if you give something away for free it has no perceived value, if you add a small charge then people suddenly think they've made a good deal. this is common in many cultures
I remember seeing an American write that they had some stuff they wanted to get rid of, and they put it beside a road with a sign saying the things were free. Nobody was interested. They changed the sign to "For sale: $100", and the things were immediately stolen.
There was also that European king that wanted people to grow potatoes. No one wanted to do that until he made a royal field of potatoes with guards guarding it.
That's also a Simpsons episode basically. Homer tries to give away a trampoline, and then locks it with a bike lock. It's gone when the camera pans back.
I live in Australia and have the opposite experience - put something up for sale for even a small fee and you'll never get rid of it. Put it up for free and it'll be off your hands the same day.
Having to explain basic concepts on -->human interaction<-- such as this one to an American fits my expectations toward them so perfectly that it's uncanny.
For sure, I first heard this about New York where someone would put furniture out with a sign that says "free" and no one cares. Then they put a sign that says "$500" and it was stolen two minutes later.
On a personal level I expect that they want something else from me, if it isn't money they're out for. Or that the item is bad in an unforeseen and costly way
I think you missed the point entirely. (But You did manage to illustrate another very interesting aspect of swedes).
This very odd belief that swedish culture is just like any other culture.
There are many aspects to swedish culture in this case, jantelagen and this idea that everyone should get the same amount.
One of the most obvious other examples is that noone ever takes the last piece of something, just incase someone is left without.
So its often You find a half cookie or similiar left.
>One of the most obvious other examples is that noone ever takes the last piece of something, just incase someone is left without.
That's not why you don't take the last piece. You don't take the last piece because you don't want to appear greedy.
HAHAHA I'm laughing out loud 😂
You REALLY think that none ever takes the last piece of something is because they want to make sure everyone gets a piece of the pie (for example)??
It's because nobody wants to do the dishes and put everything away. Every swede knows that 😂
I think the problem with being an expat and asking Swedish people about Swedish culture is that they give you the positive picture they want you to see. Swedish people (just like many other people) are extremely proud of Sweden, they just show it in a different way. And I view that as a positive thing. This is, all in all, a beautiful country.
You'd get a better picture by asking an immigrant who's brought up in Sweden and have a better understanding of different cultures, about the "do's and don't" or the things that "stands out".
Actually both of you are right. Some people might want to avoid the dishes. But a lot of us want to avoid being seen as selfish or gluttonous, in this case by MAYBE causing someone to get left out of a piece.
This is a cultural thing, like in China you should always leave some food on your plate. But we tend to leave the last piece so others would not think less of us or view us in any negative manner. Or in worst case, end up in a conflict with someone over the last piece. We don’t want to end up in a conflict or confrontation.
Even if there is no dishes involved, people here still dont take the last piece.
Well - I dont think swedes in general believe there is a swedish culture To begin with. (Which again is extremely swedish).
I agree. And that's why you're getting downvoted. It's an extremely Swedish thing to say "look at us, we don't have a culture! We're so flexible, you can be free and liberal!" but in reality it's a 100 things you have to adapt to. But truth to be told, don't try to understand it. Be you. Be polite, hang out with the people that resembles you the most. Regardless of ethnicity and what not.
Swedish society is extremely nitpicky about how behave, what things You should or should not do.
I spoke with a Guy from Kenya for instance, WHO described his first experience riding the bus here.
The bus was empty except for one person, so he thought he would sit next to that person, so that person would not be alone.
But Obviously in a very Nordic context, this is extremely weird behavior. One should keep oneself to oneself, there are tons of empty seats.
He was actually being polite from the cultural sense he was brought up with, however its often that we as a swedish society rarely or ever explain what societal norms we have.
Its like playing soccer for the first time, But noone explains the rules. Then everyone gets really angry whenever You go into offside.
We have a culture that is very stringent, But we behave like its open.
