February 2010
1 post
“Did I Cross [The Runny-less Red Line]”?
As I touched the red line on the man’s forehead, he did not back away or ask me to stop. Instead he looked at me with questioning eyes. As I pulled him closer and shouted over the music into his ear “Your bindi is running down your forehead!!!” I had no idea that I (the culture expert) was committing the biggest faux pas of my career thus far.
As I am writing this I can admit to everyone that...
November 2009
2 posts
The case of the disposable man
I found myself walking- almost trudging up the stairs back to my office this morning. My walk sounded more like a dragging shuffle than my normally cute click- clack stiletto stride. My shoulders are still burdened with a heavy sense of grief, confusion and frustration- so much so that I can feel the knots weaving themselves into my muscles. My tears have since dried after my first meeting...
I didn't know ESLers were criminals! →
October 2009
3 posts
What do you think this is?
Popular and scientific belief dates this pre-historic uniting of nations back 250 million years. I wonder if carbon dating can tell us if the species in existence lived harmoniously- regardless of race or gender, sexual identity, creed or the pronunciation of their names.
Funny right? Not so SINYers. Lets ponder this for a moment. How many of you have been the victim of a horrible...
Xenophobe defined
Main Entry: xe·no·pho·bia
Pronunciation: \ˌze-nə-ˈfō-bē-ə, ˌzē-\
Function: noun Etymology: New Latin Date: 1903
: fear and hatred of strangers or foreigners or of anything that is strange or foreign
Apparently Staten Island is home to some folks who do not think too much about what they say out loud. These are direct quotes from our culture shocked society.
why xenophobe?
Much of my work has been dedicated to advocating for all of the ESLers in siny. ESLers are English as a second language learners. Immigrants. Foreigners. Different. Uh oh.
I honestly thought that the majority of people were accepting of the cultural differences these ESLers brought into our little city. Last Friday I learned that perhaps I’ve naively overlooked a few important things in my...