He Plays Tricks Onto the Phone With Them

I'm sick.

It started Monday. I thought that I was just tired and needed a day to rest. The day progressed as did my illness. I thought a good amount of sleep would do me right and that the illness would be gone when I woke up the next morning. I was wrong.

Tuesday hit me like a brick. My body was sore, my head was throbbing and my throat felt like it was being tortured. I left the house only to get more water and some bread. Today, it's been more of the same. My throat doesn't hurt as much but I fell as though I have been beaten as I slept.

It has made this first week in my new home a rough one. I've been able to get a little bit done, not much but a little. The guys are now registered for English classes and I have a meeting with my possible Romanian tutor in the next few days. I've also been talking to people about possibly translating for me. Things are slowly moving along. It's been hard being sick and all.

One thing that has brought me some relief is these two guys from Romania who have been staying here. They speak English pretty well and attempt to tell jokes quite a bit. Here is an example of how these jokes go (note; make sure you give Petru an accent in your head and kind of bumble over the words, it will add to the fun):

Petru: Speaking of telephones. How do you say? Tricked? Do you say tricked?
Me: Tricked?
Petru: Yes, when you trick some one onto the telephone. How do you say?
Me: Oh, you say a prank call.
Petru: No, that's not it.
Me: I'm pretty sure it is, but tricked works too.
Anatol: I think it is tricked.

Petru then speaks to Anatol for a few minutes in Romanian, possibly discussing the impacts of socialism on their current economic system.

Petru: Well there is this guy who tricks people onto the phone on the, how do you say, radio? Me: Yes, radio.
Petru: He is very famous (speaks in Romanian with Anatol for a few minutes, they laugh, I feel uncomfortable since I'd be willing to bet I heard my name). He calls people and plays tricks onto the phone with them, yes?
Me: Yes, we have people who do that back home.
Petru: Well, he calls this person and asks for his husband, no his wife, yes?
Me: Yes, his wife.
Petru: Then he asks the husband when she is going to replace the suit to the store. Oh, the store is, how you say (speaks to Anatol for a few frantic minutes), the funeral store, yes?
Me: Sure.
Petru: He asks the man when they are going to bring back the suit they rented and the man does not understand. How you say, confused?
Me: Yes, confused.
Petru: The husband asks the man why his wife had got a suit from the funeral store. The man says it was not expensive because it was used. Then the man gets very crazy, yes?
Me: Sure, he would get crazy.
Petru: The husband begins to ask what he means by used and the man says it was only on the dead man for a small time and then it was taken off because it didn't wear right, how do you say, not wear right?
Me: fit?
Petru: Yes, fit. It did not fit so they take it off. The man becomes crazy and says he cannot believe his wife would do such a thing as this. He says she is not right and he will kill her and he gets very angry. Then they tell the man it was a joke. It is very popular in Romanian. You can hear it every day at 9 and 30 during the morning.
Me: That is very funny Petru.
Petru: Do they do that in America.
Me: Why yes, Petru, yes they do.
Petru: Ah yes, America.