my landlady. I understood it was to be her and her husband, the financial bookkeeper for the school and her husband (whom I had met and who speaks English), and me. I was told 7:00 P.M. Well, being the military type, at exactly 7:00 P.M. I knocked on her door. The look on her face told me something was amiss so I kind of serepticiously glanced at my watch and sure enough it was 7:01.
This woman speaks no English, but she invites me in and shows me around her apartment. With my tremendous capacity with the Spanish language I said, Bueno, Muy Bueno, Bonito, Muy Bonito at all the painting, etc. she showed me. (Now keep in mind that Bonito also means Tuna, depends on the accent, I have no idea which I was saying)
Finally her and I sit and for thirty minutes we carry on this conversation. Her: kjkjjjjkj Me: Si, or sometimes I would say, No. I kept trying to throw in some of my other Spanish like Taco or Enchalada, but was afraid she would think I was hinting about supper.
Finally at 7:35 I couldn't take it any more so I pulled out my cell phone, held it to my ear and said Uno momento, por favor. (pretty good, huh)
I walked across the hall to my apt. left the door open and wandered around in my apt. for about 10 minutes pretending to talk on the phone.
Then I heard the elevator door open, thought it was the wife and husband who spoke English so walked into the hall without my phone.
It wasn't, it was her husband who speaks two words of English (Hi Mister) So he says Hi Mister and off we go again. He does pour me a straight scotch and I drink up. To shorten this agony, at 8:20, you got it one hour and twenty minutes later the couple who speak English show up.
Now, please do not get me wrong, it is a Spanish speaking country, if anyone is at fault it is me. The landlady and her husband are as nice and polite as they can be. But an hour and a half of trying to make conversation when no one knows what the other is saying is trying at best.
Oh, by the way there was another couple invited, they showed up at 8:45.
So, two days later Elizabeth, (the financial person) comes into my office with Robert (My VP who speaks fluent English and Spanish). Her husband is fluent in English, she speaks a small amount, she had Robert there to interpret.
She invites Robert and me to her husband's 50th. birthday party, (the party Joeline mentioned). Anyway, I asked what time and she said 7:00. As she was leaving I stopped her and said, "Robert she has said we are to be there at 7:00, please ask her in Spanish what time we are to be there?" He asked and she said, Si Siete. I said "Robert, if she tells me 7:00, I will be there at 7:00, tell her that!" He tells her in Spanish and a horrible look comes on her face and she says "OH, NO."
True story.
I said, "Robert what time does she want us there?" She though for a minute and says "Ocho?". Then Robert says how about ocho e trienta, and she smiles and says, SI.
She wants us there at 8:30, not before, and yet she invites us for 7?
I was down in the lobby waiting for Robert to pick me up for the party at eight and he calls and says he will be about 30 minutes late. We get to her party at 9:00 and are among the first ones there.
Fantastic party, all kinds of native dancing, open bar, even a three piece Marioche (not spelled right and besides it is called something else here, but I can't remember what they were called)
The host kept pouring me straight whiskey. Well, it wasn't exactly straight up, it was over the rocks. To top it off, they kept having toasts and you had to down your entire drink. I think that was the start of the end for me - did Butch and Sundance drink?