Absolutely Anything Else

My family was the stereotype 2 or 3 cars in the driveway, mom stayed home and took care of it, we were all in the scouts and had summer vacations at the beach.
We lived in a "normal" for the times working class neighborhood.
It was odd that such violence happened in the schools in our area, can't even imagine how it was in the ghetto areas for kids.
We didn't seem to have any Rockers in Ca. just hard core bikers.
My step-dad;s cousin was one of them, nice enough guy at least with us he was...
I got jumped in the 11 the grade by 3 low rider girls who didn't even go to my school.
They went to the "drop out" trouble maker school down the road.
They had free access to walk on our school campus and cause trouble.
That's why I know for a fact, some people can't be dealt with with words or logic, only violence registers in their weak minds.
They just hated my group of friends, we dressed different then others, not a Hippie look but more a pre Punk look of the early 1970's.
I often wore vintage clothing, jackets from the 1940's paired with jeans with silver studs or handwork sewn on them, with desert boots or high top tennis shoes or mens shoes with velvet ribbons on them.
Would spend every night braiding my hair into tiny braids to get frizzy haired for school.
It just didn't fly with those chicks, they saw us as a target.
Many semi- fights and run in's before the big fight.
Not a fun thing to do when you're 17 but what else can you do when you're jumped by 3 people?
Run away and cry? No way.
I suppose I still would do the same if I had to , not sure I could  physically do it but better to go down fighting then run away.
I also know the public schools in the US must now be really a living nightmare if they were so bad 40 some yeas ago.
Poor kids, home schooling seems like the only real option.

Been ill since last Friday when I stepped outside with wet hair after swimming.
Silly really, they always say don't go outside with wet hair, guess it's true you can get ill doing that.
I've had no voice for 2 days now,my son said Christmas came early this year! Brat!

Honestly if I had a school aged child now, I'd consider hard looking into homeschooling or pulling resources with other parents for a small study group.
Schools are dangerous places, always have been , more like a place to get children ready for the work force. Have to sit for unnatural amount of hours and listen to rote information all day long. Most of which they will never use in "real life".
A place to teach how to be a follower and not a leader.
I pulled my son out of public education after the 6th grade,placed him in a private school for 3 years.
Money well spent, at least it was safe and he learned something in private school.
In the middle half of the 6th grade he got into a schoolyard fight and his arm was broken.
Believe me, the principle and staff and the school nurse were useless fools.
The nurse didn't even bother to walk us to our car when I went to take him to the hospital, she didn't even bother to advice us on how to protect the limb while in transport!
I later tried to sue the LA school district but my lawyer told me they had too much money and time to wait it out so I just dropped the case instead of driving myself insane fighting them.
May they all rot!
After that experience I pulled him out as soon as we could.
There was a large earthquake in S.Ca that school year after the arm adventure I just drove to the school and took him out after the earthquake, I knew there is no way they even know what to do with children in an emergency.
They lull the masses into a false sense of security as if they can handle hundred's of children in an emergency, can't even handle a little boy with a broken arm let alone an entire school of children.
It's scary to think about really, schools are dangerous places to place your children into.
After 3 yeas of private schooling my son had to attend the 10th grade back in public school because of costs.
The first 3 months in was grading time. I got a call from his homeroom teacher telling me he was getting a couple of D's and F's with only one B in citizenship.
I was shocked, no one even informed me of his grades before then.
I asked what was going on because he was getting all A's and B's in private school.
I was told he was a "good kid" but just slept at his desk all day long.
I asked him what was going on, he said everyone was so dumb and he already knew everything they were repeating and most kids were so stupid they had to go over and over the same subject so many times he couldn't take it.
I pulled him out of school after he passed a test and got his full Graduation paperwork. High School Equivalent test, not a GED.
He now is a casino manager so good enough.
Schools are not always for teaching they are for babysitting .
I know many so called educated people who can't find their way out of a paper bag.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

....
It was odd that such violence happened in the schools in our area, can't even imagine how it was in the ghetto areas for kids.
We didn't seem to have any Rockers in Ca. just hard core bikers.
My step-dad;s cousin was one of them, nice enough guy at least with us he was...
I got jumped in the 11 the grade by 3 low rider girls who didn't even go to my school.
.....
They just hated my group of friends, we dressed different then others, not a Hippie look but more a pre Punk look of the early 1970's.
I often wore vintage clothing, jackets from the 1940's paired with jeans with silver studs or handwork sewn on them, with desert boots or high top tennis shoes or mens shoes with velvet ribbons on them.
Would spend every night braiding my hair into tiny braids to get frizzy haired for school.
It just didn't fly with those chicks, they saw us as a target.
.....

I wasn't really sure what a low rider was - thought it was a customised car but Google seems to imply it's linked to the cars and Spanish speaking culture and possibly a type of trousers (US: pants).   Not something we ever saw in Europe. 

Strangely enough, when I was in school we hardly had any people from other cultures that I remember.  It was just people (almost always white) from England although sometimes people from the other nations - Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales would turn up.  I lived in a predominately white ethnically English area in the South of England.

During the 1970s saw more ethnic minorities like people of Indian descent, sometimes Chinese heritage and certainly we never saw anyone from mainland Europe like Spanish, French or Germans.  Never anyone from the USA although I saw someone from Canada once.   An influx of Indian people arrived in 1972 mainly from Uganda after Idi Amin (the dictator there) kicked out about 80,000 of them, of which about 30,000 came to the UK.  But they were so few, they were spread out around the country so maybe only 1 in a class.

The British Rocker uniform was a leather motorbike jacket with jean jacket (cut off sleeves) over the top of that. Jeans - preferably dirty looking (!!) - giant belt buckle and with workman type boots.  Sometimes people had longer hair and beards.  Those only possible if one was older and not like 17 with a too whispy effort that could get laughed at.  One could wear bandanas if not on their bikes - probably a reflection of watching Easy Rider or possibly hippy type movies even including the Vietnam war movies or news reports.  UK was not directly in the Vietnam war officially although UK supported the war in other more hidden ways.   The jean jacket usually had badges on it for motorbikes.at the front and something like rock slogan or design on the back.   

For "softer" periods, jeans, tennis shoes and baggy collarless "grandfather" shirts.  People often had fingerless gloves for some reason.   

Almost could work nowadays.

As for fighting, someone might get punched on the nose and get a nose bleed but no weapons and no real rivalry between groups although there were random punch ups at "pubs" "owned" by other groups (even of the same type).  Rare events though.

