<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"
    xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
    xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
    xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
    >
<channel>
    <title>SpanishPod - MexicoBob Conversations</title>
    <link>http://spanishpod.com</link>
    <description>Learn Spanish on Your Terms</description>
    <language>en-us</language>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Spanish names for Gringos]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/community/conversations/post/193]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-25 08:33:23]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[John,

Your question about names and nicknames is very interesting. Here in Mexico many if not all people have several names. They have a first name, and they may have an “apodo” or nickname and they also have what is called a “hipocoristico”  (hypocoristic in English) which is a familiar affectionate form of a proper name. For example, since I am rather “pleasantly plump” some people may refer to me as “el gringo gordo” (the fat American anglo). That would be my “apodo”. My first name in English is Robert (Roberto en Español) but most people call me Bob. However, in Spanish, the “hipocoristico” for “Roberto” (and also Alberto) is “Beto”. I ask people here in Mexico to call me “Bob”, which they pronounce “Boeb or Bohb” and I am quick to point out to them that it is “Bob” and not “bobo” which means “fool”. I always get a laugh out of them when I mention this. People tend to use both “apodos” and “hipocoristicos” quite a bit. In the place where I work we use a lot of both. For instance, one of our workers is named “Eduardo”. We never call him that, however. The management people call him “Lalo” which is the “hypocoristic” form of Eduardo but his fellow workers call him “Borrego” which means “sheep” but can also have several other meanings that I can’t go into here. Many times we have people with the same first name so to differentiate we use an “apodo”. We have two workers named “Antonio” and both use “Toño” for their “hipocoristico” so we call one of them “Toño el Sansón” or just plain “Sansón” after Samson the strong man of biblical fame even though our Sansón is small and skinny.  We have two people named “Jaime”. When I am looking for one of them I go out in the shop and yell “Siete” meaning “seven”. They call him “Siete Bocas” or “Seven Mouths” because he talks a lot. There are other people called “Mano Negra”, “Machete”, Puma” and “El Teco”, etcetera. All have a story behind them. We also use “hipocoristicos” quite a bit as a form of endearment. My boss is named José Luis. When I want to tease him I call him “Pépe Huicho” which is what his grandmother called him and is the hypocoristic of “José” and “Luis”. Some "hipocoristicos" have interesting stories behind them also. As I already mentioned, the "hipocoristico" for José is Pepe. Supposedly, the name Pépe comes from the practice of labeling San José, the father of Jesus, as "San José P.P." to differentiate him from other saints named José. The letters "P.P." stand for "Padre Putativo" (putative father) or in other words "regarded as the stand-in father figure for Jesus". The letter "P" is pronounced "Peh" in Spanish and hence "Pehpeh" or "Pépe”. Below is a list of common “hipocoristicos” but there are many, many, more. Perhaps SpanishPod could do a lesson or cultural feature on some of them in the future. I encourage everyone to become familiar with them because the most common ones are used throughout the Spanish speaking world.

Ale -  Alejandro, Alejandra
Beto -  Roberto, or Alberto
Concho -  Concha, Conchita Concepción
Chava -  Salvador
Chayo -  Chaya Rosario
Che -  Ernesto
Checo -  Sergio
Chela  -  Graciela
Chelo -  Consuelo
Chente -  Vicente
Chuy, Chucho -  Jesús
Gabi -  Gabriel, Gabriela
Huicho -  Luis
Lalo -  Eduardo
Lencho -  Lorenzo
Lola, Lolita -  Dolores
Lulú - Lourdes
Lupe, Lupita -  Guadalupe
Manolo -  Manuel
Mari -  María
Meche, Mecha - Mercedes
Memo - Guillermo
Nacho -  Ignacio
Pancho, Paco -  Francisco
Pepe -  José
Pili - Pilar
Poncho - Alfonso
Quique -  Enrique
Rafa - Rafael
Rulo - Raúl
Susi - Susana
Tere - Teresa
Tina  - Agustina, Cristina, Ernestina, Florentina, Valentina
Toño -  Antonio
]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[John,

