I found this online somewhere, I take no credit! Enjoy! ...I'm going to try to stop watching Sex & the City and study for my linguistics final...
El argentino está visitando a su amigo mexicano en Los Angeles. El argentino no sabe inglés y le pide a su amigo mexicano que le enseñe como pedir comida.
--Fácil --le dice el mexicano--. ¿Te gusta el bistec con huevos?
--Claro --le dice el argentino.
--Eso lo puedes decir así: "y usté quien es", diciéndolo bien rápido. Suena como "steik an egs", que quiere decir "bistec con huevos".
--Ah, eso es fácil…
Al otro día el argentino va solo al restaurant y el mesero le pregunta:
--May I help you?
El argentino le pregunta:
--¿Y vos quién sós?
<3
Showing posts with label learn spanish. Show all posts
Showing posts with label learn spanish. Show all posts
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Spanish word of the day
simón:
yes
The way my Mexican coworkers say "sí." For the first few weeks, I kept trying to figure out who was named Simon. Ha.
(David-does anyone say this in Barcelona?)
yes
The way my Mexican coworkers say "sí." For the first few weeks, I kept trying to figure out who was named Simon. Ha.
(David-does anyone say this in Barcelona?)
Monday, April 27, 2009
Encuentro by José Agustín Goytisolo
José Agustín Goytisolo was born in Barcelona and was a child during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). His poetry captivates me because it is incredibly conversational. An English-language equivalent might be a poet like Billy Collins.
Anyway, I've been reading through his book "Palabras para Julia" (1979). Here is a poem I'm currently falling in love with:
Alegría yo te
he buscado y buscado
por todos los lugares
por todos los caminos
que andaba y desandaba,
alguna vez oí tus pasos en el bosque
otra vez escuché
tu risa pero nunca
te tuve entre los brazos
para poder hablarte
para decirte que
mi vida iba cayendo
como una gota de agua
que hacía frío y
que te he esperado siempre
roto y amante como
me ves como me tienes
contra tu pecho amiga.
The beauty of this poem is in its pacing. I read it fast, like a desperate prayer. I love the absence of punctuation and how he chose to put pauses in the poem with each new line.
Here is a rough translation:
Happiness, I have
looked and looked for you
in all of the places
in all of the streets
that I walked and unwalked
once I heard your steps in the forest
another time I listened
to your laugh but never
have I had you in my arms
to be able to speak to you
to tell you that
my life has gone falling
like a drop of water
that was cold and
that I have waited for you forever
broken and lover like
you see me as you have me
against your chest friend.
I read this as if it were one long run-on sentence. I think the ending is purposefully more ambiguous because the emotion is stronger and the reader/writer is getting closer and closer to a sob.
Anyway, I've been reading through his book "Palabras para Julia" (1979). Here is a poem I'm currently falling in love with:
Alegría yo te
he buscado y buscado
por todos los lugares
por todos los caminos
que andaba y desandaba,
alguna vez oí tus pasos en el bosque
otra vez escuché
tu risa pero nunca
te tuve entre los brazos
para poder hablarte
para decirte que
mi vida iba cayendo
como una gota de agua
que hacía frío y
que te he esperado siempre
roto y amante como
me ves como me tienes
contra tu pecho amiga.
The beauty of this poem is in its pacing. I read it fast, like a desperate prayer. I love the absence of punctuation and how he chose to put pauses in the poem with each new line.
Here is a rough translation:
Happiness, I have
looked and looked for you
in all of the places
in all of the streets
that I walked and unwalked
once I heard your steps in the forest
another time I listened
to your laugh but never
have I had you in my arms
to be able to speak to you
to tell you that
my life has gone falling
like a drop of water
that was cold and
that I have waited for you forever
broken and lover like
you see me as you have me
against your chest friend.
I read this as if it were one long run-on sentence. I think the ending is purposefully more ambiguous because the emotion is stronger and the reader/writer is getting closer and closer to a sob.
Hace tiempo!
Hello again.
Yesterday Joel told me this joke (probably need to read it aloud):
¿Que dice un jaguar a otro jaguar?
Jaguar you?
(How are you?)
Yesterday Joel told me this joke (probably need to read it aloud):
¿Que dice un jaguar a otro jaguar?
Jaguar you?
