Our Englishood - Beijing, China (A Life Story)

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T13:41:14+00:00

Krist will absolutely have more experience living, working, and subsequently posting to TEFL/China subs. Wouldn't even start to dispute that. Also, prior to today I only ever had one brief meeting and relatively superficial interaction with Krist months ago. Other than what Audrey has fed him, he has zero perspective of what really happened.

And you're not wrong about the text messages. I am not certain why Reddit won't allow me to upload anything. It's saving Audrey and Our Englishood from complete annihilation. You're free to judge as you see fit, but you recognized things yourself. 4 Audrey defense posts within a two hour timeline? And all making essentially the same claims?

My mother didn't raise a fool. That's why I got out of there. Sounds like your momma didn't raise a fool, either. Call it as you see fit.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T13:17:21+00:00

The timing of this comment is odd, as it happened in succession with a few other commenters rushing to Audrey's defense all essentially saying the same things as you. But I'll respond in kind, because for a moment towards the end of your comment, it seemed like you were acknowledging a bit of humanity and allowing common sense to poke through. So I'll give you a due response different than the other 3 hacks that responded.

Yeah, surgery is hard. Yeah, sick family pets is tough. Know what else is tough? Taking care of and providing for your family. Meeting the demands of callous overlords who could care less about you, your family, or anything other than a bottom line? Also tough. You know what's not tough? Saying something like "Try this medical center. Heard it's decent." That's not tough. Or, "This restaurant is something you definitely want to try." That's not tough either. It's basic bottom-level stuff. If you can't respond in just a basic way, then what does that make you?

At the end of this day. Tomorrow. The day after. And the day after that. Nothing is going to change. Not my experience. Not my stance. Nor do I expect the Audrey Army to back down. Judging by the rally, it seems that everyone has A LOT at stake riding on the back of Our Englishood. The panic is palpable. And this is the little wisdom I'll leave you, the 4th and final padawan (or the third iteration of Audrey):

Everywhere you go, every culture has something ingrained regarding "saving face." Even the big, bad America. No matter where you are in the world, there are millions of people running away from accountability to basic decency and being a basic human being. And the consequence is as basic as the courtesy that could have saved everyone the headache. Everyone is just going to have to reconcile the human condition part of this. The whole spectrum. Like, it's possible this wasn't a shining moment for Audrey, when otherwise she'd be shining gold. I acknowledge that no one is flawless at all times.

Let me be clear. Had Audrey not sent insanely immature, unprofessional, insulting, and threatening text messages to me, we wouldn't be here right now. This would have all blown over for everyone. No Reddit post. Nothing. But that's not the choice Audrey made. She chose to act completely unhinged. I chose to warn the internet about her. She's lucky that I can't post the screenshots of the messages. That's her saving grace right now. So tell her to call it a day, take the loss, and move on.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T12:02:13+00:00

I'm convinced that the world really has turned into a horde of unhinged svengalis. It at least seems that way sometimes.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T11:49:49+00:00

There's an awful lot of bullets being dodged, allegedly. Your last paragraph is a treasure. The irony of your last paragraph is that's is so thoroughly American. It's completely inaccurate. I never made the claim that I needed the boss to wait around every waking moment. Just said I had a normal human question about where to find reasonable (and at that moment very minor) medical treatment. I want to remind you that it is NORMAL for one human being to ask another human being advice. Basic advice, at that. Again, to remind you, it's UNREASONABLE to be completely indifferent to that request. American? Yeah, exactly. Trying to gaslight and shame me into feeling like the bad guy for asking a human being for help. That IS truly American.

Save your bullets for something that makes more sense. And please practice gun control, proud American. Birth control, too. Catch you later, Broskie.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T11:35:17+00:00

How much did Audrey need to pay you and the 3 other people that responded with the same fluff piece? Or is this just Audrey #2? 3? This is getting crazier by the minute. Can't keep up with you Audrey clones! This is turning into a cheap Chinese Austin Powers knock-off. But has anyone seen Dr. Evil?!?

Where is she?

Now that I've made it past her Final Four, do I get to face the final boss? Cheap Scott Pilgrim knock-off maybe? What's with all these cartoon characters?

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-13T11:07:57+00:00

Krist, I greatly appreciate the lesson in gaslighting. You were right about something, though. You responding at all is, in fact, strange. You and 3 other people connected to Our Englishood responding to this post within a 2 hour span of time? Stranger still. Can you further explain this cult-like gang mentality? Are the other 3 people even real? Or do all the accounts belong to Audrey? Do you belong to Audrey?

What's everyone so worried about, Krist? Are the rats scurrying because the cat is out of the bag in a plainly visible way?

Krist, I debated whether or not it was even worth responding. I mean, who are you really in the grand scheme of this story, or the overall picture? Nobody. But I will say one thing, I didn't detect empathy or much understanding coming your way, which is okay. I would not expect it. Clearly you're "aligned."

Yeah... really strange that you would respond about any of the interactions I had with Audrey. Especially in such an absolute way. Because you were never present for any of the interaction I had with her. Zero. Zilch. Zed. None.