When I think about it, I was not much of a convinced rocker - I was only really there for the music.  And I still like more metal like Zeppelin, Hawkwind or even Nirvana - oldies but goldies - but these days I can be equally at home listening to Barbra Streisand as well as Lady Gaga.  I was even keen on Jennifer Lopez once!

I had a black playmate who lived not far from our house, my older sister was friends with the older girl.
Only went to her house one time because my mom stopped it.Must of been 8 years old at the time.
The playtime ended not for racial issues but because it seems this family was super duper country and the one time I went over to play dolls they  decided to shoot a cow, tie it upside down from a tree and gut it. Bad timing on their part, guess it was not a big thing for them to do but for us it was weird.
We went outside to play and I got a full view of a cow's insides.
Told my mom and she wouldn't allow me over again to their house, who knows what they would of butchered next.
My sister mentioned they had roasted cow;s brains in the oven when she was over their house!
I had allot of Mexican school friends but when they hit their teens they all changed and got into being low riders.
It was sort of sad to part ways with them, they wanted nothing to do with white chicks after age 13.
Ca. after all has a  heavy hispanic culture, just the way it is and it seems natural if you grow up there.
People used to get angry though with my mom when they spoke Spanish to her, she looked a bit Italian or Mexican due to being 1/4th native American. She however grew up in Conn. and couldn't speak a word of Spanish.
People often thought she had a "attitude" and was too good to speak to them, not true at all.
That's what I mean about some people not having any reason or logic, it's all about them and their point of view.

My husband was a Mod and somehow scored a set of Levi jeans that fit and a jacket in the early 1960's in Hungary. That was a very sot after look.
He was spoiled by his mom, only had to chip in a bit of money for food at home and the rest he could keep for himself, he would spend 3 or 4 months of wages on a custom Mod suit. Take his own material to a tailor and have to made up to fit him. Even when he was a cab driver around 68 in Budapest he took his work uniform suit to the tailor to make it into a Mod cut uniform.Wore the most pointed shoes he could find a size too small as was the fashion.
Now his feet are pointed like his old shoes.I tease him about that.
He said the Rocker look really didn't come to Hungary.
He even had custom made leather coats and jackets, found himself a shoe maker who would make jackets to order,
All the jackets had to be skin tight where you could hardly wear anything more then a shirt underneath.
Not too great in the winter time.
The look was a Swedish boarder guard winter coat over the suits or a overcoat.
To this day, it takes him longer to get an outfit together then it takes me to dress.

Hungary: Anti-government protest march expected on 16 November
14 Nov 18

On 16 November 2018 several thousand protesters plan to stage a protest march in the capital Budapest to denounce political pressure against the Central European University. The demonstration will begin at University Square and take place from 18:30 – 20:00 local time (17:30 – 19:00 GMT). It is unclear where the march will end. Similar protests in recent weeks have been authorized by authorities and passed peacefully, but prompted elevated security and road closures in the capital. Travelers are advised to avoid any protest crowds as a precaution and anticipate associated disruptions.   

Huge public gatherings like that are not for me.
I stay away from these political things, never know what can happen in a crowd.
For one thing as a mere resident in Hungary and without understanding the language, I have no clue what's really going on.
I don't think we expats should get into such matters since we can't vote or do anything about it one way or the other.
I do not protest in my own country, not going to start now in Hungary.
If I do not like things, I am still free to leave, no one would miss me much either.
I do think people in the US should start speaking up about the agenda 21 BS going on in places like Ca.
Burn, baby burn, it seems like it is DEW not some nut case tossing out matches from their car.
Heard about people in the areas burnt having witnessed ariel spraying weeks before the fires started.
Most people can't get their noses out from their cell phones long enough to look up and see what's going on.
In places such as Paradise, Ca. the majority of the population, about 70%  were people over the age of 65, clearing out the eaters it seems...
Wonder how many people actually died in the Camp fires that haven't been reported by the media.
Now that is something to protest about, getting people off the land and jamming them into compact cities.
Walmart has taken in homeless fire "refugees" I wouldn't call it charity more like a FEMA camp.

Have to pick and chose your fights, it's a matter of survival when they burn you out of your home, someone will be buying up that scorched earth for pennies on the dollar.
Of course I should never say I'll never hit the streets to protest, just need a worthy enough cause to put myself in danger at my age.
Like my husband said years ago, we may be getting to old to be st. fighters but we can still help out behind the scenes.
Dang ,the old radical in me has probably over shared again.
No need to have fear, just need the wisdom to pick the right battles.
Sorry protesting for a few selected college children isn't worth my time or life.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Huge public gatherings like that are not for me.
I stay away from these political things, never know what can happen in a crowd.
For one thing as a mere resident in Hungary and without understanding the language, I have no clue what's really going on.
I don't think we expats should get into such matters since we can't vote or do anything about it one way or the other.
I do not protest in my own country, not going to start now in Hungary.
.....
No need to have fear, just need the wisdom to pick the right battles.
Sorry protesting for a few selected college children isn't worth my time or life.

I think the point of the protests is wider than a simple issue over some students (btw, they are adults, not children).  The government is seeking gradually edging out liberal thinking organisations.    In other words, they would seek to control any organisation that does not back their vision which, by OV's own words is illiberal.   Note that CEU was set up by Soros who is currently OV's Public Enemy No 1.   Explains a lot.

Example of illiberal these days is the government has completely cut funding for things like Gender Studies. It doesn't think it's needed.  In other words, government wants to promote "women at home", not equality.

I obviously have my on agenda on it - my (girl) kids could end up in a highly  controlled (repressive thinking) environment. 

And of course, another reason for posting it was that people don't want to get stuck in the traffic around University Square.