(How are you?)
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Ice cream plans fail, Cassidy learns to chill
Jesús and I were supposed to get ice cream on Monday, but things didn't work out. This didn't phase my easy-going (therefore, clearly non-estadounidense) friend.
"Sabes que dice el camello?" (Do you know what the camel says?)
"Aún nos queda mucho desierto para recorrer." (We still have plenty of desert left to walk over.)
Jesús' astute recognition that Sparky's isn't going anywhere.
"Sabes que dice el camello?" (Do you know what the camel says?)
"Aún nos queda mucho desierto para recorrer." (We still have plenty of desert left to walk over.)
Jesús' astute recognition that Sparky's isn't going anywhere.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Spanish word of the day
...another tongue twister! Thanks to Rosario & Jessi @ El Rancho:
Pepe pecas
Pica papas
con un pico
Pepe Peca
pica papas.
(I'm not quite sure what this means--any ideas David?)
Pepe pecas
Pica papas
con un pico
Pepe Peca
pica papas.
(I'm not quite sure what this means--any ideas David?)
Monday, March 2, 2009
Spanish word of the day
...except today it is a joke:
Si un gato muere. Say it five times fast, but not in the presence of any modest Spanish-speakers. Should sound like you are insulting someone's mom.
Si un gato muere. Say it five times fast, but not in the presence of any modest Spanish-speakers. Should sound like you are insulting someone's mom.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Spanish word of the day
madreleño:
the high-pitched soft voice, slower speech pattern and exaggerated expressions that a mother (or anyone) uses to talk to her baby.
Not to be confused with madrileño: a person from Madrid.
the high-pitched soft voice, slower speech pattern and exaggerated expressions that a mother (or anyone) uses to talk to her baby.
Not to be confused with madrileño: a person from Madrid.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Spanish word of the day
rompecabezas:
puzzle, riddle, brain-teaser
Romper is the verb for "to break" and cabeza means "head."
puzzle, riddle, brain-teaser
Romper is the verb for "to break" and cabeza means "head."
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Mexican phrase of the day
Alex & Rosario are cooks at El Rancho. I mostly work with them and Jesús. When they aren't asking me if I have a novio or like to dance, they say "Que me cuentas?".
I used to ask people the same question in English when I was bored. "Tell me a story!"
I used to ask people the same question in English when I was bored. "Tell me a story!"
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Spanish word of the day
caerse:
to fall
If I drop a plate at work, in Spanish, I didn't drop it. It fell.
Yet another example of how a language can reflect cultural personalities. I love how this verb takes the blame off me and puts it on the plate!
to fall
If I drop a plate at work, in Spanish, I didn't drop it. It fell.
Yet another example of how a language can reflect cultural personalities. I love how this verb takes the blame off me and puts it on the plate!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Found on the front counter at El Rancho:
Adios Dishwasher
Querido de
tus pequeños
y grandes hoyos
ya me despido
si un día yo regreso
ya sería
por muy jodido!
ATENTAMENTE
El Chapo
I don't have permission to post this bc this a farewell poem written by Jesus. Hopefully he doesn't mind that I've posted it. I've been working with him for the last two weeks. He washes the dishes, I dry them. Working at El Rancho isn't exactly thrilling.
Today was especially slow and I spent most of my time practicing vocabulary words. Though I don't want to work in fast food for the rest of my life, part of me loves blue-collar jobs. I'm pretty sure I'd be happy as a professional roofer or house painter etc. The added bonus of speaking Spanish all day makes wiping up cheese sauce and being friendly to the racist customers worth it.
The other Jesus, older Jesus, thought this poem was so great that he taped it up above the dishwasher so everyone can read it.
Essentially, the poem says:
Goodbye Dishwasher,
loved for
your small and large pots and pans
I say goodbye
If one day I return
I would already be
totally screwed.
ATTENTIVELY,
El Chapo
Querido de
tus pequeños
y grandes hoyos
ya me despido
si un día yo regreso
ya sería
por muy jodido!
ATENTAMENTE
El Chapo
I don't have permission to post this bc this a farewell poem written by Jesus. Hopefully he doesn't mind that I've posted it. I've been working with him for the last two weeks. He washes the dishes, I dry them. Working at El Rancho isn't exactly thrilling.
