carrigantm9636

In the HA/CI board there are threads for funny or touching moments when you either first used your HA/CI or something funny happened because of either one. I have had many funny sign language moments and I'm sure some of you do too.

For example, when I was just getting back into using sign again after not having used it for years, I once asked a man if he was a hamburger instead of if he was married. Now THAT was embarrassing!

Deafness

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jillio

I've told this story before, but it always sticks in my mind as a moment of awakening involving sign language, so I will tell it again. It is one of the most important moments of both mine and my son's life.

When my son was diagnosed, it was recommended that we not use sign. After about 6 months, I saw that he was becoming extremely frustrated and was not improving in his ability to communicate. I started to investigate the use of sign. I purchased some flash cards with pictures of everyday items and the printed words on them, bought a sign dictionary, and set about teaching myself a few signs.

He got up for breakfast one morning, and after eating, I showed him a picture of a pair of pants, and then made the sign for "pants". He looked at me, looked at the picture, and ran back into his bedroom. He returned with a pair of pants in his hands, dropped them at my feet, and signed, "pants". He had the biggest grin on his face! He understood communication for the first time. I requested pants, he understood that I wanted him to bring me a pair of pants, and he did what I was asking. All the oral methodology in the world had not accomplished communication on that level. He could look at me and say pants, but he could not grasp the communication of being asked to bring me a pair of pants. He grasped for the first time that the sign represented the thing. The rest is history.

deafskeptic

It's very much like that moment when Helen Keller learned the word water.

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jillio

Yes, it is. I'd never actually thought of that before!

Reba

Yes, that's what I thought, too. A very pah! moment.

shel90

Jillo, I'll bet the feeling you had that moment was probably one of the best feelings u have ever had as a mom!

I was teaching my students and showing them the difference between the ASL version and the SEE version of dinner. When I signed the SEE version of dinner, my hand was in the "d" shape and instead of placing it on my chin, I placed it on my nose and I kept doing that until my aide gave me this look. I was like "What's wrong?" She said I had been signing "dick" not "dinner".


OOOPSS!!! I told my kids, wrong placement and corrected myself. I dont think they realized it. I was mortified!!!

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jillio

That is too funny! And you are right....it is right on top of the good mom feelings!

jillio

What a wonderfully ASL way to describe it!

Buffalo

Now you guys reminded me of my former boss who took sign language course. He was telling me about a lady in his class who works in a nursing home where there were few deaf patients. She would tell them that it is time for church. She didn't know sign language but made up some signs. Her way of signing 'church' (as in a steeple) looks exactly like 'vagina'. Poor lady was blushing when the teacher told her what it really was. I told my boss that those deaf seniors need some laughs and they got them.

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jillio

That one gave me a laugh too!

deafdyke

Not exactly an ASL moment, but one time I was hanging out with my friends at a get together in Ely (student building) My friend JT started making a frantic up and down motion on his chest. I looked at him, and asked "Why are you saying you're horny?" Turns out he'd been trying to draw my attention to the fact that my fly was down LOL.

Miss-Delectable

at some of the funny moments mentioned.

Jullio, that was a great moment!

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Interpretrator

My ITP classmate was interpreting for a bunch of deaf people at dinner once and apparently conveyed that the dish came with steamed virgins (instead of vegetables). Wish I'd been there.

Kaitin

My roommate tried to talk about a slice of pie but said "vagina" instead. This was a very funny conversation because I didn't know she meant "pie".

Great story, Jillio! Like Reba said - a pah! moment (Good post, Reba)

Reba

Hubby, a new signer, was at a silent dinner, and trying to describe a story about a pilot in a fighter plane. When he got to the part about the bullets piercing the cockpit windshield, he used the wrong classifier. Instead of several bullets piercing the windshield, he described several (dominant index finger) sexual body parts being inserted into small round body openings (non-dominant "O" hand). His story didn't get the reaction that he expected. Blush!

shel90

OOOH That is so hilarous!!!! What did your hubby do when he realized his error?

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shel90

All of your moments made me laugh. Here is one I just remembered


My friend who lives in PA came down for my baby shower 2 years ago. She was asking people for the cake but I guess the sign for cake in PA is different from what Marylanders use. My friend was going around asking people "Where is the cake." Everyone was like "Where is who? What are u talking about??" My friend was like "no, where is the cake?" When I saw her asking that, I was like "Who is a whore here?" She was like what?! She had been putting her hand on the side of her face with the fingers facing her cheek and extending them out. She said that is the PA's way of signing cake and I said that is the MD's way of signing whore. No wonder all of my friends looked at her funny. She was so embarassed and now we call her the "cake" girl whenever she comes to MD for a visit. After two years, we still wont let her live it down.