No offence meant, just seems there are so many different life changing issues going on all over the world at once.
Why I wonder?
I think most school kids have already been controlled by the system in one way or the other just by having to be in a classroom all day long.
I't not natural for children to spend so much time sitting still and listening, they should be getting hands on experience in a garden, out observing nature and having open discussions without judgements on them.
I remember every time my son questioned a teacher he was shut down and not taken seriously at all, he became hateful of schools.
What I meant by getting rid of the ,"useless eaters" was those of us over a certain age know how it used to be at east in the US and believe me they are pulling something not right on the US population.
Most people are too busy working and trying to get by with no time to see how it's all for nothing, the game is rigged no matter how hard they try.
We older people still have a pretty good memory and can see things clearly.
They want us gone so all the wisdom of time is also gone.
Besides, it's fun to stir the pot sometimes and see other people's point of view, to most of us over age 50 anyone under 30 is still a child.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

No offence meant, just seems there are so many different life changing issues going on all over the world at once.
Why I wonder?
I think most school kids have already been controlled by the system in one way or the other just by having to be in a classroom all day long.
I't not natural for children to spend so much time sitting still and listening, they should be getting hands on experience in a garden, out observing nature and having open discussions without judgements on them.
I remember every time my son questioned a teacher he was shut down and not taken seriously at all, he became hateful of schools.
What I meant by getting rid of the ,"useless eaters" was those of us over a certain age know how it used to be at east in the US and believe me they are pulling something not right on the US population.
Most people are too busy working and trying to get by with no time to see how it's all for nothing, the game is rigged no matter how hard they try.
We older people still have a pretty good memory and can see things clearly.
They want us gone so all the wisdom of time is also gone.
Besides, it's fun to stir the pot sometimes and see other people's point of view, to most of us over age 50 anyone under 30 is still a child.

I dunno, while there's the nature vs nuture argument, anyone over 18 and a student is almost inevitably going to be bound up in the injustices of the world.  As you say, obviously over time, that just fades away as the reality of any particular situation becomes clearer and one gets greater cynicism. 

But sometimes there's a "wolf" there who could be a game changer and they should have opportunity to express themselves.  When I was a student, I had the world on my shoulders in my lefty leaning thinking.  It's just natural to think like that when you're 18.  It all changes when you get a job and get money and then houses....etc...we all know the rest....

Here in the HU schools, there are some real dimwitted socially illiterate people and I don't mean the kids. I mean some of the teachers.  Just like your son, one of my Fluffyettes told the (woman) teacher when asked that she wanted to be an astronaut or a secret agent.  The teacher laughed and said those aren't jobs for girls.  Really? WTF?    Basically that teacher just tried to shoot down my kid's ambition!  There are women doing both those jobs.  I have a number of daughters and I would never accept anyone telling them they couldn't do something because of their gender.

When she shared that news with us we soon put it straight.  Teacher should have  said, "those are exciting jobs so just go for it, best of luck and I hope you succeed".  Don't listen to such silly statements, you can be whatever you want. 

Re the fires, it's too far away from here to have any real meaning for us.  Obviously it's bad people died and the town was destroyed but all over the place people are dying every day in disasters.  Not a good way to die though if there was ever a good way to go.

I sort of think someone or something is trying to take out property owners in Ca.
Ca. has always been a liberal state with free thinkers.
Powers that be must take out the liberals , open minded people and those with means, some of those homes that were lost cost a few million dollars each.
They will declare some areas to be too dangerous and too much of a fire hazard to allow people to rebuild.

I know the US is far off but what happens there will soon happen worldwide, have to take out the big dog first.
Time will tell.

Teachers , I don't remember having very many good ones, here and there I had a few but most were just collecting a pay check.
My SIL is a kindergarten teacher in Thousand Oaks, Ca.
She likes children and seems ok but I couldn't really say if she is in the game for the money or the power trip.
She seems to love her 3 month long vacations more then being a work.
Both her parents ran their own schools as principles, that's her main goal to run her own school.
My husband grew up in Budapest in the old days.
Teachers back then were mostly all party members and knew who's kids parents were too or not.
If your parents weren't in the club then you were treated harsh by the teachers if you ever caught their attention.
No check A,B or C on a test or  just give some written answer to a question or test, it was all oral testing , had to stand up in front of the class and give an answer if called out, any mistakes and the teacher would make you feel a foot tall on purpose unless your parents were party members.
You had to know your lessons and then some because even if you got the right answer the teacher might expand the question just to make you look bad without your knowing all about the subject in great detail.
It sounded like a living hell for most children back then in school if you actually cared and wanted to learn.
In my husbands machining class at age `14 about 60 children were in the class, after 4 years when they finished the course only a handful were left standing.
One was a girl but , I know this will hit you the wrong way, my husband said she got extra school attention and the easy jobs, in the end when they all started working she never ran a machine, they put her in the office to do the paperwork part.
Not sure what to say about that, late 1960's attitudes.
I thought Hungary was more progressive though with educating women and giving them the same chances as men.
My husband's sister ran a pattern cutting factory, His half sister who happens to be Jewish from her mom's side is a uni teacher in Budapest, teaches chemistry.
His niece started up one of the brand new at the time cell phone shops out in Erd, now she and her husband run their own A/C Heating firm for large businesses and buildings.
His mother had her own small business before WW11 on Vaci Utca, a diary shop, was married and at the time had a baby but still ran her own business, even opened up a veggie shop for her husband.
Lots of strong ladies in the family with brains to boot.
My husband had a cousin as well a female who also ran some sort of factory, was the boss in the 60's .He said she still wore mini-skirts and high heels, was bossy and fem at the same time.
My niece is raising her daughter, my great-niece to be well rounded, music, dance volunteer work, scouts and friends from all races,
What I wonder though is if women have as many opportunities as men do will they fall under the same rules and conditions.
Say they bring back the draft and enlist men, wouldn't it fall that women would also have to serve in the same ranks as men do?
Are we ready to see women come home with missing limbs and  worst?
If things are equal they also have to take equal risks.
Not like that young girl in my husband 'smachine class who got everyone to help her with her work and then never got her hands dirty.
Lots of questions without allot of hard answers.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

I sort of think someone or something is trying to take out property owners in Ca.
Ca. has always been a liberal state with free thinkers.
Powers that be must take out the liberals , open minded people and those with means, some of those homes that were lost cost a few million dollars each.
They will declare some areas to be too dangerous and too much of a fire hazard to allow people to rebuild.
.....
What I wonder though is if women have as many opportunities as men do will they fall under the same rules and conditions.
Say they bring back the draft and enlist men, wouldn't it fall that women would also have to serve in the same ranks as men do?
Are we ready to see women come home with missing limbs and  worst?
If things are equal they also have to take equal risks.
Not like that young girl in my husband 'smachine class who got everyone to help her with her work and then never got her hands dirty.
Lots of questions without allot of hard answers.

Looks like that fire got about 600 people.  Now it's become epic proportions but still, it's not the highest death toll.  Anyway, what does one use as a comparator? Death toll? Value of property destroyed?  Whatever it is, it's a miserable and tragic result.

Women already serve on the front line in many military capacities - like in Israel - and I think now in the UK as they are running out of personnel to do the job.  For some jobs, like pilots, there's not issue, women can do that as there's no physical adjustments.

