thefalseidol

I mean, cooked salsa is definitely a thing, so in effect yes, this is a thing people do.

With a lot of classic wisdom about how something is done, you can assume at some point people tried something like cooking the tomatoes first and ultimately moved on. That does not however mean it was bad or not worth experimenting with. It does mean that they found the labor it takes not worth the flavor it adds. Case and point, there are definitely lots of people and restaurants that make salsa with canned tomatoes, because if you just have to open a can, you've changed the labor/flavor ratio. So I think ultimately what you have is something that will be very good in a salsa, and you've already done the work.

I mean don't take my word for it but I do believe that 'being fired", legally, has a specific meaning.

They also come from a generation that worshipped self-sacrifice. Denying yourself pleasure was just so normalized in my grandparent's and parent's generation. To that end, I can understand how somebody would think if they want to have sex with men, then not having sex with men is an achievement worthy of praise.

I'd also add that "fired" can be a confusing term, because you can get "let go" for a number of reasons but firing is a specific thing that prevents you from filing for unemployment insurance. Being "fired" basically means you were at fault for something, and the reason you were fired would be the explanation your employer gave to the DOL about why they shouldn't have to pay for your unemployment.

I'd be inclined to say straight habenero. Mango habenero is a classic pairing for a reason but lukewarm on it as a salsa, let alone a mass produced one (I havent personally had their mango hab so maybe it's fire)

I don't LOVE IT, but Mrs Renfros is the shelf stable salsa I like most.

I have a PhD, a gold card, and I speak Chinese fluently

Alright now we're getting somewhere. I know you obviously don't want to say where you work, but if the school is "quite well renowned" then you know, I can pretty accurately narrow this down to a handful of schools. Is it the top one? You don't have to say, but that school recruits primarily through word of mouth if I'm not mistaken, and maybe they thought their friend who had to go home would be able to return or they're pissed that a guy who normally couldn't work there (I think? I obviously don't work there haha. Unless your PhD includes a teaching credential I assume the gold card and Chinese fluency created some wiggle room) and now their friend is out of one of the best jobs in Taiwan?

But in either case, this kind of behavior is much more common in education than in cram schools, so this is making a lot more sense now. Teachers can be a cliquey, bitchy, group to work with.

I tried dating a girl who was 20 when I was 30 - I don't have so many eligible bachelorettes knocking down my door that I was turning away qualified applicants, a pretty young girl was interested in me so I rolled those dice. After all, who am I to police what age she's attracted to or whether or not she's mature enough to even go on a date with her? We went out a bit, it was generally pleasant but as we got to know each other, it just felt pretty yucky dating a girl that much younger than me, and we split up.

That's like, the best case scenario for older men dating younger women haha. If you don't decide "you know what, I get why this is a taboo now and I think I'm going to quit" then there are more insidious reasons why you're probably dating much younger girls.

Yeah it's impossible to rule out haha.

I'm not putting you on trial, I'm just spending my afternoon huddled in doors from the 35C Taipei weather being a reddit detective lol. To whit, I believe you, and in so much as I don't know either you or her, I believe she didn't gossip about you leching on her. It still means it got to this Aussie guy somehow and that person might have told the Australian gentleman a very different series of events.

From what I've read, he might be actually on your side without openly coming to your rescue (he was willing to hash things out with you about the Autism thing - he also is the one who told you there was this gossip going around) he only got defensive when you took it to your boss. Which maybe was not the way he hoped things would go, especially if it put him in the hot seat for trying to give you a heads up - again, I'm just theorizing here.

Something doesn't compute here.

Don't quit if you don't want to quit, just kind of keep a mental note of if/when the amount of hostility from your coworkers stops being worth the paycheck. Unless you're way out in the middle of nowhere, finding a job within a reasonable commute is totally manageable.

You say allegedly, as in you you have been told that everybody dislikes you because of asking about a student's possible autism? That only makes sense if you were throwing around a lot of unappetizing language, which based on how you are writing, I would guess you did not.

Also, she wasn't cleaning the floor, she was mixing the water to take into her classroom. I waited because I thought it would only take a few seconds.

I get it, I'm just saying that it can be as important not only to behave a certain way but to be perceived as behaving that way.

The Australian guy didn't see it, he was told about it.

I talked to the woman in question about it, and she vehemently denied having an issue with me or speaking to the Australian guy.

You see how these two points don't really stack up though? If he didn't see, somebody saw, and somebody made a fuss about it. If it wasn't her, it was somebody else. The point is that the gossip got to him somehow - this person is creating drama and conflict where there shouldn't be, or else this Taiwanese woman was in fact uncomfortable.

A lot to unpack here, but I think per this:

What do you guys think I should do?

You should consider just quitting. It's a pretty good time to be in the market for a job since you have about 6-7 weeks before next semester starts.