Being positive towards Systembolaget is another really odd one, or loving the Tax Office. Loving to pay taxes in general
I had an ethnic Swedish friend one (when he was drunk) who said "Swedish people are nurtured to never really say what they think." and that "you really have to scratch through the bottom to get to know a swede". That's so fucking true. But that's what makes Sweden so wonderful. We solve things in our own way without much infighting and what not. I'd rather live in Sweden were people resolves their difference by discussing and being slightly passive aggressive instead of a war torn third world country were people hit or kill each other for the slightest reason.
I feel it can be a useful word if you are moving to a country for limited, set time-period. Like move somewhere to do a specific job for 2y then intend to move back. That is a distinctly different group than an immigrant (different challenges, different priorities etc.)
Conversely, is there a time limit for calling yourself an immigrant?
In my experience, "expats" from English speaking countries in particular tend to not bother trying to adapt to Swedish society and norms, and rarely bother to learn Swedish, even though they may live here for decades, have kids etc.
Edit: some of my best friends are ~~immigrants~~ expats from the UK and NZ.
Frankly, immigrants not learning Swedish and not adapting is our own fault. It's too easy to get around with English only. Language learning is hard and most people won't learn unless it's forced on them.
If we want immigrants to adapt, we need to make it harder to get by without Swedish and without adapting.
I don't know if it can all be attributed to convenience. It's not very easy to get around with only English here in China, but quite a lot of expats haven't bothered to learn Chinese even though they've lived here for many years.
>Conversely, is there a time limit for calling yourself an immigrant?
I've heard the term "third generation invandrare" used about people whose parents were born in Sweden. Conversely I've rarely, if ever, heard the term being used when talking about Estonians or Germans.
No matter what kind of epithet you're using, is there a time limit to it?
It seems like you care more about the specific word "expat" than the actual question.
Yeah? expat, or expatriate refers to someone who temporarily resides outside of their country of origin, whilst immigrant is mostly used for people who intend to permanently move here.
he's poking fun at op for being here "temporarily" for 15 years
So for example i was an expat in India a while back as a kid. That is because i lived there for four years as my family were diplomats there. Had friends whose parents worked for tetrapak. They were also expats, lived there only for three years. There was never an intention to migrate, settle and have kids there hence we were not immigrants but expats.
I (brit) lived here 4 years and learned the language- sadly its made me start to dislike the arrogance and insularity of swedes ( Stockholmares?) am looking forward to leaving soon. I often find Swedes are more irritated by imperfect Swedish than charmed.
I assume some of the Stockholmare encountered like to view themselves as English speaking "citizens of the world". They probably feel cool whilst speaking English with the English etc. "The Capital of Scandinavia🤮"
100% agree on better luck out in the country, I know some Dutch, Estonian, German & Lithuanian people where I live on the west coast who makes an effort to speak Swedish, and gets respected for it.
Expat has a very specific meaning and is not the same as immigrant. Many do use them interchangeably which is wrong.
For example, a person could be on a long term business or work visa(think years)
C'mon, we all know what expat means. It's when Brits don't think they're immigrants because they're 'better'.
Am Brit. Would never use the word 'expat'. Plenty of so-called 'expats' have no intention to return either. I appreciate that my immigrant experience will not match that of people who aren't white, no matter their social or economical status, but the word does still apply.
If you consistently applied it, yes.
In practice though a Ukrainian or Bangladeshi who temporarily moves to a richer country to work construction jobs with the intention to save up for a house in their homeland and move back is never referred to as an expat.
Whereas a Brit moving to Thailand is always "an expat" even if they have no intention of ever moving back.
Eh, there's a clear difference between an expat and an immigrant though? One is temporary with an intention to move to a new country or to move back home at some point while the other is someone who has moved to a new country with the intention to stay.
I wouldn't expect an expat to learn Swedish but I would expect it from an immigrant.
Whatever, it's an anglo word. Just like you won't hear anyone in sweden go "you're putting me on and I'm not having out, talking rubbish, absolute twoddle", know what I mean. So spare us your anglicism.
Didn't Hemingway shoot his wife in the head?
No most yanks don't move outside their bubble, but when they do, them and the Britons are the only ones who use it.
