Stammtisch macht Spaß!

Every Thursday evening, anyone who speaks German and feels like eating out or just sitting around and talking goes to Stammtisch, which means going to Gillie's (very good restaurant,  by the way, and cheap) and speaking German.  Always the big rectangular table on the left as you walk in, starting at 6PM and going until a bit after 7.  It's fun.

Yesterday, there was pretty much no one there.  My professor and one other person showed up, but we still had a great time talking.  I discovered that the other guy (M) is fairly involved in Intervarsity, so we told Dr. M (my professor) about IV and Campus Crusade for Christ, which was really cool.

And, as always happens when speaking a foreign language, hilarity ensues from trying to find the right word.

M the student mentioned a time in his German class that he didn't know the word for "deer" in German, so in a class discussion, he called in a Waldkuh (forest cow).  Makes sense, doesn't it?  The professor corrected him, but the entire rest of the class period, his classmates were using the word Waldkuh just for fun.   During Stammtisch, he and I noticed that the words we don't know in German always seem to translate directly from English with very little spelling or pronunciation difference.  "Deer" in German is actually "Reh," which makes sense if you think of the word "roe" for deer.

But etemology isn't as funny as what happened later.  I was trying to explain what I usually have for breakfast to Dr. M, as she has never really  tried the campus food (which, if you are looking into coming to Virginia Tech, is very good!).  I could explain that I got coffee from Deet's, but then I tried to think of the word for the food I usually eat.  The dictionary I had with me did not have the word, and I was at a loss and about to ask her for the word when I realized that Google Translator might have an answer, and I could text message Google SMS and access the translator.  (By the way, Mom and Dad, thank you for the unlimited texting!  I put it to good use, as you will see!)  So, a few seconds after my inquiry, my phone vibrates and I get the translation:

"muffin" in English is "muffin" in German.

Oh.

I read the text aloud, and we all burst out laughing.

Stammtisch is usually a lot of fun, and sometimes there are nearly a dozen people there, speaking German and hanging out.  But this time, I stayed longer than I usually did.  Somehow, I broke through my "I don't understand social dynamics or the art of conversation" problem and enjoyed myself.

Well, I actually have German class in 30 minutes.  And then, I get to go to the Health Center to verify that I don't have tuberculosis.  Oh joy!