America has immigrants that come in and we're not the nicest people. Americans are really sheltered and sometimes they'll yell at you, you know, speak English, assimilate. Meet Alden, an American actress who lived in China for eight years and has now been in France for two.
She told me how American culture differs from Chinese and European ones, what shocks Americans about living in China and the biggest advantages of being in Paris as an American. I'm Max Chernov, your insider to expat life. What's the biggest difference you think in Chinese like lifestyle or culture and American?
One of the biggest differences I felt, but it is changing, is the Chinese are very close to their families, so big families. And so they would have, you know, they'd all live in the same house, you know, grandparents, parents, kids. and they worked nearby and the kids went to school nearby.
Whereas Americans, at least my generation, when you go to college you go far away from home and then you kind of build up your career and you move someplace else. We're constantly moving. so that when we have kids, we don't have the grandparents nearby to take care of the kids.
So there's not that loyalty. We love our families, but it's not the same as I feel Chinese do, where family's first, then company, and then your neighbors. Whereas Americans, we've kind of dropped our original family. We've gone to company, and then it's like our neighbors and our friends.
It makes bringing up kids difficult, and that's why, you know, Childcare is really hard to find in America. We don't have the parents or relatives to take care and Both parents are working It's nearly impossible to afford a house and a lifestyle in America without both parents working And that means kids are having less and less time with you know, their family in Europe is also domestic help is not common here Yeah, that's true. I don't have any house help here.
Yeah, I miss it So you would say China? China is more like a hustle culture in terms of work and business. Yeah, I would say China is more make your own way, make your own path, create it as you go, the old wild west, you know.
Whatever is needed, someone's going to figure it out. Whoever's first is going to, you know. Whereas Europe is more like, this is how we've done it, we will always do it this way, this is the tradition.
And that's what makes it superior because it's been done for hundreds of years. Maybe America is somewhere in between that. I don't know. I like the hustle, though. I like the how can I make this work?
Because that means to me that if you're quick enough, smart enough, or know enough people, you can still get it done. Whereas sometimes here, it feels like there are gatekeepers. My family is not in wine.
For me to get into wine now is nearly impossible. And especially in the acting community. You know. If you didn't go to school for it, or if you don't know the certain directors, a certain production or whatever, there's a gate.
It's going to be harder for you to get in. Yeah. You know what also I noticed this time in Europe?
In Singapore, so I'm a white Caucasian looking dude. Right. You don't look Singaporean. Yeah.
In Asia, not only Singapore, but let's say you go to Thailand, I'll be automatically perceived as a foreigner. Right. They will never even like question that I'm a foreigner. So I'm not Thai for sure.
I'm sure there are Thai, like white looking Thai, but it's like so rare. So automatically they start speaking to me in English. I perceived as a foreigner.
It's a good and a bad thing. So it's like, it's already like preset. Our relationships, let's say, go to Starbucks.
Relationships are preset. Here is different because I look the same as Europeans. So this is French.
So they start speaking to me in French and that's I'm in different position. Yeah, I totally do. We've talked about this quite a lot actually.
That's why I think our transition in China was so different than this transition. Like you said, when we went to China, we're obviously not Chinese. And I like to liken it to when you're walking your dog and your dog sees another dog, it's like, oh my gosh. They want to talk to each other.
They were like, compare notes and whatever else. So anytime I was walking around in China and I saw another person who looked like me, I'd be like, hey, have you found bacon? Like, how do I do this?
Tell me where the, you know, the best dry cleaner is because we can talk. And here, because I look... Like I should understand what I'm doing or should speak French.
It can be a little less welcoming. It can be like, why can't you figure this out? You know, I feel dumber here, which is terrible.
But again, they've been a lot friendlier than it used to be. And so it hasn't been so bad. But I think there was an instant community in China because it was like... Obviously you need help.
Everywhere I went, like, what can I do to help you? Whereas here it's like, figure it out yourself. And maybe that's why my kids had a harder time.
