Saturday, November 24, 2007


“Where is the fine? I need fine right now, where did you put it??”


“What the heck is the fine?? I don’t where it is, what are you talking about??”

“It was right here, why did you move it, why do you have to move everything?”

“I am sorry?? Honey I have no idea what you are talking about, is fine English or Arabic word?”

“Arabic, I need to wipe my nose, where is it, I need fine right now”

So finally we established that he was looking for the paper napkin box, he has caught on and is calling it fine now like everyone does here...hahaha

I call it Kleenex, after a long time of using this term I found out that Kleenex is not the product name, but the brand name...it got so famous that everyone started calling the product by the name of a certain brand even when using a different brand, I mean I’ve never heard anyone say hand me a Scott’s.

I know there is a marketing term for this, but it escapes me right now...

Ziad cracks me up, he is learning so many Arabic words, and sometimes he butchers them so bad; like few weeks ago his teacher asked him to get a daftar(notebook)and he was saying I need a daff...It took about 10 minute for us to figure out that he was saying daftar..

Thankfully he has not learned any vulgar words!! I guess kids are becoming more polite! My friend came from Lebanon to Canada and it is unbelievable the words her 3 year old son said! Words that I would never even think of uttering at this advanced age. She thought it was cute, but I’m sure she will not find it so cute when he is 10-12 and calling her by those words!

13 comments:

Qabbani said...

mum told me when she acma to jordan she get confuse of this word FINE,

we say Ma7arm or Klenex,

about Zaid ,well u need to make sure that he didn't learn YET :D, and more polite?!!!!!!!! i don't think so ,
u can see then in Malls and market how they act with there parents and others :) , any way hope he learn a nice cool word , :)

7aki Fadi said...

English: tissues ( you know that hehehe)
Arabic: ma7rameh, single, ma7arem, plural..

Anonymous said...

Ziad is too funny. ;D

Anonymous said...

Hehehe cute ... He actually reminded me of myself and others when we were kids. It is not only associated with napkins, but with other products as well. People would mention the brand's name and not the product's because there were not many brands available where in the US, for example, there is a whole variety to choose from. In Jordan, people just got used to it.

Anonymous said...

Typo: Whereas* :$

Mrs. Al Ramahi said...

looool.. since i came to Jordan and i couldn't utter the word "fine"! i use kleenex.. lol! not all know kleenex (especially back then) and would be like : huh? shu bedek?

Anonymous said...

The word fine with the circles around it lol I never caught on to say it during my stay in Jordan.
lol Ziad cracks me up "daff" so proud of him still eating up have the word like in Canada lol.

Hareega said...

I was surprised to find Kleenex in America, I used to think it was a Jordanian product!!

I remember my mother putting very spicy pepper in my and my brother's mouth whenver any of us said a vulgar word. As time passed I stopped saying them and my brother started liking spicy food.

MommaBean said...

Okay, Sam, I LOVE this post! I was laughing so hard bgy the introductory conversation that I had to explain to my office mate what I was laughing at. I knew I was becoming truly Jordanian when, in the course of my Arabic class, I said tot he teacher, Atieni fine, lo samahti. Didn't even have to think about it, it just came out that way.

Oh, and the other day, El 3atal asked ButterBean to get him a Kleenex. She was like, Shu Baba, Shu Biddak. He repeated, Atieni Kleenex. Shu? Finally, I took pity and said, Leila, Baba wants a tissue. Oh, a tissue, Why didn't you just say so... Haha!

Anonymous said...

I call all tissues "Kleenex" no matter what brand they are !!

Hamza said...

lol. All my ignorant relatives call it "fine" especially since my uncle worked for the "FINE" company for a while.

I always say "kleenex" and the irony is I never buy for myself tissues with the brand "kleenex"

Sam said...

qabbani well i have not heard the kids say anything bad...o but their ears are open...:)

7aki it is so much easier to say kleenex...goes for both eng and arabic:)

kinzi he is funny..sometimes:)

hala yeh we call diapers pampers even though we use huggies sometimes:) and yeh it goes for so many products:)

amal in the past few years when i came to jordan for a visit i did not get familiar with fine so at restaurents and stuff i would say keleenex and some people would be hah...i had no idea!:)

batoul yeh i still say keleenex..but ziad will only call it fine...it sounds more like final though:)

hareega that is hillarious! how your brother likes spicy foods now...


mamabean u crack me up....it is so funny how u and littlebean and ziad caught on to fine...*lol*


noura me too...for the longest time i though kleenex was the name of the product:)


hamza yeh when i the teacher wrote a not to sent a bakeet fine i had to scratch my head for a moment..and then realized she means a bakeet ma7arem...

bella said...

LOOOOOL..i remember when i first got to jordan and people would ask for Fine, n id be like waaaah??
I thought they were trying to impress me with their English skills and telling me they "feel fine" but it coming out wrong :P

yea, its called Kleenex/tissue for me!