Isidididi

Isididi: a disturbance or confusion. Related terms: ukududa, to confuse; indida/izindida: puzzle(s), riddle(s); ukudideka: be puzzled, confused. A useful cluster of words to know when struggling to acquire a foreign language; one is often confused, so it helps to be able to say "IsiZulu singidida" (Zulu confuses me) or "Ngiyadideka" (I am confused). And I am probably ab-using "isidididi," but in my head it translates as something like "a big ------- mess." Unfortunately, as I am about to explain, sometimes even the word for "big mess" can get you into a big mess...

Here in South African most strip malls (or "shopping centres" as they are called in the very polite British-inflected South African English) employ one more parking lot attendants, whose job it is to both direct traffic (I'm not really sure why -- traffic seems to flow far less smoothly here than it does at home, sans attendants) and guard vehicles from izigebengu (bandits; criminals; gangsters) while folks are inside shopping. It seems like a fairly boring job, which is good for me since I tend to seek out folks with boring jobs, assuming that they will be more willing to indulge my Zulu given that they have nothing better to do. And so I've been chatting up the parking lot attendants when I walk through the strip mall across the street from campus several times a day.

All went well enough on my way out yesterday afternoon. Things were quiet in the parking lot. I said, "Sawubona, ndoda" and he said, "Yebo, sawubona. Unjani?" I replied "Ngiyaphila. Wena unjani?" He replied back, "Nami futhi ngiyaphila." Njalo njalo. So far, so good. But on my way back, there were cars everywhere, and the place was looking like one big isidididi. Which is what I meant to say to the guy on my way past, "Wow, yisidididi manje" (Wow, it's a mess now). But instead I said, "Wow, uyisidididi manje" (Wow, YOU'RE a mess now). I guess it's impossible to say how much his scowl had to do with the isidididi in the parking lot and how much it had to do with being called an isidididi, but either way I'm going to take the long way around the parking lot for a few days. Ngempela isiZulu singidida!