Stressed out yesterday by my choices.

Mama T, K and baby T invited me to go to mama T's mothers house with them. Actually was supposed to be a furniture shopping trip and only take a few hours but since we were going to be in their town mama T said we had to go see them.

No big deal to me at the time we left. A few minutes at the house, a couple of hours shopping and back home. 3 hours or so max. I could deal with it. Lol, if it had turned out the way I could have.

Mama T and K were born in India as were both of their sets of parents. They pretty much only eat Indian cooking and except for mama T have accents or don't speak English well and it makes conversation hard.

As a rule I don't like dealing with new people. What race or culture doesn't matter. I met some of my black girlfriends parents and that was somewhat uncomfortable, for age reasons, but it didn't feel near as stressful as being with a family that I couldn't understand a word they were saying.

They were all very nice to me and very hospitable. After about two minutes we run out of things to say due to the language barrier. Then again I'm no help because I tend to be very quiet.

They don't smoke and I do so that made it harder too. While I'm in the process of quitting this was a situation where I'd have chain smoked if I'd been able to. That caused more stress.

I watched Indian TV in their language. Good thing for subtitles. Interesting commercials. ;) While I wasn't really bored I was stressed. K cooked and because I don't eat spicy stuff mama T had me eat while we were at Sams Club. Naturally I love beef so I had a couple of BBQ beef sandwiches while she picked up supplies.

So now I've violated their beliefs and we have to go back to the house. Arghhh. I wasn't quite sure what mama T was going to say when asked what I ate. She just said BBQ.

I had told mama T before that I knew I needed to get out more and I'm sure that and watching baby T at the furniture store were why I was asked along. No problem there, I just wasn't prepared to sit in a strange house for 4 hours. Had I known it beforehand I wouldn't have went.

It was an interesting experience but not one I'd have chosen willingly. I know it's better for me to get out among people and not be a hermit but still it's not a choice I would have made. I find it really weird that I'm more comfortable in the worst part of the ghetto than I was at that house.

They are a very tight knit family tho and mama T tells me it's like that with most families from India. Closer than most American families I've known. Seems weird to me but then I never came from a close family and I'm considered a hermit even by my family standards.

Must be the lack of my ability to understand them that stressed me as much as it did. Sheesh. I'm gonna have to learn a few words out of respect for their culture, if nothing else. I for sure wasn't thinking anything at all about being depressed.

It was an interesting experience, didn't hurt me, I learned a couple of things and the stress didn't kill me. Yet I wouldn't have chosen it willingly. I've had more than enough stress in my life and try to avoid it as much as possible.