To shake things up a bit during a sluggish time of year, I thought I’d host a summer contest to reward those who are still reading. (Thanks to some fellow bloggers who inspired this non-original idea!) Here’s how it will work: You can have your name entered more than once by doing any or all of the following:
1. Leave a comment telling which Jamie Jo post or article is your favorite or most memorable story.
2. “Tweet” your preference.
3. Link your favorite post on Facebook.
4. “Follow” this IRL blog by Google and/or through Networked blogs.
5. We’ll also put your name in twice if you leave a comment with an embarrassing incident that happened to you in the country where you serve.To possibly trigger a memory, here’s my most recent humiliation on the field.
Earlier this month, dh and I took the kids to a movie in the city, one of the few that was actually in English with Spanish subtitles. After it was over, dh made a trip to the restroom. Thinking that was a good idea before the drive home, I mindlessly followed him into the men's room! Two little boys started waving frantically at me before I got all the way in, and still it didn't click. I smiled, thinking they must have known me, and tried to think where I might have seen them before. Realizing they were in serious distress, I leaned down to hear what in the world was the matter.
By then they were practically jumping up and down trying to communicate non-verbally to this spacey American lady, frightening me into thinking some bad person was after them. (Remember I had just come out of a very action-packed movie.)
Eventually they resorted to speaking in Spanish to me, "You can't go in there!"
When I realized my error, I thanked them quickly and spun around to face my audience. If I had to make such a silly mistake once in my whole life, why did it have to be on a crowded Saturday in the big city?
IRL*Your prize for participating…$15 iTunes card!!
My favorite recent post was May 18th - are JJ's responses really hypothetical? I related to that and had never heard anyone vocalize those issues before - in a humorous light or otherwise.
ReplyDeleteBlessings! Shilo
Okay. I loved your recent 'designated gifts' post. I am a fellow-lover of that sort of gift and was encouraged that I'm not alone!! Still praying for that gift designated for a pedi...
ReplyDelete:)
Embarrassing incident here we go: I had my 1 year old daughter strapped on in a baby carrier (gets LOTS of odd looks) and I was ACTUALLY going for a walk for exercise (for once), despite how weird everyone thinks that is. I was rounding a corner on a busy street when I tripped and fell forward. No one was injured, thankfully. Only my pride. The locals think it's bad enough that I'd strap my baby onto me and not hold her with my arms, and weird that I'd go out for exercise with my baby in the middle of the day... but then they saw me almost fall on top of her while out for a walk! SO embarrassing!
ReplyDeleteMost embarrassing incident happened when I was a teen. We were house-sitting for missionaries on furlough and another family was going to arrive and also live in the house. We had two rooms with a bathroom in-between.
ReplyDeleteWe were gone for several days, and we arrived home early. The new family had also arrived and we didn't know it. We arrived home late at night and were quiet since there was another missionary also living in the house.
I went to take a shower. Now, we never locked the door to the other bedroom, since no one was there, and to their defense, they never thought about knocking since no one was on our side either.
I had just stripped to shower when the door opened and in walked the husband of the new couple who had moved in. He jumped at the sight of an unknown, naked teen and I jumped, too. He said nothing and just exited. We formally met the next day, but I turned red and only muttered my "hello".
Ah, there are so many embarrassing things to choose from!
ReplyDeleteAt language school we had to do a speech in Japanese in front of all the teachers and other students. I chose to talk about my courtship with my husband. It all went very well until the question part at the end. One of the teachers asked me what I liked most about him at the beginning of our relationship. I accidentally said, "His nose", but meant to say, "His eyes." Everyone was rolling on the floor laughing, even the most serious of teachers.
I loved the dialog and suggestions in "How do you deal with leaves and returns of husband" question. This touched my real life...as my husband has traveled most of the past 10 years of our lives!
ReplyDeleteI also very much related to the designated gifts post--- any designated gifts that would come my way for a massage, would be much appreciated today! ;)
Oh I love these most embarrassing moments. They make me feel like I'm not the only one...
ReplyDeleteMine happened two Sundays ago. My husband and I were having tea and cake in our living room with two Turkish couples. One of the couples was coming to our home for the first time.
I stood up to collect tea glasses and re-fill them when I felt something swooshing against my legs. I thought, "What's happening to my dress?" and when I looked down, there was my SLIP on the floor in a ring around my feet!!!
While I stood frozen looking at my feet and wondering what on earth to do, the neighbor I'd just met looked at me whispered, "Don't worry about it." The others continued talking and didn't even blink an eye..
All I could do was bend over, pick up the slip and sneak out of the room with it. Later I came back with the tea. I figured it wouldn't have been too cool to hold the slip in my hand while I went around collecting tea glasses!