Today was especially slow and I spent most of my time practicing vocabulary words. Though I don't want to work in fast food for the rest of my life, part of me loves blue-collar jobs. I'm pretty sure I'd be happy as a professional roofer or house painter etc. The added bonus of speaking Spanish all day makes wiping up cheese sauce and being friendly to the racist customers worth it.
The other Jesus, older Jesus, thought this poem was so great that he taped it up above the dishwasher so everyone can read it.
Essentially, the poem says:
Goodbye Dishwasher,
loved for
your small and large pots and pans
I say goodbye
If one day I return
I would already be
totally screwed.
ATTENTIVELY,
El Chapo
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Spanish word of the day
hazmerreír:
laughing stock
literally: make me laugh
I had to look this word up and sound it out several times before I realized how obvious the definition is! "Haz" is the command form of "hacer" which means "to make" and "reír" means "to laugh." Brilliant.
laughing stock
literally: make me laugh
I had to look this word up and sound it out several times before I realized how obvious the definition is! "Haz" is the command form of "hacer" which means "to make" and "reír" means "to laugh." Brilliant.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Spanish word of the day
This one comes from Disfrutando la Gastronomía, where I am learning some good Spanish cooking vocabulary. I can't wait until I am finished with this semester so I can spend some time experimenting w/ the recipes!
dientes de ajo:
cloves of garlic
While I was in Madrid, I think I mistakenly used the phrase "clavos de ajo," because it sounded like a more direct translation. I am glad I was wrong, because a garlic tooth is way cooler than a garlic clove!
dientes de ajo:
cloves of garlic
While I was in Madrid, I think I mistakenly used the phrase "clavos de ajo," because it sounded like a more direct translation. I am glad I was wrong, because a garlic tooth is way cooler than a garlic clove!
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Ry Cooder & the Dodger Stadium
I've been teaching Spanish to Tom since I got back to the states. A few weeks ago, he introduced me to a bilingual album by Ry Cooder, Chavez Ravine . A summary from allmusic.com by Thom Jurek explains the album better than I could:
"It documents in mythical style the disappeared Los Angeles neighborhood of Chavez Ravine, a Mexican-American district that fought over by real estate developers, urban planning activists and city government. It was bulldozed in a sleazy deal was cut and it was razed order to erect a stadium that would lure Walter O'Malley's Brooklyn Dodgers to L.A."
Tom and I worked through the song Barrio Viejo (old neighborhood) and learned a lot of vocabulary. I translate a few stanzas below, to give you a taste of its poetry.
Here are the lyrics to the song, which I am posting because it was actually quite difficult to find them. When I did find them, it was in an obscure chicano literature newsletter and I'm pretty sure whoever put it together just wrote down the words to the song as he/she heard them. I fixed the few errors I found, but there are probably still inaccuracies.
Barrio Viejo
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo
Solo hay lugares parejos
Donde un dia hubo casas
Donde vivió nuestra raza.
Solo quedan los escombros (Only ruins remain
De los hogares felices Of the happy homes
De las alegres familias Of the happy families
De esa gente que yo quise. Of these people who I loved)
Por las tardes se sentaba
Afuera a tomar el fresco
Yo pasaba y saludaba
Ya parece que oigo el eco.
Como está Doña Juanita.
Buenas tardes Isabel.
Hola que dices Chalita,
Como está Arturo y Manuel.
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo
Que en infancia te goce
Y con todos mis amigos
Iba descalzo al a pie.
De lay Mayer hasta “El Hoyo”
Desde “El Hoyo” hasta la hacequia,
De la hacequia hasta el rio,
Ese era el mundo mio.
Dicen que eramos pobres, (They say we were poor
Pues yo nunca lo note. Well, I never noticed
Yo era feliz en mi mundo, I was happy in my world
Ese aquel barrio que adore. In this neighborhood I adored)
Bonitas las serenatas
A las tres de la manana
Que le cantaba a mi chata
Pegandito a su ventana.
Por la calle de el convento,
Una casa destruida,
Quedó como momumento
Al gran amor de mi vida.
Pobrecito viejo barrio,
Como te debe doler.
Cuando en nombre del progreso
Derrumban otra pared.
