Earlier this week Joe and I met at my work to eat ice cream, mostly to get him far away from FSU campus for an hour or two. I was surprised to see that he is actually very familiar with living in Tallahassee, as he has a car with GPS and from our conversations about food, he knows about a lot of the best restaurants in town. What I liked about taking Joe to Loftys was that it was the first time we ever spoke English together within a group. Surrounded by some of my co-workers and regular customers he became outgoing and began to ask questions as he explored the store for more items like yoyos, juggling toys, and board games. Normally Joe will ask me if has bad pronounciation when he has been talking for a few minutes but he completely forgot about this. I'm starting to think Joe's English speaking skills are not well perceived because he talks very differently when he knows someone and when he is meeting a stranger. I remember that our first meeting was full of stutters and mispronunciation but now I understand him just fine, except for when he gets too excited and starts to mix up his "L" and "R". Next time we meet I'll ask him if he has a strategy for breaking the ice when he meets new people, I feel like everyone needs something like that to feel comfortable with meeting people wherever.
After eating ice cream cones, Joe taught me a little something about Tallahassee. At Calico Jacks on Capital Circle, the oysters are 45c each on Thursdays and Sundays. I live a bikeable distance down the road from Calicos but never go there because I simply assume that the bars by the gulf coast are much cheaper. Joe and I went there for dinner and he treated me and himself to a dozen each. Calico Jacks is always loud and crowded but its a really nice place to unwind, the waiter shucks the oysters right in front of you so we got to have a nice conversation about where oysters can be found and all the combinations they can be eaten with. Joe has a really soft spot for eating them piled with horseradish as they eat the same kind of oysters in Thailand. Most likely we will be returning there next Sunday if anyone wants to join with their CPs, Calico Jacks also served fish fillets, sandwiches, burgers, and hot wings.
NOICE! I'd love to join but I cannot. Sounds like a great idea, though! Hope others come out and join ye.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I found that being in a small talking group is more effective as it takes off a bit of pressure than speaking one on one. Good form, good sir. Good form.
i'm gonna have to check this place out. i think sometimes language learners forget that natives want to help them and hear them speak their language, instead of considering it a burden and annoying. it's important to stay positive!
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