Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Impress Me Not

I ran into our neighbour from across the street for the first time last week.  A tall French guy, looks about 40.

Him:  Hello!  Nice to finally meet you -- I met your husband sometime back.
Me:  Hi, nice to meet you.  How are you?  I hear you guys just had a baby -- Congratulations!
Him:  Me and my partner have TWO actually, one is 2 years old, and the new one is 2 months.
Me:  Wow!  Must be tough...
Him:  ... plus I have THREE other kids with my former partner, so I have FIVE actually.
Me:  Oh -- wow... (WTF! O_O)
Him:  Hey, you and your husband should pop by and have a drink sometime!
Me:  Sure, yeah! (M-kay...)
Him:  See you around then!
Me:  Yup, see ya!

And it struck me that night, how different attitudes towards marriage and partnership is here.  Back home, you don't divulge this sort of information to people you meet for the first time.  It's still a taboo, and as first impressions matter, you don't want someone to think you might be an irresponsible, philandering commitment-phobic git.  Coz, really, at this point, that's what I am thinking.  Wouldn't you?


Of course, I'm no unreasonable prude.  Everybody has their reasons for doing the things they do.  This guy could have been having a super miserable marriage with some Ultimate Diva.  Matter of fact, they could all be happier with this arrangement, including the kids.

Now I'm thinking: this guy is either oblivious to the impression he's giving, or, doesn't give a toss about what other people may think.  Either way, I won't say no to drinks with him and his partner to get to know them a little better. :)


(pic via Savage Chickens)

1 comment:

  1. 5555 i think he just gave you F.Y.I so you don't be surprized when u c FIVE KIDS running up & down in his house when you go there for a drink :)

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