1. I am the one who smells food to determine whether it’s gone bad.
2. We talk about the thermostat. A lot.
3. I am the keeper of the social calendar.
4. He is the computer wrangler, faucet installer, and lifter of heavy things.
5. I am the buyer of greeting cards and sender of packages.
6. He does not cook.
7. I do not organize the garage.
8. After a bad day, nothing helps more than a hug from him.
9. We take classes together to keep things interesting.
Ways in Which We Are Different From You
1. Our budget includes trips to India.
2. Some of our misunderstandings revolve around language.
3. We own a rice cooker.
4. The time difference between us and his parents is 10.5 hours.
5. There are saris and churidars in my closet.
6. Some of our religious celebrations involve incense and fruit.
Posts
Hi there. I stumbled upon your blog some time ago completely on accident. I was reading a blog that I read all the time, and I clicked on "next blog" and there was yours. I've been meaning to say hi for a while, so here I am... taking a break from homework to chime in...
ReplyDeleteMy name is Kristen Bleninger-Sundar. Like you, I am a white Midwestern gal married to a South Indian. I really get a chuckle out of a lot of your posts where you talk specifically about your relationship with your hubby and your explorations of Indian culture/family/experiences, etc... My husband is from Chennai. He moved around a lot (within India) as a kid, as Appa was a government worker, but his parents have settled again in Chennai. I traveled to India once shortly after we married, and his parents have come to stay the summer twice in that time. We are planning another visit to India next year. Can't wait. Like you, I also have lots of beautiful Saris (and jewelry, thanks to my doting in-laws), we have plenty of language-based confusion, and a rice cooker is an absolutely essential item in our kitchen. My baby's gotta have his rice!
Just wanted to say that I appreciate the stories. Take care!
Kristen
If you're on facebook, friend me!
Howdy, new friend! I'm so glad you found me -- and that you enjoy the blog enough to come back!
ReplyDeleteWe went thought Chennai on our way to Mowgli's parents' a few years ago, and I'm looking forward to exploring it for a few days next time we head over. I hope your husband's family wasn't hurt in the tsunami.
Thank you for taking the time to comment. I'll look you up on FB for sure.
How many times have you traveled to India? If you go to Chennai for a couple days, you MUST check out the shops on Usman road. It is the place to buy jewelry. And be sure to go to Pothy's for clothes. I also enjoyed Spencer Mall in Chennai. When are you planning to go again? Thanks for adding me as a facebook friend. I used to keep a blog myself--I do a lot of creative writing... but my blog got hijacked by advertising a couple years ago, so I started a new blog with blogger, only to have strange formatting issues (with my poetry) that even my code-writing hubby couldn't figure out, so I've let blogging fall to the wayside for now. I'm working on my master's degree in nursing, so that keeps me plenty busy.... Anyway, have a look around my facebook page. I'm gonna check out your pics and see if your hubby is as handsome as you say he is. :-)
ReplyDeletekb
Nice to find your blog. I have been married to a guy from Chennai for the past 7 years. We have two kids. Two important items in our kitchen are the rice cooker and a pot of fresh rasam. I could not believe you had a pic of Gene the pumpkin man!!! I used to live in Portage and work in Mattawan. Origional Michigander here. We live in the Boston area now. Anyway, I have never posted before so thanks for the cool insight on living with the indian culture.
ReplyDeleteHello, Anonymous Former Michigander, and thanks for taking the time to comment. I thought I'd found my doppelganger a few weeks ago, but with the Michigan connection, you're currently in the lead.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to have your rasam recipe -- also one for sambar if you have it. There's a "contact me" link at the bottom of the page that you can use for that. Or post it for all to see, that might be fun, too.
Thanks again for visiting; I really love hearing from people in intercultural relationships.