I guess you could say I've been dealing with the ugly side of life in a foreign culture.
Life under the microscope: where if one more person comes up to me at the grocery store for the purpose of peering and occasionally prodding in my shopping basket, I'm may just do the same thing right back to them.
Life at the zoo: where if one more kid points and declares "foreigner" or "American," I'm going to point right back with a few remarks of my own. What is it with the need to state the obvious here?! Furthermore, I'm not a monkey at the zoo!
Life as a punching bag: where I'm to take every blow given and expected to bounce right back and with a smile nonetheless. Speaking in defense is futile. Nothing is heard because nothing is listened to and so I'm always wrong, always ridiculous, always stupid.
Life in a construction zone: who wouldn't want jackhammering, pounding, and drilling on the floor above them at 7:oo a.m.? Seriously, how often does one apartment need re-modeling/repair work done?
Life at the circus: where a clown seems to be behind the wheel of just about everything moving, regarding life and safety with great carelessness. If I have one more scooter driving straight for me on the wrong side of the road, I may just snap and decide to play chicken, seeing who moves out of the way first. I'm so tired of being forced out of the way by people going the wrong way.
Throughout the day, I feel like I'm forever being bombarded by so much stupid stuff I just wouldn't have to deal with if I threw in the towel and went home. I suppose a part of me thought by this stage in the game, life would have moved beyond the point of caring about and being frustrated by all this stupid stuff and yet, the garbage in life still amasses and makes a stench to overpower anything good.
I guess there's an ugly side to living just about anywhere and perhaps even for those with a semi-charmed life, if you stick around a place long enough, it's bound to push a few buttons. Some buttons have now been pushed so often, they're just about worn out and ready for retirement.
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4 comments:
I can't stand it when people state the obvious. But every time I say that, people say stuff like "Well stupid people exist everywhere you go, so it's reall your reaction that counts." I'll show them REACTION.
yes, i believe rxn is important, especially for me b/c i'm a christian and a foreigner and i'm trying hard to convey a favorable impression of both which makes it all the more frustrating to frequently be met with such stupid stuff to react to.
Very funny insights. I've been talking with so many people that are at the same fed-up stage as you. At least you know you're not the only one trying to deal with these frustrations. Sometimes they're funny but it gets to be too much at times.
if you don't like dealing w/ stupidity, don't move to L.A. we've got tons of it! but really, you should totally point at those kids and say something snarky in chinese, like, "look, an annoying little kid!" that would be awesome!
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