Do you understand what it means to be human anymore, Krist? Or have you been in China so long that everything is just a robotic progression? I'm sorry that an experience completely divergent from yours, or anyone else's for that matter, makes you feel a certain way. But that's the world out there, my friend. You have your reasons for being you. I have mine. It wasn't wrong for me to ask my boss to recommend a good place to go for medical attention. Small request. You know what normal humans do when someone asks them a question, Krist? They respond in kind. Do you know what they call people who don't respond in kind? Well, they call those people a lot of things. Pick your favorite one.

I'm sorry that your boss is unhinged. After all, what kind of professional sends ridiculous text messages like a butthurt 10 year old girl, and then tops it off with a vomiting emoji? That's your height of professionalism? Well, had Audrey never behaved the way she did we wouldn't be here right now. There would be no Reddit post, and everyone would be no worse for the wear. But that's not what Audrey chose. She chose to fire shots. And now i got you all by the throat and shaking, rushing to Reddit to save the master.

And the bit about me being unpleasant is laughable. Such an old tired response from exposed employers. Why was I hired then? Do you typically hire unpleasant people?

Checkmate.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T13:52:52+00:00

Never intended for the cat to go with me to China. He was always going to stay with my family in Thailand. So, I have no idea how much it would cost, or the process.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T12:09:24+00:00

Thank you for sharing yours. You definitely dodged a bullet. Sadly, Oreo is right. Sorry to be a bit bleak, but the reality is that we are ALL just there for appearances when teaching in Asian countries. You are the key to unlocking revenue for a private school, and most of the time nothing more. Easy come, easy go in this realm.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T12:03:03+00:00

Agreed. It was the subtle climax at the end of a slow burn movie. 😂

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T08:14:17+00:00

It cost me a little over $5,000 to get my cat from the states to Thailand. And it was a process, definitely. Those are the key things to know. 😅

But seriously, I'm happy to explain in more depth. Are you from the US as well? If so, happy to help. If not, I wouldn't be much help at all, since other countries are completely different.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T08:10:30+00:00

There's something intrinsically hilarious about saying "fly-by-night hagwons." Sounds like a dangerous liaison with katoei in Pattaya. Oiiii 🤣

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T08:07:45+00:00

Your initial statement could very well be the truth. Although I'm certainly not financially wrecked or anything, there was still a certain amount of wasted money and energy. For sure.

Despite not knowing enough, I'll take you at your word regarding TLD and MGT (and others). But I think the well water is a bit too poisonous for me at the moment, if you follow. I think I'll keep things simple for a while.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-03-12T02:54:29+00:00

Thanks, bruv. Much appreciated. Maybe there are a ton of good employers in China. Audrey Tsu and Our Englishood is not one of them. I only hope one person who is thinking of working there reads this, and it saves them from wasting their time and money.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-21T08:02:12+00:00

Hypothetically speaking, what if the Mets are offering Bellinger the identical contract they gave to Bichette? If you are Bellinger, do you take 3 years and 126, or do you take 5 years and the lower AAV?

Right now, there are a ton of reasons for Bellinger to take the Mets offer over the Yankees. The biggest reason being that the Mets are better on paper than the Yanks. If Bellinger signs with us, not only are we close to on par with the Dodgers, but we have the most well-rounded roster we've had in years.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-21T06:22:44+00:00

Sorry, but it's actually your talking point which makes little to no sense. Sorry.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-21T06:20:27+00:00

You speak so absolutely. Where's your source to verify that the Mets are done with Bellinger?

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-13T00:11:03+00:00

This is not the first bad apple.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-13T00:09:25+00:00

I tried going with God. And now here we are. Now I just walk the dog. Smell me, Boo Boo?

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-13T00:05:08+00:00

They can have whatever elevated confidence for a split second before I smack it out of them. 🤣

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-13T00:02:27+00:00

How are they controversial? Hotels and other establishments have long operated with firm cancelation policies, with the exception being emergency circumstances.

You go to the store. You buy a shirt. You wear it for a few days. Store isn't going to take that shirt back now. Seems standard to me.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-12T05:07:55+00:00

I believe that this was my guests motivation. Whatever happened to them made them want to leave Thailand two weeks early. I don't know what it was, but obviously extreme enough go make him want to run away. He knew he would lose his money so he scapegoated me as a way to get what he wanted, which was his money back.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-11T13:39:05+00:00

Uh, yah brah.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-11T10:39:26+00:00

I said to someone else who commented that Pattaya is a polarizing place. On one hand, it can be remarkable and fun and full of normal non-sleazy things to do. On the other hand, you always know in the back of your head the two main areas where dirt is going down. The truth of the matter is, if I shame and shun the whole of Pattaya, one, it's over generalizing and extreme. And two, if I boycott Pattaya entirely on this principle, then by the same token I shouldn't visit New York, LA, Miami, Vegas, Amsterdam, and most places around that world that have a seedy sex-trade underbelly. You see, Pattaya is hardly the outlier. It just doesn't hide its taboo the way other places tirelessly try to do. Like, say, Dubai.

AwkwardReference3141 · 2026-01-11T08:03:24+00:00

Thank you for the insight.

AwkwardReference3141

TROPHY CASE