Eating Chocolate Cake in Bed

Right now I am putzing around on my computer (sort of working) and listening to the Beatles sing... 'Eating chocolate cake in bed.'

Things have been busy here. Whether external or internal, I have felt on-edge, in a bit of a frenzy. And in the meantime, my motivation to work has waned considerably.

Yesterday, I went into town, and had an 'I love living in Europe' moment. I went to a cafe (which is actually more American than Hungarian, but it is a new, nice, non-smoking option) . While I was correcting my students' papers and tests and sipping my iced coffee, I got into a conversation with a man named Alexander. Throughout our conversation, he flipped easily from Hungarian to English has he chatted with both me and the cafe workers. I was intrigued. Very few people speak both languages so flawlessly, (or at least, I have come across few Americans who can) . This gentleman revealed that he could speak NINE languages! I was baffled...When I mentioned living in Germany, he switched to German, and said that he has, since he was small, tried to guess a person's language of preference, and he has tried to communicate with them in that tongue. It was so refreshing for me to meet someone who seemed a true gentleman, and who was so interested in my life here in Budapest, and who also had such an interesting past. I asked, ' How have you learned so many languages so fluently?' He answered that he had lived with many women, and that had forced him to learn the languages. Interesting person.
After about 20 minutes of pleasant conversation, he whipped out his cell phone to try and track down a friend he has in Boulder, where I will soon be living. Anyway, it was nice :) But even underneath all of this intellect and worldly sophistication, I sensed a sadness. He is now with his 3rd wife who lives in Hawaii while he travels the world on business. He rarely sees his daughter who lives with one of his ex-wives in Ecuador.

I hope I will get my motivation to do schoolwork back. Or, I hope that at least I will have more times of chatting and having my world opened to me a bit more...more glimpses into the lives of those around me.

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