| From: | Mark A Shieh SHODAN+@***.EDU |
|---|---|
| Subject: | the value of education (OT-rant, long) |
| Date: | Thu, 15 Jul 1999 19:14:15 -0400 (EDT) |
> The truth of the matter is that it is all a matter of cultural
> perspective and upbringing.
It's a real shame I can't tie this back into SR somehow. :(
Cultural ettiquette is such a handwavable aspect of RPGing. I was
pleasantly surprised on Tuesday when my players actually figured out
that their Johnson is happier if they wait for him to bring up
business and just assume he'll pick up the bill instead of repeatedly
cutting the meal short and leaving early so they don't get stuck with
the dinner bill. :) It's also amusing describing a dim sum as
background scenery and seeing how players react.
> >It's also worth noting that spoons wouldn't have been invented or readily
> >available at this point in history. If they had, the eating method would
> >have become a spoon to hold the food, and a scraper to put the food onto it
>
> >Chopsticks are bloody hard to learn. Anyone with a minimal amount of
> >dexterity can learn to use a knife and fork. Chopsticks take a lot of
> >practise.
Talking as someone with decades of knife/fork experience, and
probably minutes of chopstick experience... I think your view is
overly subjective. Have you actually spent a lot of time learning, or
did you have a couple bad experiences and just start asking the waiter
for a knife and fork when it didn't work out? My first guess is that
you've just accepted chopstick usage as a skill not worth the effort
learning, so naturally you aren't proficient.
Have you seen parents trying to teach their kids how to use a
knife and fork? It sucks. They keep throwing their food everywhere.
Small round vegetables (peas and carrots) are especially difficult.
But give them a year or so, and they figure it out. Back in (Chinese)
school, I was the only 7 year old who had to eat a lot slower with
chopsticks than with a fork and knife, and I've figured it out since
then. I also hated Chinese food and usually ate with a fork and
knife. It's really not that hard, especially if you start them at the
appropriate age. It's definitely easier than teaching someone how to
write, and anyone with a minimal amount of dexterity can do that. My
grandmother, OTOH, tried to learn very late in life and never did
figure out how to sign her name without help.
Also, there are things you can do when eating with chopsticks
that you can't do at a western table setting. It took me a while to
get used to "proper" table manners. I still like to eat with my bowl
in my left hand and bring it up to my face, unless I'm in a restaurant
or someplace formal.
Mark
