What it's about

The main character presses the button on his computer, but the screen stays gray and the battery won't charge. He tries the usual things: checks the cable, plugs it back in, turns it off and on again. Finally, he calls tech support. He has to wait on hold with music, gets desperate, and when a polite man finally helps him, he gets the most typical advice: unplug the cable. The song humorously tells the story of a frustration we all know.

Useful words and expressions

  • No funciona / se ha roto: the two key phrases for talking about a breakdown.
  • pulsar el botón, la pantalla, la batería, cargar, el cable, enchufar / desconectar, el enchufe: basic vocabulary for devices.
  • arrancar: here it means the computer starts up (no quiere arrancar).
  • apagar / encender: lo apago y lo enciendo.
  • el ordenador: the word used in Spain. In Latin America, people say la computadora or el computador.
  • el aparato: a general word for any machine or device.
  • llamar al servicio (técnico), esperar en la línea, la operadora, contestar: vocabulary for customer service calls.
  • es un problema de verdad: it's a serious problem.
  • el suplicio: a very tedious situation, a torment.
  • sacar de quicio a alguien: to make someone very nervous or drive them crazy (¡Este aparato me saca de quicio!).
  • ¿Qué es lo que va mal?: a natural way to ask what the problem is.

Grammar

  • Present perfect (pretérito perfecto): se ha roto ya describes something that has just happened. At the end, in ya se rompió, the preterite (indefinido) appears, which is more common in Latin America.
  • Imperfect (pretérito imperfecto): mi ordenador me hacía feliz talks about how things used to be.
  • Verbal periphrases:
  • volver a + infinitive = to do something again (lo vuelvo a enchufar).
  • ponerse a + infinitive = to start (me pongo a esperar).
  • empezar a + infinitive (me empieza a hablar).
  • Imperative with usted: the technician speaks politely (espere, desconecte, dígame).
  • Imperative with tú and a pronoun: the pronoun is attached to the verb and an accent mark is added (apágalo, enciéndelo).
  • Object pronouns before the verb: lo apago, lo enciendo, me molesta.
  • Infinitive as the subject: escuchar la música me molesta.

Watch out: poetic licenses for the rhyme

  • Este aparato quiero usar: the word order is inverted for the rhyme. The normal way is quiero usar este aparato.
  • Necesito ayuda para arreglar: the object is missing. You would normally say para arreglarlo.
  • La máquina no es capaz: it's missing what it isn't capable of. The natural way would be no es capaz de arrancar.
  • La batería no carga más: in normal speech, ya no carga is preferred.
  • Todo el sistema se queda atrás: this is a forced image just to make it rhyme. Better options are todo el sistema falla or se bloquea.
  • Espere en la línea de acción: this expression isn't used on phone calls. A line of action is a plan. The correct phrase is espere en línea or no cuelgue.
  • Dígame si ya es feliz: this is a humorous nod to the first verse. A technician would ask dígame si ya funciona.