I'm Off!

The past several days have been quite busy for me as I worked through my second week of classes this semester and prepared for the two medical school interviews I have coming up this week. I leave tomorrow morning when my first stop will be Canada to visit the University of Buffalo, followed by a trip to East Flatbush, Brooklyn—the home of Roosevelt Chapman (along with some other notable residents)—to try my luck at Downstate.

Things I've Heard this Week

I didn't do anything very exciting this week, but I did hear some things that made me laugh that I would like to share.

First, a conversation with my friend Matt who lives in Chicago:

Me: I booked my flight to Buffalo a day earlier than the interview because I heard there is bad weather in the States right now.
Matt: It's true; yesterday we had a thunder blizzard.
Me: A thunder blizzard!?
Matt: Yeah, it was crazy.


Next, a friend of mine, Georgia, broke her sandal while walking in the park and another friend, Peter, shared an interesting observation from his personal experience:

Me: You broke your sandal? I'll give you a piggy-back ride.
Georgia: No thanks.
Peter: (In a slightly frustrated and disappointed tone) Nobody wants piggy-back rides anymore.
Me: Peter, you say that like you see people turn down piggy back rides with some degree of regularity.
Peter: Yeah, I ask my girlfriend like everyday and she always says no.


Not really that funny, but one of my students gave me a great response during a game where you have to create a question for the given answer:

Me: The answer is: Michael Jackson.
Student: Who is the King of Pop?


Sometimes I'm the one who says funny things, like when I was talking with my host family the other day trying to find a place to get my suit dry-cleaned and I accidentally said tierno instead of terno:

Me: Do you know a place where I can get my affection cleaned?
Host Family: *uproarious laughter and finger pointing at me*


And lastly, this gem from the new receptionist at the school I teach at:

Receptionist: Why does everyone call you Krishna?
Me: Because it's my name.
Receptionist: Oh, I thought it was just because you are Indian.


Well, I hope they sell winter coats at the Buffalo airport because I don't have anything heavier than a hoodie with me here in Ecuador. At least this trip will give me a chance to wear the scarf my mother sent me for my birthday that I have not had the opportunity to use on the Equator.