Lesson Three....

"Mute? I can't imagine - but in this day of internet and texting - it might be easier to be heard?"

"She is fluent in sign language of course, and so am I. Miss Chen carries a a phone with a text to speech engine on it, or I simply translate for her"

"I would hate to rely on another like that." with a nod to him.

"Ah, it is I who relies on Miss Chen. She has pen and paper, and electronic devices to communicate. If I translate for her, it is more as a courtesy in certain environments, where a spoken word is seen as more professional or formal."

Still in Spanish, "I know but there are nuances that are hard to translate in my mind."

"I could see that" he replied, still in Spanish as well. "As she is my assistant and body guard when needed, it is rare she takes the lead in many conversations, but I often accompany her as well on personal matters, and will from time to time lend my voice to her, as she lends her physical health to me. It is a good working relationship."

"Then you are wise to have found a balance to yourself as well. I still don't think I could trust another to speak for me."

"She could kick my ass if I failed to speak her words correctly." he smirked "It is nothing more than serving as a translator, surely you've done that yourself?"

"Yes and often, but I had it drilled into me to repeat what was said since I did it as a child." with a nod to him.

"I think sometimes, speaking multiple languages bears a sort of responsibility to be both accurate, and to help others communicate from time to time."

"I agree, I often had to translate for others in my native land due to my very good grasp of English." with a smile at him.

"Hmm seems like my Spanish is getting a bit better just by blathering on about things. So, how is your housing situation?"

"It's being dealt with but thank you for your offer." with a nod to him.

"That is good to hear. I have bought an old bookstore too, and plan to be turning it into a computer center and ahh hackerspace I believe is the term, for anyone who wants to use it."

"A place for people to get on line or actually hack from there?" with a grin and obvious tease.

"Yes" he smiled "Within the bounds of the law of course. Are you a religious person?"

"No but I was raised Catholic." with a nod to him. "Are you?"

"I was raised Protestant, had a long dry spell, and then had a couple of unusual experiences. Plus, I mentioned Miss Chen is trained in theology. Heavily trained, in fact. I picked up a good bit from her. Anyhow, I had the oddest experience a few months back. Maybe it's Miss Chen's hotline to the Almighty via her own faith, but I had a couple of odd revelations and experiences. I interacted with an aspect of God who focuses on the machine world. He calls himself Server, and I'm building the computer center as a sort of church. You may recall some radio broadcasts that were taken over a few months back, where Server spoke. That's where I first encountered that aspect of God."

She blinked at him, "If that is what you believe, then that is true for you. Makes sense though that you'd do that as a "tribute" to such a thing." nodding to him.

"I find a machine god no different than say, a earthly manifestation of God who was crucified a couple thousand years ago. Besides, it's a tax write off, and provides job training for disadvantaged youths. Zero mention of religion or Server at all. God can reach those who God wants to reach I figure."

Very practical and New Englandish of him after all.

"Tax write off is important." with a laugh.

"True" he chuckled "So, who serves the best Argentine food around here? "

"Me, no one else really captures it well, but if I find a place I'll let you know." with a grin at him.

"Probably not enough demand for it around here. What are some of the classic dishes of your country?"

"Grilled steaks with a special garlic sauce is a traditional favorite." with a grin at him "Lots of grilled meats, Fugazza - a pizza minus red sauce but lots of cheese and sweet onions and for dessert Pasta Frola de Dulce de Membrillo - or a Quince Tart." with a nod to him.