I took two years of Latin at Grinnell (Iowa) High School and two years of French at Cornell College, but I never really committed to using these languages. However, when I spent three years in Mozambique I had an opportunity to pursue the Portuguese language in an everyday situation. When I returned to the U.S., I studied the spoken and written form of the language with a Brazilian speaking partner and developed a useful fluency. I then decided to use the basics of Portuguese in the study of Spanish. I had a number of Spanish speaking partners, did some work assignments in Tehuacan, Mexico and earned an M.A. from the University of Leon. Using some creativity, I was able to read, write and converse in Spanish as often as I wished in my places of residence in Iowa and Texas. I have written this book of bilingual essays called “Gringoismos” which is a presentation of personal experiences in the Hispanic culture as well as some take-offs on Spanish writings.