So the Red Sox won the World Series. The curse supposedly broken. There are many things that will remain the same. The Yankees will still be an extraordinary ball club. Yankee fans despise Sox. Sox fans despise Yankees. All is well.
There is some superstitious talk going on as to why the curse is broken. And that is to herald the victory of John Kerry as President of the United States of America. The universe understands that this is a monumental event. The cosmos needed to realign to send a clear message that one great feat deserves another. Broken curse for a brave new world. Not a bad trade.
You can always cast a new curse...
Friday, October 29, 2004
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
The Other Side of Distrust and Generosity
I have always been wary of total strangers, particularly men, trying to talk me while on the bus, subway, or just about anywhere.
Yesterday, I sat next to a Filipino man inside a bus. In a few minutes, he started asking me my name, what town I came from, my age, my work, my marital status, etc. I'm not quite inclined to really speak to him or get to know him, so I just sort of let him go on his inquistion. I haven't quite mastered the art of polite rejection, or even the art of impolite rejection. At the end of his barrage of questions, he said, "'kala ko dalaga ka pa." (I thought you are still single.)
Was I being too generous to this man? This is not the first, nor will it be the last time that this will happen. It doesn't even matter if you are wearing a ring with a big rock on it! I was annoyed at the end of this exchange, to say the least. I think unless you have clearly established and discerned some level of relatedness (i.e. You know or sense that I'm actually interested in talking to you...), you shouldn't even try to carry a conversation. Sorry!
Today, while I was waiting for the bus (again), I saw one of my Filipino neighbors. It's a woman this time. She's always been fond of Rolando, but in a creepy way. I had the misfortune of not getting the bus before she got to me. She began to ask me questions as to whether I was pregnant, and why not, and was I on the pill, or was I taking some injections, or was I having or had an abortion... I was answering with abrupt answers (mostly NO) to her baseless, senseless questions. I've had this suspicion for some time now that she is not quite right up in her head. That doesn't really make me feel any better.
Even with good intentions, I think there is a healthy cautiousness that you can maintain when engaging strangers or even people you know ...
Yesterday, I sat next to a Filipino man inside a bus. In a few minutes, he started asking me my name, what town I came from, my age, my work, my marital status, etc. I'm not quite inclined to really speak to him or get to know him, so I just sort of let him go on his inquistion. I haven't quite mastered the art of polite rejection, or even the art of impolite rejection. At the end of his barrage of questions, he said, "'kala ko dalaga ka pa." (I thought you are still single.)
Was I being too generous to this man? This is not the first, nor will it be the last time that this will happen. It doesn't even matter if you are wearing a ring with a big rock on it! I was annoyed at the end of this exchange, to say the least. I think unless you have clearly established and discerned some level of relatedness (i.e. You know or sense that I'm actually interested in talking to you...), you shouldn't even try to carry a conversation. Sorry!
Today, while I was waiting for the bus (again), I saw one of my Filipino neighbors. It's a woman this time. She's always been fond of Rolando, but in a creepy way. I had the misfortune of not getting the bus before she got to me. She began to ask me questions as to whether I was pregnant, and why not, and was I on the pill, or was I taking some injections, or was I having or had an abortion... I was answering with abrupt answers (mostly NO) to her baseless, senseless questions. I've had this suspicion for some time now that she is not quite right up in her head. That doesn't really make me feel any better.
Even with good intentions, I think there is a healthy cautiousness that you can maintain when engaging strangers or even people you know ...
Between Generosity and Distrust
When Rolando and I were in San Diego, I had the good fortune of being the recipient of generosity. We were going in to the San Diego Zoo when a woman approached us and asked if we were going ... to the Zoo.
My immediate reaction to this was distrust and suspicion. We were obviously in line to buy tickets. Anyway, we replied yes to her query, waiting for her to suggest to us that we should just buy her "extra" ticket in lieu of purchasing one from the box office. To our surprise, she said that she has an extra pass that she didn't need and wanted to see if one of us wanted to go with her. Since I was so surprised by this offer, Roland had the presence of mind to volunteer me to go in with this woman and her two grandchildren.
Up until the gate, I was bracing myself for some "scam" to befall me, but I passed through the turn stiles unscathed. And even after that, I was still waiting for something to happen, but all that came next was a good-natured, "Have a nice day", from this woman. To this I sputtered, "Thanks!"
Hmmm... How about them apples ...
My immediate reaction to this was distrust and suspicion. We were obviously in line to buy tickets. Anyway, we replied yes to her query, waiting for her to suggest to us that we should just buy her "extra" ticket in lieu of purchasing one from the box office. To our surprise, she said that she has an extra pass that she didn't need and wanted to see if one of us wanted to go with her. Since I was so surprised by this offer, Roland had the presence of mind to volunteer me to go in with this woman and her two grandchildren.
Up until the gate, I was bracing myself for some "scam" to befall me, but I passed through the turn stiles unscathed. And even after that, I was still waiting for something to happen, but all that came next was a good-natured, "Have a nice day", from this woman. To this I sputtered, "Thanks!"
Hmmm... How about them apples ...
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)