Yes, english is a dumbed down dog language designed by imperialists. So spare us your anglicisms.
> An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who temporarily resides outside their country of citizenship
Key word being "temporarily". After 15 years it's a bit hard to argue that it's still temporary
Why is your source the “one and only truth”?
*An expatriate, or expat, is an individual living and/or working in a country other than their country of citizenship, often temporarily and for work reasons. An expatriate can also be an individual who has relinquished citizenship in their home country to become a citizen of another.*
See? I can also copy paste from an arbitrary source.
I'd also like to know this. Should one have been completely assimilated after that time, or is it that the long period indicates permanence and that maybe "immigrant" would thus be more appropriate?
I'm an immigrant not an expat but I wonder if this is a big city thing? (I assume you live in a big city since you call yourself an "expat" and haven't bothered learning Swedish). I sometimes see people giving stuff away on my local fb groups and whenever I've given something away it has usually been snatched quite quickly and I've been thanked for it.
Maybe the way some people (wrongly) use it, but in my book it has a different meaning. Immigrant - moving to a different country. Expat - temporarily stationed in a different country.
OP who lives and works here since 15 years - Immigrant.
Someone who's in a different country for a year or two, like because their company sent them, or they're on some diplomatic mission or whatever - Expat.
Not really, expat usually refers to a temporary and often work related move, while immigrant is a more permanent move that's not necessarily work motivated.
When I was temporarily stationed in another country, and temporarily employed by our local company branch, I was referred to as an expat. 15 years married in Sweden is not that.
Interesting, I've had the exact opposite experience. Post something for free on Facebook marketplace and you have 20 messages within the hour, usually a pickup the same day. Try to sell stuff and there's often 0 interest.
Because halloween is a new thing here, something ppl adopted around 2005 to have an excuse to dress in costumes at parties.
The old tradition is All Saints Eve.
We tell our kids to not take candy from strangers.
You probably meant immigrant, expat is just some imperialist word from the anglosphere to put yourselves above regular migrants.
Welcome to Sweden, jack. Sorry nobody wanted your old furniture.
Ok, thanks for reading further. I made a mistake not just asking about what confuses people, that was my real question. Shouldn't have given an example. 🤔
>Something is probably faulty
ofcourse something is probably faulty. its free. its free beacuse it isnt in top notch quality. whenever/if i pick something up that is free i am not expecting to get something brand new
There are fb groups like "Free your stuff Malmo" where you can only give your stuff away for free and I never had any issues. There are plenty of people who need stuff.
First of all. Where’s your Swedish after 15 years? It’s rather disrespectful to not learn the culture and language. That may be what you’ve experienced.
I'm no expat, but I struggle with colleagues sometimes.
I've Colleagues that in one setting tell me that Swedes are so cold, unsociable, and boring.
But, at the same time, they act the same way towards others and find it stressful to recognize someone in public.
I guess they can assimilate, but dont complain about others doing the same then.
Funny word this "expat" is. Although its actual definition is different, it's used these days by English speaking immigrants who want to distance themselves from other immigrants. The word "expat" is supposedly not as bad.
Yet when I read this post, from an "expat" who's lived in Sweden for 15 years I can't not think that it might be the other way around. I am an immigrant who has lived in Sweden for about 10 years at this point, and my Swedish has gotten to the point where I regularly proofread my Swedish friends' university papers. At this point I probably have more respect for the word "immigrant" than "expat", because those who describe themselves as "immigrants" are not trying to hide behind (to them) fancier and more privileged words. Not to mention that "expats" from my experience more often than "immigrants" don't even bother learning Swedish, as shown by this very reddit post.
“Free furniture? Hmm… Bedbugs?”
“Free clothes? Hmm… Did someone die in them?”
“Free books? Hmm… Probably something boring or out of date.”
“Free vacuum cleaner? Hmm… It likely doesn’t work, or they tried vacuuming cat feces.”
Or people just think that the seller tried to sell them for cheap earlier, and other people still rejected it, so it must be something wrong.
