Overheard on the subway this morning:
“I’m almost fifty, I can’t be locked up again, what kind of shit is that? It’s ridiculous. I need me a Jew lawyer.”
I looked up. Two women stood above me. The one talking wore black-rimmed glasses, a white turtleneck, underneath a navy blue pea coat, tight jeans, high heels. She and her friend spoke quickly in English and then Spanish. I wished I understood Spanish but I just picked up some familiar words and phrases: siempre, tam bein, mi amore, ay dios mio.
“…Yo, that fucking bitch is fierce as fuck,” the woman said. “I fucking love her.” I looked down and smiled.
Next to me a girl was doodling on the front page of a packet that read: AP Psychology, Mr. Wilson.
You may not be that familiar with Spanish, but I'm wholly unimpressed with their vocabulary in general; not that it matters to anyone else...
Jew Lawyer, French Cook, Chinese Laundryman, Jamaican Care Giver, British Shopkeeper, Italian Driver, German Civil Servant, Indian Doctor, Mexican Gardener, Dutch Painter, Italian Stone Mason, Portuguese Fisherman, Irish Cop, Polish Plumber, Russian Gangster, etc., etc. etc.
When will it stop?
I thought the care givers were Filipinos. ;>)
Just went to a book reading last night by a guy named Baye McNeil. A dude from Brooklyn. The title of the book is "Hi, My Name is Loco and I am a Racist."
He read a passage about that empty seat that is always next to a foreigner on the train in Japan. I told him I love it and enjoyed the extra space. He suggested perhaps I'm not being totally honest with myself.
Interesting stuff.
[3] Boat, can't wait to talk with you about that. I want to get a copy of the book too, checked out his website and it looks great.
The empty seat thing..it's complicated. Extra space IS nice but still, that feeling you get as someone sees your face and then stops, then moves further down the train rather than sit next to you..