My Mom was born in Malpaso, Zacatecas. Her people have inhabited that part of Mexico for thousands of years. I remember she told me once that her family had lived in that town for hundreds of years. To this day I have Aunts and Uncles there.
My father is from Guadalajara. This grand city was first established in 1531 by the Spanish. It is named after one of the founders' hometown in Spain. With help from my family and the interweb we traced my Father's ancestors to the Iberian Peninsula of Spain.
I traced the origin of his surname to pre Christian Rome. It came from the Latin word for thorn. My first name is Carmel, it's Hebrew for garden. I'm Thorn Garden, pleased to meet you!
My parents were Mexican by birth and Americans by choice. They came to our country in the 70s, became citizens some years later.
This is the best country in the whole world and I love it. If you don't agree you can go out in a field and sit on it! Whenever asked what I am, I'll always proudly proclaim American!
A few weeks back a customer asked me, what are you? American I said. Well you look Mexican but you talk like a white girl. Oh yeah, well you look like a jackass! Didn't say that aloud but I thought it really really hard!
I shared this with my friend (in the picture) today. She's a born and raised Mexican with light brown hair and green eyes! Not Mexican looking at all!
She agreed, I do indeed talk like a white girl. This is what she said; when I first met you I was confused. You're a tall butch, Mexican / Hawaiian looking girl with tattoos but when you talk you sound like a super girly middle class white girl.
$%#@ ,The only labels that are any good are on food. Leave that shit off of me!
Now I understand that there's such a thing as regional accents but what does the hell does it mean to talk like a white girl?
I need your thoughts on this. I know this could lead to the sensitive subject of race but rest assured I hate you all equally.
By the way, the tattoo on my arm is not a pot leaf like most people think!
ReplyDeleteYou realize that if you just add an "a" in there you could be Caramel -- from Latin for sugar cane.
ReplyDeleteGood post -- I'm curious what comments others will leave.
ReplyDeleteMojo, what do you think it means?
DeleteWhat ethnicity was the customer?..The word "butch" has never came to mind when reading your blog..
ReplyDeleteHe was white. As far as me being "butch" I'm not! Nothing wrong with that, my ex-girlfriend was. I am a total lady, I wear flowers and feathers in my hair almost everyday!
DeleteI agree with the regional accents, but I also think we sometimes act and sound like the people we are around
ReplyDeleteI think we sometimes sound and act like the people we interact with
ReplyDeleteNo wonder I talk white, all I did was watch Saved By the Bell !
DeleteSpeaking of Saved By The Bell...did you see fat Mr. Belding on Mad Men this past Sunday night?
Deletehttp://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSysrEvt_jbW-OYP2cHFrQHr2MM_hJAuemPk4JhpttQG-0_XAFQOVVLI_5B
Mystery solved..
ReplyDeleteDo you sound like Elizabeth Berkley or Tiffani Thiessen? Or perhaps Mario Lopez? heh. Just kidding! Don't cut me!
ReplyDeleteMore like Lisa! That bitch was more white then the other two
DeleteWho cares about accents or ethnicity? It's the quality of a person's character that matters and you seem like a gem.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Did I mention that I have always had a soft spot for fiery Latinas? (That's probably a way politically incorrect term and if so I apologize.)
That's really kind of you to say but a certain ex fiance would disagree :)
Deleteunfortunately almost everyone cares about those things. I have noticed that sometimes if you have a heavy accent people tend to think a bit less of you. Let's not even go into race and ethnicity!
Do you think most people form an opinion initially before getting to no someone
ReplyDeleteI can only speak for myself. Not my best quality but sometimes I judge a book by it's cover. So yes. Mist people think I'm a total jerk it's because they haven't gotten to know me.
DeleteI must not..something keeps me coming back each day to read another post but I am guilty of doing the same...not my best quality either
ReplyDeleteHere's my two cents--from a white girl.
ReplyDelete"Talking like a white girl" simply means you don't have an identifiable accent that sounds like you're from a country that's not inhabited primarily by white people. It also means you don't sound like you're black.
Now, before anybody gets in a snit, it's no secret that black people are often--not always, duh--identifiable by their vocal inflections. (That's an objective statement with absolutely no value judgments attached, so if anybody says that's racist, I'll kick your ass.)
A white girl could have a regional accent--like from New York, Boston, the South, or the San Fernando Valley-- or sound like a newscaster, with no accent at all.
Your customer was probably intrigued by your exotic good looks and was expecting to hear a Spanish sounding accent. Did you pick up any value judgments or other assholiness during his interaction? If not, maybe he just wanted to engage you in conversation and had no intention of "labeling" you.
I would always try to figure out the person's motivation. Unless they're being mean or nasty, why not welcome questions like that? There's nothing wrong with being curious about your fellow man (or woman). By answering, you have an opportunity to educate the person about different cultures, promote understanding, and make their world a little bigger.
One more thing: Be thankful that strangers are interested in you. A lot of people my age--both men and women--seem to become invisible. Not me, but I know it happens.
Linda you're the bomb!
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