Our neighbor is a Chinese immigrant. Interactions with her are friendly, but sometimes awkward. Often times when she sees us out in our yard or driveway she will ask “are you working?” I’m never quite sure how to answer the question. Is she asking if I still have a job? If I’m currently on the clock? If I’m doing yardwork (as opposed to…just standing in the yard, I guess)?
It seems an odd question to ask, but it occurs to me that maybe it’s a cultural thing. For example, in Osaka, Japan, it’s apparently common to greet someone by asking them if they’re making any money (the equivalent of “how’s business these days”, I guess).
So is it a common Chinese thing to greet people with “are you working?” or is my neighbor just oddly obsessed with productivity?
I got the same thing from a just-moved-in Chinese neighbor when I was replacing an old window:
“Are you working on your house?”. Aside from the “Duh…” element, it seemed to be congratulatory or possibly admiration.
Industry and thrift are highly valued in Asian cultures, so it may be the equivalent of “Looking good!”.
I just nodded my head, smiled, and said something about that’s all you ever do with a house - work on it.
If you wish to complain about moderation, the place for that is ATMB. If you want to complain about the poster, do it in the Pit. Keep comments like this out of General Questions.
It’s a first offense, so I let him off with a note this time. If he makes a habit of this he’ll receive warnings.
Having spent time in China and had to communicate with many Chinese whose English is very good, but has “issues”, I would ask her what she meant. It is not an insult to not understand someone (although it can be if you do understand, but feign not to; go to France sometime and you’ll see what I mean).
In all likelyhood, she is just asking how you are doing, but you won’t know if you don’t ask. And, not asking is not doing her any favors, since cannot improve her communication skills without interaction. English is a funny language; the same words can mean different things in only slightly different contexts, as you have pointed out. Chinese has the same issues. Yes, it can be a little frustrating, if you let it be, but if you keep reminding yourself that you are helping her understand your culture, it will improve things and you may cultivate a great friendship.
“Are you working” is nonsensical/bizarre in Chinese too. A regular hello would just be “nee how” in Mandarin, something similar in Cantonese, or just “hi” in English/Chinglish.
Reminds me of that joke where an elderly Jew gets hit by a car in Manhattan. He’s ok, but injured, on the ground, someone runs up to him, puts a coat under his head, they are waiting for the ambulance, so the helper says “Are you comfortable?”.
The injured guy puts out his hand, wiggles his fingers, and says “Meh, I make a living…”.
ya, just ask. if she’s not fluent, i’m guessing she’s trying to say, “上班啦?” (“are you going to work?”) which is about equivalent to asking about the weather.
It sounds like she can speak English but isn’t fluent so my guess that it’s her internal translation error.
For the cultural reference to people from Osaka, I lived in Tokyo so I wasn’t exposed to that on a daily basis, but it really isn’t a specific question if you are actually making money or not. More like “so how’s business?” and this would be among people close enough to bitch to if things aren’t going well.
Speaking as someone who lives in foreign countries and has gone through the process of making these kinds of mistakes, if you are interested in helping her, matter of fact questions can really help. “Do I work? Are you asking if I have a job or are working in the yard?”
Agree that it is probably a miscommunication and she is trying to say something else. It certainly doesn’t translate directly from any common Chinese greetings.
It could just be a variation on a statement like “Getting some yard work done?”, which I think would be a pretty normal thing to say. One of those questions that isn’t really a question that we often use as small talk, like saying “Nice weather we’re having, isn’t it?”
When I worked on a field project in Africa, we had to check in periodically by radio. Our African radio operator had a habit of contacting us by asking, “Colibri, are you happy?” All he meant was “Are you safe/OK?”, but it sometimes gave us pause trying to decide if we were truly happy at that moment or not.
I can’t comment on your neighbor or Chinese culture, but sometimes I wish my neighbors would start their conversations with me that way. As it stands now, they want to engage in a conversation and don’t always see the fact that I happen to be pushing a lawnmower at the time. Look people… I don’t want to be rude… but the lawnmower is not just a prop!
Oldie but goodie.