I realized something about myself last night and I am somewhat ashamed of it. I had my marketing class last night and I made a point of sitting in a different spot because I didn’t want to be in a group for the final project with the people sitting around me from the first week. I told myself it was because the guy sitting next to me was quite arrogant. (He kept going on and on about this cool job he had in Taiwan and all the people under him and blah blah blah something about wearing gold-plated diapers).
But I was forced to come to terms with the other underlying reason for my not wanting to be in their group…they were foreign. I know I’m a horrible person, I get it, but before you get all judgey on me I have to tell you that there is a really big group paper due at the end of the quarter. So what if I want to be in a group with the white people who can probably write well? I am so going to hell.
What happened last night to cause this epiphany is the prof (still with the popped collar) was talking about fidelity in terms of movies means how “faithful” they are to reality. At this point some kid in the back of the classroom raised his hand and said in a very strong accent that he thought the teacher didn’t know what the word faithful really meant and was using it in the wrong context and he continued to harp on it until the teacher used “accurate” instead.
All I could think was if I were a student at a school in France I wouldn’t be arguing with the teacher about the correct meaning of French words. But that’s just me, crazy “where are my pills” me! Later another international student got in a friendly debate with the teacher about the difference between convenience and flexibility.
So sue me that I don’t want to be in a group with them and instead want to be in a group with the nice girl who is just happens to be from the U.S. of A. and happens to work in Marketing and, yes, I talked to her on the way to our cars and I think I’m golden if I get in a group with her. Let me tell you I breathed a huge sigh of relief on the way home knowing that I would have a group that spoke fluent English.
Although, that didn’t last long because I quickly realized I needed to head to a gas station or risk running out of gas on the freeway. Oopsies! Don’t want to do that again!
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11 comments:
I don't think that makes you awful--you have a responsibility to yourself to make things go as well as they can, and really? Who needs the headache of working with people you know you wouldn't be compatible with? I always finagled the seating to have the smallest group possible. Anyway, good luck with having the group of your dreams!
I know it would have probably annoyed you even if it were Americans who were debating with the professor. I don't think it makes you a bad person.
What about country accents? Does that count as foreign?
You are not an awful person. Trust me, it could be a lot worse. You can't help how you feel and there is nothing wrong with that.
My co worker just told me that she thinks all black people smell like ferrets.
You're not a bad person. You just want a good grade is all.
And also you might want to make a nice friend with whom you have a lot in common rather than argue over sematics.
I'm not putting you down by any means - I work with a lot of foreign doctors and for the life of me, would not pick them as my physician because they don't understand what I'M saying, much less trying to understand what THEY'RE saying and this is my health here, people. I'd like to understand.
However,when I moved to town, the only psychiatrist that was highly recommended was a man from India and I was very leery, but he's super awesome.
I once had to work with a girl who ended her emails with:
"hihihihhihihihihihihih"
...
uhhh... ok?
You are not an awful person.
But really? Your new design looks great!
Love the new design! Love it!
Hate group work! Hate it!
i think you're not an awful person..maybe if they happened to be not that arrogant or if they're fluent enough on english, you would want to be with them..your grades is at stake and you have to do something about it..
i'll do the same...
-foreigner here!! :)
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