I remember from the Balkans War that women snipers were common in Sarajevo.   Mrs Fluffy says that women can be a lot tougher than men when it comes down to it.

True, my mom was only 5'4" tall and slim before her 6 kids were born.
God help anyone who got on her bad side if they deserved it.
Saw my mom once with a black eye, this was in her senior years too.
I came over to her house for a visit, she opened the front door and I freaked out was about to find my step-dad the drinker and get to the bottom of it.
She grabbed me to hold me back, she was laughing, said ,"just wait until you see him", he came into the room walking like a sheep, head down with 2 black eyes. The big 2 time ex military POW tough guy!
Seems he was getting a bit too fresh in his words, said something my mom didn't like so she punched him out. He returned fire, she gave him another and he slumped away to hide.
I do not condone such violence but was sort of surprised mom still had it i her to put a fool in his place at her age and being ill too.
I always wondered why we had 6 or more baseball bats in a box in our garage, one was also hidden under my mom's mattress with nails in it. No one really played much ball in our family...
I know women have always been in service to their country but it so far except for a few countries it has been volunteer service.
They haven't been drafted as of yet.
My BFF's mother who passed away at age 93 a couple years ago was in the US Navy during WW11. She got a military pension and was the mother of 5 children, always worked and helped raise her family.
My old neighbor who was in her mid 80's when we bought our home across the st., from her would often tell me tales of her youth etc.
Interesting stuff.
Her husband had had a stroke just before we moved in so he didn't speak any longer.
After he passed away she told me she had run a candy making factory and had made more then twice the amount of money he rhusband did at his job.
She paid all the bills and did the banking but she never in over 60 years of marriage told him or let on that she was the one who made their nice lifestyle possible, she knew it was more important to make her husband feel like he was in charge then to feed her own ego.
That was a strong women in my mind.

Not exactly sure what was up with my mom's generation in the US and baseball bats.
In high school my BFF myself and othersrr had major hassles with low riders who didn't even attend our campus.
They would just walk  in and cause trouble, the school staff knew of it, our parents even went in to file a report but they did nothing to stop our troubles.
So one day out of the blue my still BFF's mom came after school to drive us all home.
Somehow she was aware of about 40 to 50 low riders waiting like some freaks from a 50's film to give us a beat down.
For some insane  reason all our talking, trying to make peace with them and my previously getting jumped by 3 of them at school wasn't enough to wake them up.
The girls that disliked us so much had recruited their entire gang to fight us after school, in the dang "Dairy Queen" ice cream parking lot across from our school!
So lame, so Westside Story of them!
Her mom tried to get us into her car to safety 4 of my friends "chickened out" and ran out the back gate to their homes.
My friend refused the ride by her mother
because she couldn't take the BS any  longer.Right there decided that she would go alone , meet the gang and whatever happened, happened because the BS had to stop no matter what.
I was afraid just like we all were but I being a loyal friend said I would go with her, we would go down fighting together.
The school didn't care at all, her mom had already been in the office to let them know we were in trouble, they didn't care because it was off campus.
So my BFF's mother drove across from where we were to die, near a pay phone, she rang up my mom who was collecting her 2 toddlers in the car and her baseball bat, my BFF's mom already had her baseball bat in hand.
She would watch what happened with us while my mom drove over and she would also call the police before coming to our aid with her bat swinging.
My friend and I walied .shook and cried to our doom but straightened out stopped sniffling and walked right up to all those people , some sitting on top of their low rider cars, some smoking some just staring into space, we were afraid to our core, just the 2 of us against a huge tough crowd of both boys and girls..
My BFF did the talking while I tried to look tough, yes right, we could see on the expression of everyone that they were also shocked that we were not the big bad gang they were told we were, in fact most everyone looked embarrassed to be there, as they should of been.
We got a truce of sorts and walked away, as soon as they couldn't see us any longer we both slumped down and cried in fear, what had we just been through? Her mom picked us up and drove us home.
Wasn't the last of those low riders hassling us but we no longer had fear of the older members bothering us.
Yes, "chicks" can be tough too, in fact in my heart of hearts I never really got over the rest of my so called friends running away and taking cover, letting just the 2 of us handle their problems for them too.
This is one fact I know, the public schools in the US really do not care about their students safety at all. Their on campus solution was to give us the keys to the teachers rest room so we wouldn't be afraid of getting jumped in the girls room at school by kids that didn't even go to our school.
Since then the campus has become a prison, they have locked gates at the front and people need a pass to visit.
This was in Simi, at the time a place where only middle class people could afford to live.
There was no bus service, no way anyone could get to our town without taking a long winding mountain road to get there.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

......
Yes, "chicks" can be tough too, in fact in my heart of hearts I never really got over the rest of my so called friends running away and taking cover, letting just the 2 of us handle their problems for them too.
This is one fact I know, the public schools in the US really do not care about their students safety at all. Their on campus solution was to give us the keys to the teachers rest room so we wouldn't be afraid of getting jumped in the girls room at school by kids that didn't even go to our school.
Since then the campus has become a prison, they have locked gates at the front and people need a pass to visit.
This was in Simi, at the time a place where only middle class people could afford to live.
There was no bus service, no way anyone could get to our town without taking a long winding mountain road to get there.

Obviously your friends were afraid and interested in self-preservation.   In the same vein, I just finished watching a documentary on WW1 from the BBC and that conflict was a blood bath. One battle, like 57,000 people died or were wounded.  How anyone managed to climb over the top of the trench and rush the enemy machine guns is beyond belief.  But perhaps the fear of a showdown at the Dairy Queen and getting shot up in a war is similar although of different proportions.

We don't see that level of school violence in the UK or even here in HU.  I wonder what is the difference between here and there, human instinct will be the same in both places?  In my own kids school in HU, they have a door person (in UK English, we'd call them porters) and they also have extensive CCTV around the school.  Everyone who is a visitor has to get past the lobby area, door sign in but other than that, there's not a lot of security other than irregular patrols of police in cars.  Certainly no-one is armed.

I had a look at Simi valley.  Quite a big town and many movies shot there and around it.  Wikipedia says it's a dormitory for LA.  I can see it's pretty close to Thousand Oaks for the shooting and this very large fire going on now.  Quite a good map of it here:California Fire Map.

fluffy2560 wrote:

I wonder what is the difference between here and there, human instinct will be the same in both places?

