A More Perfect Union

Some questions come back to you again and again and some never really go away, why won't they give me a new passport? Why won't someone tell Formula 1 to stop, just stop. Or what's the point of Flo Rida?

The question we were posed this week was, what exactly is a "duotang"?

Can you eat it? Or wear it? Maybe, it's a small dog. We were posed this question by a Canadian, who was able to have some revenge. She has often been wrong footed by our delightful British patter while due to TV we were all aware of Americanisms/Canadianisms, until she said duotang. The problem is she don't spoke proper guvnor. It turns out that its a folder! A folder! In particular the thin ones with a see through plastic cover. This is what happens when you are from America's hat. We have agreed in the spirit of cultural awareness and friendship that she will speak more British/correctly and I will try to speak more Canadian. I need you to ensure that if I'm home and I say the word eraser, as I did yesterday, you will stamp it our roughly.

I was given a chance to formally evaluate how my Spanish is with a level test. A very jolly woman chatted to me and was very nice and then she whacks a mark on the paper and leaves. But I thought we were friends? Annoyingly another woman came over and without talking to me lowered my mark, what a bitch. I had a little grammar quiz which started well but got harder and ended with a tear stained paper. The final conclusion was A1+. A1+ sounds really good, its sounds like it might be the best, but it isnt, it's rubbish. I'm pretty sure the plus is a sympathy plus. Its still elementry and nearer beginner than intermediate. It was pretty disappointing but not because I feel I should be higher but because its where I belong and after a year I should be higher. It really motivated me for 10 to 15 minutes but then it stopped, but then that's the problem.

Someone who is motivated is my housemate Julia, who as part of her course needs to learn English. She asked for lessons and we just finished the first one. She treated the differences between will and going to with contemptous ease.

The first week was good, I don't even mind working on Saturdays. I'm getting to know people a little better. One girl went to the same school as my mum, which my grand mother throughly approves of. I'm beginning to like Madrid more and more, come and see!

love love love x