15

So we have a Russian computer guy at the college.  My counterpart and I used to go to him a lot to get computer things fixed or set up.  Basically we used him when my computer tech skills failed.  Which wasn't often because I can plug a computer into the wall for power, but sometimes things went wrong.

More often than not though I went to him when I got in over my head in Russian.  ALL of the computers here are top to bottom in Russian but my computer sense and intuition gets me through most of it.  The cognates also help.  But sometimes I actually have to read to know if I should say "yes" or "no."

So I would go to him and he would have this look of "you again, you without the brain, ugh..."  And I would prattle on, in broke ass Russian, about how I don't know a few of these words and if it were in English I could do it cause I really know what to do but I can't do it in Russian and I'm really sorry to bother you and blah blah blah.  He never listened cause my Russian turned into pseudo-English gibberish about half way through.

Well a few months ago I got a really nasty, old virus and then my counterpart's computer got it.  Well, we both got it from the same flash.  That's the reason I'm currently running Linux but that's beside the point.  My counterpart asked Misha, the computer guy, to reinstall everything on her computer.

Well at some point she sent me up to his typical, creepy IT guy office and I asked if whatever she needed was done.  He said no but told me to hang out for a few minutes as it would be done soon.  Well, then of course he wanted to talk.  He was asking me all sorts of questions about how I learned Russian and what I did everyday and my experience with computers.  I could mostly keep up with my Russian but it was limited to answers a small child would give.  At this point, I talk how I can and swallow the shame.  Anyway, he started telling me about when I first came to the college and how obvious it was that I knew NO Russian whatsoever.  That was great...

In the end, he told me that I should come around more, that it was too interesting to talk with foreigners.  Afterward, a few days later, my counterpart came up to me and was telling me about a conversation she had had with Misha after that.  He was so excited to have finally talked with me and he told her how she should invite me to his house for him.  Or something like this.  He just really, really wanted to hang out more.  Which sadly I haven't done.  Life's been crazy y'all.  Don't judge.  I did go and say goodbye to him when I left the college and he seemed both surprised and a lil' sad that I was leaving so I feel like maybe he did enjoy our few brief conversations.  Integration success!