neljapäev, juuli 04, 2013
expats
Expats piss off homeland Americans. They rile the, defile them. An expat to a homeland American is a betrayer, a traitor. And why? Because the expat called their "Love it or leave it" bluff. "Love it or leave it!" That patriotic phrase. The sayer thinks he has you up against the wall, because who would have the guff to actually leave the homeland?! But the expat does. Watch him turn and go. That smug wannabe Hemingway bastard with his parental renumeration and his black turtleneck and knowledge of other tongues! That almost-as-bad-as-a-Frenchman Yankee with his softness for socialism and his friends with funny names and his ability to pronounce Tallinn the correct way (and it doesn't rhyme with baleen, Ishmael). But you know, from the bottom of my heart -- I haven't rejected America. I have embraced my own weird, meandering life. It led here. Doors opened, drawbridges materialized. And I see nothing wrong with drinking Saku and alternating between Estonian and English with a Swede in Viljandi on the Fourth of July. That's just how it went for me. My story. Love it or leave it. Lõpp.
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3 kommentaari:
What's up with this post today Justin.
You okay?
Did someone say something to inspire this?
Oh well it was nice 4th of July with my sister & brothers families on the beach tonight... even baby Maya came.
Hope you had an okay day.
What's up with this post today Justin.
You okay?
Did someone say something to inspire this?
Oh well it was nice 4th of July with my sister & brothers families on the beach tonight... even baby Maya came.
Hope you had an okay day.
Maybe I'm off your subject, but I've noticed that it's generally difficult for me to share my observations in Estonia with American friends and family back home - Estonians and other foreigners in Estonia are much more interested in my blog. As neutral as I try to be, those close to me back home seem often to decide not to recognize what I say (by plain ignoring, being bored, rendering it illegitimate in some way, or responding with some kind of criticism or definitive statement on who I am as a person in general). I think sometimes they feel that their way of life/worldview/identity is being threatened when different ways of living are brought to their attention - they feel relativized or particularized and therefore not right about everything. I assume it is more difficult for Americans than, say Europeans who are in closer encounters with other kinds, but maybe that is an unfair generalization in itself. But I'm just studying here - can't imagine the reaction to living here. It reminds me of some Christian verse of not to preach in your hometown because no one will take you seriously or something - seems like a relevant fragment of philosophy for America.
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