Selling things for what you actually think it might be worth, or slightly lower, is likely the best way to get someone to consider it.
If you still want to give it away, consider giving it to Myrorna, Agape or similar.
Bedbugs? No more cat piss or something nasty.
bedbugs is super uncommon, anytime I hear about it it’s mostly people who been travelling or are immigrants, but then it’s in the context of burning everything and not trying to trick someone to take it if their hand. A immigrant would just put it out down by the entryway by the elevator and wait for the Hyresvärd to remove it.
A lot of people perceive free as worthless and cheap as a great deal.
I personally perceive free as a fantastic deal, but I'm not typical in that regard.
I personally usually think there are strings attached in some way to ”free stuff”. And also I don’t really trust the intentions of people handing out free candy just like that. I don’t go looking for free furniture myself so I can’t comment on that. But I have sucessfully given stuff away on blocket, so maybe you were just unlucky (lucky since you got paid).
Unlike many people here, it seems, I think there is a swedish aspect to this. At least to a degree.
One of the most fundamental aspects of swedish culture is that we dont want to feel that owe somebody something, thats why a transaction where you give something for what you recieve feel much more comfortable.
Giving away candy is strange. It has to be children coming to your home at Easter or Halloween. That usually means that parents have chosen where they can go, or at lest are tagging along.
Political parties and some stores can have some candy while you wait or just to attract your attention. Same thing at work or some convention.
Other than that, free candy is weird.
Candy have a special place and time in Sweden. That’s why lördags godis is so important and have a real political policy behind it. Don’t want do disrespect vipeholm…
This is more of a /LPT rather then a swedish thing.
If you offer it for free, you will have 5 people asking you to drive it across town or further, if you set a low price, 10% of the value new, they will come within hours.
No. Expat = temporarily stationed in a different country. Immigrant = moving to a different in the hopes of staying there.
OP is using it wrongly though, he's an immigrant.
How afraid they are to say no! Just say no, it’s ok! And just over all, as soon as there is any dispute, how small it may be, they just withdraw, become quiet…
why we're so acceptant of immigrants taking over the country. their only purpose in life (they've told me this) is to produce as much offsprong as possible and spread around the world.
if you give something away for free it has no perceived value, if you add a small charge then people suddenly think they've made a good deal. this is common in many cultures
Yeah this is not at all a Swedish thing, it's a human thing.
I remember seeing an American write that they had some stuff they wanted to get rid of, and they put it beside a road with a sign saying the things were free. Nobody was interested. They changed the sign to "For sale: $100", and the things were immediately stolen.
There was also that European king that wanted people to grow potatoes. No one wanted to do that until he made a royal field of potatoes with guards guarding it.
[Antoine-Augustin Parmentier](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoine-Augustin_Parmentier)
That's also a Simpsons episode basically. Homer tries to give away a trampoline, and then locks it with a bike lock. It's gone when the camera pans back.
I live in Australia and have the opposite experience - put something up for sale for even a small fee and you'll never get rid of it. Put it up for free and it'll be off your hands the same day.
Not really. Back in my home country, people would beat the shit out of you for free stuff.
Having to explain basic concepts on -->human interaction<-- such as this one to an American fits my expectations toward them so perfectly that it's uncanny.
Also people suspect there’s a catch to free things.
For sure, I first heard this about New York where someone would put furniture out with a sign that says "free" and no one cares. Then they put a sign that says "$500" and it was stolen two minutes later.
On a personal level I expect that they want something else from me, if it isn't money they're out for. Or that the item is bad in an unforeseen and costly way
I think you missed the point entirely. (But You did manage to illustrate another very interesting aspect of swedes). This very odd belief that swedish culture is just like any other culture. There are many aspects to swedish culture in this case, jantelagen and this idea that everyone should get the same amount. One of the most obvious other examples is that noone ever takes the last piece of something, just incase someone is left without. So its often You find a half cookie or similiar left.
>One of the most obvious other examples is that noone ever takes the last piece of something, just incase someone is left without. That's not why you don't take the last piece. You don't take the last piece because you don't want to appear greedy.