Do you think you changed as an American, or your perspective to America changed through the years abroad? Both, for sure. I always considered myself pretty open to things, but I didn't understand the difficulty people coming to America from a different country would be going through.
You know, trying to learn the language, trying to get a job, trying to have their kids get along in the culture, meet friends, do things that are different, eat different foods. Sometimes you just want a day that's like normal and that's hard to provide as a mom. You know, I'm going to get teary eyed because America has immigrants that come in and we're not the nicest people. Americans are really sheltered and sometimes they'll yell at you, you know, speak English, assimilate. I can't imagine how hard it must be to work a job trying to get your kids comfortable and keep your family going.
So I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for people trying to make the opposite move that I did. And then also just the whole fact of like, this is going to sound so stupid, but when I first moved to China, there were some things that I felt were rudimentary or less than or even backwards. I think that's a terrible thing to say, but that's how I thought.
A hole in the floor to go to the restroom in for Americans looks like, what is this? You know, this is so backwards. This is so old school. And now I look at it, I'm like, we sit on something.
Yeah, it's convenient. I agree. It's like your brain is so set on one thing as being the right thing and one thing being the wrong thing. And then you start thinking, no, wait, actually, ours is grosser.
You know, taking off your shoes for coming into the house. Like France is famous for not picking up dog poop, right? And you're gonna walk right into your house with it?
But actually it's in China where you take off your shoes. It's those kind of things where I'm like, just... Try to think why these things have evolved. These cultures, like this building right there is older than my country.
You know? Yeah, I know what you mean. Americans, we have no idea of the history that's happening here. You can walk past downtown, you can see bullet holes.
Americans don't understand what it means to have a war on your front doorstep. You know? So those are the kind of things that I just had to wrap my head around, being like, ooh, there's so much more depth.
And if they're doing something here that seems different to what we're doing in America, there's probably a reason. They had a long time to develop this. There's probably a reason why they do it that way. So keep your minds open. Now, let me say, Americans are amazing at developing new technology and trying new things and coming up with all sorts of creative and fantastic ideas.
So I think there is a good part to say that Americans are more capable and willing to try something new. Whereas maybe here it gets a little more ingrained in that we've always done it this way, we're not going to do it a different way. But there's good things in both.
Yeah. You've been in China for eight years? Yes.
And you're originally from the US, right? What way of life and like the approach to life is more close like to you, more suitable to you? It's funny because I grew up in Texas and Oklahoma and California and Colorado.
And so very... Middle America. By the time I was in high school, I already felt uncomfortable. I didn't feel like I got along with anyone there.
So I went to boarding school in California, searching for something, obviously. I started studying Japanese, and the soonest opportunity I could go, I was already working with Hong Kong in China. So I always felt like there was something of that part of the world that made sense to me.
But like living here in France, I feel very... a fish out of water. I know there's so much great food, but I don't know how to cook it. I don't know how to find things.
I have not yet learned the language. I've been here two years. I can really only say please and thank you and, you know, un baguette. But I learned Chinese really fast.
So I wonder, I don't know, past lives or something. But I do miss American food. I miss the openness that Americans have. Like we have all kinds of people in America, obviously. We have very angry and violent people, but we also have really open and kind and welcoming people.
And people here in France tell me, oh, I knew you were an American because you walked down the street with a smile on your face. That's an American thing. They say, yeah, you guys are always so forward.
So I don't know. I'm not sure which one's best for me. No, this smile on the face is definitely not a French thing. I think they are proud of it.
Yeah, I think so too. You need to be a little bit grumpy to be real French. And actually, we've had a lot of discussions about this. Is the smile a defense mechanism? Is it like, we're just, don't get mad at me.
You know, I'm just, you know, maybe it's a frightened thing that we do. But when I was in China, anytime there was an accident or something, an emergency or something like that, I definitely noticed that my colleagues, my friends, the Americans, sometimes the Brits, would run towards the emergency trying to help out, whereas other people were running away from it. And I thought that's very strange.
