spanish

Me, frustrated trying to do stuff on a laptop

Throughout much – or maybe all – of human history, language has been a living thing. Words are invented, modified, combined with other languages and even change their meaning. Many words in English have non-English origins. One is RSVP from the French “Répondez s’il vous plait”.

In English we have been using acronyms of pure English, such as ASAP – As Soon As Possible.

In the Internet World, there are more and more groups of letters that stand for a phrase, such as NSFW (not safe for work) which is a warning not to open a message when there are other people around. And it becomes more complicated when you are in a country in which your language is not the official language.

There are other types of acronyms specific to particular businesses or professions, of which I fell victim today. Because I was a nurse for 45 years, medical acronyms immediately come to mind when I see a bunch of letters anywhere. DNI becomes “Do Not Intubate” instead of “Do Not Inventory” when I’m in a store, or “Director of National Intelligence” when I’m reading something about government agencies.

I am a member of several internet groups – some English-speaking, some Spanish-speaking and some bilingual. A member of one of my groups posted a request for a recommendation for a cardiologist and then posted “BBB”. Because my specialty was heart failure, I answered with a recommendation and answered another member’s question with an explanation that BBB stands for Bundle Branch Block – a blockage of a specific set of nerves in the heart. Turns out – oops – in Spanish BBB stands for Bueno Bonito Barato – something of good quality but not too expensive.

Well, I learned something new, and a little too late by a few days. Recently my boiler needed replacing after springing a leak, and I could have just used that phrase instead of a long-winded explanation of what I wanted – something of good quality but not horrendously expensive. Definitely, I’ll know for next time, as there always is a next time for repairs and replacements.

I am constantly learning new vocabulary and phrases here in one way or another. That is why I don’t charge for my English tutoring lessons, since I learn just as much Spanish from my students as they learn English from me.

In addition to acronyms and words across many languages as well as your own, the meanings can change within your lifetime, leading to some awkward instances. The word “funny” meant strange. A friend of mine had died in a car accident and about a year later I mentioned to some other friends that it was funny not having her with us. I was admonished that there was nothing funny/humorous about it, when I had only meant that it felt strange. Made me feel like I had turned into my mother, using language that our elders had used.

I also had to explain the above quote to a co-worker who was not that much younger than I was at the time. I was in my 50’s at that time. Oh, well, I am trying to keep my brain active, changing with the times, learning slowly what I can about computers, continuing to learn Spanish, and maybe if anyone is interested, I can write about what it was like growing up without computers, etc. and what medicine was like 59 years ago when I entered nursing school. So many changes can happen in one lifetime. My grandmother was born before the invention of the airplane, and she lived to see a man walk on the moon. So many changes in my lifetime and it will be interesting, if sometimes frustrating, to see and experience what changes will occur in the future before I am gone – hopefully changes for the better Until next time………….

Me, when the lightbulb finally goes on and I understand what I am doing. And this will be you, too