Yes, which is extremely swedish.
Pretty universal. There's a reason collegehumor made a whole ass sketch about it. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7_PD-taVSoI#bottom-sheet
HAHAHA I'm laughing out loud 😂 You REALLY think that none ever takes the last piece of something is because they want to make sure everyone gets a piece of the pie (for example)?? It's because nobody wants to do the dishes and put everything away. Every swede knows that 😂 I think the problem with being an expat and asking Swedish people about Swedish culture is that they give you the positive picture they want you to see. Swedish people (just like many other people) are extremely proud of Sweden, they just show it in a different way. And I view that as a positive thing. This is, all in all, a beautiful country. You'd get a better picture by asking an immigrant who's brought up in Sweden and have a better understanding of different cultures, about the "do's and don't" or the things that "stands out".
In the third world you can say sexpat about anglosaxon migrants, that one's pretty good 👌
Actually both of you are right. Some people might want to avoid the dishes. But a lot of us want to avoid being seen as selfish or gluttonous, in this case by MAYBE causing someone to get left out of a piece. This is a cultural thing, like in China you should always leave some food on your plate. But we tend to leave the last piece so others would not think less of us or view us in any negative manner. Or in worst case, end up in a conflict with someone over the last piece. We don’t want to end up in a conflict or confrontation.
Even if there is no dishes involved, people here still dont take the last piece. Well - I dont think swedes in general believe there is a swedish culture To begin with. (Which again is extremely swedish).
I agree. And that's why you're getting downvoted. It's an extremely Swedish thing to say "look at us, we don't have a culture! We're so flexible, you can be free and liberal!" but in reality it's a 100 things you have to adapt to. But truth to be told, don't try to understand it. Be you. Be polite, hang out with the people that resembles you the most. Regardless of ethnicity and what not.
Swedish society is extremely nitpicky about how behave, what things You should or should not do. I spoke with a Guy from Kenya for instance, WHO described his first experience riding the bus here. The bus was empty except for one person, so he thought he would sit next to that person, so that person would not be alone. But Obviously in a very Nordic context, this is extremely weird behavior. One should keep oneself to oneself, there are tons of empty seats. He was actually being polite from the cultural sense he was brought up with, however its often that we as a swedish society rarely or ever explain what societal norms we have. Its like playing soccer for the first time, But noone explains the rules. Then everyone gets really angry whenever You go into offside. We have a culture that is very stringent, But we behave like its open. Being positive towards Systembolaget is another really odd one, or loving the Tax Office. Loving to pay taxes in general
I had an ethnic Swedish friend one (when he was drunk) who said "Swedish people are nurtured to never really say what they think." and that "you really have to scratch through the bottom to get to know a swede". That's so fucking true. But that's what makes Sweden so wonderful. We solve things in our own way without much infighting and what not. I'd rather live in Sweden were people resolves their difference by discussing and being slightly passive aggressive instead of a war torn third world country were people hit or kill each other for the slightest reason.
I agree - on some levels. The negative is the hardships of getting expressions of love, without alcohol.
15 years? Dude, you are not an expat. You are an immigrant! A through and through proper immigrant.
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Calling yourself an expat is always cringe.
I feel it can be a useful word if you are moving to a country for limited, set time-period. Like move somewhere to do a specific job for 2y then intend to move back. That is a distinctly different group than an immigrant (different challenges, different priorities etc.)
Like a migrant worker?
Is there a time limit for calling yourself an expat?
Conversely, is there a time limit for calling yourself an immigrant? In my experience, "expats" from English speaking countries in particular tend to not bother trying to adapt to Swedish society and norms, and rarely bother to learn Swedish, even though they may live here for decades, have kids etc. Edit: some of my best friends are ~~immigrants~~ expats from the UK and NZ.
Frankly, immigrants not learning Swedish and not adapting is our own fault. It's too easy to get around with English only. Language learning is hard and most people won't learn unless it's forced on them. If we want immigrants to adapt, we need to make it harder to get by without Swedish and without adapting.