Your question about names and nicknames is very interesting. Here in Mexico many if not all people have several names. They have a first name, and they may have an “apodo” or nickname and they also have what is called a “hipocoristico”  (hypocoristic in English) which is a familiar affectionate form of a proper name. For example, since I am rather “pleasantly plump” some people may refer to me as “el gringo gordo” (the fat American anglo). That would be my “apodo”. My first name in English is Robert (Roberto en Español) but most people call me Bob. However, in Spanish, the “hipocoristico” for “Roberto” (and also Alberto) is “Beto”. I ask people here in Mexico to call me “Bob”, which they pronounce “Boeb or Bohb” and I am quick to point out to them that it is “Bob” and not “bobo” which means “fool”. I always get a laugh out of them when I mention this. People tend to use both “apodos” and “hipocoristicos” quite a bit. In the place where I work we use a lot of both. For instance, one of our workers is named “Eduardo”. We never call him that, however. The management people call him “Lalo” which is the “hypocoristic” form of Eduardo but his fellow workers call him “Borrego” which means “sheep” but can also have several other meanings that I can’t go into here. Many times we have people with the same first name so to differentiate we use an “apodo”. We have two workers named “Antonio” and both use “Toño” for their “hipocoristico” so we call one of them “Toño el Sansón” or just plain “Sansón” after Samson the strong man of biblical fame even though our Sansón is small and skinny.  We have two people named “Jaime”. When I am looking for one of them I go out in the shop and yell “Siete” meaning “seven”. They call him “Siete Bocas” or “Seven Mouths” because he talks a lot. There are other people called “Mano Negra”, “Machete”, Puma” and “El Teco”, etcetera. All have a story behind them. We also use “hipocoristicos” quite a bit as a form of endearment. My boss is named José Luis. When I want to tease him I call him “Pépe Huicho” which is what his grandmother called him and is the hypocoristic of “José” and “Luis”. Some "hipocoristicos" have interesting stories behind them also. As I already mentioned, the "hipocoristico" for José is Pepe. Supposedly, the name Pépe comes from the practice of labeling San José, the father of Jesus, as "San José P.P." to differentiate him from other saints named José. The letters "P.P." stand for "Padre Putativo" (putative father) or in other words "regarded as the stand-in father figure for Jesus". The letter "P" is pronounced "Peh" in Spanish and hence "Pehpeh" or "Pépe”. Below is a list of common “hipocoristicos” but there are many, many, more. Perhaps SpanishPod could do a lesson or cultural feature on some of them in the future. I encourage everyone to become familiar with them because the most common ones are used throughout the Spanish speaking world.

Ale -  Alejandro, Alejandra
Beto -  Roberto, or Alberto
Concho -  Concha, Conchita Concepción
Chava -  Salvador
Chayo -  Chaya Rosario
Che -  Ernesto
Checo -  Sergio
Chela  -  Graciela
Chelo -  Consuelo
Chente -  Vicente
Chuy, Chucho -  Jesús
Gabi -  Gabriel, Gabriela
Huicho -  Luis
Lalo -  Eduardo
Lencho -  Lorenzo
Lola, Lolita -  Dolores
Lulú - Lourdes
Lupe, Lupita -  Guadalupe
Manolo -  Manuel
Mari -  María
Meche, Mecha - Mercedes
Memo - Guillermo
Nacho -  Ignacio
Pancho, Paco -  Francisco
Pepe -  José
Pili - Pilar
Poncho - Alfonso
Quique -  Enrique
Rafa - Rafael
Rulo - Raúl
Susi - Susana
Tere - Teresa
Tina  - Agustina, Cristina, Ernestina, Florentina, Valentina
Toño -  Antonio
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Pay Phone]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/pay-phone/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-25 06:09:48]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[AuntySue, 
I hear a lot of people using the words "celular" and "teléfono" to differentiate as in “Llámame por celular” versus “Llámame por teléfono” or “Llámame a mi casa”. The first one means “Call me on my cell pone” while the next two mean “Call me on my home phone”. As in other developing countries many people don’t have home phones. They just skipped that phase and went directly to a cell phone. The cell phone with an Internet two-way radio feature is becoming more and more popular. Here in Mexico the company that provides this service is called “Nextel” so people say “Llámame por Nextel”. I have a phone like this and where I work everyone in management has one and we use them like “walkie-talkies”. They have also become somewhat of a status symbol because they are relatively expensive compared to a regular cell phone.
]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[AuntySue, 
I hear a lot of people using the words "celular" and "teléfono" to differentiate as in “Llámame por celular” versus “Llámame por teléfono” or “Llámame a mi casa”. The first one means “Call me on my cell pone” while the next two mean “Call me on my home phone”. As in other developing countries many people don’t have home phones. They just skipped that phase and went directly to a cell phone. The cell phone with an Internet two-way radio feature is becoming more and more popular. Here in Mexico the company that provides this service is called “Nextel” so people say “Llámame por Nextel”. I have a phone like this and where I work everyone in management has one and we use them like “walkie-talkies”. They have also become somewhat of a status symbol because they are relatively expensive compared to a regular cell phone.
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Piropos:  Pick-up Lines]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/piropos-pick-up-lines/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 18:05:36]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Eres tan hermosa que cuando te ví, temí conocerte, cuando te conocí, temí tenerte, y ahora temo perderte.

