The Latest to Chime In...

...on the "what do you do all day" question that is asked of we wives-of-those-who-work-abroad-who-are-tired-of-justifying-our-existence-to-you-people-dammit: Nairobi Typ0

I must say I LOVE this it is so funny - click here to read the full post, Expat Wife Blues but I've taken my favorite excerpt out, below...

...right now, I’m feeling rather tired of this lifestyle. Not the having a maid and driver part, (I’m sufficiently selfish and lazy to appreciate the luxuries that Hubby’s employment choices have offered me), but the unemployed housewife part seriously depresses me at times. “So what do you do?” “You don’t work?” “So what exactly do you do all day?” These questions, each said in an increasingly condescending tone, are beginning to curdle my very last nerve. My usual Stepford answer is, “I am here to support my husband in a country that I’m not legally allowed to work in. Thank you for asking.” As Hubby and I don’t have kids, I don’t even have the respectable answer of, “I’m raising my children” to fall back upon. God, lately I’ve been thinking of having/hiring kids for just that reason! Instead, all I can tell people is that I volunteer, work for the Association, and all the other things with which I fill the day. I still usually receive disdainful looks from Hubby’s work permit holding coworkers and friends, but I enjoy my life knowing that I contribute to Hubby’s job and wellbeing in a myriad of ways those lonely losers could never understand. (See I’m not bitter at all. Much.)

Comments

[Typ0]

Thanks for the shoutout. :) The only thing better than finding a fellow expat wife is finding one who is a fellow Canuck! Good luck in Rio! :) :)

[matt]

the best comeback on 'what do you do?' is to say 'i volunteer in projects in rio to help those less fortunate then myself'...i happen to have great contacts in rio for just this sort of activity, having lived and volunteered there whenever i can...if this is something you would be interested in, feel free to contact me so i can hook you up with some people...

http://www.ikoporan.org

[DRL]

Typ0 - You are welcome! And I will keep reading :)

Matt - I could not agree with you more. I am looking for a worthwhile opportunity here now that I am starting to get a little bit of a handle on the language - I will check out the site and be in touch. Thanks very much for the info, I really appreciate it.

And instead of worrying about them and what they think of me, I will just let the people in my life who fall into the corporate-messed-up-priorities-status-anxious category reveal themselves. ;)