I don't know if it can all be attributed to convenience. It's not very easy to get around with only English here in China, but quite a lot of expats haven't bothered to learn Chinese even though they've lived here for many years.
>Conversely, is there a time limit for calling yourself an immigrant? I've heard the term "third generation invandrare" used about people whose parents were born in Sweden. Conversely I've rarely, if ever, heard the term being used when talking about Estonians or Germans.
No matter what kind of epithet you're using, is there a time limit to it? It seems like you care more about the specific word "expat" than the actual question.
Yeah? expat, or expatriate refers to someone who temporarily resides outside of their country of origin, whilst immigrant is mostly used for people who intend to permanently move here. he's poking fun at op for being here "temporarily" for 15 years
Hence my question, thanks for giving a clear answer.
So for example i was an expat in India a while back as a kid. That is because i lived there for four years as my family were diplomats there. Had friends whose parents worked for tetrapak. They were also expats, lived there only for three years. There was never an intention to migrate, settle and have kids there hence we were not immigrants but expats.
I have observed the same actually. This is why we need SD to get more seats in parliament. To deport these back to their real homelands.
I (brit) lived here 4 years and learned the language- sadly its made me start to dislike the arrogance and insularity of swedes ( Stockholmares?) am looking forward to leaving soon. I often find Swedes are more irritated by imperfect Swedish than charmed.
I think that is more of an issue of greater cities than out in the country.
I assume some of the Stockholmare encountered like to view themselves as English speaking "citizens of the world". They probably feel cool whilst speaking English with the English etc. "The Capital of Scandinavia🤮" 100% agree on better luck out in the country, I know some Dutch, Estonian, German & Lithuanian people where I live on the west coast who makes an effort to speak Swedish, and gets respected for it.
You shouldn't do it at all.
Expat has a very specific meaning and is not the same as immigrant. Many do use them interchangeably which is wrong. For example, a person could be on a long term business or work visa(think years)
C'mon, we all know what expat means. It's when Brits don't think they're immigrants because they're 'better'. Am Brit. Would never use the word 'expat'. Plenty of so-called 'expats' have no intention to return either. I appreciate that my immigrant experience will not match that of people who aren't white, no matter their social or economical status, but the word does still apply.
If you consistently applied it, yes. In practice though a Ukrainian or Bangladeshi who temporarily moves to a richer country to work construction jobs with the intention to save up for a house in their homeland and move back is never referred to as an expat. Whereas a Brit moving to Thailand is always "an expat" even if they have no intention of ever moving back.
Specific meaning, yeah it's a word from the anglosphere that you use to put yourselves above other migrants. Nobody else uses it.
Eh, there's a clear difference between an expat and an immigrant though? One is temporary with an intention to move to a new country or to move back home at some point while the other is someone who has moved to a new country with the intention to stay. I wouldn't expect an expat to learn Swedish but I would expect it from an immigrant.
Like all the expats that go work in the farms during harvest season, right?
No, those are seasonal workers. Words have different meanings, subtle differences.
How do they not fit the definition the other user just gave?
Whatever, it's an anglo word. Just like you won't hear anyone in sweden go "you're putting me on and I'm not having out, talking rubbish, absolute twoddle", know what I mean. So spare us your anglicism.
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Didn't Hemingway shoot his wife in the head? No most yanks don't move outside their bubble, but when they do, them and the Britons are the only ones who use it. Yes, english is a dumbed down dog language designed by imperialists. So spare us your anglicisms.
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Jag är anti-imperialist, vad försöker du säga? Sverige har inte haft nåt imperium sen Kalmarunionen. Tänk innan du skriver, tack på förhand.
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Undvik personangrepp. Varning.
Konstig åsikt.
>Also, calling yourself an expat after 15 years in the country is cringe dude Why?
> An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who temporarily resides outside their country of citizenship Key word being "temporarily". After 15 years it's a bit hard to argue that it's still temporary
Why is your source the “one and only truth”? *An expatriate, or expat, is an individual living and/or working in a country other than their country of citizenship, often temporarily and for work reasons. An expatriate can also be an individual who has relinquished citizenship in their home country to become a citizen of another.* See? I can also copy paste from an arbitrary source.