We're very proactive, I guess. So I'm proud of my culture in some ways, but yeah. Some people say, oh, Americans like smile, it's like a fake smile, so they don't mean it. When they say...
It's just a funny article I read about like how decision made in Silicon Valley in the startup industry So it's even was the the dictionary for like what if the investor tell you oh, it's great It's amazing like great job. It doesn't mean that it's a great job. It means you're not failed yet Right.
Yeah, like you're doing okay, and maybe they will consider your project Yeah, and it's like there are a lot of like cultural do I think especially if you compare France to to the US It's like kind of different. For sure, I've noticed that. And also we have a saying, kind of an understanding in America where New York and L.A.
are very different. A person in New York, if you ask them to go do something, they'll say, no, I don't feel like it. A person in L.A.
will say, oh, that sounds awesome, yeah. And then they won't show up. It's just two different ways of the same answer.
And it's like, how do you like to receive that news? And I actually tend to be a person like I would rather you say yeah, I'll be there and then not show up Yeah, but a lot of my friends are like well, then you just lied to me and I'm like well But to me it was like a softening like okay So I think in a way I am very American and that I just expect you not to show up That's okay with me, but I can understand how that's very Disconcerting doesn't make sense. My husband is an American who works in France and he's had some issues in the work culture because If he's going to give a review to someone, they sit down and he will tell you, you know, at least two good things that you're doing. You're showing up on time every day at work. We really appreciate that.
You know, you're very communicative. We are understanding where you're coming from. So the French person is now like, oh my God, I'm getting a promotion. This is great.
You know, and then he's like, but we also need, you know, your time reports to be better and you need to work on this or whatever. And so it's like, they didn't even hear those last two because they were so happy with hearing something good. So that miscommunication can happen too.
And my kids go to the American school here in Paris. At first I was like, oh, I'd rather them get in the culture, go to the Parisian school. First, they didn't speak French, so that wasn't going to happen. But secondly, they said, you know, the teachers here are really harsh. And I said, well, what does that mean?
And they say, they post the grades outside the door of every kid. So you know what your friend made on the test. They will actually tell you, you're being stupid.
You should have known this answer. My kids would not do well with that kind of feedback. They just have never had that in their lives. We're more gentle in that way. So, yeah, we've definitely noticed some very different cultural acceptances, especially in business.
But also in like China and Japan, I feel like it's very different too, where the Chinese never would raise their hand for a problem. You know, if somebody said, this is what we want to do, this is what our concept is, how do we do it? they almost always say yes.
They're going to find a way to do it. If they can't do it, they're going to find a niece or a nephew who can. They're going to find the parts, whatever.
But nobody ever says, hey, I think there might be a problem here because that's like really frowned upon. And the American is always like hand up, always going to talk through the meetings, always has an idea or something to change or whatever else. So I don't know which one's better.
There is like some studies about how the normal talk going in... between like let's say two Americans or like American and Canadian let's say they how people talk so one person is talking like from here to here and then the person never stops so the second person start talking at the end of the first person is like finishing so it's always overlapping right but if you say Korean or Japanese you would never interrupt here you will wait but then if your essay is like One Japanese in the room or like two Americans in the room, Japanese will never have a chance to speak. Exactly!
That's exactly right. Yeah, that's so funny. It's exactly right. And I actually heard that like, if you are, you know, speaking in a group of people and then you ask the crowd, does anybody have a question, sometimes...
Cultures won't even, they don't want to raise their hand. They don't want to make you look bad. So they'll wait for you to call on them.
Which is never gonna happen. Americans never gonna call on somebody who doesn't have their hand up, you know. It's so strange.
I'm glad though that these things are being talked about because it's so important. If somebody goes quiet in a conversation with me, I get uncomfortable. I'm like, oh, what's wrong? Did you not understand me? Are you not happy?
But really, I need to shut up, let them process and let them say something. There's actually another study that I've read. It's the tolerance to silence. So Americans have very short turn.
