I'm just now recovering from my turkey-induced stupor, only to find that nothing is still happening around here. We had a lovely Thanksgiving -- check out Chris' blog for a couple pictures -- although it wasn't the same without my cousin Jon around to roll his eyes back in his head and declare "Mmm, tryptophan -- opiate of the gods." It was funny the first time he did it years ago, and it's still funny every time I think of it.
On a slightly unrelated topic, our trip to Peru (which shall be known as Cuzcotopia) looms near. With Thanksgiving out of the way, we have but four weeks to prepare. We've gotten our vaccinations for typhoid, tetanus, and hepatitis A, and I'm beginning to put together packing lists that include toilet paper and hand sanitizer, as well as shopping lists that include rain gear.
The funniest thing I find myself doing, though, is inventing situations in my head that would require well-understood Spanish, delivered frantically and emphatically. Every "Learn Spanish" CD we've gotten from the library fails to teach anything more than sentences that start with "Where is...?" and "I'd like to..." This gets boring quickly, so I started to come up with dialogues that might require me to know the words for "lightheaded" and "extreme blood loss."
This morning, apparently limb loss wasn't even enough to hold my attention, as I found myself daydreaming about being kidnapped and held for ransom by the few remaining guerilla members of the Shining Path. "Somos turistos de los Estados Unidos," I'd tearfully plead. "No sabemos nada del Sendero Luminoso porque somos estupidos y gordos." Emphasizing our extreme ignorance due to nationality and stupidity always seems to go over well with foreigners. Eventually, the little drama plays itself out with the guerillas giving us our freedom because we convince them that we know a guy who can get their leader on The Daily Show. "La publicidad es todo!" I'd shout, while shooing Chris towards the closest beat-up taxi that looks like it could whisk us back to Cuzco. "Recuerde, publicidad mala es todavia publicidad!"
If there's any Spanish speakers out there, I'd love to hear the correct translation of "Even bad publicity is still publicity." I don't know if it will actually come in handy, but I'd still like to surprise someone in Peru -- even if they're not holding me for ransom.
1 comment:
Mm, tryptophan. I haven't had turkey in thirteen years, but I take L-Tryptophan every night these days. Puts me out like a mother f'n light.
Post a Comment