The Incredible Cracking and Expanding Brain

Ciao a tutti amici,
Regarding one of my language breakthroughs. I wanted to explain to those of you whom have never studied language, a little bit about the first huge barrier I have finally overcome to learning this language. Just to get started, you have to learn the determinative article "the" and the indeterminative article "a". Unlike the English language with one of each, in Italian there are 6 forms of "the" and 7 forms of "a".


This is determined by the first and last letters in each word being used. The first and last letter determine whether the word is a masculine singular, masculine plural, feminine singular, feminine plural, or one of the (damned and double damned) exceptions to those 4. lol


Just to give you an example the masculine singular word ends with and "O" and the masculine plural word ends in an "I". if the masculine word starts with a vowel "the" or "a" changes. And if the masculine word starts with a p+n, p+s, g+n, s+ any consonant, or X, Y, or Z "then it changes to another form. SEE WHAT I MEAN! even though i am starting to understand this principle my poor little hard-nut brain does not process it fast enough to speak it. I can read and write it and I can understand when other people speak it. I just keep telling myself... "it's okay little hard nut-brain, you will grow up to be a big hard-nut brain someday.


I think one of the factors involved in my brain struggle to overcome this barrier is that i am a little bit of a feminist and want to resist the absolute separation of genders to discourage disparity. Maybe it would help me to stop thinking of my brain as a little hard nut that needs to be cracked and start thinking of it as a baby hermit crab that needs to find a larger shell to crawl into.


Then maybe, just maybe i will be able to move into the higher and larger intellect needed for this language shift. Yes little baby hermit crab brained english speakers... The Italian intellect is much bigger and faster than our own. This is why the Pope (Papa in Italian) can speak 15 languages! http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v3/n1/full/nn0100_91.html


So how many of you knew what the grammatic terms "determinate and indeterminate article" meant before reading this? hmmmmm? hehehehehe. I am pleased and at the same time dreading the fact that once this uncomfortable process of brain cracking and expansion is through, i will have to do it again and again and may eventually become addicted to it!


Blessings:
- my roomate Agnes (pronounced Ah-nees with a silent g) again for loaning me her French to English textbook "Bridges". This text shows me the way the French teach their children about American culture and language. A real eye-opener (and brain expander too). It would take 10 pages of text to explain this. Instead you should read all the lyrics of Ben Harper and Speeches of Martin Luther King.

- All three of my children for putting together my wardrobe for this adventure. My wardrobe is both comfortable and acceptably stylish to the Italians. I get complements and nods of approval all day long. I am especially thankful for the black leather boots that were given to me by my daughter Christen. they are my only really stylish and comfortable walking shoes. i just pray they hold up to the pounding they are getting for this whole Italian expansion period.

- my language teacher Stefani for her perserverance, fortitude and tool box (of bombs, hammers and pick axes) that have helped transform my brain from a little hard nut-brain into a baby hermit crab brain. lol



Curses:
- another headache. with all this brain cracking and expanding i am getting even worse about misplacing my keys, change purse, glasses and passport!

- i have picked up another stray dog. ooooh noooo. but this one is more like a hungry coyote and less like a flirty little fox. He lurked for days before approaching me yesterday. He asked me to help him write a letter in english to a girl he knows in England. He kept trying to touch me and i kept having to swat him away. he asked me to have a coffee with him and then followed me home. I had to dart into the grocery store even though i needed no groceries. I spent a very long time picking out a very few unneeded items. When i came out he was gone.


This one scares me folks.


I am finally learning not to panic when the vegetable truck with it's too loud PA system passes screaming "FRAGOLI FRAGOLI!!, CACIOFFI CACIOFFI!!" No it's not bombs dropping and i do not have to run for my life or jump under a table. It's just a sale on strawberries and artichokes ha ha ha.


Is that a piece of my brain on the floor under the table? It must be the piece that remembers to take my glasses with me to school. What a relief I found it!

i have a new response to questions that is better than a blank stare and fits right in to the local methods of expression.

When a question is asked: First a very loud "BOH!" (sound of exasperation, accompanied by slapping the forehead), then "No lo so!" ("i don't know" accompanied by hands flying up in the air), then "mi dispiace" ("i am sorry" accompanied by hands going to my chest in a sign of sincerity) and finally "La mia testa é duro-noce! ("my head is nut hard" accompanied by pointing at my head and shaking it from side to side). it is perfect. I was afraid that my sense of humor would not translate to Italian... but from all the laughs i get, now I think my humor improves in Italian ha ha ha ha.

basta per ora (enough for now). love you all!