hetalia_kink | Hetalia Kink meme part 14 -- CLOSED

I'm loving all these parts especially since I seem to be experiencing these very same problems when talking to Americans xD I really can't get over how MANY cultural differences there are.
Recently I've been told I act cold and 'like I'm better than everyone else' on the basis that I talk.. politely xD; I don't want to think what is going to come next xD

ps. I know Americans who make their tea in microwave. Just... why.

Heh, when thinking about "treating everyone equally"? We interpret that as "with equal warmth or friendship" instead of "with equal politeness and distance". See how I'm equating politeness, coldness, and distance? Speaking frankly is pretty much a sign of respect here, although it's better not to be outright blunt. (Then again, our definitions of blunt vary hugely, too...)

But seriously, being too formal or polite to someone here can be a bit disrespectful, as you're treating them like a child. And most people don't want to be looked down upon and "handled" like a child. I think it's the kind of feeling really.

Our cultures really are pretty damn different, considering that people themselves are still the same wherever they go.

... I wish my country would ban the microwave most days. Making tea from microwaved water is just ... sad. Ew. OTL

I meant "people themselves are still the same wherever I go." Totally different meaning! OTL

What's wrong with microwaving hot water?

Tea doesn't brew properly unless the water is the proper temperature for that tea; for black tea, the water is supposed to be boiling, right?

Well, microwaves can actually superheat the water until it's (far) past the boiling point without the water actually visibly boiling or turning into steam; you can observe this by watching water "boil" in your microwave, if you like, and it's one reason why you have to be extra careful not to burn yourself when heating water in the microwave, actually. This weird behavior of microwaved water is due to how a microwave works and the surface tension of the water, but it's a bit too complicated to explain here, I think.

So basically, the water often isn't at the right temperature to brew tea, and the tea ends up being too bitter, etc.

If that was too tl;dr? Basically, it tastes wrong!

... I demand proper tea, dammit. OTL

I don't get that too much, but there are clashes at times. Most of the time I sit in calls and be sarcastic at the poor blighters.

Admittedly, (like I've said in the notes) I've been talking to Americans for four years and it's gotten to the point where it's gotten easier to talk to americans than fellow Brits online. You learn to just let their loud-mouth, obnoxious but really quite friendly-after-a-point attitude rush over you and you go with the tide.

of course, being cynical has it's advantages because there are plenty of people who really don't get. it. And. They get insulted. Easily. Well, moreso easily than usual. xD

and oh GOD so do I and.... eeeeegh. Wouldn't that.. mess the tea up? Like, I always put the teabag in first and THEN pour the water in, it filters it better. Just.. Or do they make the whole thing with cold water and THEN microwave it, because then that'd mess up the whole thing compeltely with cold water vs hot and... e___e and right now I feel incredibly stereotypical wasting a whole paragraph COMPLAINING about TEA and AMERICANS and NOT PROPER. .. I'll be over there. xD

How all fellow Americans I know make tea:

1) They heat a mug of water in the microwave until the water boils.
2) They drop the teabag into the mug and let it brew, uncovered.
3) They often dunk the bag in and out, possibly even squeezing it over the cup when you pull it out. (These particular horrors are optional.) THEY MAY EVEN LEAVE THE BAG IN WHILE THEY DRINK. (Optional)
4) I weep tears of sorrow while watching. (Never, ever optional. Tru fax.)

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Admittedly, (like I've said in the notes) I've been talking to Americans for four years and it's gotten to the point where it's gotten easier to talk to americans than fellow Brits online. You learn to just let their loud-mouth, obnoxious but really quite friendly-after-a-point attitude rush over you and you go with the tide. Brit!anon, I like the way you describe us like a dozen shots of cheap whiskey. The first couple make you shudder and grimace, but the rest are bracing but strangely appealing! Until they induce a horrific headache and vomiting, and you try to swear them off for eternity. But they find their way back to your side, no matter what your wishes are. (Lather, rinse, and repeat as needed.) ... That's kind of fabulous, seriously. XD

This subject line is like a lesson in "Why not to post at 6:30 when you've been up for 24 hours with no damn caffeine," isn't it?

1. Fill with water, turn kettle on.
2. Put sugar (2-3 spoons, personally) in, pop teabag in mug/cup.
3. Once Water is boiled, pour until aproppiate amount in cup (4/5's for me)
4. Stir the Teabag around the water to let the tea filter through. Squeeze on side of mug to get the extra little bit out, then dispose. (flinging it out of a nearby open window while shouting 'God Save the Queen!' is optional)
5. Add milk.
6. Stir! Tap teaspoon on side of mug for good luck (or just to get rid of the droplets of tea on it) and dispose (in sink, maybe not out of the window too. You might hit the poor sod that had a sopping teabag land on their head as they were walking past your kitchen window)
7. Enjoy! British phrases and conversation is optional too but highly reccomended while drinking.

