Kind of like fear factor but only funnier. I had been tossing up whether to post this recent experience of last Monday. Not for any particular reason other than perhaps some people will not see the "funny" in this one.
Besides there has been a little bit of bule bashing going on in the Indonesian blogosphere of late. Hold on, it goes on all the time. It won't be long and there will be three certainties in life; death, taxes, and bule bashing in the Indonesian blogosphere.
Most people I think make to big of a deal of the whole bule thing. If people don't like what I blog about or my opinions of things, then that is their right. The want to verbally bash me through their blog or on mine, so be it!
Nah, back to the bule factor story.
The wife and I are now onto a fortnightly check-up routine for the pregnancy. So, every two weeks we make the trip to the hospital. Generally, we do the check which is a USG then go to the pharmacy to get whatever the doctor prescribes. After that it is off to do some shopping, proper or window, doesn't matter. We have lunch and then head home and I head off to work.
Anyways, we were sitting in the waiting room, funnily enough waiting for the doctor to arrive. We were sitting across from a woman and her pregnant daughter. The woman engages the wife in some conversation. I am translating stuff so I am tapping away on the laptop.
It is always fun for me to sit back and watch Indonesians assume that I do not speak Indonesian. It is also a good way to avoid having to talk to people as I can just whack on the blank stare look and then they give up.
The conversation was all pretty much small talk until this pearler came bubbling forth, " dapat bule dimana?" Essentially, "so, where did you get the white guy?" I almost fell out of my seat and had to do everything that I could to control myself. I was not angry, upset, or offended, rather I was doing everything that I could to not burst out laughing. I am sure the wife knew what was going on and the question is probably more tiresome for her than it is funny for me.
I was sitting there like an attentive school kid ready to put his hand up in order to answer this super question.
Some of the possible answers that crossed my mind were, "Bu, there was this competition that I entered and the first prize was a bule" or "Wah, it was a little difficult but I ordered him through an online catalogue but they wouldn't courier him so I had to go to Australia and pick him up. He looks a little different in real life than he did in the catalogue!" or "he was just wondering around lost on the street so I took him home and fed him and then he would not leave".
I think the question was generic and harmless and nothing sinister was meant by it. It is just funny to hear it and then think about the possible answers I could have used.
It did make my day though! Perhaps it is a case of small things amusing small minds.
Showing posts with label USG. Show all posts
Showing posts with label USG. Show all posts
16 October 2008
04 October 2008
The Waiting Game
There are just two months to go now, give or take, until we take the first tentative steps on parenthood. It is something that I am looking forward to as most of you know. However, it is bizarre the emotional rollercoaster that we run on the journey through to the finish line.
The expectation and excitement is sometimes (the closer the time gets to birth the more frequent this is) interchanged with impatience. Strange as that is. It is just a case of wanting to see the Kid out in the real world rather than just on the USG. The logical part of my brain understands that this is a process and the gestation period on average is nine months. I get it, I really do.
Patience is a virtue, they say. So, patient it is.
The expectation and excitement is sometimes (the closer the time gets to birth the more frequent this is) interchanged with impatience. Strange as that is. It is just a case of wanting to see the Kid out in the real world rather than just on the USG. The logical part of my brain understands that this is a process and the gestation period on average is nine months. I get it, I really do.
Patience is a virtue, they say. So, patient it is.
19 September 2008
Parenthood -- A Scary Prospect?
The pregnancy is going well. The most recent trip to the doctor showed that everything was going in the direction that it is supposed to. The Kid is looking healthy and is a little bit bigger than he should be, apparently, by a couple of hundred grams or so.
The trip to the doctor have moved from a once a month event to once every two weeks. The closer it gets the more exciting it becomes. The thought of being responsible for a little life is at time daunting. I do not know if it is a normal part of the process or not, but I often find myself wondering what kind of an old man I am going to make. I also find myself spotting more parents with kids and notice how they discipline them in public.
You also notice how many Indonesians have hired help to make it "easier". I am in for a no assistance schedule on the child rearing front as I have been instructed there will be no nannies or anything else involved. So, I will be the prematurely old looking fella pushing the stroller around, if you happen to notice.
Back to the doctor trips. These trips have become like a big day out, a real event in and of themselves. They usually culminate in shopping. As the due date comes ever-closer, these shopping trips tend to end in having spent way too much money of things for the Kid, all necessary of course. Last week saw us become the proud owners of a crib with all the trimmings. The weekend before saw that the Kid kitted out in all the latest fashions. This included some hand-sewn cross-stitch additions.
The thought of parenthood is both a scary one and an exciting one. Maybe it is different for kid number 2. The first kid though just has so many unanswered questions.
The beauty of life!
The trip to the doctor have moved from a once a month event to once every two weeks. The closer it gets the more exciting it becomes. The thought of being responsible for a little life is at time daunting. I do not know if it is a normal part of the process or not, but I often find myself wondering what kind of an old man I am going to make. I also find myself spotting more parents with kids and notice how they discipline them in public.
You also notice how many Indonesians have hired help to make it "easier". I am in for a no assistance schedule on the child rearing front as I have been instructed there will be no nannies or anything else involved. So, I will be the prematurely old looking fella pushing the stroller around, if you happen to notice.
