Soap Operas and Language Lessons

Things that crack me up. Ugen Scraggs. Or something that sounds like that. Translated as "Fire something or other"

Tonight I let our kids plan our next day as we are done with official business. Their perfect day revolves around seeing the next episode of a nighttime Latvian soap-opera (that kind of reminds me of our parents watching Dallas in the 80s). They scrambled to get their baths, make their hot tea (they came that way... I didn't even have to train them!), and finish their schoolwork so that they could plop down and see what happens next. "He took the money! He's the bad guy that shot him in the leg!" "No, he's not a bad guy." A man in a wheelchair needs 100 million dollars ... No $100,000 for an operation. Heated discussion breaks out as my two newest children discuss the drama that they will NEVER FOLLOW once we get back home to the US. But here, now on winter break, it's just plain funny to watch how serious they are about their tv. Poor kids. It must be something of a shock to get a school-teacher sort for a Mom.

Tonight, as Will worked to commit his new alphabet to memory, I had Natalia try and help me pronounce the Latvian alphabet. They have a rolled R like in Spanish. So, yesterday, when our taxi driver was trying to explain his untimeliness, he said " CRRRRRRRRRazy TRRRRRaffic ". That reminded me of when we first met Will at the airport and he said AIRRRRRRRplane! That sound has disappeared from his every day speech and he is quickly adapting to English...except that he still prefers the non standard version of PO-lice. Ha! Ha!

The also have an ñ sound so maybe they'll take up Spanish more naturally in high school.

(Note to novice iPad useless such as myself: When you turn on the international keyboards you get all sorts of CRRRRay autocorrections!!! Proofread before posting!)

Will is now making a trap for the bad guys on Ugen Scraggs using piles of dirty laundry. That is a pretty hefty punishment for bad guys as something is definitely rotten in the state of Denmark...make that our Latvian hotel room. Perhaps too much wearing of the same layers?

I will actually look forward to doing the laundry next week. Never thought I'd say that.

Cries of "What? It's not supposed to be over!!!" are coming from the next room. They must have season cliff-hangers here too. Smiles.