Words words words

July 20, 2006

I would like to start out by saying, I am no expert on Liberia, or its people and customs, I am merely an observer of what I see, and what I experience. After living here for maybe 15 or 20 years, I could then perhaps say I felt like a bit of an expert.
Every day that I am out and about and talking to people I learn something new, or I am made aware of how little I really understand. I am working on my Liberian English, but fail to be understood everytime I speak to someone. My conversations are peppered with what? and blank stares, and of course I have my own difficulty understanding what the person is saying. Someone will be telling a really good story, or I assume it is good, becuase everone else is smiling or laughing or listening intently, but I only understand perhaps 50% of what is said. Its like when you don’t get a joke, and by the time they have explained it to you, it sort of looses its “life”. Just yesterday while interviewing one lady, I asked her I think, how she can make her living. She stares at me, then looks at Henry the counsellor with me as if to say, come on, tell me what this white woman is saying. He repeats the question, and to me, it sounds the same...okay, perhaps his accent is slightly different, but not that different. I think I can say something so people will understand.....but fail miserably more often than not. I think my first time in the country, I spent the first month very frustrated with the communication troubles. Now, I just have to keep trying, and if all else fails smile or laugh at the situation. Even people that I see and talk with every day, like Martha our housekeeper, or Oneisemus who lives here, there is still misunderstanding, on a daily basis.
Some popular words here:
fine....fine girl, fine boy, etc. though, once was I called enchanting by a man from Ivory Coast, besides this, not much variation
small, as in small small (aka very small), or small thing (which is like a small amount of money, like a tip or something you would give to someone)
sausage....sausage sausage sausage This is what people will say as they are walking with a bucket down the road full of hotdogs to sell. They call hotdogs sausage, but when you hear it, it sounds to me like sasay sasay sasay
Alright. When you ask how someone is, usually they say ‘alright’ (not fine, becuase that would mean they were good looking) or sometimes, they are “trying” which means they are well, trying.
A favorite saying “before good food waste let belly bust” but with an accent. “befo goo foo ways let belly bus”
When monkey jammed eat pepper....whe monkey jam ea peppa. Okay, meaning, when you have no money to buy food, eat peppers...new for me today. (when you see a monkey eating pepper, that means he is really desperate)
Baboon will divide kola...when you have a fight, the baboon will be the judge. Hmmm, I like it.
Well I think that is all it for now. I’ll update you when I learn more.
BEC for Now.