I guess human differences may make for a better world; let's embrace diversity. I am a mutt myself: Russian, Greek, Portuguese, Brazilian and everything there is in Brazilian. It is known Portuguese colonizers heavily embraced (senso stricto) diverse of the people they colonized. Consequently, the people in Brazil are of all hues from blueberry black to light skin black; some with frizzy hair, some with blue eyes. Unfortunately, the French are the kind of people who stick out like a sore thumb. They will let all around them know they are French and have opinions which inevitably oppose yours.
All the French qualities vanish when they decide to practice their social entertainment, which is to argue a point endlessly. That is socially acceptable and part of the rules of making friends in France. You'll argue with someone you just met, if you are both French, and you'll end up kissing each other on the cheeks before leaving a bistro table. Maybe "Kiss and make up" is part of their contribution to the English language.
The French acknowledge their stubborn ways in at least two colorful expressions: Têtu comme une vache normande (stubborn as a cow) and
Têtu comme une bourrique (stubborn as a donkey). The first expression was given me by an informant from the north of France. The second I heard endlessly in the south of France, both in the southeast, Avignon, as in the southwest, Toulouse.
Please don't ever tell a French person s/he is behaving in this socially unacceptable way here in the USA. For some mysterious reason they don't get it. They don't get it they are in this land of social hypocrisy, the land that seeks conformity and harmony in conversation. Maybe those Puritans left us this heritage. Maybe that blends in with the American Dream. Maybe it's the E pluribus unum of the newfound nation. We will go as far as "Let's agree to disagree." That to me sounds like a f*ing oxymoron, emphasis on the moron part. Just say, "Drop it", instead. " I need to go now." Or "Can I call you later?" People in the USA wish to find common ground when they engage in conversation; they don't want to be "convinced" of an opposite point of view, unless they are wimpy boomers who end up voting for Barack Obama because their chldren told them so.
For example, you went to Malibu for a ride on a sunny afternoon. The French person in the car says something preposterous s/he read somewhere. You can say you read something else in the Pulitzer-rich Washington Post. Or go crazy on your pal and quote Bob Dylan. The French do love our pop culture; they love intellectuals. When you arrive at your destination, say, West Zuma, an isolated beach, sit at a restaurant, to shield you from the merciless wind, help choose a faraway table. Unfortunately, you may end up sitting next to a right-wing Colombian whose family consists of four-star generals. Women don't count. Your next-to-you table pal will drop several hints: conspiracy theories, Ann Coulter, Fox News. (Yikes!) But the more hints, the hotter your French friend becomes in a sermonizing speech against the status quo. You can gently say, "Taits-toi" . Nothing will keep your companion from going on and on about Bush and our administration's policies abroad, especially in Latin America of the 60s to 80s.
The Colombians leave; at least we get the table by the window. Just let it slide. There is more of a chance of a Scotsman to speak comprehensible English than that of a French person to admit s/he made a faux pas. After all, at te same time that they adopt the rules of politesse oblige, they cannot see or accept what my Jewish Russian grandma used to say, "Do in Rome as the Romans do."
Just look at the beautiful ocean and babes and dudes, whatever turns you on. It's another beautiful day in SoCal, filled with beautiful young people and wannabe geezers. Your French companion unwinds and decides it's time to leave. After all, there is no one else to argue with. The scuzzy motel right before the bend to West Zuma was painted beige. What a pity. It was a beautiful moss green.
The sun began to set, we are on our way to Santa Monica, and will be back to West Zuma soon. I hope so. It's a beautiful beach, nearly deserted, and the restaurant lets you breathe in the salty air of the wondrous waves of the Pacific without the wind.
It's not Ipanema, but it'll do the trick on saudade. "Chega de saudade", by Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes, performed 40 years after the Carnegie Hall show by João Gilberto and Tom Jobim at the Municipal Theater in São Paulo. You'll recognize several Brazilian musicians in the audience.
Courtesy of YouTube.
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