I went to cut m hair last week at Jessies Barber Shop on Brooklyn and Mott, even though I hate having to look “nice” and “clean” according to society, and I was reminded of what it’s like to be a guy. You see, I grew up with three younger sisters, at school I’m surrounded by women colleagues (both good and bad depending on what day of the month it is) and I’ve come to realize that most of the people I call friends are, well woman. Of course I have guy friends but I hang out with woman more than men and again, it’s a good/bad things. However, being around woman all the time means that there’s certain language I can’t use and behavior that’s not appropriate in the presence of a woman. Vulgar humor doesn’t work on them and therefore I’m left alone to my own devices. But there are still some places left in this world where a guy can be a guy and not only be encouraged by vulgar humor/language, but be commended for it. During my hair cut, I overheard a conversation that started simply enough about a parking situation with one of the barbers in-laws. As soon as she left he started talking all kinds of trash, in a joking fashion of course, at least I hope it was. He called her a crazy old lady, she’s outta her f’ing mind etc. Then some of the other guys waiting joined in the conversation and joked that maybe the argument was caused because it was that time of the month. Then they completely trailed off and started talking about getting ass and basically being guys. This was all in spanish so you can only imagine the vulgarity of the language used to say everything I described. While I may not agree with their male-chauvinistic views, it felt good shooting the shit with the guys again.

Alright I need a spell check here. I was walking to the post office last week to mail out some christmas cards and I took a snap shot of this tag. Now, when I first saw it I immediately questioned the idiot cholos spelling. I’m pretty sure lefty and Chile (?) weren’t much help in helping him spell. So what which one is it ? Huero or Guero ? But there’s an bigger underlying dilemma brought up in my conundrum to figure out the correct spelling, I’m forgetting my spanish !!!!!!!! English is my second language, but it turned into my primary language once I mastered it. I learned to read and write in spanish first, but when I “moved” to the states I was immersed with the english language thanks to television and friends at school. That and lack of practice make the problem worse. Being bilingual is an asset and even though I may forget words at times, I’m still proficient in spanish. I guess you can say I’m outta practice since I stopped living with my parents more than a year ago. Of course I poke fun of friends who are Mexican but can’t speak a lick of spanish because their parents for whatever reason didn’t teach it to them. The obvious solution is to practice it more, but english is what everyone speaks unless you’re a parental figure. It’s embarrassing to forget how to spell and pronounce certain words or not be able to translate them. Last time that happened to me was when I was trying to say vegeterania (vegetarian). 🙁