"Communication" | Sep 8 07

Categorized in !@$#%@!, Family/Friends.

Communication is such a necessity to life. Communicating, whether it be Italian, body language, or even American sign language, is a MUST to get through life. It’s a stepping stone to so much more beyond. Without communication, how would we be able to get our point across, interact with others in a sensible way (since wailing your arms wildly isn’t saying much), or even ordering a pizza! We need communication in our lives to get our point across.

I have a difficult time communicating with my Mom, especially. It’s due to the fact that I’m at a cross boundary between Vietnamese heritage and American culture. With that said, it’s such a hassle to mingle with Vietnamese and English with my Mom since her English isn’t as well… developed. I mean, this is how a conversation would go:

Me: Mom, the movie’s at 10:10.
Mom: Austin! Austin! When’s the movie??
Me; It’s at 10:10.
Mom: 10:30?!
Me: No, Mom. 10:10 PM.
Mom: Is it at 10:30?
Me: MOM!! It’s at 10:10!!
Mom: Ohhh! 10:10!

It takes so much to get the point across when you’re mingling with Vietnamese and English together like that because most conversation are a mix of both languages. I get so sick and frustrated trying to directly ask her to get groceries at the store or reminding her that I’m at a friend’s house when I’m somehow misunderstood and she totally forgets. It’s as if… she’s half deaf, language-wise. She can understand and comprehend half of what I say, leaving the other half floating somewhere in the distance. This lack of communication stirs such a raucous within our household, as it is probably a tribute to her transferring me out of the IB program.

I suppose it is the same with me… as I can’t properly express myself clearly in Vietnamese. I’m able to interpret it well, as opposed to actually speaking it myself, which turns out fairly mediocre.

To put blatantly: LACK OF COMMUNICATION SUCKS TO THE FIFTH DEGREE.

I actually wrote an essay on communication during my duration enrolled in the IB program. I suppose I could post it up here…

13 Responses to “Communication”

Sep Sun 07 at 6:23 am , Mimi Says:

yes, you could post it here, and then we all could read it. yayyyy, oh happy days! but for some reason, this reminds me of my french class. we have some people who have parents who speak french, or they live in french speaking countries, so they’re able to speak very well. me, on the other hand, not so much. it’s hard for me to understand when people are speaking it, it is much easier for me to read and write. when he have class discussions in class, i only understand bits and pieces, so when my teacher asks for my input, i sit there blank-faced haha. but it’s not an everyday thing for me, as it is for you. you guys should just write each other messages, would that be better? lol.

Sep Sun 07 at 7:48 am , Robbie Says:

Hehe, had to be a pretty funny scene there with your mom, I’d mess with her and whisper three times a row .

Shoot up the essay!

Sep Mon 07 at 12:35 am , Kristina Says:

Hah. Yeah, I do that too. Well, in Chinese though =). I generally say stuff to my mom over the phone in english because I’m out with friends or something and then she’s like what?? and I repeat it again in english with the same result so then I switch to Chinese, then drawing the attention of my friends who apparently love it when I switch to a foreign language when I was trying to make it a not noticeable thing that I was on the phone anyway. Gotta love language impairments.

Sep Mon 07 at 4:29 am , morgan Says:

I don’t seem to have a problem communicating with my parents in Chinglish. However, where I used to live, Vietnamese people flocked there by the dozen. Heck, my hairdresser was Vietnamese. Chinese person speaking English + Vietnamese person without many good English skills = ten minutes of explaining.

I literally spent half an hour explaining to the woman I didn’t want a side fringe because it sidetracked me. Guess what? Just when I think she’d understood… she went and chopped my hair into a MULLET with a SIDE FRINGE.

But at least it was a cool mullet XD

Sep Wed 07 at 4:53 pm , Kris Says:

Okay. 10:30 means 10:10 to your mom. LOL

Sep Thu 07 at 1:51 am , Tonya Says:

Hey Austin! wow I haven’t commented or been here in forever :whoa: Sorry about that.. well I’ve been really busy with online things.. and I’ve decided to get rid of retro-charm. You can remove my site from your affiliates if I’m there But yeah we can still keep in touch! Feel free to email me. :dance:

Sep Fri 07 at 4:52 am , Laarni Says:

hehehe. cute. I have a terrible communication with my mom too when she sends me SMSsss. :p

Sep Fri 07 at 6:40 am , Stephanie Says:

I can completely relate =[ Coming from a Chinese - American household. I have to speak really slowly and use smaller words when communicating with my parents. I wish I spoke Chinese, well, though =[ Yeah, I can interpret it, but when I speak it, I sound soo dumb x_x

Sep Fri 07 at 8:37 pm , Alex Says:

I’ve always had a hard time communicating with my own parents as well. Language barriers are so tough to get over. My parents have been in America for over 17 years, and they still speak basic English — how they managed to not learn English eludes me.

Sep Fri 07 at 11:51 pm , morgan Says:

Alacritous? :whoa: Keep using big words like that and I’ll have to BOOKMARK dictionary.com.

You don’t read the dictionary… do you? XD Haha. Just kidding.

Sep Sat 07 at 8:26 am , Chris Says:

Wow I love your site and layout! It is simple, but amazing!

Haha, yeah communication between parents. They tend to not understand what point you are trying to get across. Same with teachers.

Sep Sat 07 at 8:45 am , Kathy Says:

Austin! It’s been a while since I’ve commented on your blogs D: Forgive me! I read your last blog and I must say…I laughed so hard. Well, not the actual, “Ha-ha-ha,” but I was smiling

On this blog: Oh my, you touched the spot. It’s hard trying to speak with my parents too. I mingle with Vietnamese and English all the time. An example of a sentence would be: “Hey Me, con muon an chicken wings voi french fries.” = probably not the correct way of spelling these words, but, you get the point! “Hey Mom. I wanna eat chicken wings and french fries.” Lol. My mom isn’t fluent in English either, but she understands a bit more than quite a bit

LOL, miscommunication happen ALL the time. Yesterday I went out with my friends to watch Rush Hour 3 (bleh, we’re late, but it’s HILARIOUS!!). I told my mom like 5 days ahead of time that I’d be going. That morning, I also said, I’m leaving at 11! She nods. When I start changing at 10-ish, she asks me where I’m going…and who I’m going with…and when I’d be back.

On your last blog: LMAO.

Sep Sat 07 at 8:46 am , Kathy Says:

– it cut my comment ;; continuation below –

On your last blog: LMAO. = not the best word to use right now! Yes, I have a hated blog D: I should go to jail. I use chatspeak all the time; not on my blogs, but on AIM with my friends. I just find it weird going on AIM and writing in complete sentences. Not that I typ3 lik D1s, but I abbreviate the you’s and the simple ones So, I conclude that I am a loser when it comes to blogging because I do use: LOL, LMAO, LMFAO, ROOOFL (not that much), BRB, BBL, OMG, a whole lot Hey, but I’m not gonna stop!

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