(no subject)
greek. i am greek. i hate me. its aweful.
dinner. dinner, in my family, means a "light" breakfast consisting of four servings for everybody, and if you dont eat the entire mountain of food put in front of you, you get about thirty greek faces with thirty greek frowns of disappointment pointed at you. and then a "nice" lunch, usually twice the size of breakfast. you are supposed to eat not only everything put in front of you, but also ask for MORE when your plate has been LICKED CLEAN. eat eat eat and if you arent doing something that has to do with food, cooking more food, setting the massive my thea has in her front room, or in the garden...than you are watching the little greek monsters out on the porch.
then comes supper. the final meal of the day. HUGE. FORMAL. cloth napkins, everyone scrubbed clean and at the table..i dont have the words for it. there is so much food its disgusting. and by the end of the night it is almost all gone. im not kidding. you need to see my family eat. its like the eighth world wonder. were talking MASSIVE CONSUMPTION.
i cant exlpain it adequately enough. its insane. there are so many people. i meet new members of my fmaily-immediate family, im not talking distant relatives-every time we get together like this.
and the talk. it is un-bearable. everyeon goes from english to greek english to greek grek to english without even realizing it. it is a CHORE trying to follow a conversation at the table. first of all, there are about five going on at once, sometimes in greek and some in english, and then some in a mixed, badly accented kind of dialogue that i have started to decode and almost understand. and then there are atleast two major disasters happening at once. like my two year old cousin costa spilling my uncle deanos class of wine ALL OVER A PLATE OF SPANAGHOPPITA (greek spinach casserole...dont ask.) and then my cousin theofine arguing with his mother. the boy is FOUR, and speaks bpth greek, and english, and differenciates between the two. the kid is a genius. he can count to thirty in both languages, knows both alphabets, writes his first name in both languages. unreal. his mother effelea says :dont play with your food" he says "im eating it too mama" she says "dont do both, just eat" he says "well its more funner this way" she says "you want me to hit you?" he says "you wont" she says "i have to get up you will be in trouble" he says "no i wont mama, thea and yaya will save me" then she mumbles something to him in greek and he hits himself in the mouth saying "i take care of it mama, see? i take care of it?"
have to go. that is enough family for me. i wish i could make you all understand.
its crazy.
there it is.
dinner. dinner, in my family, means a "light" breakfast consisting of four servings for everybody, and if you dont eat the entire mountain of food put in front of you, you get about thirty greek faces with thirty greek frowns of disappointment pointed at you. and then a "nice" lunch, usually twice the size of breakfast. you are supposed to eat not only everything put in front of you, but also ask for MORE when your plate has been LICKED CLEAN. eat eat eat and if you arent doing something that has to do with food, cooking more food, setting the massive my thea has in her front room, or in the garden...than you are watching the little greek monsters out on the porch.
then comes supper. the final meal of the day. HUGE. FORMAL. cloth napkins, everyone scrubbed clean and at the table..i dont have the words for it. there is so much food its disgusting. and by the end of the night it is almost all gone. im not kidding. you need to see my family eat. its like the eighth world wonder. were talking MASSIVE CONSUMPTION.
i cant exlpain it adequately enough. its insane. there are so many people. i meet new members of my fmaily-immediate family, im not talking distant relatives-every time we get together like this.
and the talk. it is un-bearable. everyeon goes from english to greek english to greek grek to english without even realizing it. it is a CHORE trying to follow a conversation at the table. first of all, there are about five going on at once, sometimes in greek and some in english, and then some in a mixed, badly accented kind of dialogue that i have started to decode and almost understand. and then there are atleast two major disasters happening at once. like my two year old cousin costa spilling my uncle deanos class of wine ALL OVER A PLATE OF SPANAGHOPPITA (greek spinach casserole...dont ask.) and then my cousin theofine arguing with his mother. the boy is FOUR, and speaks bpth greek, and english, and differenciates between the two. the kid is a genius. he can count to thirty in both languages, knows both alphabets, writes his first name in both languages. unreal. his mother effelea says :dont play with your food" he says "im eating it too mama" she says "dont do both, just eat" he says "well its more funner this way" she says "you want me to hit you?" he says "you wont" she says "i have to get up you will be in trouble" he says "no i wont mama, thea and yaya will save me" then she mumbles something to him in greek and he hits himself in the mouth saying "i take care of it mama, see? i take care of it?"
have to go. that is enough family for me. i wish i could make you all understand.
its crazy.
there it is.