I hate when this happens....

[IrishEyes]

I just got back from taking two pairs of pants I just bought to an alterations shop to get them hemmed. I''ve been going to this place for about 2 years, they do an awesome job making my pants not drag on the ground when I wear them ( I''m a shortie

), however the owners are a Korean couple, I think they are both in their early 50''s. They are real nice, never had a problem with them, however I noticed one thing: I think they talk about their customers in Korean right in front of them! Today for example, I walk in the door and she smiles and says hi and asks me if I have something to try on. I said yes, I have two and I''ll be right out (I say this nicely with a smile). As I''m going into the dressing room, I hear her laughing and saying something to her husband in Korean! I don''t know why, but all of a sudden I thought of that Seinfeld episode where Elaine''s manicurist was talking about her in Vietnamese right in front of her!

Anyway, like I said they are nice people and do great work. I don''t know what she said, and there''s a good chance it wasn''t about me. But it made me wonder if this has happened to others. Anyone on here been the target of a non-english conversation in your presence?! Ever wonder what the heck they are saying?

 

[IrishEyes]

This is true, it must just be easier for them. And your nephew is one sly dog!!

Something similar happened to me back when I was 16 or so. I was working as a hostess in a restaurant and there were many hispanic cooks and busboys. I actually used to ( USED to being the operative word!) speak pretty good spanish. So everyday they would talk about me, unaware that I knew most of what they were saying! And beleive me, it wasn''t clean, they had some explicit ideas about me, apparently

. Well one day I had just had it! I was in a foul mood and overheard one of the cooks say something about my chest. I flipped out and cussed them out in spanish. Their jaws dropped open, and they were speechless for once! Needless to say, I never heard another word about me, at least not when I was around!

 

[twinkletoes]

you hate it when people speak another language in front of you when there could be a possiblity of it being about you? eh, i would say just try not to be so paranoid. i''m sure their conversation was a continuation of something they were talking about before you stepped into their store.

sometimes i prefer it when people switch into their native tongues with each other. it gives me a chance to zone out and unwind and gives me the freedom of not having to make small talk if i don''t feel like it. i also love hearing different languages. well, there are a couple languages that grate on my nerves but for the most part i find it facinating and beautiful.

besides, i''d rather have people be comfortable around me rather than have them try to cater to what I would always be most comfortable with. someone trying that hard just for *me* would make me feel uncomfortable.

and another thought: they''re english may sound accentless when they ask if you have anything to try on, but that''s work/survival english they had to master. they''re social/everyday/conversational english may not be as easy for them.

 

[IrishEyes]

That''s a good point twinkletoes! I guess I never really thought about how they are with english that isn''t related to their business. I probably am being paranoid, the only language I''m used to being spoken around me is spanish, and I know what they are saying for the most part. It just reminded me of that Seinfeld episode from a few years back, so I got really paranoid! I imagined she was saying, "oh, that redheaded girl again! She buys a new pair of pants every day!!"

 

[twinkletoes]

LOL I''m sure they LOVE the fact that you buy new pants every day!

I''m short too so I have to get my pants hemmed. I love that they now reattach the original hem on jeans because they just look so much better that way. Before high end jeans came into play (with their loooong-super-model-legs-up-to-here-inseams) no one would ever reattach my hems on my jeans!

 

[Mara]

hahah this happens all the time at my nail salon!!!

i have gone there for years. i know they talk about me because sometimes they''ll be speaking in their language for a while and looking at me and then if one of them sees me looking at them, she''ll say ''your ring is beautiful'' or ''you have a new hairstyle'' or something. too funny!!

they are all very nice but the worst is when they are talking after i ask them to do something aka make one nail more rounded or something and then they all talk and then they laugh or something. i am always like..are they calling me a bitch or something?! haha.

 

[jaysonsmom]

Date: 7/14/2005 7:22:03 PM
Author: twinkletoes

I'm short too so I have to get my pants hemmed. I love that they now reattach the original hem on jeans because they just look so much better that way. Before high end jeans came into play (with their loooong-super-model-legs-up-to-here-inseams) no one would ever reattach my hems on my jeans!

You look really tall in your pictures. I would've guessed 5'6'+

This is WAY off topic, but I don't think height has to do with length of your legs. I see so many tall people with short legs, and short people with long legs. I have a friend who is only 5'4 and has a 32" inseam!

IrishEyes: As for the language thing....I'm sure they were talking about you

. My bro and I speak English and Chinese equally fluently, and we usually converse in English because we live here in the US, but if we're commenting about something going on around us, we do a little switch so we can "gossip" in private

....I'm just teasin ya.

 

[Kaleigh]

That happens in my nail salon too. They are just the nicest people ever, but sometimes I wonder???

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 7/14/2005 7:59:38 PM
Author: kaleigh
That happens in my nail salon too. They are just the nicest people ever, but sometimes I wonder???

kaleigh
yep.....they were talking about you. asking each other....... you think her diamonds are REAL.

 

[twinkletoes]

IrishEyes: heard this on the radio this morning and thought of you...

They sent an undercover Vietnamese reporter to the nail salon to find out what they were actually talking about.

- here, that lady left you $4 tip
- can you do this pedi? i hate touching feet. i only do hands.
- no way, i already did 3 pedicures. it''s your turn. haha, hope she wants a french- more work for you!
- where''s the callous remover?
- who has the OPI Cotton Candy
- ugh, I had to make fried rice for my son''s class last night.
- you should get it from "xxx restaurant" no one would ever know.

 

[Mara]

twinkle that''s hilarious!!! so innocuous!

 

[diamondfan]

Irish Eyes, I too have had that experience. I grew up in So. Cal and learned Spanish though I amlight haired, blue eyed and fair (while there are some Spanish people who have blue eyes and blond hair I clearly do not look Spansih). I knew what people were saying and I would just hope it was not about me. I agree about the different languages and finding most of them so pretty. You could ask for the restroom in Italian and it is lyrical and lovely. I speak French and Spanish a bit, so Italian and Portugese I can sort of figure out. However, I just came back from a trip to China and I felt so out of my element. It was disconcerting to not understand what is going on around you. Also, let''s face it, sometimes they might be taking about us...that''s life!!!! But we cannot stress about it, and just smile and be pleasant...

 

[sjz]

I always used to think that my husband''s family was talking about me. Their native tounge was Polish, and they weren''t very fluent in English, so unless they were speaking directly to me, they usually didn''t speak much English. I used to hear this one word a lot, and for a long time, I thought it was my name! They''d say this word, which I have no clue how to spell, but sounded like "soo-hem". To me, it sounded like they were saying "susan". The worst part was, when they said that word, quite often they would all LAUGH! I finally aked my husband, and it took him a while to figure out what word I was referring to. Eventually one day, someone said the word, and I poked him and said "that''s the word!" Turns out, it was a polish slang word that meant something to the effect of "know what I mean?" Boy, did I feel stupid!

I tried for a long time to learn to speak Polish, but all I ever managed were some basic words and phrases. I did learn some dirty words and cuss words in Polish, too. My favorite was learning to say "kiss my a$$" in Polish. I''ve used that one many many many times!