Monday, August 17, 2009

Hughey Waldman


My husband and I were down in Historic Gibbsboro yesterday for my grandson's christening. My son-in-laws family flew in from Romania (first plane ride ever!) to join in the happy event. We speak no Romanian, they speak no English. Well, we can say a few words, like car, and how are you, and dead and sugar. They can say a few words too, like very hot, and beautiful and good. My husband was a little nervous about interacting with my son-in-laws father, but as the day went on, I saw them in the yard, walking around, pointing at trees and talking! On the ride home, my husband told me that although they did their best to communicate in the language of gestures, facial expressions and hand waving, he really had no clue as to what the other father was trying to tell him. He said, he kept telling me, "Hughey Waldman" and my husband was trying to search his brain to figure out who this Hughey Waldman guy was since it apparently was an English name that this Romanian guy knew very well. They repeated it slowly to each other, stretched out the syllables, broke it down into sections, each repeating the mantra back and forth to each other. My husband kept asking, is he a famous person and other such clues to arrive at who this Hughey Waldman guy was. My daughter called as we were driving home, and I said, ask Sorin to ask his father what he was trying to tell Dad. He kept saying Hughey Waldman, Hughey Waldman. Sorin came back with the translation, what his father was telling my husband, in his little grasp of English was - You/Me Old Men. We laughed the entire way home.