You are so beautiful that when I saw you I was afraid to meet you, when I met you, I was afraid to have you, and now I fear losing you.

There you go JP. THAT'S how you do it :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Eres tan hermosa que cuando te ví, temí conocerte, cuando te conocí, temí tenerte, y ahora temo perderte.

You are so beautiful that when I saw you I was afraid to meet you, when I met you, I was afraid to have you, and now I fear losing you.

There you go JP. THAT'S how you do it :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Where are you from?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/where-are-you-from/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 12:51:55]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Woops, I meant Ansari, not Anfari. Perdón :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Woops, I meant Ansari, not Anfari. Perdón :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Where are you from?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/where-are-you-from/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 12:45:32]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[¡Está bueno Anfari! Así me gusta. 

Just a little side note: When two friends are goofing around instead of saying “Está bueno” one of them might say “Ta wheno” with the “e” sounding like the English “a”. it is just a corrupt contraction but it means the same thing :)
]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[¡Está bueno Anfari! Así me gusta. 

Just a little side note: When two friends are goofing around instead of saying “Está bueno” one of them might say “Ta wheno” with the “e” sounding like the English “a”. it is just a corrupt contraction but it means the same thing :)
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Pay Phone]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/pay-phone/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 11:46:17]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[JP and Yardbird,

When talking about the coin dropping in the telephone both of you said "me cayó la veinte?". Why did you both use "la" in front of "veinte" instead of "el" in front of "veinte" like I did? I double checked and I can assure you that the form that people use here is "el veinte" most likely because we are talking about centavos. In my original story I mistakenly said "pesos" instead of "centavos" but then I never really was very good at handling money :)

About the "a la izquierda" and "de la izquierda thing. I think we use "a la izquierda" when talking about things in relation to the subject and we use "de la izquierda" when talking about an object in relation to another object. In other words The book is on the table "a la izquierda" - on the table to the left of us and The book is on the table "de la izquierda" on the table that is on the left (of another table or something else).

Regarding love...with me it is the same situation as money...I am not very good with either :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[JP and Yardbird,

When talking about the coin dropping in the telephone both of you said "me cayó la veinte?". Why did you both use "la" in front of "veinte" instead of "el" in front of "veinte" like I did? I double checked and I can assure you that the form that people use here is "el veinte" most likely because we are talking about centavos. In my original story I mistakenly said "pesos" instead of "centavos" but then I never really was very good at handling money :)

About the "a la izquierda" and "de la izquierda thing. I think we use "a la izquierda" when talking about things in relation to the subject and we use "de la izquierda" when talking about an object in relation to another object. In other words The book is on the table "a la izquierda" - on the table to the left of us and The book is on the table "de la izquierda" on the table that is on the left (of another table or something else).