^ That is how I make tea. Listen and learn. xD

Admittedly, that is a fabulous analogy. And so true to my life for the past four years. Dx YOU LOT ARE EVERYWHERE.

Nice Title, yes. AND JESUS CHRIST GET TO SLEEP ~~I had coffee yesterday and it made me feel more sick than I have in over a year. I nearly ran to the flipping toilet twice. NEVER. AGAIN. My stomach still hurts. Bunch of loons.~~

Oh dear, issit all with teabags these days?? I used to think the world of Lipton teabags until i came across a tin of loose tea leaves and I been drinking awesomely tea leaves brewed tea then on. oh, and i had a tea infuser just for this purpose too!

Speaking politely or worse, formally, will feel like an attempt to put distance between you and the other person. That's good in a professional or academic environment, but in a social circle, it can feel like a "holier-than-thou" attitude. On the other hand, speaking bluntly is a sign that you consider the other person to be on the same level as you(in other words, an equal). Although that can backfire, too. Best bet is to talk informally, but try to avoid being deliberately rude.

Now that I think about it, the only times I'm purposefully polite to people is when I can't stand them or I'm trying to avoid them, but the present situation prevents outright me telling them so.

Californian!anon must confess that she's never made tea. *is shot*

After four years, I got that image. xD And while being polite is a much more socially accepted thing here, of course. there are always exceptions. xD I've gotten used to it, but I'm in a lot of communities where either everyone (save me) is american or the majority, or I'm one of the only or a few Brits. New brits join and get incredibly imtimidated by the openness, generally. xD It's interesting.

See, if you were having problems with how your coworkers (or neighbors, etc.) act in some countries, you could just go out drinking with some of them, bitch a bit about whatever's going on, and they might helpfully spread the word! Like Japan, for instance. XD In America, we'd just agree with your bitching, not even realizing you meant all of us instead of just the worst of us. ... America, fuck yeah?

Sounds like you need a Brit in Strange Land support group. (At last those of you who don't hang out on dubious online memes with ... more Americans, yeah? <3) And by support group, I totally mean drinking buddies with whom you can blow off some steam and complain, without anyone defending their ~~revolting~~ beer or demanding you "kwitcherbitchin" or whatever.

Or you can do what Canadians do and simply "talk around". We're really quite good at it, if something is brought we disagree with, we will either a)keep our opinions to ourselves or b)subtly change the topic of conversation... c)sugarcoat our disagreement so as not to make the other person feel bad.

lol XD I swear, I can remember doing all three of the "talk around" you mention of, at least once. Thought, I'd say, Asians are really in to politeness, or at least in Thailand they do. Teens these days don't usually do that anymore due to the "American" influence, but we aren't formal to one another all the time. We only do that to people who are older than you like parents and teachers. But we have different levels of politeness.

Less call the kids/teens-to-adult politeness level 2, that'll be the most polite of the politeness levels, especially if you don't know them.

If the person are 1-10 years older then we have the younger "sibling"-to-older "sibliing" polite. Polite level 1, you call people within that age range with the prefix "big sister" or "younger sister" kinda like Japanese's "onee-chan" thing.

There's more, but you use instinct and commonsense that your parents give you to survive the politeness meter adjustments thing. XD so complicated, right? But I think the the "onee-chan" thing is nice, cuz even though you are polite to them, you are still showing that you are familiar with them by using the prefix.

Ya know, it's probably silly of me to ask, but I've heard it said that the delinquents in places like Thailand or Japan are still more polite than some average Americans. Is that true or are people just pulling my leg?

_{If it is true, I'd have probably given old ladies heart attacks just walking past them when I was a kid in fostercare.}

Hetalia Kink meme part 14 -- CLOSED

Fellow British!Anon

Re: Fellow British!Anon

Argh

Re: Fellow British!Anon

Re: Fellow British!Anon

Author!Anon

Bolding barging (American-ing?) into your tea thread. Where no America has gone before!

Re: Bolding barging (American-ing?) into your tea thread. Where no America has gone before!

Author!Anon - A BRITISH WAY OF MAKING TEA

Re: Author!Anon - A BRITISH WAY OF MAKING TEA

American-anon, fail!explaining why we dislike politeness

Author!Anon

Re: Author!Anon

What Canadians do for politeness...

Re: What Canadians do for politeness... Thais do that too! XD

American!anon is back