Not instinct. Culture (and all the extra baggage and wild dynamics that comes with it).

I could butcher and eat a cow in the USA. Doing that in some places of the world, and I would be killed by a mob.

My  home town has grown allot.
Used to only be able to get there by taking a harrowing mountain ride over the pass road. An old stagecoach trail.
In the 70's they put in a freeway and made the town into a city.
We used to be able to ride horses from their boarding stables right down the main road in town.
One of my friends had 2 horses and another did as well.
I was always ready to help give their horses a bit of exercise by riding them.
Off this afternoon to watch a boxing match,hope it's not too bloody or stomach churning .

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

I wonder what is the difference between here and there, human instinct will be the same in both places?

Not instinct. Culture (and all the extra baggage and wild dynamics that comes with it).

I could butcher and eat a cow in the USA. Doing that in some places of the world, and I would be killed by a mob.

Yes, sure but in the immediate context, what I meant was the context of flight or fight within a school environment as per MT's posting about her low rider showdown at the Dairy Queen.   

Some her friends took flight while she and another went for the fight - I meant that was instinct and not cultural.  Don't think we have that stuff here in HU - like punch ups in the car park at the ABC.  Might be wrong here in my burb bubble! Maybe the real question is what's the cultural difference relating to violence at schools in the USA and HU?

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

My  home town has grown allot.
Used to only be able to get there by taking a harrowing mountain ride over the pass road. An old stagecoach trail.
In the 70's they put in a freeway and made the town into a city.
We used to be able to ride horses from their boarding stables right down the main road in town.
One of my friends had 2 horses and another did as well.
I was always ready to help give their horses a bit of exercise by riding them.
Off this afternoon to watch a boxing match,hope it's not too bloody or stomach churning .

I looked at the place on Google maps.  Urban sprawl for sure.  Ronald Reagan Highway.  Not  sure how I'd like to be remembered - by a clogged up highway.  Fluffy Expressway.  Bit of an oxymoron.

Shame Simi it didn't retain it's small town feel.  Sounds quite nice, with the horses wandering through the town.

Enjoy the boxing - maybe we'll hear a blow by blow account

fluffy2560 wrote:

Don't think we have that stuff here in HU - like punch ups in the car park at the ABC.

A lack of no punch ups at ABC is indeed a cultural issue. A culture of avoidance of confrontation in Hungary by many versus a culture of willing confrontation by many in the USA. Again, I refer to my prior example of Kalles Kaviar.

Americans in your face confronting with "this is not food", and "you don't want to serve that to people, dude":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMyfZydK-4s

And Hungarians avoiding confrontation by "white lies":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yspCiq3WnU

18 Nov 18
A demonstration is scheduled to take place in the capital Budapest on 24 November 2018. Up to 1,500 participants are expected to attend the protest in support of Central European University, calling for Prime Minister Viktor Orban to allow the university to continue operating in the country.

Demonstrators reportedly plan to gather near Fovam square and Szabadsag bridge near the city center in the early afternoon and march to Kossuth Lajos square, ending the protest at 17:00 local time (16:00 GMT).

Travelers are advised to anticipate associated traffic and transport disruptions, as well as avoid all protest sites as a safety precaution.

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

Don't think we have that stuff here in HU - like punch ups in the car park at the ABC.

A lack of no punch ups at ABC is indeed a cultural issue. A culture of avoidance of confrontation in Hungary by many versus a culture of willing confrontation by many in the USA. Again, I refer to my prior example of Kalles Kaviar.

Americans in your face confronting with "this is not food", and "you don't want to serve that to people, dude":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMyfZydK-4s

And Hungarians avoiding confrontation by "white lies":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yspCiq3WnU

Yes, ok, caviar one thing, schools beating each other up is another.....surely?

What makes USA confrontational and HU conflict avoiding?

BTW, is anyone finding that the e-mail notifications for new postings are not being received as much as they used to be?

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

Don't think we have that stuff here in HU - like punch ups in the car park at the ABC.

A lack of no punch ups at ABC is indeed a cultural issue. A culture of avoidance of confrontation in Hungary by many versus a culture of willing confrontation by many in the USA. Again, I refer to my prior example of Kalles Kaviar.

Americans in your face confronting with "this is not food", and "you don't want to serve that to people, dude":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMyfZydK-4s

And Hungarians avoiding confrontation by "white lies":

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yspCiq3WnU

Great example of cultural differences,
Made me laugh.
This isn't food Boo-Boo!
Yes, Americans are direct people who don't have time to play games with people, mostly,at least old time America was that way.
Now it's all about ,"feelings" and being PC.
Dang if kids still used the nicknames they used with each other like when I was in grade school, here in Hungary then for sure there would be a school yard fight.
I can still recall the horrible names some kids were given in school, even songs were written to humiliate them.
Poor old, "Larry Liver Lips","Baby Baby and his Bu** sticks Out", and of course we can't forget the classic, "Pizza Face".
My name from my enemies was,"Lips" but pronounced as ,"Leeaps" have to say it with a heavy Mexican accent for full effect.Used to have those puffy full lips that everyone is paying big money for now days.
I personally respect an enemy who let's you know where you stand, can't tolerate a back stabber who smiles in your face while talking behind your back.

fluffy2560 wrote:

BTW, is anyone finding that the e-mail notifications for new postings are not being received as much as they used to be?

Yes, not getting any notifications for this site in weeks now.

On the subject of cultural differences.

I have a few theories but can't prove any of them.
Apart for a past of neighbors, co-workers and just about anyone with a grudge to bare, people could get each other into serious trouble by calling them out or having a "social issue" with them.
No one wanted to get the authorities  involved in a dispute.
People live close to each other and don't move away as often, don't want a life long enemy living near you and having a run in all the time.
People want to look look in front of each other and don't want to be rude, American also don't enjoy being rude but self respect and calling it as it is is equally valuable.

