tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post9189581660266132881..comments2023-09-26T03:53:17.142-04:00Comments on Pentimento: The Tattooed Mothers You Will Have Always With YouPentimentohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17161146891505294679noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-40372595862117752672011-10-14T06:56:54.091-04:002011-10-14T06:56:54.091-04:00I know exactly what you're talking about, and ...I know exactly what you're talking about, and this was my father's dilemma too. Even though he became an academic he always insisted he was working-class. And his accent really really stands out in his discipline.Pentimentohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17161146891505294679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-88767173755767832042011-10-14T03:55:49.550-04:002011-10-14T03:55:49.550-04:00If I babbled on about my own family of origin it w...If I babbled on about my own family of origin it would probably be clear why it's so hard to figure out what "class" we come from and I now belong to. Maybe being from Brooklyn is a complication if that whole concept in itself. That is, what I think of as the "real" Brooklyn, not the Brooklyn that's become trendy in recent years. My part still isn't trendy. Too relatively inconvenient to Manhattan, for one thing, I guess.ex-new yorkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-17913162381955559142011-10-13T06:44:16.986-04:002011-10-13T06:44:16.986-04:00Well, there's a lot we *think* we know about p...Well, there's a lot we *think* we know about people by looking at them, like me assuming the most grotesquely-tattooed mother was impoverished, and yet she seems to have access to a top-of-the-line new car. This brings me back to my father's code of always looking one's best, and the notion that, traditionally, the rich have always been able to flout it. Perhaps this woman is very wealthy, which is why she can be grotesquely tattooed with impunity?<br /><br />On the other hand, decent clothing has become very inexpensive -- maybe since NAFTA in the 1990s -- so most people, including those of limited means, are able to purchase nice-looking, reasonably fashionable clothes at big-box stores. Going thrift implies a more conscious effort, especially if you don't want to support slavery in China and southeast Asia. Sometimes I think that kind of conscious buying is a luxury, but I'm not sure; for instance, I have a close family member who gets WIC but has made it a priority to eat organic food and be part of a CSA. I think having a certain amount of time, as you note, has something to do with making things like this work.Pentimentohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17161146891505294679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-17680336975883860922011-10-13T01:38:43.650-04:002011-10-13T01:38:43.650-04:00I have thought a lot about this but there's ju...I have thought a lot about this but there's just too much I could say (you know how true this is, I am sure). I feel like my own experience of class has been all over the place throughout my life. I have experienced similar feelings about similar people but there is a lot more to it especially now that we are perpetually financially insecure and short on the time that helps you do more with less money. This post was on my mind again because today we went to a specialist we hadn't seen for some of my kids in 3 1/2 years, and I realized how much more different I feel now from her because of what I know about her. (She went to a top Ivy League school and is married to someone with a sort of famous name -- you'd definitely recognize it.) Three years ago I just thought, well, she went to that school, I bet she's really smart, and yeah, I bet she has a lot more money than we do. Now I feel so aware of the different "classes" that places us in and I wonder if people like that are always aware, because nowadays, I think you can tell just by looking at us, at least if you are someone more like her.ex-new yorkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-49449627157011806012011-10-06T08:12:29.553-04:002011-10-06T08:12:29.553-04:00For the record, one of the most grotesquely tattoo...For the record, one of the most grotesquely tattooed mothers -- who told me she'd recently moved here from North Carolina, and whose child missed the first two weeks of kindergarten because she wasn't able to figure out the enrollment guidelines -- drove up to school today in a late-model Cadillac. Shows how much I know.Pentimentohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17161146891505294679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-89689456081252316272011-10-05T19:35:31.285-04:002011-10-05T19:35:31.285-04:00Very insightful.Very insightful.JMBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02542004362101344466noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-14087990138312204222011-10-05T10:19:13.993-04:002011-10-05T10:19:13.993-04:00Wonderful meditation, Pentimento. Thank you for di...Wonderful meditation, Pentimento. Thank you for discussing so frankly things that many of us (I hope) are struggling with. Especially here. Especially now.Rodakhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00077919085157653816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-31572787726596416662011-10-03T18:54:17.368-04:002011-10-03T18:54:17.368-04:00Just today I heard the statistic that fifty percen...Just today I heard the statistic that fifty percent of children in our school district are at or below the federal poverty level, which is US$22,000 for a family of four.Pentimentohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17161146891505294679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-11435058979544908952011-10-02T18:58:23.832-04:002011-10-02T18:58:23.832-04:00There's a family who live in our neighbourhood...There's a family who live in our neighbourhood (which is a mix of long-settled Italian, Eritrean, young professionals with families who can't afford more expensive areas, and blue-collar generic WASP) that are classically 'white trash'- the Mom and grandmother and teenage daughters all dress exactly the same (why is really tight ponytails a cultural marker? It's been like that since I was in high school), the dad and grandfather always wear sweatpants.<br /><br />Every time I see them, I wonder about them- what does the world look like, through their eyes? What do I look like (enthnically confusing, prone to skirts and Docs, shopping at a thrift store and pushing a really expensive stroller) look like? What are their categories and estimations of class and culture?<br /><br />They fascinate me and scare me because they're so other. <br /><br />We are poor, educated, and lovers of good books, and I am hipster enough to feel smug because we cook from scratch and buy used, but they're also economic necessities for us. I wonder intensely what it would be like to be- not me? not educated? Less self conscious?lissla lissarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05354424704358588553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5554498168264477884.post-27997906120358551772011-10-02T16:39:12.861-04:002011-10-02T16:39:12.861-04:00Much to think about here. The only thing I will s...Much to think about here. The only thing I will say is in regards to McDonald's vs. Safeway. Many of the poor live in areas where McDs are abundant, provide their teen with employment, and there is no Safeway. Also, you try hauling home groceries from Safeway on the bus, and then walking blocks and blocks to get them home.<br /><br />Again, much to think about.Elise Hiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14867102109603578104noreply@blogger.com