Autism part 2: why i love sushi
Dec. 22nd, 2006 12:51 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cl0ckw0rkf0xI had PMS really bad today, compounded by just a bunch of things messing up my sense of time and whatnot else. Nathan was going to treat me to moxies but moxies was full. It jarred me badly in the state I was in, the cars rushing by while we went to catch a bus elsewhere, and the strangers on the bus, I was to the point where I could not make eye contact. That's just how I respond to stress like that, anything social becomes too much. Nathan't learned to deal with it better - just to leave me alone and not try to drag me out of it, and get me somewhere I can come out on my own. So we went to corydon for sushi, which was way better for me; just what I needed.
Three main reasons:
#1: The atmosphere
They don't play loud music in japanese restaurants like they do at other restaurants. You can have a conversation, and there's not too many things distracting me or bombarding my senses.
#2: The food - this one has sub reasons:
a: It's not too sharp tasting. Sharp, surprising tastes can catch me off guard if I'm not ready for them, or if I'm stressed out.
b: I have no bad gastrointestinal reaction to the food. Even if I overeat, I don't feel all bloated, or cramped, or gassy, or anything. It feels good in my stomach.
c: It's healthy.
d: It's aesthetically pleasing. They do it up all pretty and colourful like.
And #3: The waitresses
Moxies waitress: "Hi, table for two? right this way. I'm tanya, I'll be your waitress for this evening. How are you two? Can I interest you in our new _________ or our special tonight, ___________." five minutes later she comes back, "are you ready to order? Ok, no problem, I'll give you a few more minutes." plus the checking every fifteen minutes or so to check how we're enjoying everything, and do we need anything else? They need to enforce their bubbly personalities on me as part of the experience. I don't want you to be part of my experience, god dammit. I want you to bring me my food and leave me alone and stop flirting with my boyfriend.
Japanese restaurant waitress: "For two?" she nods and leads us to a table, puts the menus on the table and leaves. If she said anything else, it was unintrusive enough that I don't remember. She brings water, nods when thanked, then leaves. She comes with a notepad to take our order, and repeats our order back as she takes it down for clarity. The various dishes and tea are served about five minutes apart, giving us several opportunities to ask for anything else if we want it. She fills our water glasses without asking; body language, and the oh so obvious pitcher suffice. Once, when we were almost finished, she came by, "Do you need anything else?" I asked for more water for the tea. She brings the bill without asking.
She almost seems shy, but I think probably only in terms of our culture. She's not cold, she smiles, all the time. She doesn't interrupt our conversation, we continue talking while she fills glasses and serves the dishes, unlike the moxies waitress, who just walks right in and interrupts, making her own conversation, and when she's gone, we're like, what were we saying? And try and remember where we left off.
One time, I was waiting for Nathan to get there at moxies, and the waitress offered me something to drink. I asked for water. Bottled, or tap? I don't care. We have some really nice fiji bottled water. I don't fucking care, lady! Now this is another case of me having been wandering aroudn polo park for a while, too many people, too noisy, trying to find a quiet place to escape to, but no, she's got to push the bottled water issue.
I don't know, maybe some of you will think I'm crazy, but there's some things, at certain times, I just can't handle. And what can I do? Tell the waitress, I'm Austistic, don't talk to me? Even to do that, and to have to explain, there are times I would just end up crying if i tried.
But this doesn't happen in japanese restaurants. never had a stressful experience in a japanese restaurant. Even in ichiban, I remember, the chefs, who are like, practically performers, making the food in front of you, they don't talk much. Tonight, within ten minutes of being in Hanabe, I snapped out of my fugue, and was all happy again. Enough to go visit other friends afterward, in fact. All in all, it was a good night.
Three main reasons:
#1: The atmosphere
They don't play loud music in japanese restaurants like they do at other restaurants. You can have a conversation, and there's not too many things distracting me or bombarding my senses.
#2: The food - this one has sub reasons:
a: It's not too sharp tasting. Sharp, surprising tastes can catch me off guard if I'm not ready for them, or if I'm stressed out.
b: I have no bad gastrointestinal reaction to the food. Even if I overeat, I don't feel all bloated, or cramped, or gassy, or anything. It feels good in my stomach.
c: It's healthy.
d: It's aesthetically pleasing. They do it up all pretty and colourful like.
And #3: The waitresses
Moxies waitress: "Hi, table for two? right this way. I'm tanya, I'll be your waitress for this evening. How are you two? Can I interest you in our new _________ or our special tonight, ___________." five minutes later she comes back, "are you ready to order? Ok, no problem, I'll give you a few more minutes." plus the checking every fifteen minutes or so to check how we're enjoying everything, and do we need anything else? They need to enforce their bubbly personalities on me as part of the experience. I don't want you to be part of my experience, god dammit. I want you to bring me my food and leave me alone and stop flirting with my boyfriend.
Japanese restaurant waitress: "For two?" she nods and leads us to a table, puts the menus on the table and leaves. If she said anything else, it was unintrusive enough that I don't remember. She brings water, nods when thanked, then leaves. She comes with a notepad to take our order, and repeats our order back as she takes it down for clarity. The various dishes and tea are served about five minutes apart, giving us several opportunities to ask for anything else if we want it. She fills our water glasses without asking; body language, and the oh so obvious pitcher suffice. Once, when we were almost finished, she came by, "Do you need anything else?" I asked for more water for the tea. She brings the bill without asking.
She almost seems shy, but I think probably only in terms of our culture. She's not cold, she smiles, all the time. She doesn't interrupt our conversation, we continue talking while she fills glasses and serves the dishes, unlike the moxies waitress, who just walks right in and interrupts, making her own conversation, and when she's gone, we're like, what were we saying? And try and remember where we left off.
One time, I was waiting for Nathan to get there at moxies, and the waitress offered me something to drink. I asked for water. Bottled, or tap? I don't care. We have some really nice fiji bottled water. I don't fucking care, lady! Now this is another case of me having been wandering aroudn polo park for a while, too many people, too noisy, trying to find a quiet place to escape to, but no, she's got to push the bottled water issue.
I don't know, maybe some of you will think I'm crazy, but there's some things, at certain times, I just can't handle. And what can I do? Tell the waitress, I'm Austistic, don't talk to me? Even to do that, and to have to explain, there are times I would just end up crying if i tried.
But this doesn't happen in japanese restaurants. never had a stressful experience in a japanese restaurant. Even in ichiban, I remember, the chefs, who are like, practically performers, making the food in front of you, they don't talk much. Tonight, within ten minutes of being in Hanabe, I snapped out of my fugue, and was all happy again. Enough to go visit other friends afterward, in fact. All in all, it was a good night.
