How not to buy a calligraphy brush in Japan

I suspect that everyone who has studied a foreign language can tell stories of misusing it when in the country. This is one of mine.

Source: https://allaboutplanners.com

When I was stationed in the Army in Japan my sister, who is an artist, wrote to ask me to buy her a couple Japanese brushes, the kind that are used for calligraphy. No problem.

I looked up the word for "writing brush" in my English-Japanese dictionary before my next weekend pass into Tokyo. I had already learned the pattern for "I want , , , " or "I would like . . ." Put a noun in front of "hoshii desi" and you have a request.

I found a likely looking stationery store, entered, and confidently told the proprietor "Furo o hoshii desu." I want [to buy[ a writing brush.

He looked confused, led me to the front, and pointed up the street.

"Iie, iie furo. Furo!"  Saying "brush" even louder didn't help. He kept trying to ease me out the door until I spotted a display of brushes and pointed. "Sono," I said. That, there.

His face changed. "Ah so ka," he said, "Fude." And we completed the transaction.

When I returned to the barracks, I looked up "furo" in my Japanese-English dictionary. It means "bath."