Dengi dong ja

is Korean for "ponytail boy." Isn't that a great phrase? Say it out loud—I dare you!

We went out for dinner last Friday night, to celebrate the last day of school and two terrific report cards. When it was time to order, our waiter turned to my son and said, "And what would you like, young lady?" So I said, "He's a boy." Well, you wouldn't believe how effusively the waiter apologized. Joey was extremely embarrassed by it, though he took it with good grace. And when it was time to leave, the waiter apologized some more, and actually gave Joey a great big long bear hug, which Joey really didn't like, though again he took it with good grace.

What makes this anecdote at all interesting? Well, I referred to our server as the waiter, and indeed he introduced himself as Jeffrey, but really he was trans-gendered. Joey, who had not heard the introduction, had no clue that our waiter was not female. When we talked about it later, he understood right away why the waiter had reacted the way he did.

Dengi dong ja

P.S. This post is dedicated to my pal Leslie, who dated a guy with a ponytail during the year she taught English in Korea.