They came to jump on my children's trampoline, then gave me the finger when I told them to stop. After I had gotten them off the property (and been shown the middle finger a few times), they ran around to the property next door and shouted out "fahk yew, asshoh!" at me, because they know I'm an American {Got that curious look from the shits, that 'Could this person be a Russian?' chin-scratching look}
"I feel bad for them," says the wife. "Did you see them at Folk? They were collecting bottles."
One of their mothers is a drunk. I've seen her out on the veranda smoking her cigarette. Asking for parental assistance in keeping her potty-mouthed preteen in line is out of the question. I can only pray to the Gods of gentrification. That's what's going on in Viljandi's Old Town right now. There are the Folk people -- a sort of back-to-earth, sing around the campfire, sewing and wood-carving appreciating lot of formerly young urban professionals -- who have taken to the charmingly crooked old buildings. And then there is the ghetto element, the "slugs" as my friend Sven calls them.
"That's the thing about the Old Town," Sven says. "It's filled with white trash."
"White trash is kind of a racist term, don't you think?" says the wife. She still feels bad. And maybe it is racist, or classist. Anyway, I keep on hearing that Elvis song in my head, "People, don't you understand this child needs a helping hand or he'll grow to be an angry young man ..." I was going to call the ghetto lapsed on their "fahk yew, asshoh," too, tell 'em that their English was good, that they'd all grow up to be diplomats and international bankers with mouths like those. But I didn't. Even I am not that mean.
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I was teching at Esto school here and noticed that children from Estonia were under some kind of stress. They produced strange animal noises and acted very uncomfortable when I spoke to them nicely, one-on-one. It kinda rocked their world.
Saw their parents barking at them. The so called local "ehitajad".
They drive mercedeses looking like coming or going to the gym and sport golden necklaces.
They mutter hello reluctantly.
These are probably economic migrants from the countryside. You can hardly bump into a proper Viljander nowadays. They move in from Võhma and Metsküla and carry on as if they're still in their little village. Not being rude, but our towns have been turned into extended villages, with mindsets to fit.
Giuostino, you need to befriend a proper middle class family, not the woolen hat wearing 'urban professionals'. I'm sure they'll make great drinking buddies, but being in a foreign environment, you need more of a 'rock' type friends. Anchors, in a stormy bay.
Lol, LPR, I can't believe you're allowed anywhere near children. With your 'views' on coloured people, Muslims and gays. Only in America, I suppose, lol.
LOL.
If I were allowed to retort, I'd say that the children I've been allowed to approach were not muslims or gays. So they were safe.
(Above comment brought to you by the courtesy of Vigonier 2012, Val de Salis, France)
They were colored though. Color being white.
So that makes it alright, then? Besides not all gay kids are out from early age, so there's no way of telling. My mum said she always knew, yet we actually spoke about it for the first time in my early twenties. I think it confuses gay kids when they've got judgemental grownups around. In my case it resulted in a trail of lots and lots of broken hearts over the years. I meant no harm to these girls, but it was never meant to be in the first place. But that's how society expects you to behave. Nevermind.
I once heard someone mention that most "racism" is actually classicm. We're perfectly comfortable with people who don't look like us, just as long as they dress like us and sound like they had the same education.
It just so happens that we've managed to structure society in such a way that people from certain ethnic backgrounds have been pushed firmly into particular classes.
Besides not all gay kids are out from early age, so there's no way of telling.
Hey, why is Brian playing hopscotch with the girls?
In this piece, if you'd replace Folk with Glastonbury, picking bottles with going through rubbish, her smoking a cigarette with her having a spliff, and Spencer with Patel (Poles are extremely judgemental). You'd get perfectly normal small town England. Now, is it me, that Britain seems extremely similar to Estonia, or is it that America is worlds apart from Europe??? I don't quite get it...
Sorry, Sven with Pavel. Smartphones :)
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