Lost in Translation

Picture: Charcoal Tandoor made of clay for cooking many classic Indian dishes and breads.

OK - my title isn't very creative but it happens ALL the time. And, now that I think about it, I'm sure it happens much more than I ever know about! 1st example: For a while now, my cook Bali has talked about buying an electric tandoor for our kitchen (I can't have a real charcoal tandoor - very smoky - not good in an apartment or on the deck of an apartment) so once I figured out what Bali was talking about and did some "googling", I decided to do some shopping. When I mentioned to my driver Micky that I wanted to shop for an electric tandoor - the look on his face said it all. Tan Door? I saw the look but attributed it to the fact that electric tandoors are still relatively new and went on to explain why it had to be electric but, meanwhile, Micky was still trying to figure out why I wanted a Tan Door and where he was going to take this crazy American woman to buy one. Yes Mam came out of his mouth but "huh?" was going through his head. After several minutes of repeating the single word "tandoor" back and forth at each other, he finally screamed "TANDURE! TANDURE!" Yes, Micky, that's what I said!

Then, yesterday, after a week of a very stiff neck, I decided to try the massage service offered at the golf club. I should have known from the start that I was doomed. 3 calls later, after 2 hang ups, I had an appointment. At 6:30? - today? - I think? Who really knows. Surprisingly, they were expecting me when I arrived (think locker room, sports massage - no spa thing). After a lot of gesturing and me following folks around, I was lead to a massage room/closet. No problem I think - I need this - my neck is killing me. I then state a couple things to the woman...

1. first - no chest massage necessary (part of the program - I learned the hard way)
2. second - I have a very sore neck and shoulder area

On the first count - clearly just because I made my chest area off limits didn't mean the rest of my privates were off limits. Yikes!

On the second count - when she flipped on the lights and said "all done ma'am" I was sure it was a joke. She didn't touch my neck and shoulders! She must have thought I meant "don't touch - I'm sore". I wanted to cry.

Oh well. Not much to cry about. I just grinned and thought - there it goes again - lost in translation.

ps - Mother's Day in India was wonderful. Happy Mothers Day to all the fabulous woman I'm blessed to have in my life.


pss. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTINE! 17 - IT'S UNBELIEVABLE - HAVE A GREAT DAY!