Mini Post: It's All Greek To Me

I am Greek, I went to Greek school for three years and dropped out. I cannot speak a word of it, and I can understand one to six basic phrases, my entire family suffers from this. However, Greek people love that they're Greek. It's the most important thing about them. That is why when someone mentions anything that lends the opportunity to illuminate our heritage we jump at the opportunity. At this point, most Greeks when meeting other Greeks shout something in their native tongue and I say "ohhh!" and flail my arms widely feigning understanding. I say this in an accent, which mimics an elderly Greek woman's accent, hoping to channel some sort of ingrained primal fluency. It never works. And I wonder what they are saying to me, but more so that I've missed something important like "I OWN A VILLA IN CRETE COME STAY FOR FREE!" or "I HAVE A GYRO IN MY POCKET, WANT A BITE?" Sometimes they say two quick phrases. The first I "ohhh!" at, the second I shout a short definitive "ah." this one is accompanied by two hands pointed outward, and my elbows close to my sides. It means, I understand, I feel the same way. Consequently, I've never stayed in Crete and I've bought all my own gyros, but I think I'm making progress, because just now I laughed and screamed "KALA" which means good, and I'm not sure in which sense. But The Greek I Was Speaking To ate it right up, and gave me three restaurant names in Chicago who have excellent Greek cuisine. So I'm ready to fake it til I make it out there, and I think I'll do just fine.