Just wondering how many of you experienced these boring Desi Family get togethers ?
Basically, when I was younger, my parents used to drag me to these boooring parties where all men sit in one room and talk about Pakistani politics and all the women sit in the other room talking about gossip and fashion.
I was stuck with the men where I would get bored to tears as the men talked about Pakistani politics…
Horrible times…
Just wondering how many of you experienced this as well… 
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I definitely experienced this. Mainly because my family has never believed in leaving the kids with a sitter. Every event we attended was a "family" event.
I also had to live through mushairay, ghazal nights and numerous milaads and other cultural and literary lectures and events.
They were boring as heck. I would whine and moan each time I had to go.
But now that I look back upon those times....I have to admit that I learned a lot from them.
I learned so much about our language, our culture, the leaders that have contributed to our rich heritage.....
All that, just by being around.....not even really paying attention most of the time.
I'm glad that I was made to suffer and I will put my child through the same hell, insha-Allah.
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ditto to what muzna said....i shall/will drag mine once i have em :D
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All the time I still remember my poor brother being bored to death 
Thankfully as we got older we had the excuse that we had loads of homework and tests and couldn’t go…
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i experienced/experience this 
it really sucks and i think parents should try to understand that the the person whos an uncle/aunty to thm for us, may not b the same for us 
you just sit there and hear auntis tell you how MUCH uv grown up and uncles “bohat achi baaat hai, yeh lo na beta” blah blah blah…
“uncle ko salam kero, aunti ko mil k ao” and thn wen BORING friends of my parents happen to visit, i hv the honor of sitting there and enjoying thm ask me about my studies, future plans, and parents spitting out info about me :s
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not at all 
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As a kid I remember there was only one family we ever relaly visited, and they lived in NJ. I remember being very awkward and extremely shy and uncomfortable to begin with and it was exacerbated when they invited alot of families over (whereas when we invite them, it was only them, noone else). They had two daughters and a son, all close to my age, when my brother and I and them would get together it was a fun time. but as we got older, my brother had his own life, thy had theirs..I went to both of the girls' weddings, they came all the way to Toronto for my wedding day, that was very sweet of them...
There was another family we knew, but we stopped seeing them very early on because she'd make my mom feel like crap, "oh my son is this and that, my daughter is this and that" and thus my mom wud make US feel horrible for not being as good looking/skinny, do as much housework, good in school, etc like them....My parents kept a very tiny circle of ppl, and i always kinda resented them for that, maybe if i'd lived in a desi area, been around more desis/Muslims growing up, i'd've appreciated everything alot earlier in life than I already do, i'd be more "clever" coz it seems like that's what works with desis, being clever and diplomatic rather than saying the outright truth...eh..
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k i used to hate them.....but now THEY R FUN....i lub them
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even i hated them -- so never went after 2 times
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im in one today right now
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0mg and im really hating it because someone is gettn on ma nerves
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I experienced a few things when I was in USA.
It was Bakra eid, January, and I go to this persons house, first he looks at me from top to bottom, and Keeps on saying….
“Why have come to Umreeka” (He had this profound desi accent.)
Then a kid throws a glass of coke on his carpet, he tells every one to get out of the room , then he and his wife put detergents and vaccume the whole room when the gusests are still there.
Then the host started talking to the same group of people…
“Do you all know, everything in mine house is kus-tum, I peed havily far it, u know this contry so espensive.”
It was just too much, I told my relative that I would never accompany them to any desi families get together, it was just awfull,** I would never meet such chechoras in Pakistan, let alone, go for dinners to their houses.”**
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^ 
My parents never made a fuss about kids attending. Perhaps thats one of the reason why i still cant be bothered to attend one.
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…I know some people who serve only colorless liquids in the CuusTOM houses…so if anything spills it doesnt leave nishaans.
…
I have an aunty who was giving a tour of her home and in the wine celler she was saying that You know that we donot darrink that is why it is empty…I did see some bottles in there though..…(I think they were apple cider ..)
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i have a love-hate relationship with these desi get togethers. i have to go to these whenever my parents are here. you first sit in one big room where the adults interview you “tou beta aap aaj kal kya ker rahi hein?” and you have to like laugh at their jokes…politely…and you have to act like you agree with everything they say. then comes chai and lawazmaat. later on the groups usually split into women and men if its lots of people and most of the time the women’s gossip is much more interesting. u always manage to have someone who knows someone who knows someone famous and you gossip about them. oh yeah and the men are discussing solutions to all the worlds problems and then there’s the food “aray aap ne tou kuch liya hee nahi” ..there goes the diet. afterwards mom’s standing around giving me her usual stare that says “help aunty with the dishes” and i act like i cant see her.
aaah i grew up on this …
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Shweetdreamz thats so funny but so TRUE! Esp the bit abt “ohh u havnt eaten anything” and yeh bang goes the diet!
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how true
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how true ........never being froced to visit them .defends on us ....thanks for my parents they are very understandable.
usually go out to those parties which canot be neglect.
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Oh I always get dragged along to all these get-togethers, moreso than any of my friends. I always throw a strop before going but then I guess once I’m there its not so bad :halo:
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well i wouldn’t call them the desi get togethers, I’m from bombay, so they’re just like ‘the big extended family get togethers,’: so many of my father’s relatives are here in this city it’s not funny, but what you described here sounds like just the kind I have been through without wanting to.
the parts in bold Ive seen aplenty. I would beg to differ on the women’s gossip being interesting though. some uncles are quite sensible and likeable; some of the stuff they talk to you about is interesting, but the aunties…
one thing, among others, that I dislike about the family parties is the unnecessary scrutinizing one has to put up with. as for the unfunny jokes these people come up with, well, how do you exactly deal with that? most of the times I’m just left bewildered even while I’m trying to smile out of courtesy.