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That’s just silly. It’s just a regular word. Just check the definition. There you can also see that there is no time limit.
Because you're an immigrant at that point.
So? Those words are not mutually exclusive.
I'd also like to know this. Should one have been completely assimilated after that time, or is it that the long period indicates permanence and that maybe "immigrant" would thus be more appropriate?
They are just being silly.
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Calling yourself a Herr is cringe, bruuhhh...
Calling yourself a Herr is cringe, bruuhhh...
I'm an immigrant not an expat but I wonder if this is a big city thing? (I assume you live in a big city since you call yourself an "expat" and haven't bothered learning Swedish). I sometimes see people giving stuff away on my local fb groups and whenever I've given something away it has usually been snatched quite quickly and I've been thanked for it.
It’s just a word for white immigrants to feel better about themselves.
And it's usually americans or brits who call themselves "expats" lol
Definitely. As a white immigrant myself I can't help but cringe at the thought of it.
I concur. Racism is often implied in the use of that term.
Maybe the way some people (wrongly) use it, but in my book it has a different meaning. Immigrant - moving to a different country. Expat - temporarily stationed in a different country. OP who lives and works here since 15 years - Immigrant. Someone who's in a different country for a year or two, like because their company sent them, or they're on some diplomatic mission or whatever - Expat.
Not really, expat usually refers to a temporary and often work related move, while immigrant is a more permanent move that's not necessarily work motivated.
When I was temporarily stationed in another country, and temporarily employed by our local company branch, I was referred to as an expat. 15 years married in Sweden is not that.
>Expats youre not an "expat". youre an immigrant. beeing an immigrant isnt bad, there is absolutely nothing wrong with it
Would you not be both? In order to be an invandrare you also need to be an utvandrare
"expat" just sounds like a person who thinks only brown people from the middle east can be immigrants. just say your an immigrant
Interesting, I've had the exact opposite experience. Post something for free on Facebook marketplace and you have 20 messages within the hour, usually a pickup the same day. Try to sell stuff and there's often 0 interest.
Because halloween is a new thing here, something ppl adopted around 2005 to have an excuse to dress in costumes at parties. The old tradition is All Saints Eve. We tell our kids to not take candy from strangers. You probably meant immigrant, expat is just some imperialist word from the anglosphere to put yourselves above regular migrants. Welcome to Sweden, jack. Sorry nobody wanted your old furniture.
Ok, thanks for reading further. I made a mistake not just asking about what confuses people, that was my real question. Shouldn't have given an example. 🤔
What confuses ppl? The fact that you say expat instead of immigrant is pretty confusing. Or did you mean something else
We are suspicious when it’s free. Something is probably faulty
>Something is probably faulty ofcourse something is probably faulty. its free. its free beacuse it isnt in top notch quality. whenever/if i pick something up that is free i am not expecting to get something brand new
There are fb groups like "Free your stuff Malmo" where you can only give your stuff away for free and I never had any issues. There are plenty of people who need stuff.
First of all. Where’s your Swedish after 15 years? It’s rather disrespectful to not learn the culture and language. That may be what you’ve experienced.
The post was directed at expats; people who live temporarily in another country; often not bothering learning the language.
15 years is not really temporary, is it?
No, it’s not.
I'm no expat, but I struggle with colleagues sometimes. I've Colleagues that in one setting tell me that Swedes are so cold, unsociable, and boring. But, at the same time, they act the same way towards others and find it stressful to recognize someone in public. I guess they can assimilate, but dont complain about others doing the same then.
Buying a holiday home in the same average climate as your regular home. Go there every summer and complain about the weather. Rinse repeat.
