Wow, Gopi-anna. Don't know if you are seeing all these responses to your question.
For those who don't know, Gopi-anna (first cousin to me and my brother, Shyam who I think is also on this list) wrote a fantastic series on "In the shoes of a...." You can read a sample here <https://medium.com/the-coffeelicious/in-the-shoes-of-a-shoeshine-828cb0ee7bff> His book, Travels with a Fish is hilarious and features his equally legendary brother Ramu Narayan-- musician and creator of jingles. So that's what I do-- I flex on Silk about relatives :) On Thu, Oct 10, 2024 at 5:52 AM <[email protected]> wrote: > Send Silklist mailing list submissions to > [email protected] > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > [email protected] > > You can reach the person managing the list at > [email protected] > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Silklist digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: "what do you do?" (Yeddanapudi Radhika) > 2. Re: "what do you do?" (Heather Madrone) > 3. Re: "what do you do?" (Bruce Metcalf) > 4. Re: "what do you do?" (Jon Lebkowsky) > 5. Re: "what do you do?" (Jeremy Bornstein) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Wed, 9 Oct 2024 10:16:50 -0700 > From: Yeddanapudi Radhika <[email protected]> > To: Intelligent conversation <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Silk] "what do you do?" > Message-ID: > <CAPg_TvOdLNcXxNJZ9CvfoxD9p=SKVAKEAcT= > [email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > My standard answer to the question about where I am from has been (since > 1993): Planet Earth. And you? > > El mi?., 9 oct. 2024 10:09 a. m., Rajesh Kasturirangan via Silklist < > [email protected]> escribi?: > > > I don?t mind the ?what do you do? question. I make up an answer that?s > > both true and contextually relevant. What bugs me a lot more is ?where > are > > you from?? - often with the connotation of ?where are you *really* from.? > > To which I give a nonsensical response - these days it?s Alpha Centauri. > > On Oct 9, 2024 at 1:00?PM -0400, Christopher A Kantarjiev via Silklist < > > [email protected]>, wrote: > > > > I like it! > > > > On 10/9/24 7:56 AM, Hari Shenoy via Silklist wrote: > > > > In recent times I've responded with - "I suppose you asked me what I do > > to earn my paycheck, and I will tell you once you follow me on Spotify" > > and following that humbleflex, the conversation goes off the rails. > > > > On Wed, Oct 9, 2024 at 3:50?PM Chris Kantarjiev via Silklist > > <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> > wrote: > > > > > > > > On Tue, Oct 8, 2024 at 1:43?PM Udhay Shankar N via Silklist < > > > > [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> > > > > wrote: > > > > > > This, the most banal of all conversational opening lines, is > > > > something I > > > > discourage at the meetups I organise. So it was interesting to see > > silklister CY Gopinath's take. > > > > > > https://www.mid-day.com/news/opinion/article/and-you-do-exactly- > > > > what-sir-23407241 <https://www.mid-day.com/news/opinion/article/and- > > you-do-exactly-what-sir-23407241> > > > > > > > > Depending on the context, I might reply with my actual work > > situation, but more often I'll say one of > > > > I'm a recovering British car addict > > I'm an aspiring furniture maker > > I ski as much as possible > > > > Those are much more interesting conversational gambits. > > -- > > Silklist mailing list > > [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist <https:// > > mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist> > > > > > > > > -- > > Silklist mailing list > > [email protected] > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > > > > -- > > Silklist mailing list > > [email protected] > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > > > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: < > https://mailman.panix.com/pipermail/silklist/attachments/20241009/80eaf7de/attachment.htm > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Wed, 9 Oct 2024 10:39:29 -0700 > From: Heather Madrone <[email protected]> > To: Intelligent conversation <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Silk] "what do you do?" > Message-ID: <[email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8; format=flowed > > I'm sensitive to minor differences in northern Californian accents and > speech patterns. > > I was chatting with a young man whose speech screamed "San Francisco" to > me, so I asked him where he was from. > > He asked me if I was asking where he was /really/ from. > > I was horrified, and clarified that I thought he sounded like he grew up > in San Francisco. Close; he was from the north part of the Peninsula. > > The question "Where are you /really/ from?" could be an interesting one > if it wasn't overlaid with xenophobia. Many people move around a lot as > kids, and their birthplaces or early childhood homes might not feel like > home to them. Or they might have multiple places that feel like home. > > Rajesh Kasturirangan via Silklist wrote on 10/9/24 10:08 AM: > > I don?t mind the ?what do you do? question. I make up an answer that?s > > both true and contextually relevant. What bugs me a lot more is ?where > > are you from?? - often with the connotation of ?where are you > > /really/?from.? To which I give a nonsensical response - these days it?s > > Alpha Centauri. > > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Wed, 9 Oct 2024 14:32:34 -0400 > From: Bruce Metcalf <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [Silk] "what do you do?" > Message-ID: <[email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed > > Greets, > > One of the (few) advantages of advancing age (I'm now in my eighth > decade) is that one gets this question much less often. Far more common > among people of my vintage is, "What are you up to these days?" This > opens the door to work answers, medical answers, play answers, and > general mischief! > > Plus, these days what I do the most of is take care of my disabled wife. > That's usually enough to divert the conversation. When it's not, it > usually degenerates into an "organ recital", which is where I give > myself permission to disengage. > > Cheers, > / Bruce / > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Wed, 9 Oct 2024 15:39:15 -0500 > From: Jon Lebkowsky <[email protected]> > To: [email protected], Intelligent conversation > <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Silk] "what do you do?" > Message-ID: > < > captdpcr_cwyqszehxwi8it-k_vpnmdn6y_zhqt-gpq04abs...