So if someone is not responding for one second, it starts feeling very uncomfortable. I think the longest one, if I'm not mistaken, I think it's Koreans. So the pause, normal pause is like six seconds.
So between the answer and the question and the answer, it's basically six seconds. And it's normal. So because they need to process and it even would be like perceived rude if they start talking right away Yeah, because they know they never thought properly about it. You know funny Yeah, I would definitely be uncomfortable if somebody went quiet for six seconds But it's like this way of like Californian way it's like Asian way basically you never say in the face of someone like oh I will I don't want to go there Right. Yeah You never say it, right?
Never say that. You always agree being like, that's really great. Yeah, I'll totally be there.
Yeah. And then they'll go. What was your first impressions when you arrived like two years ago? We arrived right after the pandemic.
And we had been, we'd had our vaccinations, but we had never had COVID. We got it on the way here. On the airplane.
So unlucky. So, but we found that the medical system here was so much easier. Easier than?
In America. Okay. Because in America, I mean, first off, your insurance is so expensive. And then trying to find, you know, a doctor that'll take you in and then, you know, trying to get the vaccination and whatever else, the shots or whatever you need.
And here it's kind of like, at that point, they were testing for COVID outside in tents. Like you didn't even have to make an appointment. You just kind of walked in or whatever. The pharmacies were giving the shots.
You don't have to go to your doctor first and whatever else. We found that, first of all, like super easy and super nice and fast. I remember thinking, oh, the Parisians are not known for being nice or friendly, but everyone here has been incredibly friendly and very quick to speak English, actually.
I wish they were more not willing so that I could learn my French better. But I remember coming when I was 16 and thinking, oh, they're so grumpy. They don't like any of us. They're so snobby, but that's not the feeling I have at all now.
It's not the case anymore. Mm-mm. Yeah. Mm-mm. That's what I heard.
They're changing. For sure. They're willing to speak more English now. And they're kind of more open to it. Maybe it's the Olympic Games, something to do with it.
Or maybe just a global trend. I don't know. Like I said, right when we got here two years ago, they were already very welcoming. And, you know, maybe the... Older, older generation might be a little more stickler about manners and etiquette and that sort of thing and actually I'm quite happy of the things they don't...
You don't see Parisians eating on the metro. You know, there's no people walking around with coffee and whatever. They're civilized.
They sit down and have their coffee. Because you need to enjoy the moment. That's right.
It's a very French thing. It's a slower enjoy what's happening right now instead of rush back to the office and you know... Hurry, hurry and whatever else.
So I think maybe it's a bit of both. We're appreciating their lifestyle more and they are more accepting of our mistakes. And the younger generation, my generation and younger for sure are more. Maybe they're traveling more. Maybe that's happening too.
I don't know. And in the US you're from San Francisco? No, actually we are from...
From Texas you said, but if you go back where would you go? So my kids grew up in Los Angeles. One was born in Long Beach, one was born in Torrance. So they have spent two years in the United States in Los Angeles area. Grandparents in Oklahoma and New Mexico.
But then they've spent the rest of their lives, 12 years, outside of America. So anytime they go back to America, that means it's either Christmas and they're getting presents or their friends are out of school. So they think of America as presents and no school. So now going back, this is going to be tough because they're going to have to go to school and study. And, you know, there's no grandparents around.
And so I'm a little, they seem to be all excited and happy about it. Oh, McDonald's and whatever. But I think it will be a hard transition.
Last time we went back, it was during the election, the 2016 election, which was Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. And the news was on all the time. And because we understand English, it was constant about gun violence and the anger that was happening.
I think there was a school shooting right when we arrived. I was driving at the time. Here I don't have a car, but in America I have a car driving and I have the news on.
And I didn't realize that my two littles in the back were hearing all of this. And I'm just listening to the news, NPR, whatever it was, and one night they're going to bed and my older started crying. He said, mom, I'm afraid someone's gonna come in and shoot me.