I know if I don't say what's on my mind it eats away at me.Not to be superior but to help the other person see the so called light.
Right now at my son's home the next door neighbors have 4 or more cars, allot of people living in the house.
There is a equal amount of mixed races in the neighborhood, that's Las Vegas people from all over live here.
I've noticed a larger Asian pop. in the few years since we have been away.
These neighbors are a black family, lived next door for about 4 or 5 years now. The older lady was someone I would chat with once in awhile but she moved away to a old folks home and now there are younger people in the home.
I have no issue with them when they sit in the garage smoking pot almost every night but what is an issue for me is them parking their cars directly in front of our house when they are blocking the trash cans and we never find space to park in front of our home. We must always place the car in the garage even for a short stop.
I was going to bring the issue up with them but my son doesn't see a problem, doesn't want to make a problem so we have been silent on it.
I respect his wishes.
Once however one of them was parking at an angle where we also couldn't even get out of the garage, I got some bright paint and make a line from the edge of the driveway to the st.
Solved the problem without having to confront anyone or make them get defensive.
Took the "chicken " way out but then again I was lucky they got the message without having to make it a bigger thing then it was.
In HU I wonder what people would do, maybe park half way down the st. to not have to confront their neighbors about them hogging all the space?

fluffy2560 wrote:

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

I wonder what is the difference between here and there, human instinct will be the same in both places?

Not instinct. Culture (and all the extra baggage and wild dynamics that comes with it).

I could butcher and eat a cow in the USA. Doing that in some places of the world, and I would be killed by a mob.

Yes, sure but in the immediate context, what I meant was the context of flight or fight within a school environment as per MT's posting about her low rider showdown at the Dairy Queen.   

Some her friends took flight while she and another went for the fight - I meant that was instinct and not cultural.  Don't think we have that stuff here in HU - like punch ups in the car park at the ABC.  Might be wrong here in my burb bubble! Maybe the real question is what's the cultural difference relating to violence at schools in the USA and HU?

Believe me, I didn't find it instinct but a matter of self respect at that point.
The bullying had reached it's limits and either we had to stand up for ourselves or let ourselves be cowered and humiliated  at school and in life.
How can one hold their head up and let themselves be shamed?
Guess it the old times we would of called a duel.
When my friend was telling them we had enough and they should just go for it and be down with it already all she asked was for it to be a fair fight, one on one until it was over with.
It was so ridiculous to see 40-50 people, some fully grown adults and males wanting to take on 2 skinny little teenage girls even with their low I/Q. brains they could see it was just dumb.

fluffy2560 wrote:

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

My  home town has grown allot.
Used to only be able to get there by taking a harrowing mountain ride over the pass road. An old stagecoach trail.
In the 70's they put in a freeway and made the town into a city.
We used to be able to ride horses from their boarding stables right down the main road in town.
One of my friends had 2 horses and another did as well.
I was always ready to help give their horses a bit of exercise by riding them.
Off this afternoon to watch a boxing match,hope it's not too bloody or stomach churning .

I looked at the place on Google maps.  Urban sprawl for sure.  Ronald Reagan Highway.  Not  sure how I'd like to be remembered - by a clogged up highway.  Fluffy Expressway.  Bit of an oxymoron.

Shame Simi it didn't retain it's small town feel.  Sounds quite nice, with the horses wandering through the town.

Enjoy the boxing - maybe we'll hear a blow by blow account

Simi wass/is a strange place.
Let;s see the Manson family lived on the pass road, there was the Blackburn Cult,Many movie sets and films made out there including the classic , Little House on the Prairie,


Rodney King trail and we also have the bottle house museum, built by some old women who lived in a bottle.
It was also known as a "Swingers" town, adults would have insane house parties out there and the kids would have Stoner parties where off duty police would light up with us.

The boxing match yesterday was interesting.
It actually was a charity event for one of the kids that trained at the gym.
He had been a gang member but got out of it by learning to box and have a goal in life instead of gang banging.
He was a up and coming boxer even former middle weight Varga had met the boy.
He had just turned 18 and was shot a killed on the st. while walking, the gangs got him after all.
All proceeds were for his mother who was in the gym yesterday.
They had 3 round bouts with all different ages of children and a few adults.
I'll tell you, those female boxers are more serious then some of the guys are, dang they could hit and punch.
The last bout was almost a knock out with 2 young men .
It was a real training gym with a boxing ring, we had great seats first row right near the bell keeper( not sure what they are called).
My cousin was training there for exercise alone, he said his doctor told him no one was allowed to hit him. He was in his late 60's when he joined there a few years back.
He became good friends with the owner and his wife.
Mr Varga and the now current world featherweight champ who's name I've forgotten and Ali's daughter were there in support of the charity event.
My husband hates any attention at all, he got all embarrassed because my cousin asked Mr. Varga to take a photo with him.
My husband knew exactly who Varga was,he has followed him and knew all about his history and how pop he is with boxing fans.
He was sitting in the same row with us so it wasn't out of the way for him to pose for a shot.
I wanted my husband to do it alone but I joined him because that's expected, Mr Varga was super nice,
The 2 champs gave the deceased young man's mother a special custom made boxing belt and we raised around $3.000 at the time we left the event.
The event was held with no winners declared since it was for charity.
They also had a Spanish speaking man from ESPN sports speak a bit, no idea what he was saying.
They had us all stand while the Star Spangled Banner was sung, the young male singer was very good, not like Roseann Barr.
What was a bit "odd" was right after the US Anthem was sung they broke into the Mexican national anthem too!
Whatever....
I've never eaten a hot dog at a ball game or event in my life but yesterday was an exception.
Had one, now that was food. The smell of the gym, the noise, the action and a hot dog, was so American, too bad though they didn't serve beer that would of been the icing on the cake.

One good thing about that boxing match was everyone was wearing head gear.
Was glad of it because if it was bare knuckle fighting we would of been sprayed in blood.
They had small boys and a few girls having their bouts.
One girl was a bit heavier then the other and the smaller girl lost her step or footing and fell in the ring.

That was sad, the ref helped her up but she was one little tough cookie.
When that bout was over with she fought again straight away with a girl more her own size.
I was really surprised how serious and how good these little kids were.
Some start as young as 3 years old.
They had the moves and acted like little pros.
Suppose it is really character building after all.
Many people brought in young children to this event. Was around 200 people in all in attendance.

Honestly some of those little 8 -9 year olds could take me out in one punch.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

One good thing about that boxing match was everyone was wearing head gear.
Was glad of it because if it was bare knuckle fighting we would of been sprayed in blood.
They had small boys and a few girls having their bouts.
One girl was a bit heavier then the other and the smaller girl lost her step or footing and fell in the ring.

That was sad, the ref helped her up but she was one little tough cookie.
When that bout was over with she fought again straight away with a girl more her own size.
I was really surprised how serious and how good these little kids were.
Some start as young as 3 years old.
They had the moves and acted like little pros.
Suppose it is really character building after all.
Many people brought in young children to this event. Was around 200 people in all in attendance.

Honestly some of those little 8 -9 year olds could take me out in one punch.