Regarding love...with me it is the same situation as money...I am not very good with either :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Are you ready yet?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/are-you-ready-yet/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 11:18:51]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Joel,
With Enhorabuena it might be helpful if you separate it into three words: en hora buena. Let me know if your program picks it up better this way.]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Joel,
With Enhorabuena it might be helpful if you separate it into three words: en hora buena. Let me know if your program picks it up better this way.]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Take a Picture]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/take-a-picture/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 11:15:35]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[JP & Yardbird,

I don't get it. Why are both of you saying "la sonrisal" with a letter "l" at the end. I always thought that the word is "sonrisa". Could it be that there was just a typo that got copied or am I just plain confused?]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[JP & Yardbird,

I don't get it. Why are both of you saying "la sonrisal" with a letter "l" at the end. I always thought that the word is "sonrisa". Could it be that there was just a typo that got copied or am I just plain confused?]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: New SpanishPod Extra Show]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/community/conversations/post/192]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 05:35:54]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[I like "El Rompecabezas" because for me grammar is always a puzzle or a riddle and it makes my head hurt :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[I like "El Rompecabezas" because for me grammar is always a puzzle or a riddle and it makes my head hurt :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Where are you from?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/where-are-you-from/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-23 05:30:57]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Gracias Lili :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Gracias Lili :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: I'm hungry]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/im-hungry/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 21:32:27]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Yup Joel. You win this round :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Yup Joel. You win this round :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: At the Bar]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/at-the-bar/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 20:41:54]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Ivalmoria,
You can simply say "Salud".]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Ivalmoria,
You can simply say "Salud".]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Where are you from?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/where-are-you-from/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 20:40:15]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Joel,
Here, not very far from San Miguel de Allende, we say “Aquí nos tocó a vivir” or "Here we were destined to live".]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Joel,
Here, not very far from San Miguel de Allende, we say “Aquí nos tocó a vivir” or "Here we were destined to live".]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: I'm hungry]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/im-hungry/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 20:03:56]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Después escuchando esta lección tengo tantas ganas de comer que podría comer una vaca entera.

After listening to this lesson I have such a desire to eat that I could eat an entire cow.
]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Después escuchando esta lección tengo tantas ganas de comer que podría comer una vaca entera.

After listening to this lesson I have such a desire to eat that I could eat an entire cow.
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Are you ready yet?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/are-you-ready-yet/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 14:52:37]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Joel, it means "I congratulate you" in a nice happy sort of way. Sometimes people also say "¡Enhorabuena!". It means more or less the same thing.]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Joel, it means "I congratulate you" in a nice happy sort of way. Sometimes people also say "¡Enhorabuena!". It means more or less the same thing.]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Pics of the team]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/community/conversations/post/191]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 12:23:29]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Hey, maybe they could install some of those 24 hour cameras like on Big Brother :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Hey, maybe they could install some of those 24 hour cameras like on Big Brother :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Are you ready yet?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/are-you-ready-yet/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 12:01:33]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Joel, creo que tienes razón con la palabra "listo". Eres muy listo mi amigo. Te felicito.]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Joel, creo que tienes razón con la palabra "listo". Eres muy listo mi amigo. Te felicito.]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: At the Bar]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/at-the-bar/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 08:58:26]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[helix,
A mi me gusta más de todas las cervezas es la cerveza que es fria y gratis :)]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[helix,
A mi me gusta más de todas las cervezas es la cerveza que es fria y gratis :)]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Where are you from?]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/where-are-you-from/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-22 07:22:14]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[Ay, Ansari, 
Tengo mucha pena contigo. Mi cara es roja con vergüenza. Me disculpe para mi equivocación. Pues, también te doy gracias para tu explicación. Ahora yo sé más de Trinidad y Tobago. Sabes que tu tienes un amigo en México y ojalá puedo considerar que tu eres mi amigo en Trinidad :)
]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[Ay, Ansari, 
Tengo mucha pena contigo. Mi cara es roja con vergüenza. Me disculpe para mi equivocación. Pues, también te doy gracias para tu explicación. Ahora yo sé más de Trinidad y Tobago. Sabes que tu tienes un amigo en México y ojalá puedo considerar que tu eres mi amigo en Trinidad :)
]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
    <item>
        <title><![CDATA[Re: Pay Phone]]></title>
        <link><![CDATA[http://spanishpod.com/lessons/pay-phone/discussion]]></link>
        <pubDate><![CDATA[2007-11-21 20:14:23]]></pubDate>
        <dc:creator><![CDATA[MexicoBob]]></dc:creator>
        <description><![CDATA[hvill,

"Personas sin techo" o "Personas sin hogar".]]></description>
        <content:encoded><![CDATA[hvill,

"Personas sin techo" o "Personas sin hogar".]]></content:encoded>
    </item>
</channel>
</rss>
