Yesterday I had my biweekly manicure/pedicure. While getting my toe nails painted I found myself seated next to an Hispanic woman. Her friend wandered by, and in passing she asked her something in Spanish. Now that I am feeling much more confident to ask for mini lessons in Spanish from strangers, I turned to this woman sitting next to me and I asked her if her friend had asked her about getting a manicure. She said that yes, her friend had asked her that! She was very friendly, and she went on to explain exactly what her friend said, and then described the infinitive that she used. She also spelled it for me.
Her friend has said, “?Tambien, te vas hacer una manicura?”
Translated into: “Are you going to get a manicure, also?”
So I learned to use the infinitive “hacer”, which means “to do” and I learned the infinitive “ir”, which means “to go”. So, to say “…te vas hacer” is to ask, “are you going to do (to get)..”
When we first moved to Laveen almost three years ago, we discovered Los Altos Ranch Market (formerly Pro’s Ranch Market). It was a complete turnaround from the Wegmans store where I had shopped for thirteen years in Webster, NY, which catered to predominantly east coast, white, middle class, Italian and Irish Catholics & Episcopalians (otherwise known as “Catholic Light”). The first thing to encounter there is the smell of grilled chickens in the parking lot, because right at the entrance to the store is a covered area with large grills where they prepare the BBQ foods for the kitchen outside. Next to that, along the sidewalk (also at the entrance) is a wide selection of Spanish and Mexican music cds and DVDs for sale, and there is festive music playing while you browse. (The last time I had ever seen such a thing was when I was a young newlywed living in the Spanish district of downtown Dallas. We had a Supermercado on the corner, and in the front of the store was a fold-out table covered in cassette tapes for sale. In the back corner of that store, one could find the most delicious tacos for sale. I always got shredded beef tongue with verde sauce, cilantro, white onion and radishes, which is my favorite!) Obviously I was thrilled to discover the restaurant at Los Altos, because they have a full menu that includes those beef tongue tacos,along with al pastor and carnitas. Los Altos also has a kiosk that sells fruit juices and horchata, which is just unheard of in my old hometown in New York. To get to the juice kiosk one must pass the bakery, which displays some of the most beautiful and colorful cakes and pastries I’ve ever seen. The grocery itself does not offer many choices; it is primarily Mexican foods, but the butcher is extensive and the prices can’t be beat. It can be a fun experience to see what the store has to offer, especially if one is making a special Spanish meal. Many of the workers at Los Altos either speak very little English, or none at all. I’d have to say that shopping there is what fueled the desire in me to learn their language. My daughter went there to buy fresh, jumbo shrimp once, and she asked the man behind the counter for eight pieces of shrimp. She was shocked when he handed her a huge bag! He didn’t speak any English and he had given her eight pounds! 