3 years old?  8-9 years old? That's insane!  It takes until one is about mid-20s before a human brain is fully developed and whacking it about even with hats and gloves on is bound to cause damage. Not a good idea.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

......
Let;s see the Manson family lived on the pass road, there was the Blackburn Cult,Many movie sets and films made out there including the classic , Little House on the Prairie,


Rodney King trail and we also have the bottle house museum, built by some old women who lived in a bottle.
It was also known as a "Swingers" town, adults would have insane house parties out there and the kids would have Stoner parties where off duty police would light up with us.

The Wiki pages on Simi did not mention the bottle museum or at least I didn't notice it.  But I found it here: Grandma Prisbrey Bottle Village.  Looks nice - sucker for multi-coloured things. 

That kind of reminded me of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona or even Nek Chand's hidden Rock Garden in India.  All incredible pieces of work - brilliant.  Could be been designed by folks tripping!

Apparently the village in Little House on the Prairie (LHP)  was blown up by Michael Landon - don't know why.  I think original LHP house is still there but much around there has been destroyed now with the fires.  I read also the sets from the new version of Westworld have also been burnt down.  Hope they had insurance!

BTW, you'll be pleased to know it's snowing a bit here. It's wet and cold.  It's now officially Winter. .

fluffy2560 wrote:

Yes, ok, caviar one thing, schools beating each other up is another.....surely?

Actually, no.

You are seeing the trees, not the forest. Culture attitudes that cause a response to caviar also are the same fundamental factors that can affect all of society.

Ergo, one is not acting special to food... One is acting culturally in that one case and example, that just happens to be about food.

fluffy2560 wrote:

What makes USA confrontational and HU conflict avoiding?

Culture is the today result of a complex social history.

For example, Americans had a very individualistic "pioneer" world and mind set, where confrontation with nature and aboriginals were a daily fact of life. Thus individual confrontation is more part of society.

In Hungary there is a long history of a country at the cross roads of Christian/Turkish Hungarian/Hapsburg, etc. confrontation by powers that be outside of the individual's control. For individual survival (e.g. not die at Mohács), often meant hiding, and hoping the marauders won't see your village in the forest. Ergo, individual confrontation was not unheard of, but was not as common, and thus did not become part of greater social personal history and individual behavior. This issues between confrontation and avoidance was in part discussed in the Hungarian novel "Eclipse of the Crescent Moon".

I did have a few University courses in cultural Anthropology and Psychology, but I am of course no expert. So take the above as simplistic. Plenty of studies, some easily accessible online, to augment this topic if you want to research it further.

klsallee wrote:

.....

For example, Americans had a very individualistic "pioneer" world and mind set, where confrontation with nature and aboriginals were a daily fact of life. Thus individual confrontation is more part of society.

In Hungary there is a long history of a country at the cross roads of Christian/Turkish Hungarian/Hapsburg, etc. confrontation by powers that be outside of the individual's control. For individual survival (e.g. not die at Mohács), often meant hiding, and hoping the marauders won't see your village in the forest. Ergo, individual confrontation was not unheard of, but was not as common, and thus did not become part of greater social personal history and individual behavior. This issues between confrontation and avoidance was in part discussed in the Hungarian novel "Eclipse of the Crescent Moon".

I did have a few University courses in cultural Anthropology and Psychology, but I am of course no expert. So take the above as simplistic. Plenty of studies, some easily accessible online, to augment this topic if you want to research it further.

Thanks for sharing - it's lunch  time so I'll share back...

At the risk of looking a smarty pants, I'm tempted here to throw in Hofstede's model of Masculine and Feminine Societies. 

I think there's a parallel here with that but some surprising results I found here: Hofstede country comparisons

Interesting the comments further down....fish paste or otherwise...

INDULGENCE
One challenge that confronts humanity, now and in the past, is the degree to which small children are socialized. Without socialization we do not become “human”. This dimension is defined as the extent to which people try to control their desires and impulses, based on the way they were raised. Relatively weak control is called “Indulgence” and relatively strong control is called “Restraint”. Cultures can, therefore, be described as Indulgent or Restrained.

Hungary has a low score of 31 on this dimension. Societies with a low score in this dimension have a tendency to cynicism and pessimism. Also, in contrast to Indulgent societies, Restrained societies do not put much emphasis on leisure time and control the gratification of their desires. People with this orientation have the perception that their actions are Restrained by social norms and feel that indulging themselves is somewhat wrong.

I'm going to look for Stars of Eger in English - should be free copies floating around suitable to read on a tablet.  Thanks for that!

You two are allot more well read then I am.
I get the "jest" of it though.
Americans have always been big on the "pioneer" spirit, that is a fact.
That's one big thing my HU husband finds interesting about Americans,
We all got lumped into one batch but really everyone here is so different in their attitudes with the only thing in common is personal freedom to express ones self without doing harm or stepping on another's toes.
I can see this trait more clearly now that I am home visiting.
People in the states are laid back and easy to talk with.
At that boxing match the other day over 80% of the crowd was Mexican/American, no biggie to me, felt right at home with everyone.
No need to change who you are or your way of doing things just because your not in your, "group" meaning in a different "culture"
In the Latino culture I suppose sports like boxing are still seen as a way to step-up in life so it is promoted even towards children.
Not sure,I've had my poor head punched, been knocked out cold from getting thrown off a horse and got clobbered with a 4 inch thick history book on the back of my head when I got jumped in school.
Maybe it will effect me later in life or perhaps it already did it's damage in my brain, don't worry about it much at ll.
When we visited the mountain village where my father was born in Poland my husband said they were people who in the past may of hidden away from dangers and wars.
I took slight offence that he was saying they were cowards which wasn't true, they just were smart to get out while the getting was good.
I can see how Americans with their bold way of doing things and saying what's exactly on their minds can put some people off.
My husband already is freaked out by me finding my "long lost" family, have way too many type A personalities in the family and that doesn't exactly mesh with your typical Hungarian attitude of not always saying what's on your mind.
I't very strange for me to finally meet my older male cousins and a few female 2 second cousins, they all have very strong A type personalities and the common thread is all being half Ruysn.
Guess the DNA strain is different then the Hungarian line?
Would be interesting to know more details on traits in personalities, if it is in the culture or the DNA.
I tend to say it is in the DNA and only because my 2 surviving uncles were both raised in an orphanage after my granny passed away.They both have A type personalities and odd hobbies.
They were the youngest and there was no one to raise them so off they went.
They still have eccentric hobbies and funny enough almost all my relations are drawn to fixing up classic cars , dogs or acting of some sort.They all like to be in control and are all very open minded people.
My cousin told me that one summer my Ruysn grandfather had him fly for the summer from Ca. to Conn. and another summer he had another grandson visit him.
He got to know him pretty good, said he was eccentric as heck, forced my 14 year old cuz to play gin rummy with him every single day to make 10,000 points or some such number, Played everyday for more then 4 hours at a sitting. That's eccentric to me.
As my cousin said it best, we are a bunch of Hams!
Or more likely a bunch of loons.

