Me Vely Vely Silly

Salam Salam,

Just when I had run out of ideas and topics for my blog, and was resorting to brainstorm sessions with A. on what I should be writing about next, then, myself happened. Surprise, surprise.

You know, I may not be very good with languages, but I pick up accents really, really, fast. I cannot explain how it happens or why; it’s like some kind of speech retardation that I suffer from. It takes me a minute of talking to someone and, Bingo! I borrow his accent. And it is an unconscious process too, only to realise when it is too late and can’t seem to shake it off!.

I can do Arabic Engrishhh, Filipino English, yes mam , Indian English, French anglais, you name it. It is most embarrassing when my interlocutor cannot speak good english, so I end up talking like a toddler myself , and not a very clever one.

Likewise with Spanish, I can do any accent just as easily. So If I am talking, say, to a Mexican, it is a matter of seconds before I start to sound like one myself. Weird, uh? But I swear I cant help it.

Moving on….

There is this Chinese mum to one of M's classmates that I always cross paths with on my way to the nursery . And today we stopped, standing right in the middle of the street, for a little small talk.

I cannot do small talk. I’m terrible with chitchat.

So, here we are, with a broken English and very strong Chinese accent, she is telling me how she spends her mornings doing some internet degree and blah blah blah, and before I know it I’m talking like a Chinese myself . And now I cannot get rid of it!

And thele was this leally awkward moment, when she stared at me, a bewildered look on hel face…And at that precise moment I could tell she was thinking: Is she making fun of my accent?.  For a split second I was about to confess:- Me no know why talk like that, me surle no mocking you, me so solly solly.

But I didn’t say anything and the split second passed and I kept babbling in Chinglish.

Shame on me, she vely nice, me vely vely silly.