Okay, we can't listen to the news anymore. That's not gonna happen, but wow. I was just gonna say they're more international than they are American now.
When somebody says, where are you from? They kind of have a hesitation, like I don't know. How's it for your kids?
Because they're teenagers. Was it easy for them to start their new life? in France?
I think my kids have had a harder time adjusting to Paris than they did in China, but I think that's because they're teenagers. And I think the fashion has been difficult because they're teenage boys. They're used to sweatpants and baseball hats. And that's not Paris.
Paris we dress up. Paris our clothes fit. They shouldn't be dirty or holes or whatever else. And so that's been tough. And then...
Sports in America is so important, especially when you're in high school. Your teams, if you're playing baseball, you're probably playing four or five times a week. Here it's once a week maybe.
I think those things made it difficult for them to find their tribe, to find their own friends. But once they did, they can use the metro by themselves. My 14-year-old was on the metro into town and back at 10 p.m., and I'm not worried about him. He knows how to get around. He has his MetroCard, they meet and have five guys hamburgers, which is American, but still.
And I think that's really fantastic, actually, that they're so independent here. They don't have to drive, which scares me to death about moving back to America. I don't feel like the gun violence is here, so I feel very confident that they're safer here. I don't know if the drug problem is bad here or not, but we don't see it. So that part's good too.
In a lot of ways I just feel safer for them here. I'm a little concerned going back and if we're going to fit in culturally now. Yeah. So do you feel safer here in Paris? You feel pretty safe, yeah?
Yeah, I do. The only thing I've been frustrated by is the pickpockets. But even that, you know, that's everywhere.
That's China, that's LA, that's everywhere. I definitely feel safer here. One, because we're not driving.
So we're in a metro that's, or the train. We ride bikes, but the schools are very safe, locked down out in the countryside. And like I said, my kids are teenagers, but. The other funny thing is drinking is not like a. Not a taboo here, right?
Right, which would make you think that kids would drink more. But in actuality, because it's like no big deal, they're not excited to go out and try it or sneak it or anything. So it really hasn't been an issue yet.
I mean, granted, they're 15 and 14, but that part of it kind of makes me feel safe too. Pickpockets I've seen on the metros, but I can figure out who they are now. They wear these big bags in front of them.
Their hands are in there. jackets they're not in their sleeves yeah and once you know what to look for you're fine plus it's light out till 10 p.m oh yeah not in the winter but in the summer it's really bright out all the time so for us it's confusing because you kind of lose track of time right like you go out with friends and then oh shit it's 10 p.m i gotta go home i gotta go to bed yeah singapore is always the same it's like 7 30 a.m it's uh right Because you're close to the... Sunset and sunrise, same.
Like 7.30 a.m., 7.30 p.m. It's 40 kilometers from the equator. Right.
Los Angeles, I mean, it's always nice there, you know. Same. Same.
Here, when we first moved here, we were in a rental apartment, and we'd just eaten dinner, and we were watching TV or something, and the neighbor from downstairs came up and was knocking on the door and was all angry, and I was like... I couldn't understand first it was French and I was like okay okay he's like you're too loud you're too loud and I looked I'm like it's 1030 but it was still light out so yeah we had to learn that the hard way. Yeah walking the streets of Paris is like I visually enjoyed so much. I know. It's oh my god it's so beautiful.
That's why people are in style here because you look at... You're trying to match the buildings. Yeah, just the carvings above the windowsills or just, you know, the signs for the metro are done in a font that's gorgeous or the ironworks around the sidewalks. It's just every detail is really fantastic. And here's the funny thing.
Living here for two years, I start getting a little bored of it. Now, that's going to come off awful. But the buildings start looking a little bit alike. So gorgeous that they're all like you take it for granted.
And then you go to like Brussels or Prague or Budapest and it's historical too. It's fantastically historical as well. But just this a little bit of difference in the architecture and you're like, it's amazing, you know, like the bridges are different, the railways are different.
