Why are lab people so quick to think other people are slow or stupid? - (Sep/10/2008 )
Hehe my description of germans is pretty accurate yet unfair, I dont think they see themselves that way, I come from a completely different culture though and I notice and object to things that are quite natural to them, like their obsession with cake, their willingness to stand around for hours in the cold drinking beer, the exagerated joy in seeing the sun, their epileptic dancing, their extreme attachment to the little towns and villages they come from.............and then there are the "cool" or "open" ones, the ones that want to be different and original, the ones you can smell a mile away because of their signature hippie-like style and/or encyclopedic knowledge of your home country and that naturally only associate with other such "open" people and vacation in India or Guatemala and are delighted to meet you because they too, know what its like to be in touch with..yeah....MY roots.
Still, I love them all and Ive made one or two good friends, I only keep away from this strange 6 foot 3 rail-like breed of german man that is obsessed with salsa lessons and latinas (I am one) and that seems to delight in the fact that latinas arent portraid as hard and independent as german women. Thank god I am fortunate enough to not have to pretend I am interested in them for visa purposes.
Uhm.....just writing this down made me realize how lucky I am, I could have made so many wrong decisions, but no, I am here, doing my PhD, learning, I have internet access all day long so I can be on this forum, and I can struggle and push my way through this scientific world instead of settling for less (personally, anything that isnt cancer research hehe).
I wanted this, so now I will deal with this and make sure these next couple of years are not wasted on me as a desperate and frustrated attempt to get a publication.
Still, I love them all and Ive made one or two good friends, I only keep away from this strange 6 foot 3 rail-like breed of german man that is obsessed with salsa lessons and latinas (I am one) and that seems to delight in the fact that latinas arent portraid as hard and independent as german women. Thank god I am fortunate enough to not have to pretend I am interested in them for visa purposes.
Uhm.....just writing this down made me realize how lucky I am, I could have made so many wrong decisions, but no, I am here, doing my PhD, learning, I have internet access all day long so I can be on this forum, and I can struggle and push my way through this scientific world instead of settling for less (personally, anything that isnt cancer research hehe).
I wanted this, so now I will deal with this and make sure these next couple of years are not wasted on me as a desperate and frustrated attempt to get a publication.
Ahh....fooling around with stereotypes about my favourite nation: Gemany
nanu nana its very wise to stay away from salsa lessons.....and to keep your head up, even if they look at your initial mistakes with THAT LOOK.....its nothing personal, just cultural....but you can get them on your side easily: just put out some cake as bait
and they will love you!!!! But I think I stop at this point as I messed around enough with Germans and stereotypes previously....but maybe Saint Casandra will issue a blessing on a discussion about real salsa dancers ????Still, I love them all and Ive made one or two good friends, I only keep away from this strange 6 foot 3 rail-like breed of german man that is obsessed with salsa lessons and latinas (I am one) and that seems to delight in the fact that latinas arent portraid as hard and independent as german women. Thank god I am fortunate enough to not have to pretend I am interested in them for visa purposes.
Uhm.....just writing this down made me realize how lucky I am, I could have made so many wrong decisions, but no, I am here, doing my PhD, learning, I have internet access all day long so I can be on this forum, and I can struggle and push my way through this scientific world instead of settling for less (personally, anything that isnt cancer research hehe).
I wanted this, so now I will deal with this and make sure these next couple of years are not wasted on me as a desperate and frustrated attempt to get a publication.
Ahh....fooling around with stereotypes about my favourite nation: Gemany
nanu nana its very wise to stay away from salsa lessons.....and to keep your head up, even if they look at your initial mistakes with THAT LOOK.....its nothing personal, just cultural....but you can get them on your side easily: just put out some cake as bait
and they will love you!!!! But I think I stop at this point as I messed around enough with Germans and stereotypes previously....but maybe Saint Casandra will issue a blessing on a discussion about real salsa dancers ???? Oh but chicas...any meaningful discussion about salsa dancing is only possible if Toejam aka tj is here and right now, he's probably hitting the clubs..he shld show us some of his moves....OTOH, a discussion about germans will inspire me to write a treatise but I have no time right now...we wait until dr H aka dr Critters shows up to confirm/dispel the german stereotypes 
the best ones I've heard so far: Cake/beer/salsa/latina-obssessed, epileptic dancers, sun-junkies and cool/open smelly walking-encylopedia ones.....[bash the canucks here............................................... ]nanu nana....I see that you're already back to your perky and feisty self (or what I imagined you to be..) keep it up girl.....
St-Casandra (who'd prefer a plaque instead of a halo)
Still, I love them all and Ive made one or two good friends, I only keep away from this strange 6 foot 3 rail-like breed of german man that is obsessed with salsa lessons and latinas (I am one) and that seems to delight in the fact that latinas arent portraid as hard and independent as german women. Thank god I am fortunate enough to not have to pretend I am interested in them for visa purposes.
