Spanish (and Money), the Universal Language

2 stories, of running and español:

1. Just before getting home from Collegiate Peaks, I decided I really wanted Wendy's, so as to get a Spicy Chicken sandwich, fries, and Frosty for $3. I didn't even know where a Wendy's was, and we drove about 40 minutes past the time that I decided I really wanted it, until we reached one that I didn't know existed about a mile from our apartment. The cashier shouted in Spanish to the manager that the register screen was locked, then explained it to me while we were waiting. Si, entiendo, I told her, and then she continued talking to me in Spanish, saying how she didn't know how other places were, but she liked working there because everyone spoke Spanish.

2. In a hurry to get to class today, I stuffed my keys and phone in my running shorts back pocket. This pocket is small and nearly useless, except it has a zipper on it, which I zipped maybe a mile or so past the apartment. Desafortunadamente, even though I heard the jangle of my keys the whole time, I didn't feel my cell phone slip out.

I didn't notice it until class was done, and then I wasn't sure if maybe I dropped it at school or left it at home, etc. Didn't find it there, so I tried
wheresmycellphone.com to make it ring for free -- still no encontré.

J came home, so I called my phone (no answer) and checked messages (nothing new), then I texted: "Anybody find this phone?" I got a reply:
Ay ablas espanol el telefono me le encontre tirado en la calle

We went back-and-forth (texting was way more easy for me than talking would have been, although some words were abbreviated or misspelled) and met at a Burger King down the road. (Yes, I am surrounded by fast food). It ended up being a teenager that found it, and he didn't ask for anything or hesitate to meet me but I gave him $20.

The net result is the exact same as if I had dropped $20 instead but at least the story is better.