So I'm sitting on my porch this afternoon, and this girl, Chris' girlfriend (Chris the neighbor in this villa), to whom I have never even spoken except to say hi, passes by and says "Is there some reason you gave out the wifi code?"
I am taken by surprise by this sudden eloquence of more than two words, and for me it is a huh, what, who? moment given my speed of comprehension, which is always slow at best.
"Excuse me?"
She repeats the question.
"Is there some reason you gave out the wifi code?"
"I didn't," I say. "I mean, I don't remember doing so."
At this point, as I attempt mentally to determine just what she's talking about, the girl huffs and walks away.
And so, taken aback by the rudeness of this stranger, I'm turning the thing over in my mind. She must, of course, be talking about the wifi code for the villa, and I do remember, come to think of it, Chris obsessing about this in the past. I know that I gave the code to my wife, who has only visited perhaps three times in the past four months, and I know that my little buddy Viana tried to copy it once over my shoulder, but got it wrong. But I haven't seen Viana in weeks now. So she must be talking about the little boys, the bocah nakal, who play out in the parking bay. They must be using the wifi. But I don't even know these boys or where they come from and they've certainly never asked me for the code, so I have no idea where they got it (if they have it). As a matter of fact, I don't know the code myself anymore, and I'm sunk if I should ever need to input it again.
But there's something really irritating, isn't there, about a person who accuses you of something and then walks away before the matter can be discussed. And there is something very unsettling about coming upon a rude Indonesian, as these folks are, 99 percent of the time, uncommonly pleasant and gracious.
I am taken by surprise by this sudden eloquence of more than two words, and for me it is a huh, what, who? moment given my speed of comprehension, which is always slow at best.
"Excuse me?"
She repeats the question.
"Is there some reason you gave out the wifi code?"
"I didn't," I say. "I mean, I don't remember doing so."
At this point, as I attempt mentally to determine just what she's talking about, the girl huffs and walks away.
And so, taken aback by the rudeness of this stranger, I'm turning the thing over in my mind. She must, of course, be talking about the wifi code for the villa, and I do remember, come to think of it, Chris obsessing about this in the past. I know that I gave the code to my wife, who has only visited perhaps three times in the past four months, and I know that my little buddy Viana tried to copy it once over my shoulder, but got it wrong. But I haven't seen Viana in weeks now. So she must be talking about the little boys, the bocah nakal, who play out in the parking bay. They must be using the wifi. But I don't even know these boys or where they come from and they've certainly never asked me for the code, so I have no idea where they got it (if they have it). As a matter of fact, I don't know the code myself anymore, and I'm sunk if I should ever need to input it again.
But there's something really irritating, isn't there, about a person who accuses you of something and then walks away before the matter can be discussed. And there is something very unsettling about coming upon a rude Indonesian, as these folks are, 99 percent of the time, uncommonly pleasant and gracious.
5 comments:
Uff! Weird and rude!
May at least 1 one of the gods of the churches you have been in show mercy on your final day and take you to heaven
May the parents of the small girls that you like so much understand that you hate nothing more than unkindness to children even when you don’t wear a t-Shirt while you are welcoming them on your porch
May at least one of the 5 stepchildren that stopped talking to you show mercy, understanding they were wrong and talk to you again
May you find a doctor that can help you with all the mysterious diseases and plagues you are suffering under for so long before the never ending search ruins you
May you find at least 1 friend in Indonesia after you have been such a kind and friendly man to everyone since 8 or 9 years
May you find a much less isolated place to live where you can live for a good price, share the WiFi with everyone and remember it
May the gods forgive me for getting you into that place that you don’t like at all and may the gods give you strength to move out again soon.
I deeply hope all this will come true some day. So long I will go my own way and meet you again in another life. Goodbye.
gosh.. what a hateful remark here
Anon--Good luck and good health to you.
Anonymous2--Regarding the 'hateful comment', indeed it is, albeit disguised as good will. I am always amazed at people who will avoid shame and correction at any cost, choosing to stick with their original prejudices, despite the facts, rather than face their own sour music and take steps to correct their attitudes. A good way to avoid personal growth.
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