Uhm.....just writing this down made me realize how lucky I am, I could have made so many wrong decisions, but no, I am here, doing my PhD, learning, I have internet access all day long so I can be on this forum, and I can struggle and push my way through this scientific world instead of settling for less (personally, anything that isnt cancer research hehe).
I wanted this, so now I will deal with this and make sure these next couple of years are not wasted on me as a desperate and frustrated attempt to get a publication.
Ahh....fooling around with stereotypes about my favourite nation: Gemany
nanu nana its very wise to stay away from salsa lessons.....and to keep your head up, even if they look at your initial mistakes with THAT LOOK.....its nothing personal, just cultural....but you can get them on your side easily: just put out some cake as bait
and they will love you!!!! But I think I stop at this point as I messed around enough with Germans and stereotypes previously....but maybe Saint Casandra will issue a blessing on a discussion about real salsa dancers ???? Oh but chicas...any meaningful discussion about salsa dancing is only possible if Toejam aka tj is here and right now, he's probably hitting the clubs..he shld show us some of his moves....OTOH, a discussion about germans will inspire me to write a treatise but I have no time right now...we wait until dr H aka dr Critters shows up to confirm/dispel the german stereotypes the best ones I've heard so far: Cake/beer/salsa/latina-obssessed, epileptic dancers, sun-junkies and cool/open smelly walking-encylopedia ones.....[bash the canucks here............................................... ]nanu nana....I see that you're already back to your perky and feisty self (or what I imagined you to be..) keep it up girl.....
St-Casandra (who'd prefer a plaque instead of a halo)
Hmm as a German, I guess you know only our bad half, the southern part of Germany. Me as an uncool, not dancing cookie & red wine fan, obsessed by a canuck (and bored by latinas), burnt by sunbeams, I cannot really follow you bashing. Okay I know a bit in my area of expertise...
But I avoid the latino/a bashing here. Costa Rica is too nice.
Oh but chicas...any meaningful discussion about salsa dancing is only possible if Toejam aka tj is here and right now, he's probably hitting the clubs..he shld show us some of his moves....OTOH, a discussion about germans will inspire me to write a treatise but I have no time right now...we wait until dr H aka dr Critters shows up to confirm/dispel the german stereotypes the best ones I've heard so far: Cake/beer/salsa/latina-obssessed, epileptic dancers, sun-junkies and cool/open smelly walking-encylopedia ones.....[bash the canucks here............................................... ]nanu nana....I see that you're already back to your perky and feisty self (or what I imagined you to be..) keep it up girl.....
St-Casandra (who'd prefer a plaque instead of a halo)
Hmm as a German, I guess you know only our bad half, the southern part of Germany. Me as an uncool, not dancing cookie & red wine fan, obsessed by a canuck (and bored by latinas), burnt by sunbeams, I cannot really follow you bashing. Okay I know a bit in my area of expertise...
But I avoid the latino/a bashing here. Costa Rica is too nice.
Hmmmm...somehow I don't figure you for an epileptic dancing cookie dr H, uncool yup
..where'd your emoticons go? You sound almost unstereotypically German grouchy... but I like grouchy ....no canuck bash- what a miracle!!!
My big mouth always gets me in trouble hehe cant help it im cheeky
HEY...you don't launch a rocket and then say ooopss... or lob a grenade and then put the pin back ...don't worry about it nanu nana....I'm sure dr H can face a bit of truth besides, I've said much cheekier stuff to him, about him etc. actually, he's funny and cool when he's not being a grouch that is......btw, didn't we make you feel better? We can continue with the stereotyping....hey, gebZ, come back in here..casandra
haha nah dont worry ive been direct and politically incorrect all my life and most people like me like this so im not about to change, it takes my mind of my mediocre western blot with its crooked little pockets. My first western........what a day!
Besides today someone poured beta mercaptoethanol on herself so I am no longer the stupidest person in lab. I think I felt more comfortable with the stupid stigma though, the poor girl is so nice and she constantly gets picked on. Also I had a lil chat with the technical assistant and he is as unhappy as I am with the way things work here, so its not just me, I think everyone is annoyed or down and it creates a bad environment.
We need cocktail night integrated into the lab week ASAP!
you got to organize this event if you want to make it happen. People in general are kind of lazy in that regard.
And my sympathies to the girl in your lab.
This is evidence that stupidity is a relative term 
Stupidity in a person exists only till another person with significantly higher degree of stupidity enters the environment the former was in and there is interaction between these. This interaction involves non-verbal competition and comparisons. One of the two is then relieved of being the stupidiest until the other loses the quality or leaves.