I’m having lots of trouble communicating in English with the Latinos WHO SPEAK ENGLISH!!
Unfortunately I don’t speak Spanish but most folks from south of the border who live in Fort Lauderdale speak English. But somehow the Englishes are different.
For instance, my hairdresser, who is very good, speaks both English and Spanish. So we were discusssing what to do with my hair at this appointment.
Mary asked me how much I wanted cut off. We talked about that for a while and decided about 3/4 inches. As she is cutting, I noticed that not a lot of my hair was falling on the ground. So I questioned her. “Is that 3/4 “?” No, she stammered, getting very upset. So we talked again about the length of my haircut. Finally we are both happy, but I wondered if it’s my Pittsburgh accent which is causing the miscommunication.
“Do you want me to blow dry it?” Mary asked later in the program.
“Awww, no, I’ll just let it air dry.”
Then she picks up the blow dryer and begins to dry my hair, in earnest.
Knowing how apologetic and distressed she gets when I correct her, I let her do it. And she did a nice job.
But what’s going on with the communication? It’s English we both speak. And it’s not just Mary. I’ve had this difficulty with other Latinos.
I dunno.
I’m having so much