A difficult word

Last Friday morning I had a phone call with my colleague, Mr. D., to explain to him some work related steps.

After my long-winded explanation, I concluded by saying: "Well, this is a convoluted explanation, so I appreciate your understanding of what I'm trying to say." Mr. D. responded: "Wow, I'm impressed that you are using the word 'convoluted.' It's a difficult word even for Americans and English native speakers." I guess it surprised me a little that the word came out so naturally, as if I planned to say that all along. Then we spent a little more time to have a pleasant conversation about learning English as a second language; and his living in Germany, where he only learned enough German to order foods and drinks in the restaurants. I explained to him that when I came to America to study, learning English was for survival, so I had to study hard and it was difficult at times.

I still remember in numerous conversations in the past, people would ask, "How long have you been here?" I would say: "6 months," or "1 year," or "3 years", respectively; and they would be impressed and said, "Your English is very good. It must be difficult learning a new language and study all these subjects in this new language." They were so encouraging, and I still appreciate their support til today. These days, it is more difficult for me to impress people with my English, knowing that I've been living here for more than 20 years. So I appreciate Mr. D.'s compliments, and I told him so.

It reminded me that one time I was working in the lab with my colleague, I think that was early days of my career so I had been living in America for about 10 years, I told Mr. S. "Oh, my computer is out of juice," and Mr. S. was flabbergasted. He laughed and said: "What did you say? I didn't expect that to come out of your mouth." Then we joked that I was being more American everyday.

Tooland, toyland

Saturday morning we got up early, so we made an excursion to the Peninsula to run some errands. After the errand, we enjoyed breakfast with wholesome souffles and delicious latte at Panera. Jack asked if we could go to this shop to get some tools before going home. I reluctantly agreed, thinking worse case I would wait in the car.

Hardware stores to me is like shopping malls to Jack. It is pulling-my-hair-out-boring. It boggles my mind how can anyone get excited about nuts & bolts, pipes & wrenches, faucets & kitchen sinks? A lot of times I just hangout around the nursery, and imagine a colorful garden for our house, but sometimes I wait for him in the car.

In the same way, Jack couldn't stand shopping malls, but I love it. I like shopping and window shopping and looking at fashion styles, and I can be there for hours. Sometimes Jack would be happy to be left at the Apple Store, but a lot of times he just waited in the car. When it comes to shopping, we both have to make compromises.

It didn't take us long to get to this place called TOOLAND in Redwood City, just in time for them to open at 9 AM.

When we went into the store, Jack's eyes sparkled with excitement; and my eyes opened with bewilderment. This place had wrenches & sockets, washers & ratchets, and many other tools that I could not name, in every size!

So when Jack consulted the expert shop keeper on his project questions, I snapped some pictures to capture my amusement. No they don't have a nursery, but on the back they have some heavy duty equipment like table saws and drills. I also learned some names of tool manufacturers like DeWalt, Stanley and Bosch. On the cashiers counter, instead of candy bars and chewing gums, they have small flashlights and mini screwdrivers. These people really like their tools!

It reminds me of a luxury car commercial: Adults, are just like kids, with much much better toys.