It's been sometime since I have written a few oddballs in my journal. Usual excuse - been busy and not enough time. I decided a couple of nights ago to revamp the design of my web log and dust some cobwebs away. It's not my type of colour but I needed something bright and jazzy to pep it up for this summer.

And as far as summer is concern, it's going to be a long one. No work and just full of activities and projects that I have prepared to keep me active and to prevent me from becoming a potato couch. And speaking of  potato couch, I am on a diet. Oh yes, a diet!  The mission is to loose those love handles and firm those muscles. And when I think about it, you can't lose weight without exercise. But I've got a philosophy about exercise. I don't think you should punish your legs for something your mouth did. So I'll just drag my lips around the block once or twice. Ha..ha..just kidding! If only I can attach a modem to my stomach and upload my excess fat to a skinny person on the net. I could start a new trend of Internet diet. What a laugh!

Other things on the agenda, is learning Spanish with my husband this summer. I grew up speaking Spanish with my grandfather but it's become rusty and learning it again is  something my husband and  I can do together. He seems to be quite enthusiastic about it and he is willing to give it a go. I never thought he would even try since Benidorm is really an English speaking Spanish town and it's easy to get lazy and not bother with any of the languages and cultural bits. As far as I am concern, I've grown up a bi-lingual and eventually multi-lingual. There are so many advantages of being able to speak many languages specially me with my dark skin and Asian looks - European people tend to think I have little grasp of what ever language. It's amazing what some ignorant git say in front of you and behind your back in another language and surprise surprise when I  retort back in their own language.

Benidorm is hardly a place to become fluent in Spanish but it is surely a place to adapt to Spanglish. You'll end up saying something like this in a sentence for instant:  "You know Maria. Ella es la persona who was at the bar con nosotros el abril pasado. Remember?"

It's easy not to bother learning Spanish when the workers at Sinatra's goes out their way to speak English which should really be the other way around. Of course, I can barely understand some of them when they speak English. And by the way, most of the workers are from Eastern Europe. They started learning the language when their Spanish was only half-installed, and their tongue has not recovered. A good example is my friend Marcela...she gets down from, not out of, the car; she dreams with, not of, other people; and while other couples spoon in bed, she thinks they "scoop" (I'd prefer to fork, but so it goes).

In Spanish, all plurals end in "s," and Spanglish is no different. I have on underwears, the lottery is at 32 millions, and white people eat a lot of spaghettis.

In light of my laughter, Marcela tries making noises to be understood. Every item at work has a sound now. Many of them whistle.

"Venus, have you seen my woohoo-woohoo?"

"You're what?"

"My pinza, you know, the jigamathing."

(Yes, gentle reader, I understand that it's "thingamajig," and she got that from me but I don't have the galls to tell her. She might go bazooka.)

I fear that my own English is spoiling by osmosis. I find myself looking up terms I knew in third grade. Was bob wire really named after its inventor, Bob? It's only a matter of time before my language skills are limited to woohoos, and jigamathings.

Once Marcela asked Gordon to get her a take away from Peter's and she ordered  smashed potatoes and cold slaw. Gordon chuckled and wrote it down. But when I mentioned I usually like crunchies in my salad, he raised a brow.

"Shall I assume you mean croutons?"

"I could mean just about anything. I'm from Spangland."

How was your day folks?

I like doings things for people and I don't mind helping. But when it comes to me asking for help, the world seem to freeze on me.

"Please copy this CD for me"...."print this for me"...."do you mind doing this for me"..."Venus, can you help sell a caravan"..."Venus, come to the shop with me"..."do me some business cards"... "do this"... "do that." I don't really mind to be honest.

I love doing things for people and I don't expect anything in return. It's just sometimes when you do ask a little bit and not much, it makes me feel like I am asking for the mountain to be moved.

I have my flaws but I always believe whatever flaws they are - they are much outweighed by my better ones. But it's sickening, no matter how good you do, your flaws are slapped raw to your face.

It took three people to make me feel crap today - which is crap really. Well done folks.  Hope you all had a grander day than I did.