Soup Enchilada

Life rarely goes perfectly according to plan. I've heard it said that life is what happens to you, while you are planning life.

I walked into the embassy cafeteria the other day and the industrious kitchen staff had again done their best to put on an appealing and tasty selection of entrees for the embassy staff and labelled all the dishes in the best English they could muster. Imagine my amusement and surprise as I looked through the glass at something oblong and rolled in a tortilla, with the words "Soup enchilada" nearby on the glass. I chuckled as I contemplated the mess that a soup enchilada might be and wondered what, in fact, was in this thing. Robin and Anna were with me and, amused enough to be curious, they pointed to the rolled tortilla thingies and asked for "soup enchiladas." As it turns out, their pointing was heeded while their words had little effect and they actually got Chicken tostadas, which, strangely enough, were filled with curry chicken (not remotely a mexican flavor). The "soup enchilada" turned out to be "enchilada soup", which we hadn't noticed under the steamer lids, and we had a good laugh at our own expense.

All of this reminded me of an old expression I hear and even use occasionally - He, she, or it is "messed up like a soup sandwich." I'm sure the imagery isn't lost on anyone. Soup in between two pieces of bread would be far sloppier than any Sloppy Joe (sometimes inexplicably known as Manwich) since the first messy meat sauce muddle was made.

So what is my point in all of this babble about culinary semantics? No serious point really. I just thought it was funny. But in retrospect, it goes to show that others may not always say or write what they mean, even when they do, their efforts may not meet our expections, our perception may often be skewed, and in the end, if we keep a good spirit about us, we can still laugh at the quiddities of man, be thankful for the bizarre experiences that spice up our lives, and go on with a song in our hearts.