Saturday, November 08, 2003

I must have such a heavy accent; I notice that when I am on the road. People who know me and who are close to me (and even my students--I think) get used to my Arabic accent. But with strangers, it is a different story. I asked a flight attendant for "bread." And she kept asking, "what"? "What is it that you want"? And I kept saying, as slowly as I can, "bread." And then she inquired, are you asking for a "bed."? I kidd you not. I was so tempted to tell her: yes, I want a large bed and a down comforter with a thread count that exceeds 375. But then I remembered that Federal laws and regulations now prohibit passengers from ever joking or acting sarcastic with the crew.