And you just think that tiny little difference really does that. Just the graffiti in Brussels alone. I'm like, this would never happen in Paris, but I love that it does.
So, yeah. Yeah. And the When you realize how old is the city and the buildings. We actually stayed in Fontainebleau, it's close to Paris, it's like a little town, for almost half a year. And we lived in like a normal French building being like 100 year old.
And for France it's like brand new. Basically, it's a new building. And then think about China. Our apartment, when we got into it, was eight years old. And the real estate agent said, this is an older apartment.
Eight. And here, this one I think is 200. It's crazy. Or we walked past the oldest restaurant the other day in Passy. I just thought to myself, how did they stay open this whole entire time?
It's insane. But have you noticed there's no old cars? Yeah. Barely ever see an old car here. There's much more new cars on this trip.
Last time it was more old. Was it? In America, we have this fascination with old cars and they have conventions and whatever to show off their old Lincoln Continentals or whatever. And here I never see them.
Yeah, and a lot of EVs now. Yes. Even buses.
It's incredible. In Singapore, we have like steel diesel buses, like loud and noisy. Yeah.
The recycling here is really good. I think they're doing a better job as far as protecting their environment. But also they live densely, you know, and in America we live in houses spread far apart. We each have to drive, drive, drive everywhere.
We don't have a good metro system per city. We don't have even railway lines that can get you from LA to New York. It's cumbersome and to get that kind of funding to upgrade all that for America is tough to get the votes through. So yeah. What kind of roles do you play?
What kind of characters? Here in France, I have... I've done a lot of theater this time, so Oscar Wilde and Neil Simon, so in English, which is great. So because of my gray hair, I normally play the older. character.
Right now I'm playing Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest, which is a really funny play. And so I'm an older lady, which I like. But in China, I was always portrayed as the evil American.
Yeah, because the Americans were always brought in to be overcome, right? Even if it was love interest, then the other was going to take over that, right? So as my age group, I was either the CEO that...
was cheating or needed to be overthrown or what else the scientist or the doctor that was like creating something evil and I love being the villain but sometimes I'm like just because I'm an American doesn't mean I'm a terrible person but my kids would always get hired for like dairy products or environmentally friendly something or American products you know so it was like kind of the crossover for that or technology that sort of thing. I don't want to be the villain anymore. The reputation of France and Paris is like a paradise for all the creative professions.
For sure. Is it the case? There are so many theaters here. I don't think I could ever see them.
I mean, hundreds of theaters, hundreds of shows that are going on constantly between cabaret and music and live theater and, I mean, Cirque du Soleil and Xinyuan and whatever. There's so much going on on any given night. It's amazing. And then, let's see, films are being shot here.
I mean, Emily in Paris TV is being shot here. We have to remember because Brexit, the English speakers, the English can't really come over here to work and vice versa. So that has caused some issues.
So there's a lot of work to be done in London and England. But I don't, my visa won't allow me, so I can't go there. But also they can't come here.
So a lot of times. I get hired for voiceover for a lot of the English and then I mean art. How many museums?
I go to a museum once a week. That's been my goal. I go on a tour once a week So that means I'm hitting either a monument or a museum every week.
That means I've seen 60, 70 museums. I still haven't seen them all. I couldn't. There's no way possible.
It's just spectacular. They really support and create and promote the arts here. So if you're an artist or an actor, you will get a salary if you're at least in school or you know doing it I think it's one job a month or something like that so they really are allowing people to not go hungry for their art and I think that's why it's the capital to me at least of culture and music and theater and everything. Yeah, there is enough demand here.
Yeah, and the government itself says it's important and we should fund it and they do. And that's incredible. Can you make more money in China, in this industry or in Paris?
I definitely worked more in China. But I had more time to create a network and, like I said, build those reputations that were so important. And I've had to set up my own business, auto entrepreneur, so that I can pay my taxes.
