Thought I'd continue this thread under the STARING concept. Notice how STARE is a negative word in English, and there is NO WORD for STARE in Spanish: it is mirar fijamente. (look fixedly). But you don't say that. You say, que me miras? What are you looking at me for? but like i said, people don't STARE in spanish! they "mirar"!

"HEY!!! ARE YOU LOOKIN' AT ME??" shouted the 'I'm an American!', ego-inflated student on his summer-to-Spain-trip with the Spanish class, directed towards a 'vertically-challenged' older gentleman wearing a little black beret. The older man continued staring, but his eyes widened as if the "American" was going to whip out a pistola and shoot him dead "just like in all those "American" movies."

Hey, MM, as oneof my bilingual friends puns, tu me agrietas arriba!! That vertically old man was probably staring at the hot vertically challanged lady behind the gringo!

Did the American shoot? Ja, ja, ja

We Canadians know that all Americans carry guns, so he probably did shoot!!

rgf - Que significa "tu me agrietas arriba"?

Eso, que significa?

Tu me agrietas arriba is a LITERAL and funny translation of YOU CRACK ME UP.

This thread is perfect timing because JUST TODAY I spent 4-hours in a Sexual Harassment training session/orientation as a work-related requirement for everyone.

One of the points was that it WAS SEXUAL HARASSMENT if one stares at another person long enough to make the receiver of those stares uncomfortable. I thought, "WOW!! This could never be a 'law' in Spain!" Not to mention no cat-calls, whistles, or "¡Ay! ¡Tio Bueno!" type remarks. And also, that no one should touch, hug, or kiss another person because it was inappropriate behavior in the workplace. How many Spaniards have you seen kissing each other on the cheeks upon seeing one another. We are two VERY different cultures to be sure! And sadly, I might add.

[for the record, MadridMan in no way condones nor practices sexual harassment in any form]

Saludos, MadridMan

Right, and MM doesn't condone sexual harassment so he keeps himself MOSTLY clothed (except for the bare chest shots!) on his live webcam!!! Yes, gringo culture and the extremes to which we've gone w/ sexual harassment is an amazing contrast w/ Spain. And yet, ask women workers in Spain: some of the forms of sexual harassment are very alive and unchallenged there. Sure, the beso-beso and staring is no problem, but how about the usual forms of sexual harassment? They go deeper than the cultural differences of which we speak. Which is to say: like with all matters, the FORM in which a problem will manifest may differ; the problem, when analyzed, is often of similar dimensions. You can tell my classes start next week. I've begun to profess! carajo!

Okay! SO STOP STARING AT MY BARE CHEST on MadridMan's Live Cam ! But hey, if it made me uncomfortable to be watched WHILE I was summer-barechested on my live cam I wouldn't do it.