I'm definitely much more direct and polite in French. I'd prefer to calculate what I'm about to say a little longer than misspeak the local tongue, so I end up

I'm definitely much more direct and polite in French. I'd prefer to calculate what I'm about to say a little longer than misspeak the local tongue, so I end up appearing much more tight-lipped as a result. My wife, on the other hand, has spent a lot more time in France than I have, and apparently learned from the school across the tracks--she's much more apt to stutter and fumble with vocabulary (she's got an anecdote about learning the difference between cravat and crevette), but she's much more talkative and seems to get more done with her style.