Jan 19 2009
Where’s the ‘Off’ switch?
Good grief. That went on for a lot longer than I expected. One mistake, one phrase out of place and I get three days - yes, three days - of my partner suffering anxiety, panic, pain and depression. Who would’ve thought a single, badly chosen sentence could do such harm? Sometimes I hate myself for my own stupidity.
The good thing is that it’s sorted now: she knows what I meant to say and understands that I was not being mean. This is one of the troubles we encounter that doesn’t exist for everybody: since she’s French, we sometimes have misunderstandings from bad translation or words that mean different things in the two languages we speak. Touching a point sensible (as the French say) can happen without warning.
Of course, this can also lead to much merriment when we mis-translate certain expressions as well, but it adds to the list of “things to be careful with”. I have a long list like that. Over the years, it has grown as I have learned to avoid certain subjects, words or phrases that make my lady anxious, upset her or make her angry - much like anybody, I suppose. The only real difference is the magnitude of the possible aftermath: this last one being a very good example.
Suffice to say that I’ve become quite a capable diplomat over the years. I should work for the UN or something.