Back to the doctor trips. These trips have become like a big day out, a real event in and of themselves. They usually culminate in shopping. As the due date comes ever-closer, these shopping trips tend to end in having spent way too much money of things for the Kid, all necessary of course. Last week saw us become the proud owners of a crib with all the trimmings. The weekend before saw that the Kid kitted out in all the latest fashions. This included some hand-sewn cross-stitch additions.
The thought of parenthood is both a scary one and an exciting one. Maybe it is different for kid number 2. The first kid though just has so many unanswered questions.
The beauty of life!
07 September 2008
Pending Fatherhood
This is a personal musing on pending fatherhood.
I have noticed on the telly that Snoop Dogg has a reality show on Global TV (MTV) about fatherhood. It is essentially him doing stuff with his kids. But, the inspiration for the post comes from a conversation I was having with a good friend and a single question that he asked, "are you excited?"
The simple answer is, "Yes!" The complex and long winded answer would include the reasons why. I am looking forward to being responsible for how the little fella turns out as a person. The challenge is both daunting but undoubtedly full of plenty of good times. I look back fondly on my own childhood. If I can be half the parent that my parents were to me then the kid is going to do well in his life.
The pregnancy journey has obviously been more of a burden for the better half than me. Burden in the sense of carrying the kid. For men it is sort of like you do your thing and then you have nine months off from the hard yakka. The biggest demand is satisfying the crazy cravings that the mother has. I am expecting my work load to pick up a little after the little fella pokes his head out into this brave new world.
The fun stuff is the looking at the USG and being able to see the miracle of life in action. Watching your very own flesh and blood grow before your eyes. The Kid is going to be an active bugger if his performances to date are any indication. The way he is banging about with his hands, elbows, arms, feet, knees, and legs, suggests to me that there is a budding UFC star on the way. The next Randy Couture.
The next big thing is to make some recording of the Kid in 3D and 4D. The miracles of modern technology. My parents were going to come over sometime next week and we were going to take them for a look see at the USG. Then yesterday my old lady decided that double bypass heart surgery was more important. In short no air travel for her for a while. Thankfully, the surgery went well and perhaps the folks will be able to fly over later in the year. Hence the idea of getting the recordings in 3D and 4D.
The excitement is also that I am looking forward to playing cricket with the kid as he grows up. Hopefully, at 50 or so I will still be able to waddle around and role the arm over in 4th or 5th grade competitive cricket. I am not so much looking forward to having to get back to primary school maths and science to help with homework...but it should make me good for a shot at the million dollar question on "Are You Smarter than a 5-year-old?"
So, yeah, I am excited at the prospect of being a father. Probably no more so than my better half is looking forward to being a mother. We already have a running bet on what the kid's first word is going to be.
I have noticed on the telly that Snoop Dogg has a reality show on Global TV (MTV) about fatherhood. It is essentially him doing stuff with his kids. But, the inspiration for the post comes from a conversation I was having with a good friend and a single question that he asked, "are you excited?"
The simple answer is, "Yes!" The complex and long winded answer would include the reasons why. I am looking forward to being responsible for how the little fella turns out as a person. The challenge is both daunting but undoubtedly full of plenty of good times. I look back fondly on my own childhood. If I can be half the parent that my parents were to me then the kid is going to do well in his life.
The pregnancy journey has obviously been more of a burden for the better half than me. Burden in the sense of carrying the kid. For men it is sort of like you do your thing and then you have nine months off from the hard yakka. The biggest demand is satisfying the crazy cravings that the mother has. I am expecting my work load to pick up a little after the little fella pokes his head out into this brave new world.
The fun stuff is the looking at the USG and being able to see the miracle of life in action. Watching your very own flesh and blood grow before your eyes. The Kid is going to be an active bugger if his performances to date are any indication. The way he is banging about with his hands, elbows, arms, feet, knees, and legs, suggests to me that there is a budding UFC star on the way. The next Randy Couture.
The next big thing is to make some recording of the Kid in 3D and 4D. The miracles of modern technology. My parents were going to come over sometime next week and we were going to take them for a look see at the USG. Then yesterday my old lady decided that double bypass heart surgery was more important. In short no air travel for her for a while. Thankfully, the surgery went well and perhaps the folks will be able to fly over later in the year. Hence the idea of getting the recordings in 3D and 4D.
The excitement is also that I am looking forward to playing cricket with the kid as he grows up. Hopefully, at 50 or so I will still be able to waddle around and role the arm over in 4th or 5th grade competitive cricket. I am not so much looking forward to having to get back to primary school maths and science to help with homework...but it should make me good for a shot at the million dollar question on "Are You Smarter than a 5-year-old?"
So, yeah, I am excited at the prospect of being a father. Probably no more so than my better half is looking forward to being a mother. We already have a running bet on what the kid's first word is going to be.
12 June 2008
The Kid!
This is what "The Kid" looks like at 14 weeks! I am not convinced that he looks like me yet :DAhhhh...the joys of pending fatherhood and the beauty of modern technology like ultrasonography (USG) that allows us to experience such things!
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