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo, (Old neighborhood, neighborhood old
Yo tambien ya envejecí I also have already gotten old
Y cuando uno se hace viejo And when one gets old
Nadie se acuerda de ti. No one remembers you)
Vamanos muriendo juntos, (Let's go, we are dying together
Que me entierren en tu suelo That they would bury me in your ground
Y seremos dos difuntos And we would be two dead
Rodeados de mil recuerdos. Surrounded by a thousand memories)
To me, this is another "paved paradise" song. I love its sentiment and historical value. I also love that there are two different words for happy in this song. Alegre and feliz. The reason other languages captivate me so much is this-the subtle differences you can't translate.
"It documents in mythical style the disappeared Los Angeles neighborhood of Chavez Ravine, a Mexican-American district that fought over by real estate developers, urban planning activists and city government. It was bulldozed in a sleazy deal was cut and it was razed order to erect a stadium that would lure Walter O'Malley's Brooklyn Dodgers to L.A."
Tom and I worked through the song Barrio Viejo (old neighborhood) and learned a lot of vocabulary. I translate a few stanzas below, to give you a taste of its poetry.
Here are the lyrics to the song, which I am posting because it was actually quite difficult to find them. When I did find them, it was in an obscure chicano literature newsletter and I'm pretty sure whoever put it together just wrote down the words to the song as he/she heard them. I fixed the few errors I found, but there are probably still inaccuracies.
Barrio Viejo
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo
Solo hay lugares parejos
Donde un dia hubo casas
Donde vivió nuestra raza.
Solo quedan los escombros (Only ruins remain
De los hogares felices Of the happy homes
De las alegres familias Of the happy families
De esa gente que yo quise. Of these people who I loved)
Por las tardes se sentaba
Afuera a tomar el fresco
Yo pasaba y saludaba
Ya parece que oigo el eco.
Como está Doña Juanita.
Buenas tardes Isabel.
Hola que dices Chalita,
Como está Arturo y Manuel.
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo
Que en infancia te goce
Y con todos mis amigos
Iba descalzo al a pie.
De lay Mayer hasta “El Hoyo”
Desde “El Hoyo” hasta la hacequia,
De la hacequia hasta el rio,
Ese era el mundo mio.
Dicen que eramos pobres, (They say we were poor
Pues yo nunca lo note. Well, I never noticed
Yo era feliz en mi mundo, I was happy in my world
Ese aquel barrio que adore. In this neighborhood I adored)
Bonitas las serenatas
A las tres de la manana
Que le cantaba a mi chata
Pegandito a su ventana.
Por la calle de el convento,
Una casa destruida,
Quedó como momumento
Al gran amor de mi vida.
Pobrecito viejo barrio,
Como te debe doler.
Cuando en nombre del progreso
Derrumban otra pared.
Viejo barrio, barrio viejo, (Old neighborhood, neighborhood old
Yo tambien ya envejecí I also have already gotten old
Y cuando uno se hace viejo And when one gets old
Nadie se acuerda de ti. No one remembers you)
Vamanos muriendo juntos, (Let's go, we are dying together
Que me entierren en tu suelo That they would bury me in your ground
Y seremos dos difuntos And we would be two dead
Rodeados de mil recuerdos. Surrounded by a thousand memories)
To me, this is another "paved paradise" song. I love its sentiment and historical value. I also love that there are two different words for happy in this song. Alegre and feliz. The reason other languages captivate me so much is this-the subtle differences you can't translate.
Spanish word of the day
caprichosa:
whimsical, capricious
As in: La pelicula Big Fish es caprichosa. The movie Big Fish is whimsical. Speaking of Tim Burton, how excited are you about the Alice in Wonderland movie? If you haven't already seen it, check out Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter. Sweet.
Anyway, I like both of these words because they both sound whimsical. The 'ch' sound isn't very popular in Spanish, which adds to the foreign-ness of the word for me.
(Thanks for helping me out David!)
whimsical, capricious
As in: La pelicula Big Fish es caprichosa. The movie Big Fish is whimsical. Speaking of Tim Burton, how excited are you about the Alice in Wonderland movie? If you haven't already seen it, check out Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter. Sweet.
Anyway, I like both of these words because they both sound whimsical. The 'ch' sound isn't very popular in Spanish, which adds to the foreign-ness of the word for me.
(Thanks for helping me out David!)
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