8. The Quote Board

I don't know how many people do this but I keep a quote board with all the random funny things people say. If my roommate Zack were to go out and say something outrageous or have a really bad slip up, I would write it down and let him know all about it. But sometimes I even make the quote board. Those are the best. It is always a plus to be able to just laugh at something and take life just a little less serious than it is. I hate staying up at night analyzing something way deeper than it's supposed to be. But I think just about everyone has done that at least once.

The other day my roommates and I started talking about random quotes we had said in our lives and we started talking about good mission blunders. When you learn another language you are bound to make horrible language mistakes. For example I went to a door and we were trying to get in. The man asked us how long our short message would be. I then said "Mesajul nostru dureaza numai 15 saptamani." I thought I did good and I turned to my trainer to get his approval that I had said something good when I saw the biggest smile on his face. The person inside even started to laugh. It wasn't the best sign that I had said something good. So I asked my companion after the guy closed the door what I had said. "Apparently you told the guy that our message only lasts fifteen weeks." I really couldn't grasp how I had screwed up that bad. But that isn't the worst one, luckily. I had another companion and we were in a discussion when my companion started to talk about Adam and Eve. What he said in effect translates into "And Adam and Eve ate the forbidden baby." What made it even more hilarious is that he said this with the straightest most serious face I have ever seen on anyone. I couldn't help but crack a smile.

I love thinking about those kinds of stories because they remind me of good times and it makes me more optimistic for whats going to come.