@mail.gmail.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > When asked what I do, I sometimes answer that I transform energy... > > Jon Lebkowsky (@jonl) > Cofounder and Cohost, Plutopia News Network <https://plutopia.io> > Website <https://weblogsky.com> | Twitter <http://twitter.com/jonl> | > LinkedIn <http://www.linkedin.com/in/jonlebkowsky> | Facebook > <http://www.facebook.com/jonlebkowsky> | Tumblr > <http://weblogsky.tumblr.com/> | Wikipedia > <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jon_Lebkowsky> > > > On Wed, Oct 9, 2024 at 1:33?PM Bruce Metcalf via Silklist < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > Greets, > > > > One of the (few) advantages of advancing age (I'm now in my eighth > > decade) is that one gets this question much less often. Far more common > > among people of my vintage is, "What are you up to these days?" This > > opens the door to work answers, medical answers, play answers, and > > general mischief! > > > > Plus, these days what I do the most of is take care of my disabled wife. > > That's usually enough to divert the conversation. When it's not, it > > usually degenerates into an "organ recital", which is where I give > > myself permission to disengage. > > > > Cheers, > > / Bruce / > > > > -- > > Silklist mailing list > > [email protected] > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > > > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: < > https://mailman.panix.com/pipermail/silklist/attachments/20241009/f8a4086a/attachment.htm > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 5 > Date: Thu, 10 Oct 2024 11:20:33 +1100 > From: Jeremy Bornstein <[email protected]> > To: Intelligent conversation <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [Silk] "what do you do?" > Message-ID: > <[email protected]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Online bios of mine used to sometimes say things like "Observer from > the Galactic Federation, visiting to evaluate Earth's membership > application. Don't fuck it up." With which, unsurprisingly, nobody ever > engaged. > > In response to being asked what I "do," in person I am likely to reply > "computers," (or "IT" in Australia), if I want to talk about something > else. Because really, who wants to actually talk about that stuff most > of the time? > > But really, lately, I have been avoiding the question by being present > at a minimum of actual physical encounters! That works pretty well. > > I agree that it's much more fun to discuss things about which people > are actually passionate. But sometimes we need to do a little work to > find out what those things are in a socially acceptable way and it > starts with professions. I'm okay with that. I do love learning about > almost anything if someone else is excited about it! And probably most > of us are similar that way. > > Jeremy > > > P.S. I just pulled up Thought Brownie and will give it a listen, seems > promising, thanks Hari! > > P.P.S. I also make a lot of music. > :)?https://jeremy.org/music/The%20Jeremy%20Bornstein%20Trio/ > > > On Wed, 2024-10-09 at 10:16 -0700, Yeddanapudi Radhika via Silklist > wrote: > > My standard answer to the question about where I am from has been > > (since 1993): Planet Earth. And you? > > > > El mi?., 9 oct. 2024 10:09 a. m., Rajesh Kasturirangan via Silklist > > <[email protected]> escribi?: > > > > > > > > > I don?t mind the ?what do you do? question. I make up an answer > > > that?s both true and contextually relevant. What bugs me a lot more > > > is ?where are you from?? - often with the connotation of ?where are > > > you?really?from.? To which I give a nonsensical response - these > > > days it?s Alpha Centauri.? > > > On Oct 9, 2024 at 1:00?PM -0400, Christopher A Kantarjiev via > > > Silklist <[email protected]>, wrote: > > > > I like it! > > > > > > > > On 10/9/24 7:56 AM, Hari Shenoy via Silklist wrote: > > > > > In recent times I've responded?with - "I suppose you asked me > > > > > what I do > > > > > to earn my paycheck, and I will tell you once you follow me on > > > > > Spotify" > > > > > and following that humbleflex, the conversation goes off the > > > > > rails. > > > > > > > > > > On Wed, Oct 9, 2024 at 3:50?PM Chris Kantarjiev via Silklist > > > > > <[email protected] > > > > > <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Oct 8, 2024 at 1:43?PM Udhay Shankar N via Silklist < > > > > > > [email protected] > > > > > > <mailto:[email protected]>> > > > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > This, the most banal of all conversational opening lines, > > > > > > > is > > > > > something I > > > > > > > discourage at the meetups I organise. So it was interesting > > > > > > > to see > > > > > > > silklister CY Gopinath's take. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > https://www.mid-day.com/news/opinion/article/and-you-do-exactly- > > > > > what-sir-23407241 > > > > > <https://www.mid-day.com/news/opinion/article/and- > > > > > you-do-exactly-what-sir-23407241> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Depending on the context, I might reply with my actual work > > > > > situation, but more often I'll say one of > > > > > > > > > > I'm a recovering British car addict > > > > > I'm an aspiring furniture maker > > > > > I ski as much as possible > > > > > > > > > > Those are much more interesting conversational gambits. > > > > > -- > > > > > Silklist mailing list > > > > > [email protected] > > > > > <mailto:[email protected]> > > > > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist <https:// > > > > > mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > > > Silklist mailing list > > > > [email protected] > > > > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > > -------------- next part -------------- > An HTML attachment was scrubbed... > URL: < > https://mailman.panix.com/pipermail/silklist/attachments/20241010/00f8094b/attachment.htm > > > > ------------------------------ > > Subject: Digest Footer > > Silklist mailing list > [email protected] > https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist > > > ------------------------------ > > End of Silklist Digest, Vol 19, Issue 10 > **************************************** >
-- Silklist mailing list [email protected] https://mailman.panix.com/listinfo.cgi/silklist
