I’m pretty much an evil wench, but after teaching, cute kids who bat their eyes and plead with me rarely get my sympathy (or money). Instead, I’m annoyed that they’ve figured out manipulation at such an early age and wish I could meet their parents to discuss the child’s education.
At Angkor Wat yesterday, the place was swarming with these elementary-aged kids trying to sell their goods. Trying to interest me, one asked where I was from. “USA,” I replied making my way inside the complex.
“Oh! American! You’re from California, right?” asked the boy. Although I always tell people I’m from Missouri but have been living in California for the last four years, I agree, knowing that it’s partly true. After he learns he’s right, he proceeds to tell me, “The capitol of California is Sacramento. The governor is Arnold Schwarzenegger.”
I’m unimpressed. Tell me something I don’t know, kid. So I smile and ask him what he thinks of Arnold. He looks at me blankly. It’s clearly not part of his shtick, so annoyed at me, he just asks me to buy some of his postcards (”I don’t mail postcards,” I truthfully tell him).
On my way out, I’m stopped by another group of kids selling bracelets, water, and postcards. This time, it’s a girl who asks what state I’m from. “Missouri,” I reply. She stops in her tracks and gives me a sly look like I’ve just made up a word to throw her off. I turn and look at her and wait for her verbal reaction. Nada. “The capital is Jefferson City,” I tell her before continuing my exit as she keeps staring at me.
Maybe if I’d said “Missour-uh” instead of “Missour-ee” she would’ve been able to tell me my governor is Matt Blunt…
Random sidenote: I’m starting to think I actually will go back to calling my home state “Missour-uh.” Two reasons: When Europeans repeat my pronunciation, it always comes out sounding more like “misery” (and it’s definitely not). And, after a bit of online research, it seems that the Native American tribe my state was named after was spelled both Missouria and Missouri…which leads me to believe the correct pronunciation is actually “Missour-uh” but those French-influenced St. Louisians saw the “i” at the end of the second spelling and started pronouncing it like they would in French…
