…Kisses

Americans aren’t typically social kissers. You kiss your significant other, your family (though usually only if there are significant age differences, like adults and kids, etc), and you kiss inanimate objects or people in magazines or something.

However, the foreign service is full of interculturalism, and a confusion of kisses. When you meet someone new, you never know if they’re a social kisser, or what their greeting routine is. Some people prefer a double air kiss, others kiss right on your cheeks, some just touch cheeks. I’ve been lip kissed as a social greeting. Rather startling. In single gender groups, a typically non-kisser may become a social kisser. At a baby shower with only women guests last week, there was a flurry of all kinds of kisses.

I would have thought that kissing would be limited to interactions with those who were not American by birth, but I was wrong, as many unexpected people have turned out to be social kissers.

As a non-kisser, I frequently misread the cue and try a cheek touch when an air kiss was initiated, and vice versa. I’m still learning.

Neko has also become a kisser recently. As I picked her up out of her crib this morning she pulled my face in for a drooly gum and tongue bump, she hasn’t mastered the technique yet. She also shies out of her kisses sometimes, pulling you in, but turning her face away at the last minute. Silly baby.

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…rubber gaskets

Do you use appliances? Well, the beware! If they haves rubber gasket, you’re likely to loose them in Dhaka. We’ve had three different household staff, and all of the have looked at the rubber gaskets on our appliances (blender, fancy baby food machine, water cooler, turkey baster, thermometer, kitchen faucet, and probably others) and thought, hmmmm, this must be a useless part, even though they were the one to dissemble the appliance in the first place.

It really makes it hard when your excited to make a smoothie, or are contemplating cooking dinner for the baby, and the one tool you could do that easily with is completely useless.

Replacement cost for baby food machine gasket? $2 plus 5 shipping. Utter amazement that yet another gasket has been consigned to the dustbin? Priceless.

And, yet, when you visit local homes, all their appliances still have the factory stickers on them, you’d hate to throw out the advertising on your fridge, you know. But a gasket? Useless.

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…breakfast

Yogurt face.

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…Frozen peaches

Neko enjoying her first chunk of frozen peaches. She Loves it.

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…Tires

Yet again, we came downstairs and found the car had a flat tire. Strangely, even though we’ve replaced tires, it always seems to be the same one which goes flat. What is it about the rear driver’s side?

Mr. A went down to try and put some air into it to see if it’s a slow or fast leak, and judge whether we’ll be able to drive it to the shop to get another new tire.

It put a bit of a crimp in our plans to go try a new restaurant and have a swim date this weekend though. since this is the last weekend before Ramadan, I’m a bit sad we missed out on eating out. No more dining out until the end of August, except at the American club.

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…July 4, 2012

Happy 4th of July!

Neko joined in the children’s parade, proudly sporting her American flag and duds.

…peas

Used my baby food blender for the first time today. Looks tasty!

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