--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen…" description: "\"“It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen with a stranger, a man, after growing used to the meticulous calm of housewives. When I knock on Ali’s door a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/jennifer-klinec-36856_peace_it-is-an-adjustment-to-be-in-the-kitchen_2066293.jpg" --- # It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen with a stranger… ![“It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen with a stranger, a man, after growing used to the meticulous calm of housewives. When I knock on Ali’s door at the time he’d mimed to me with his fingers, he answers wearing only a pair of pale, green underpants. He picks soil from his fingernails with a…” quote by Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/jennifer-klinec-36856_peace_it-is-an-adjustment-to-be-in-the-kitchen_2066293.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/jennifer-klinec-36856_peace_it-is-an-adjustment-to-be-in-the-kitchen_2066293.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bea/jennifer-klinec-36856_peace_it-is-an-adjustment-to-be-in-the-kitchen_2066293.jpg) > ““It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen with a stranger, a man, after growing used to the meticulous calm of housewives. When I knock on Ali’s door at the time he’d mimed to me with his fingers, he answers wearing only a pair of pale, green underpants. He picks soil from his fingernails with a kitchen knife while I lean over the sink to scrub my hands. When I try to determine what he wants to be paid for teaching me to cook, he just shrugs his shoulders and looks up at the tall, black-domed ceiling.”” [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes an uneasy kitchen encounter with a stranger, exposing cultural and gender tensions. **In simple terms:** A woman feels uncomfortable cooking with a strange man. Key Takeaway Notice how unfamiliar settings can reveal power dynamics. Themes gender culture intimacy uncertainty Mood introspective uneasy Type narrative observational When to use this quote - restaurant work - shared housing - cooking classes Key Concepts social norms personal boundaries cross‑cultural interaction Questions to Reflect On - How do we negotiate intimacy in public spaces? - What expectations shape kitchen roles? A Different Perspective May generalize a single experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adjustment Kitchen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adjustment-kitchen-3967647/) [Fingernails Kitchen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fingernails-kitchen-3967648/) [Kitchen Stranger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kitchen-stranger-3967646/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Stranger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stranger/) [Teaching Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teaching-cook-3277687/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I actually struggled through teaching myself to cook because I'm completely ignorant in the kitchen. 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A woman in Santa Barbara, California, sent a $40,000 check.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-abel/even-with-clothing-naked-animals-there-were-people-who-wanted-to-send/) [Alan Abel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-abel/) > [A place has almost the shyness of a person, with strangers; and its secret is not to be surprised by a too direct interrogation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-symons/a-place-has-almost-the-shyness-of-a-person-with-strangers-and-its/) [Arthur Symons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-symons/) > [Jobs and money are never the primary cause of stress. Thinking, negative thinking causes stress. The real cause of all problems lie in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/jobs-and-money-are-never-the-primary-cause-of-stress-thinking/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [I know always that I am an outsider; a stranger in this century and among those who are still men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-know-always-that-i-am-an-outsider-a-stranger-in-this-century-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Jennifer Klinec > [“Their veil-muffled voices became loud and crisp. It felt strangely intimate to see them this way, the shapes and textures of their hair, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/their-veil-muffled-voices-became-loud-and-crisp-it-felt-strangely/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“.. a country where women are compared to food, her breasts like pomegranates, her lips like ripe dates.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/a-country-where-women-are-compared-to-food-her-breasts-like/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“That transactions at the market, at the rice seller, in the narrow archways of the gold bazaar were belaboured exchanges of tuts and hisses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/that-transactions-at-the-market-at-the-rice-seller-in-the-narrow/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“I pull my scarf forward to hide the blonde streaks of my hair and avoid using my hands - the giveaway of a European…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/i-pull-my-scarf-forward-to-hide-the-blonde-streaks-of-my-hair-and/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“.. the torshi shops in Bistodoh Bahman Square where vegetables, roots, even young pine cones are pickled, swimming in buckets of caraway seeds and vinegar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/the-torshi-shops-in-bistodoh-bahman-square-where-vegetables-roots/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“Husbands take photographs of their wives and children in front of a fountain and call out to the boys who rush back and forth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/husbands-take-photographs-of-their-wives-and-children-in-front-of-a/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“Herbs carried in special baskets, bread wrapped in knotted, muslin cloths, thick stews soured with unripe grape juice, carrots boiled with sugar and rosewater,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/herbs-carried-in-special-baskets-bread-wrapped-in-knotted-muslin/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“Placing my key on the reception desk, I imagine him a few kilometres away, stepping over his parents in the dark on the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/placing-my-key-on-the-reception-desk-i-imagine-him-a-few-kilometres/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“Separated by the polite distance of a green table, we easily could be strangers, counting our change and settling down for a treat. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/separated-by-the-polite-distance-of-a-green-table-we-easily-could-be/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“They ask questions for which we have no answers, and we don’t care to explain ourselves. For there is no term for what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/they-ask-questions-for-which-we-have-no-answers-and-we-don-t-care-to/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) > [“The sole tie that binds us is his mother and her kitchen, and the meals I watch disappear down his throat. If my daily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-klinec/the-sole-tie-that-binds-us-is-his-mother-and-her-kitchen-and-the/) [Jennifer Klinec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) [Explore all 12 Jennifer Klinec quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-klinec/) ## More Peace quotes > [Just understand that the good that you want is already here. All you have to do is get in harmony with it. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/just-understand-that-the-good-that-you-want-is-already-here-all-you/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [“Peace requires a discipline more iron than war. - Easter, 1939 ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-j-turner/peace-requires-a-discipline-more-iron-than-war-easter-1939/) [W.J. Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-j-turner/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. 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A truly brave man is ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inazo-nitobe/tranquillity-is-courage-in-repose-it-is-a-statical-manifestation-of/) [Inazo Nitobe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/inazo-nitobe/) > [“There is no fortune greater than peace; there is no force greater than peace; there is no excellent tapas greater than peace; there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muruganar/there-is-no-fortune-greater-than-peace-there-is-no-force-greater-than/) [Muruganar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muruganar/) > [Give me love, give me peace on earth, give me light, give me life, keep me free from birth, give me hope, help me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-me-love-give-me-peace-on-earth-give-me-light-give-me-life-keep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [ Vote for Donald Trump. You're going to see something and you'll be so happy, you'll be so thrilled. This \[presidential\] election is about every… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/vote-for-donald-trump-you-re-going-to-see-something-and-you-ll-be-so/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [One of the things that touches me most when I play for an audience is that although we may be unable to communicate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/one-of-the-things-that-touches-me-most-when-i-play-for-an-audience-is/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [The great force for forging a society into a solid mass has always been war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-graham-sumner/the-great-force-for-forging-a-society-into-a-solid-mass-has-always/) [William Graham Sumner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-graham-sumner/) > [The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of our democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/the-peaceful-transition-of-power-is-one-of-the-hallmarks-of-our/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Peace is the first thing the angels sang. Peace is the mark of the children of God. Peace is the nurse of love. Peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-i/peace-is-the-first-thing-the-angels-sang-peace-is-the-mark-of-the/) [Pope Leo I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-i/) > [War is like a fire. One man may start it, but it will spread all over. It is not about one thing in particular.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/war-is-like-a-fire-one-man-may-start-it-but-it-will-spread-all-over/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,655 Peace quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It is an adjustment to be in the kitchen with a stranger, a man, after growing used to the meticulous calm of housewives. When I knock on Ali’s door at the time he’d mimed to me with his fingers, he answers wearing only a pair of pale, green underpants. 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