the general immediately becomes the specific
One of the problems of Vietnam is that I can't have an external monologue.
That conversation I have where I ask about something? The instant I make an enquiry, the assumption is that I WANT IT NOW GIVE IT TO HER QUICKSMART.
To which my inevitable response is "No, I don't want it. No. NO. DO NOT WANT!" Followed by a muttered "I just wanted to know about it, not to be given it."
This is particularly a problem with my stepmum who is lovely, but clueless. And also somewhat interpretative; when I say "I would like to look at A," she interprets it as "I would like to look at A, B, C, D, and all the things down to Y, oh, and there's also Z, and AA and..."
Also, people following you around stores trying to be helpful. Sorry, my dears, I don't find it helpful, I find it slightly stalkerish and creepy. This shop assistant followed me around the Hello Kitty store, never more than one foot behind me... It felt a little like I was being evaluated for shoplifting possibilities, even though this is Vietnam and not, say, the USA.
Even my father is guilty of handwaving the details. When I mention that it would be nice to have lunch, he promptly jumps to "You're hungry? You must be starving! WE MUST DO LUNCH IMMEDIATELY BEFORE SHE FAINTS OF HUNGER."
Also: he wants me to eat Australian beef in Vietnam. Because apparently they export the good stuff? Whatever. I think I'll eat Australian beef in Australia where I can ask for it to be cooked in ways that don't involve it drowning in some kind of peppery sauce after it's been fried on a hotplate.
Dad is not good at listening. This has been a problem all the way back to my childhood. He means well, but he's not quite convinced that I'm grown enough to make a judgement call. Doubtless my inability to get around Vietnam without his or my stepmum's assistance does not help this impression.
And this is why I don't stay with my dad and stepmum longer than a couple of days at a time. I love them, but frankly, their way of doing things kind of drives me batty...
That conversation I have where I ask about something? The instant I make an enquiry, the assumption is that I WANT IT NOW GIVE IT TO HER QUICKSMART.
To which my inevitable response is "No, I don't want it. No. NO. DO NOT WANT!" Followed by a muttered "I just wanted to know about it, not to be given it."
This is particularly a problem with my stepmum who is lovely, but clueless. And also somewhat interpretative; when I say "I would like to look at A," she interprets it as "I would like to look at A, B, C, D, and all the things down to Y, oh, and there's also Z, and AA and..."
Also, people following you around stores trying to be helpful. Sorry, my dears, I don't find it helpful, I find it slightly stalkerish and creepy. This shop assistant followed me around the Hello Kitty store, never more than one foot behind me... It felt a little like I was being evaluated for shoplifting possibilities, even though this is Vietnam and not, say, the USA.
Even my father is guilty of handwaving the details. When I mention that it would be nice to have lunch, he promptly jumps to "You're hungry? You must be starving! WE MUST DO LUNCH IMMEDIATELY BEFORE SHE FAINTS OF HUNGER."
Also: he wants me to eat Australian beef in Vietnam. Because apparently they export the good stuff? Whatever. I think I'll eat Australian beef in Australia where I can ask for it to be cooked in ways that don't involve it drowning in some kind of peppery sauce after it's been fried on a hotplate.
Dad is not good at listening. This has been a problem all the way back to my childhood. He means well, but he's not quite convinced that I'm grown enough to make a judgement call. Doubtless my inability to get around Vietnam without his or my stepmum's assistance does not help this impression.
And this is why I don't stay with my dad and stepmum longer than a couple of days at a time. I love them, but frankly, their way of doing things kind of drives me batty...