You make an excellent point. There is a lot of talk here on pbase about distractions. I know that I've used that term myself when commenting on images. And I occasionally get comments about distractions in my own images. But as you show us here, one person's distraction can be another person's content. The only time a distraction is truly distracting is when it is has no purpose in the image, and calls attention to itself at the expense of other, more valid content.
I wasn't conscious of leaving in the florescent light, but I try, even though I do post process, to capture the "spirit" of what I really saw. Night time in Laos is florescent. So, I think I sub-consciously left it in - so that the image would match the ambiance of what I saw.
Your style often embraces the subtle play of light on your subjects. This is a prime example of it. You alternately withhold and reveal detail here to express mood and atmosphere, creating an emotional context for this simple act of serving food. Some might object to the inclusion of the harsh florescent light, but it serves your idea here by introducing an incongruous counterpoint within this otherwise delicately illuminated image.
