I just have to share a short conversation I had today with my boss.
Boss: スケジュールを確認しました？
Me:はい、確認しました。
Boss:違う、確認しました？
Me: はい、確認しました。
Boss: you don’t understand so I will speak English. Did you confirm the schedule?
Me: Yes, I confirmed it.
Boss: I see.
💀
Edit: Just remembered a similar one from last week
Boss: レッスンは40分でしたっけ
Me: そうです。40分です。
Boss: No, I’m saying, is it 40 minutes?
Me: Yes, it’s 40 minutes.
Boss: おっけ
12 comments
Whhhhyyyyy does this happen!? I’ve had EXACTLY the same experience (different situation but still).
It’s like when you’re blabbing on about stuff in Japanese for a while even making witty jokes and having a generally good time, and they move to do something with documents or whatever and they ask 日本語…分かりますか？
I’m stunned every time.
Sometimes I say something like, あっ、いや、分からないです。and we both laugh. So I think it’s not what they’re really thinking but more like some weird kind of procedure they go through.
what? isn’t it has the same meaning??
He was looking for genuflecting/incessant bowing and お待たせして申し訳ございません。You were too direct 外人さん!
Maybe your pronunciation was bad or wrong intonation
This same thing has happened so many times, and also in reverse.
But plenty of times people just spew an entire paragraph of Japanese at me, then ask “wakarimashitaka?” “Hai.” “Ok.”
No concept check at all.
Then on another day the exact exchange happens described by OP. I think communicating with a foreigner is just like linguistic money-laundering sometimes. Here’s an example of something similar to situations that happen to me sometimes maybe:
“Do you like chicken?” “Yes.”
Psycho A immediately goes to empath B, to say “Gaijin-san wanted chicken bento, you know.” Implication: “Gaijin-san is now angry at you because, last month, you ordered shrimp bento for him after you asked him if he likes shrimp because he actually likes chicken better.”
Empath B immediately looks at you sadly out of the corner of their eye with a microtwitch and feels internally crushed, and slightly resentful at gaijin-san for being ungrateful.
You look on internally shaking your head. Like wtf
Maybe he wanted you to say ご確認いたしました。or something
Good thing this has so much to do with teaching ☠️
Subredditの題名を確認しました？
Not really about teaching but it sounds like both you and your boss are stubborn and thick-headed.
And he’s your boss and you take salary from the company with him as your boss so…your boss wins.
May I uh may I have a translation
There’s a weird personality trait of some managers and bosses that seem to enjoy “stirring the pot” or “ruffling feathers” of their subordinates.
It’s either an old age thing for your boss or done intentionally to annoy you.
well, time to find a new job!
Reminded of a supervisor I had ages ago when I was an ALT. She would come to give us an announcement all in Japanese and then randomly stop to translate a simple word like “Saturday” or “desk” before going on and on.