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~Shel~

"A child educated only at school is an uneducated child." -George Santayana

jillio

Did the virgins complain about being steamed? Sounds painful.

These stories are cracking me up! Keep 'em coming!

Kaitin

I was studying in a place with a lot of students and I saw 2 people talking. Their signing was terrible - very SEE and fingerspelling. I was rude and watched because I couldn't stop looking at the bad signing and realized they were talking about how great "ASL" is (they do not use ASL) because they can talk about sex in public! And they did! With details! And big arm movements! I stopped watching after a while because I realized they have a private conversation......in public I wait until many minute after they finish and talk with them - they are hearing and are learning ASL in a class with my friend. I am now friends with one. I told him I saw his conversation and probably he should not talk in public like this because everyone can see. He was embarassed but thought it was very funny. Me also and now I know a lot about him because of this conversation!

Reba

It took him a while to figure out what was wrong. He was like "What--what's wrong?" The other guys just laughed and didn't explain. Finally, someone explained to him what happened. It didn't bother him that much (he's a very laid back person) except he was irritated that his story was interrupted.

Mayberry

One of my friends told me a story that happened to her when she first started learning ASL. She was at a Deaf social of some kind and immediately struck up a conversation with a Deaf man. She thought the gathering started at 7:00, so she was going to get there at 6:30, but as it turned out, it actually started at 6:30 so she was right on time. Instead of telling her new friend that she had intended to arrive early, somehow she told him she had intended to arrive naked.

About a year ago, I was at a Deaf social and someone asked me if I had a boyfriend. I was single at the time, but instead of telling them that, I accidentally said, "Oh, no, I'm gay!"

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Sunshine1

Good thread to read and it made me laugh. Thanks!

A hearing guy was learning ASL in my class years ago. He explained to us that he joined a choir at his church that's including sign languages. He said to some deaf church goers and the pastor (CODA) that " me prostitute". They laughed real hard. It took a while for them to calm down and explained to him that the sign only need to do once and slow, not repeats quickly. He was trying to say "me shy"! Boy did he get very embrassed and had really red face for a long time. haha

Also another story, many years ago my ex was learning sign languages at the time. We went to TTY Banquet where we had thousand deaf people there. At far distance, he asked my girlfriend what drink would she like. She told him "milk". He didn't get it. Finally she put that sign over her breast area. Oh he finally got it. haha

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Lanee

As an ASL student, I always wanted everyone to know how eager I was to learn. I would leave class, then study all week... checking out LifePrint and other sites... trying to learn more on my own.

So, I'm all ready with my new phrase to share with everyone at the end of class. When the instructor waved us goodbye, I signed: "See you next toilet!"

Tousi

Hahaha, so you said "toilet" instead of "Tuesday", eh?

Buffalo

Got this story from a friend who is hearing and worked as a barber. He met two young deaf boys who went to him for haircuts. He want to learn ASL so he tried to learn it from the boys. The mischievous boys had decided to substitute regular signs for dirty signs. The mother found it out when she watch the boys' converstation in the rear view mirror and reported it to my friend. Of course, he was very embarrassed by this. He still want to learn ASL so he signed up for ASL classes at my alma mater. He told me that the first classes he took, he didn't attempted any sign language out of fear of signing something dirty! I gotta admire him for wanting to learn sign language in spite of that.

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It isn't that they can't see the solution. It is that they can't see the problem.
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2lilprincesses

Your comment reminds me of a story my friend was telling me about her husband. She works at Sterk's (Delaware School for the Deaf) and her and her husband were out at a resturant when she ran into some of her friends from work who were deaf (she's hearing and so is her husband). Well she started talking and from across the resturant her husband started signing that he was "REALLY HUNGRY" only he was infact signing that he was "HORNEY". Talk about embarrassing when your in public.

2lilprincesses

Where at in PA is your friend from??? I am from PA (close to DE border) and we don't sign "cake" that way. One of my co-workers kept trying to sign "warm" and instead kept signing "whore". He couldn't quite grasp what he was doing incorrectly.

A co-worker of mine was learning some signs, she only knew a few of the "inappropriate" signs. Well we had a patient who was a CODA, she was hearing, and during one of her visits my co-worker proudly announced that she knew some signs and signed "purple" (correctly) and "pink" (incorrectly - she instead signed "penis") Thank God our patient was hearing and knew it was a mistake and wasn't offended.

Needless to say, both of my co-worker were prohibited from making any signing gestures from then on.