And so that's been a... A bit of bureaucracy, the European bureaucracy that can always be difficult. And just as I'm figuring it all out, yeah, so hopefully it'll get better.
In China, it's like in terms of, let's say, how to set up the company. It's easier, more straightforward, or you don't need to have a company? In China, you're supposed to have a company.
You're supposed to have it, yeah. You're supposed to pay your taxes. Yeah. Yes. It's difficult to do.
Because really there aren't many visas for entertainment. So instead you're doing consulting or you're doing, you know, admin or that sort of thing, marketing. So, yeah, that makes it, I think that's the reason why the agents don't work with you specifically.
Because it's probably not in their, is it called hookah? What is it called when they, you know, whatever they are paying their taxes for, whatever that track of business is, it may not align with yours. So that's... You get a lot of Hongbaos, red packets.
That's why I'm a little bit afraid or a little bit nervous about going back to China at this point. I don't know how foreigners are being received now. I think it's changed a lot after COVID.
And I think the relations between America and China kind of soured when Trump was in. I have heard there's been a lot of changes, but I hope that our countries get along again. You know. that people always get along.
I think that's the one most important thing I've learned living in other countries is just because the president is a certain way doesn't mean all the people are that way. And that's for every country I've been to. Not all the people of a country think the same way. Of course they don't. So it'll get back to it at some point.
I think Chinese and Americans are actually very similar in a lot of ways. Is it? Yeah, I do. Oh, yeah.
What's the similarities? They want the best for their families. They're willing to work really hard to make the step up for their family and the next step up. And if there's a will, there's a way. I mean, Americans and Chinese will work their butts off and they will find a way to make it work.
They're not going to say no. Whereas I feel like in Europe, it's better to say no. You know, that's not in my title or my job description. And I don't want to get in trouble for it. So I'm just going to say no.
So that's a way I think that we can. figure each other out. Do you have any important principles in life, let's say, that helped you through your career?
Something really important. My kids right now are trying to decide what they want to do with their lives. Anytime somebody says, you have to make money, you have to make money, I think, oh, don't give away your happiness for someone else to make money. I don't get that. So also, I don't want to make a bunch of junk that just clutters up stuff.
I want to make people happy. I want to find a way that human beings, our spirits, our hearts, our minds are enjoying the brief amount of time we have on this planet. I want them to interact with each other.
I hate that we're doing this all the time. I want this to come back. So to me, acting and telling stories and entertaining is bridging that. I don't make a lot of money doing it, but I love it. And my job, the job part, because we all have a job part that's not the fun part, right?
My job part is writing my resume, sending out auditions, you know, self-taping, learning scripts, that sort of thing. But the brief amount of time that I get to do the entertaining of someone or telling a story that somebody is like, oh, my God, that's my life. That's important. So I hope my kids continue on in something where they have to create or give. Spiritually, and I'm not a religious person, I just mean this as in like lift somebody else up, especially when you're feeling down, because that's the best way to get yourself back, you know.
So I know we all we need lawyers, we need bankers, I get it. I'm not saying that nobody should do that. I'm just saying what you graduate college at what 22, 23 and then you retire at 65. It's 40 years of your life. You better enjoy it. You better do something that you're making the world a better place because it's not that much time.
Yeah. Yeah. What's the meaning of life for you? Oh, God.
I'm still trying to figure that out. Just because I have gray hair doesn't mean that I know what the meaning of life is. I'm starting to think, you know, I'm starting to think the saying on the airplane is the most important.
When we hit turbulence, make sure your own mask is on first so that you can take care of others. because if you're not taking care of yourself, none of us is going to survive. As a mom, as a woman, I find myself always trying to take care of everybody else.
Did you eat? Did you get your paper done? Did I need to drive you here? Did the dog get the walk? I forget sometimes to take care of my own health, my own happiness, and then I get run down and I get resentful and angry and I can't get out of bed or depressed or whatever.
And now I can't take care of any of these people. More and more I'm starting to think that the key to life is to put your mask on first.