Linguistically Challenged

Mostly, I listen. I listen for familiar words and phrases, for the rhythm and cadence of the language, for idiomatic expressions and exclamations! I've been listening for almost 10 years…attending Italian classes…albiet 2 hours a week of studying grammar, reading articles, trying to string 2 or 3 sentences together and learning to roll the r's. I listen to (and watch) the same episodes of Italian TV soap operas over and over and over on my computer, until the characters seem like real people in my life. I listen to songs by Laura Pausini, Andrea Bocelli and others who sing in Italian, attempting to understand what the hell they were singing about. I have watched and listened to countless hours of RAI Telegiornale, to the point of knowing the Italian politicians and their scandals!

I listen. And I understand. Capisco. But speaking is not coming easily. I want to speak correctly. I know how to conjugate the verbs, how to use the pronouns...even combine them…hello!!...glielo!! … but I just can't seem to get the words out. Everyone advises me to “...just talk. Don’t worry about the correct verb form”. But I was doing that 10 years ago. I'm not making progress here! I'm afraid that if I keep talking in the present tense and broken sentences that I will never improve.

Part of the problem is that Italians talk very fast. They also listen very fast. They can’t wait for me to get out all of the words that I need to say what I mean. It's hard to have a conversation when everyone wants to finish my sentences. And it doesn't help me get comfortable wrapping my tongue around all the syllables. Another part of the problem is that I spend too much time thinking of how to say something, instead of following the conversation. In a nutshell, I don’t speak spontaneously.

For years, I've been telling myself that my speaking ability would improve if only I could spend a few months in Italy, speaking only Italian. Well, here I’m…and I feel like I'm regressing. I get tongue tied and my brain is functioning on a 7 second delay.

The other day, I poked my head out the kitchen window to say “buon giorno” to the woman who was out on the terrazzo below. The apartment has been empty during the week but occupied on weekends (actually, this is only our second weekend). So I said buon giorno and was surprised by her response. Instead of a pleasant reply, she was telling me that I couldn't use the laundry drying rack outside my window because it hung over her terrace. She went on to say that they'd be eating out on the terrazzo, that I should move the rack to another window, where it wouldn't disturb their meals. I don't use the rack anyway, because it's kind of flimsy, but it works for a dish towel or something lightweight.

I was speechless. I understood completely what she was saying, but the only words that came out were “ va bene,va bene” and “OK, non problema”, even as proper responses swirled through my brain, such as:

“The landlord hung the rack here. I can ask him to move it.”

“ It won't be a problem since I don't hang dripping laundry from here anyway.”

“ We've just been here a few weeks, and I haven't had the pleasure. Hi, I'm Carol , what's your name? Are you here for weekends only, or all the time? “

This is simply not going well. It's been 3 weeks already and I'm still not fluent!