Meme this

Some years ago, a man I'd just met and with whom I'd been chatting quite aimiably for a longish time said, a propos of nothing at all, "When you speak I feel like I should bow." Bouche bée, I chuckled more than a little embarrassed, and we muddled on. This wasn't a job interview and I've never seen him again, so it was no skin off my nose. When the same reaction is had by someone who's interviewing you though, there is skin off the nose, MINE. Plenty skin.

How does one fight anothers' perceptions when such perceptions prevent you earning a living? Is this discrimination by another name, discrimination of yet another type? I take my partner's advice regarding my liberal use of $10 words (and $20 sentence constructions, I would add) to heart but there's not much I can do about what you perceive when I show up and open my mouth.

Listen this ain't new to me. I got this in primary school from at least one teacher and in secondary school from another three or four teachers trying to 'put me in my place'. Oddly, I didn't get it at UWI, but did see flashes of it both at Vassar and GWU. I typically ignore these events and these people and play my own game. This rounds however, I am flicking tired and frankly, I'm running out of time to get back on track.

Memes about ignoring how others see you or what others think of you abound ($10 word?) but I ain't see no meme that tells you wtf to do when someone who's interviewing you is having issues with your you-ness....or in my case, my language and my flicking accent. Sweet Jesus. Wtf you do about that? Meme that nuh. Ah need some help.

I have no expectation that I'll get every job for which I apply, neither have I any expectation that everyone I meet will love or even like me. But this ain't that. Or is it?

It's taken me a month to put words to what happened with that job in a couple of months ago. The would-be direct supervisor wanted to hire, they who would have been my colleagues said, "Hell no." Wtf do you do about that?