PS. Your recent post, "If You're Waiting for Me to Be Just Like You" was my favorite. It really struck a chord with me.
ReplyDeleteSee? Even I've been too busy to respond here. Thanks for playing along. I've enjoyed your stories. Your "favorite posts" was really a sneaky way to get more mileage out of old posts while I'm going through a writer's slump, but it has encouraged me to be reminded that you are relating to my life stories.
ReplyDeleteWe're not picking up any new fans here. Spread the word! (of course, then the odds go down that you will win.) Some of you have double entries. That is totally allowed and encouraged!
Ah, I'm I too late? We're on home assignment and traveling like crazy right now!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite Jamie Jo post was the Ask JJ a while back... one of the comments described different styles of raising children (V and upside down V) that was literally such a great perspective shift for me... has helped me so much on the field!
I'm a follower of this blog on Google...
Most embarrassing moment - technically this is my husbands but I was mortified. Twice now, in the past week of speaking at churches, he has said the wrong churches name as he's thanking them for their support... talk about a melt into the floor moment!!!
Well, Nicolette, once dh introduced me to a supporting church as his wife of 10 years, and then proceeded to introduce our 11 year old. Um, what? He got the numbers backward somehow. Ack.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the entries. We failed to say when the drawing would be. ???
It's hard to choose a favorite posting when you, Jamie Jo, and the "in real life" blog is truly my weekly anecdote for cross-cultural living! Among the top favs is "a loss of my panache", doing my version of a "laundry line dance" and "sometimes being real hurts!". I go through my day and at times I am in a moment where I remember Jamie Jo said something about this (be it hosting, housework, road trips with cinnamon rolls the kids won't eat, bathroom catastrophes, reclaiming a heart of contentment, humbled by the Christian example of a national friend, etc, etc) Thanks for being real! One of my favorites too was to hear about your boys being out on their own, getting lost and then picked up by the police and unable to satisfy the questioning policemen. I actually passed that one on to my mom!
ReplyDeleteAn embarrassing time I had was at the national church we were attending during language school. Our family was the only white family attending. We were always warmly welcomed, though most people were too shy to say anything more than just to greet us. However, the leadership were becoming good friends. One Sunday, me and my noisy two toddlers sat in the furthest back row as my dh was home sick. In the auditorium of about 200 people, a guest speaker within the network of churches spoke to me over the microphone from the pulpit (which is enough to make me shake in my boots already!). In the local language he asked, "where is your husband?" I replied "He is at home sick". The speaker took the moment to tease me and my poor pronunciation of the language. He announced he thought I said, "sake" which is a Japanese alcoholic drink. The crowd laughed and all turned their heads in my direction. I turned beet red and tried to laugh along. I wasn't bothered by the content of the joke, but the fact that I WAS the joke and all eyes on me! That week I started practicing hard to say "sick". I never want to imply that my dh isn't at church because he prefers to be at home drinking it up!
My favorite JJ story of. all. time. and. into. everlasting. is the rainbow Target shopping trip. Hands down. I bet Jesus even chuckles over that one still. :)
ReplyDeleteMy humiliating moments cross culturally are many but the one that sticks out at the moment is the one in which we invited some friends over for cake and ice cream (???) for an impromtu birthday party for Janelle. Just figured it would be a casual thing and with our new friends. Little did I know that birthday parties in Mexico are anything BUT a casual, toss it together quick, get-together. I about died when people started showing up with gifts, extended family, dressed to the nines and bedecked in their finest. I was in jeans and a tshirt and wanted to disappear into the floor. (The humiliation was even greater when I took into account that these were poor friends who struggled to even put food on the table....sigh)
Lesson was learned pretty darn quick that day. We didn't do very many more birthday parties. :)
Reminder: You'll need to let us know if you've Tweeted or posted on Facebook (or your own blog) your favorite post.
ReplyDeleteWe'll be tallying these up and picking a name on Wednesday morning! Many of you have double credit for "following" and posting, and some have triple for also mentioning your favorite post.
(Hayes Zoo and Court or Beth - your stories make me feel so much better! Thanks for playing.)
OK, so I went back and looked at old post and I would say the one that most touched me recently was If your Waiting for me to be Just Like You http://inreallifewithjamiejo.blogspot.com/2011/06/if-youre-waiting-for-me-to-be-just-like.html
ReplyDeleteAmy @ Missional Mama
I added my fav post, mentioned above, on my Missional Mama FB fan page (which you should check out BTW)
ReplyDeleteAmy @ Missional Mama
I just Tweeted @MissionalMama
ReplyDeleteAre you on twitter?
I follow your blog!
ReplyDeleteGo, Missional Mama! Nice job. I now follow yours, too. It's great to "meet" you here. I'm printing your name on four slips of paper now.
ReplyDelete