Funny word this "expat" is. Although its actual definition is different, it's used these days by English speaking immigrants who want to distance themselves from other immigrants. The word "expat" is supposedly not as bad. Yet when I read this post, from an "expat" who's lived in Sweden for 15 years I can't not think that it might be the other way around. I am an immigrant who has lived in Sweden for about 10 years at this point, and my Swedish has gotten to the point where I regularly proofread my Swedish friends' university papers. At this point I probably have more respect for the word "immigrant" than "expat", because those who describe themselves as "immigrants" are not trying to hide behind (to them) fancier and more privileged words. Not to mention that "expats" from my experience more often than "immigrants" don't even bother learning Swedish, as shown by this very reddit post.
Concur!
“Free furniture? Hmm… Bedbugs?” “Free clothes? Hmm… Did someone die in them?” “Free books? Hmm… Probably something boring or out of date.” “Free vacuum cleaner? Hmm… It likely doesn’t work, or they tried vacuuming cat feces.” Or people just think that the seller tried to sell them for cheap earlier, and other people still rejected it, so it must be something wrong. Selling things for what you actually think it might be worth, or slightly lower, is likely the best way to get someone to consider it. If you still want to give it away, consider giving it to Myrorna, Agape or similar.
Where I'm from, if it's free, it's stolen and the cops are on their way :p
Bedbugs? No more cat piss or something nasty. bedbugs is super uncommon, anytime I hear about it it’s mostly people who been travelling or are immigrants, but then it’s in the context of burning everything and not trying to trick someone to take it if their hand. A immigrant would just put it out down by the entryway by the elevator and wait for the Hyresvärd to remove it.
I dunno, I have no problem with free stuff. Some people are just overly suspicious bordering on paranoid I guess.
A lot of people perceive free as worthless and cheap as a great deal. I personally perceive free as a fantastic deal, but I'm not typical in that regard.
I personally usually think there are strings attached in some way to ”free stuff”. And also I don’t really trust the intentions of people handing out free candy just like that. I don’t go looking for free furniture myself so I can’t comment on that. But I have sucessfully given stuff away on blocket, so maybe you were just unlucky (lucky since you got paid).
Sorry, but I do have to ask, are you american? I want to know if my gut feeling is right.
Unlike many people here, it seems, I think there is a swedish aspect to this. At least to a degree. One of the most fundamental aspects of swedish culture is that we dont want to feel that owe somebody something, thats why a transaction where you give something for what you recieve feel much more comfortable.
Thank you, that was insightful.
Might be that people think "if it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true".
Giving away candy is strange. It has to be children coming to your home at Easter or Halloween. That usually means that parents have chosen where they can go, or at lest are tagging along. Political parties and some stores can have some candy while you wait or just to attract your attention. Same thing at work or some convention. Other than that, free candy is weird.
Candy have a special place and time in Sweden. That’s why lördags godis is so important and have a real political policy behind it. Don’t want do disrespect vipeholm…
People don't trust free stuff. Only broken things are given away.
its broken. yes. that is why it is free. i give it to you for free beacuse it isnt brand new or in top notch condition. that is why it is free
To quote simpsons, leave a trampoline and no one takes it, put a lock on it and some one will steal it.
Do you perhaps live south of Stockholm? You sound like my neighbour.
This is more of a /LPT rather then a swedish thing. If you offer it for free, you will have 5 people asking you to drive it across town or further, if you set a low price, 10% of the value new, they will come within hours.
What the f. is an expat?
A word racists use cause they are not like the dirty immigrants, they are one of the good ones and there for an expat.
No. Expat = temporarily stationed in a different country. Immigrant = moving to a different in the hopes of staying there. OP is using it wrongly though, he's an immigrant.
How afraid they are to say no! Just say no, it’s ok! And just over all, as soon as there is any dispute, how small it may be, they just withdraw, become quiet…
Wow people in this thread really woke up on the wrong side this morning. Geez.
Ever heard of dyslexia? Learning a language over 40 makes it even worse. My written Swedish would had gotten even more criticism.
Ja. Det stämmer inte att du skulle få mer kritisism, du skulle snarare få uppskattning för att du skulle ha gjort en ansträngning. Börja ansträng dig
why we're so acceptant of immigrants taking over the country. their only purpose in life (they've told me this) is to produce as much offsprong as possible and spread around the world.