How to Ruin Someone's Day...

This is not particularly "Finnish" but yet again, a situation that happened at the local S Market...
(I'm sure if you've read my previous odd experiences they're a hoot and I'm glad they entertain you.  No really - I am!)

I was having a pretty decent day - considering my oldest son screamed for an hour at 2am and again at 4:50am...stomach pains or teething - not sure.

Anyway - we had gone downtown to do some shopping - the grocery shops were packed because tomorrow is a holiday (Finnish Independence Day) - and of course, we needed to get some groceries....

So we walked back from downtown and headed into the local S Market and I was checking off things from my mental grocery list (milk, meat, bread, coffee etc). when the Chinese lady saw me and said hello.

What Chinese lady?  Oh, well the one who tried to give me her cat awhile ago...

She stopped me and started chatting with the boys and V�in� was in a pissy mood to begin with - so I told her "Oh don't mind him he's in a bad mood - he has new teeth coming."
She smiles and nods and apologizes to him for making him scream more...she's touching his dinosaur fleece hat and under his chin...and she pulls it back and sees a HUGE black bruise on the bottom of his chin.

Rewind to last Saturday...V�in� jumps A LOT.  He's a spirited kid (more energetic and more demanding etc.) and doesn't have very good aim sometimes.  He jumped from one couch to another - missed and caught the couch frame (bottom part where the cushions rest) with his chin.
It's black....Tim nor I have never had a black bruise before..anyway.
(Fast forward)


So she looks at the bruise and shock is all over her face and she looks at me and is about to yell "WAHHHHH" or something else - who knows.
I cut her off before she could out-loud accuse me of beating my child and said, "He fell off the couch."
She THEN continues to stare at the bruise and at me...and this is the part that ruined my day...

"Why you not watch him?!"
"I do watch him - he's very fast and ..." me (NEVER MIND the fact that I also have a new baby in the house - well he's almost 2 months old... and that I MIGHT be home alone when this happened and my husband could be at work...Anyways...)
"Why you let this happen?!  He hurt!"
"IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!"  I say firmly
"Oh you bad mom letting him get hurt!"
(Count to 3 before I slap her silly)
"Look - I'm going to leave now before I really yell at you.  Good bye." and I walk away.

THEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In true Chinese-fashion - she laughs really loudly and starts smacking me in the arm...
"A HA HA HA HA HAAAAAAAAAAA" (smack smack smack my arm)

I guess she didn't get my hint that I was super pissed about her comments either.
I wasn't joking about yelling at her - and perhaps she wasn't joking about calling me a bad mother and silently accusing me of beating my kid.

When in Finland...

Now if that was a Finn instead of a Chinese lady - oh wait.  That wouldn't happen if it was a Finn because they do us the kindness of keeping to themselves.  Perhaps if it was a friend that is a Finn - I'd laugh it off a lot more...but a person I barely know (whom I am pretty sure doesn't have children) borderline accuses me of abusing my kids and being a crappy mother - that makes me mad.

Old Colleagues Say The Oddest Things...

I had made a Chinese friend last year...I still cannot remember her name....I met her in Silinteri and we chatted and she even made me pork dumplings from scratch!  (Yes I know - from scratch and I can't even remember her name).

She lived in Finland for the last 12 years (probably 13 by now) and still didn't speak ANY Finnish...okay - I'm not feeling too bad now! Ha.

She was studying in Finland piano and other music-related things and offered to teach me Chinese and piano..excellent.

I lost her email address....and she ended up leaving for China.

Fast forward a year (almost exactly - now that I think about it!)- I saw her yesterday at Silinteri again - and wow!  She remembered me (not my name either - so I don't feel too bad.  I think we're on the same boat here...) and was shocked as heck to see me with not one but two kids.
She asked if I had a girl and I said no, two boys...then she told me I should try again.  WHAT IS WITH PEOPLE WANTING US TO HAVE MORE?!
I said nope two is enough and she just laughed me off...

I thought she moved back to China permanently but I guess not.

She asked how I've been and I apologized profusely that I lost her email and furthermore - lost the coat that had the piece of paper with her address on it (in the pocket).  She totally expected me to remember her address (where she lived - not the email) and said I should come over some time.
I remember she lived in the student village and got the wrong building letter when I guessed.  Oops.  (She gave me a look like, "It's so easy - how you not remember?!")
Anyway, she wrote her email down again....and went on her merry little way after inspecting what I was potentially buying.  (And asking me how much the items were....nosy nosy.)

Tonight, I went for a walk with Loki to S Market to get some diapers and stuff I had forgotten earlier and guess what?
Yup, she saw me again.  She was shocked at how big Loki is (he's a medium-sized dog...about 60 lbs/32 kg) and asked me if I had a big flat to have such a big dog.

**Insert thick Chinese accent for her part**

"Well, sorta - it's big enough but we actually have 2 dogs!  My older one is a bit bigger than this dog." I responded.
"WAHHHHHHHHH!! You have 2 big dogs?!  You like cats?!" - her (shying away from Loki who was trying to sniff her bag of groceries)
"Yes, I like cats and dogs.  We actually have four cats but they live in Canada." - me (pulling Loki away and making him sit)
"WAHHHHHHHH!  You like cats?!" - her
"Yes I do." - me
 "You want one?  I have one and I give it to you!"- her

(Please note:  It was about -2*C, dark and snowing and the store was about to close in 30 minutes...and I am stunned.  And not because it was cold!)

"Uhhh - no sorry I can't take the cat.  I don't have THAT much space." - me (and I also have a 2-year old that would probably LOVE to throw cat litter everywhere and experiment with a clay-based/semi organic and smelly diet...eww.)

"Ohhh that's a too bad! Okay, bye bye!" - her

Now, let me say what YOU are probably thinking....
"She's Chinese and didn't want to eat the cat?"
Yep - I said it.  Not to her!  But I couldn't stop laughing after she left and I was tucked away in the store aisles replaying the conversation in my head.
My husband just smacked his face and walked away when I told him this story when I came home.
(He would've freaked if I adopted her cat - in case you're wondering...and I have far too much yarn kicking around to have a cat!  A 2-year old is difficult enough!!!)

(Before you get your panties in a knot - I am Chinese and make fun of myself all the time....it's just a joke.)