I got set up by a friend of a friend. This time with a radiologist--who had just moved to Omaha from Florida. I received warning that he was really shy. But I figured, shy, I can handle. Maybe because it is the opposite of my loquacious and outgoing personality. Because he was shy, he wanted my email before--so we emailed a few times before we eventually met up--and he wasn't shy. He was sweet, intelligent, somewhat charming, and mildly funny.
We met at Kona--and from the start I was confused. The sweet, intelligent guy who I had emailed with suddenly didn't say much about anything. Who knew I could talk about the weather for a good 17minutes...I didn't...Finally, after finishing my wine, I asked him--why he was suddenly so shy? His response rendered me speechless--"I, don't speak many English." I think I pry did a double-take (can you do those at words?), and then stuck my foot in my mouth with," but aren't you from Florida..."
The date didn't end with a screeching halt right then, but it definitely went on a downward spiral. I awkwardly tried to explain how I knew Spanish and Pig Latin as well...my date enthusiastically nodded, and smiled. He then ordered (by pointing at the menu) Sake Bombs and threw out the word "Massage" with a wink... (can't speak good English my foot).
I'm lucky enough to have amazing friends who are skilled actors--so I texted a friend to call and pretend something was wrong (yes, girls do actually do this)... After an Oscar worthy performance on both our parts, I had to excuse myself from my date--who stayed with the sake bombs--but asked before I left: "Goodnight, kiss?" My response "High Five..."
Have you ever had a language barrier on a date?! Do you think my date really couldn't speak English well--or was it just an act?
oh my gosh, i love this one!
ReplyDeleteIf it makes you feel any better, I had two Spanish boys that were the short-lived apple of my eye. The first was named Diego. I was at a hostel in Madrid for a night before I was to catch a bus down to Granada the next day. I really wanted to go out, but I was there alone and after a bad experience on my own in Vienna, I feared going out alone in an unknown foreign city. I conceded that I'd just grab a drink in the basement bar of the hostel as a last ditch to socialize without fears of being 'taken.' Luckily, I stumbled upon a girl, Samantha, that was in the identical situation as myself. We agreed to team up and go out together. She had already met a group of eight or so guys from Sevilla that were down the hall from her room, so we made plans to go out with them. One or two could speak broken English, the other six were hopeless. Luckily, my spanish skills kicked into high gear, however, i seriously doubt i was conjugating verbs correctly and what not. It is a good thing that looks, dancing and drinking are languages everyone can understand. We went from bar to bar, taking shots, and having a ball. Finally, we ended up at this 7-story night club, "La Capital," which was the climax of the night. As we left the club, Samantha and Edu (short for eduardo) and myself and diego were walking home in a little foursome. Edu and Samantha had made out on the street, but I think we were a little to hesitate to follow suit. Sure enough we were alone, and parting ways on the hostel staircase which transitioned smoothly into a nice foreign makeout session. I don't think we said one sentence to each other that night, but it was one of the most spontaneous/fun nights of my life :)
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