To break it down bit by bit: I'd start by saying a lot of what you're describing is similar, at least in vibe, to things I've experienced or heard about in Taiwan. That being said, I'm also seeing some things that, to me, don't totally make sense. At least your boss seems pretty chill and on your side? In these kinds of issues, often it trickles from the top when you're at a large cram school and the person managing you can be incredibly difficult.

If in fact the other English teachers "have it out for you" there has to be a reason (note, that reason doesn't specifically have to be something you did). Like, let's say for example, that he is telling some version of the truth and people are complaining/observing what they perceive to be creepy behavior. I myself am guilty of touching an arm or shoulder in a conversation - which is innocent but it has been perceived as an unwanted advance, and I have to be mindful of that that when talking to women in the workplace. It's not something that happened more than once, but it only takes one person. So do try and be diligent about not only physical touch, but how you carry yourself, and yes, even where you're looking (as a man working in education, it's a good habit believe me).

I'm not saying I don't believe you, I just don't believe I have the whole story. Maybe what I'm missing is because you don't even realize why the foreign staff have this animosity towards you. Because I have experienced something closer to this with the local teachers, because that dynamic is much more complex in terms of pay, power, responsibility, respect, etc. For example, one the Taiwanese staff was cleaning the floors, something you're not expected to do, but she probably isn't thrilled about doing janitorial work herself. Add in that you stopped and waited (and as you described it, politely, but also you did just stand there silently waiting for her to clean the floor) and I can see how this was something that irritated her, or seemed odd if this Australian guy saw it.

If the money is good here, and management is on your side (if there is a reason people are ganging up on you, it's possible your boss already knows why and has decided to side with you but is just keeping a lid on it) maybe you can push through this. I've had conflicts with other TEFL teachers before. It doesn't feel good, but I also don't really work with any of them - a strained relationship with the Taiwanese staff/teachers is a lot trickier to navigate. My first teaching job was like this, and it was my first job so I was a far cry from good at my job, but having a co-teacher who immediately created tension and conflict made it so much worse. But as I said, that dynamic is inherently more complex add into it the potential language barrier and these kinds of communication breakdowns happen.

If you truly have no idea what you might have done to precipitate all this antagonism from the other English teachers, I'd say find the one who you find the least antagonistic and/or the most willing to tell you the hard truth about what is causing this.

It runs the gamut, I've worked places with no dress code, a LITTLE dress code (no tank tops or short shorts, etc.) and medium dress code (no athletic wear at all, no T-shirts). In GENERAL, I'd say that business casual would be the highest expectation you would likely be expected to conform to.

I know there are Taiwanese people walking around right now in a suit and tie but I'm just not built for that. If I was expected to be in formal attire year round, I'd be strongly considering my options. You LITERALLY would have to pay me to wear dress pants and a dress shirt in 35C weather.

If they have the facilities, I'd consider changing at work acceptable.

That all makes perfect sense, I mostly inferred there had been some interest in BG3 as the comparison is so frequently drawn - perhaps that's just because it's the first mainstream CRPG since ever (since gaming has been mainstream that is). I of course have no idea what business talks were or weren't happening, only that Obsidian would be a natural option to at least consider.

I'd call it some light flanderizing in a good way. The dynamic between made since as recent colleagues and ex compatriots but is hard to see how at this point a relationship that deep and impactful all these years later was anything other than a romantic one. Platonic romance perhaps, but definitely romantic.

I was going to say - I'm all for a tax on things that hurt people - but I kinda wish the tax happened somewhere between making it and selling it. The price point would still be higher to the consumer, but companies would feel the pain just to get their poison on the shelves.

There are opportunities, however, you need to be A) undeniable and B) work with the system - not against it.

I would say there are two big hills you are fighting up hill against:

1. historical racism towards SEA nationalities.

2. economics and perceived value: in other words "why am I paying an import tax to drive domestic?" - the base salary doesn't change based on your nationality or ethnicity, which is good, but it means that employers do racist arithmetic about paying some employees equally when they perceive your value to be lower.

With that out of the way, let's focus on what you can do and if/why you should do it. The racist overtones of our profession are well documented, I see a silver lining for those who are willing and able to swim with the sharks. See, I've yet to meet a racist who was otherwise, fucking awesome, and you are in a position a lot of TEFL teachers would envy: they are going to tell you to your face that they aren't worth working for. There is SO MUCH guess work in our trade, we take big risks on employers being fair and honest and we are not always right. If a dark complexion is all it takes for a shitty employer to scream "DON'T WORK FOR ME!" I call that a gift, not a curse. That is, as long as you don't fall into the trap of being exploited for less than you're worth because you need the job.

Look into if your master's program has a work-study option, usually this is an "open work permit" up to a number of hours, with that, you can begin exploring your options.

Now I personally have not worked with any non-natives, but I have met some so I do know it is possible. I have also met natives from countries that aren't on the official list.