Double d'uh!

There has always been one thing that tickles my funny bone every time i hear Malaysians trying to have a conversation.

I dub thee, the Malaysian small talk.


Situation A:

(Woman watering her plants in the comfort of her own yard, not realizing her neighbour is lurking behind the fence, also watering her plants)

Neighbour : Huii, Senah, siram pokok ke?

Senah : Eh, Kak Pah, ha'ah, tgh siram pokok ni. Dah macam nak layu dah. Kak Pah pun siram pokok?

Observe: OBVIOUSLY they're both watering their respective plants. Couldn't the conversation have started with a (Senah, kau sehat?). Simple as that.

Let us try and apply this to a situation outside of the Malaysian context.

Situation B:

(In a small village in England, Richard is tossing some feed to his flock of chickens while his neighbour, Arthur, looks on from his own backyard.)

Arthur : Good afternoon there neighbour! Feeding the chickens, are we?
Richard : (looks at Arthur with a "d'uh" look in his face, adding a somewhat friendly smile to it)

Observe: Conversations like the one that took place in Senah's house never/rarely happens any where else in the world. Further presenting evidence that we, Malaysians, are the best when it comes to small talk - we just use whatever's going on in the present as a subject of central focus and then we hope to move on to other things.

Hopefully after the boring "siram pokok" talk, you'll start gossipping about other stuff. Like what time that other neighbour's husband came home last night.

Uniquely Malaysian, that's what I say!




Hey there, S.M! Blogging?

Double D'uh!