One more thought, I do not know the scientific name for such a study, if there even is such a study on body types etc.
My older sister who used to teach Karate and had several black belts in the art told me something interesting years back.
She mentioned how knowing your opponent was valuable knowledge, knowing their race made a fighting strategy to order. She said some races have weak guts and other races weak skulls.
Some can take tons of head punches while others may tumble over with one gut kick.
Sounds legit but I have no idea if it's true or not, I'd think anyone would go down if hit hard enough no matter where on their body.
Not going to state which race has a weak head or gut though keep that one to myself, never know when it may come in handy to know.
Looks like rain in the forecast for Vegas on Thanksgiving Thursday...

Got no rain but allot of wind on Thanksgiving and I do mean the weather .

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Got no rain but allot of wind on Thanksgiving and I do mean the weather .

I wonder why there wasn't any news from the USA over the past few days - people all comatose from over indulgence.

I don't really how people can take two turkey blowouts within the space of about 5 or 6 weeks.

We are all light to med. eaters so it looks like allot of turkey pies in our future. One small bird is way too much for just 4 of us.
I only roasted a whole turkey because it's been years since we've all eaten together and years since we had a whole turkey.
I also did up a ham...
Have a super busy family week lined up later this week.
Afraid it may just do me in for good.
This Thursday evening my DIL are being taken by my cuz and his wife to a film premier at a night club I believe.
Their younger daughter is in film school and has made a movie.
She isn't gay after all but has a best friend from school who is a gay man.
He got beat up and abused by some idiots so she has become a super gay activist and is a huge supporter of that community.
Not sure how my cousin and his wife who are in the 70's got involved but they support their girl and her friends.
This movie of hers is about a black gay man so the venue once again is a gay club. Decided to make it easy on everyone and just bring my DIL as my guest.
My husband would feel uncomfortable.
He mentioned it is a "red carpet" affair whatever that means, guess I need to wear a dress and take a bath...He said something about photos, no way would my husband enjoy that much attention.
After that on Friday my biker baby bro and his wife are blowing into Vegas for a rock concert, he will be in town the whole weekend. ( God help me!)
Nice of him to be driving his extra car to Vegas for us to use for a few months, a souped up older Chevy with a new engine.
I can just see my husband tooling around Vegas in a souped up car! I will be taking a photo for sure of him behind the wheel.
On Sunday my female cousin is flying in for a few days and we will hook up with my Vegas cuz and see what happens.
My other cuz in New Mexico is insisting we take his offer of him sending us tickets to go visit him in NM.
Not really interested in that, hate anyone shelling out money on us for no reason. I have invited him to Vegas instead. His wife is from Asia and has never been to Vegas before, much more things to do here then in NM.
I am going to need a vacation after this vacation.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

We are all light to med. eaters so it looks like allot of turkey pies in our future. One small bird is way too much for just 4 of us.
I only roasted a whole turkey because it's been years since we've all eaten together and years since we had a whole turkey.
I also did up a ham...

You could always buy turkey breasts and slice 'em up.    I'm quite bored with turkey anyway for Xmas. I'd rather have a good curry or some porkolt.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Their younger daughter is in film school and has made a movie.
She isn't gay after all but has a best friend from school who is a gay man.
He got beat up and abused by some idiots so she has become a super gay activist and is a huge supporter of that community.
Not sure how my cousin and his wife who are in the 70's got involved but they support their girl and her friends.
This movie of hers is about a black gay man so the venue once again is a gay club. Decided to make it easy on everyone and just bring my DIL as my guest.

Did you think she was gay then? Or did she announce it and change her mind.  One of my relatives (a woman) was shacked up with some woman for a long time.  Then she left the country, went down under and had two babies with a guy she met.  So I guess she wasn't really gay after all or perhaps she was just flexible - fall in love with a person not a gender.  At least people are more accepting these days. 

While I'm here, I can have a rant.  When I passed immigration in a certain country last week, the border guy wore his gay rainbow pride badge with pride.  But he was still a miserable stone faced fella.  I thought for a gay person he'd be more gregarious and lively.   Maybe that's a stereotype.

In fact they were all miserable people at that border.  They must have specialist being miserable training or it's a job they hate or they really hate people or they do it to intimidate.  Last time I was there they were pretty friendly and told me to enjoy my time but that was a long time ago (more than 20 years ago).

I always want to say to them, come on smiling costs nothing. I'm a visitor to your country, let's try and make me feel welcome so I can enjoy the short time I'm spending money and contributing to your economy.  I am sure I was a marked person - the buggers well and truly gave me the once over when I left.  I was only there 24h.  Everyone else was very friendly.  I met a local on the plane and she said they are miserable with everyone.  Jeez!     

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

My husband would feel uncomfortable.
He mentioned it is a "red carpet" affair whatever that means, guess I need to wear a dress and take a bath...He said something about photos, no way would my husband enjoy that much attention.

I hate that kind of thing myself.  I was at the airport on Friday departing to foreign lands far away and as usual there was a mixed murmuration (nice word I rediscovered recently) of passengers around the gate.  Amongst the travellers were those possibly from Romania or maybe just Roma dressed to the nines "for travel" complete with jewellery. I particularly noticed a guy who looked like a farmer complete with baggy jeans hanging down around his rear end,  checked shirt and a John Deere baseball cap.  I wondered who would be the most comfy at the end of a long journey sitting upright in a closed sweaty place.  I bet the farmer.  Couldn't say if he washed behind his ears.    I guess the point is it's far better to wear what you feel comfortable in and hang the consequences.  In fact Mrs Fluffy and I were invited to the AmCham Xmas dinner once at the Intercontinental in Budapest and we had to get dressed up with all the glitz.   We hated it and couldn't wait to leave - so uncomfortable.   

I'm reminded Emma Thompson (British actress) recently wore flats to the Oscars or BAFTAs or whatever and there was much comment about how she was dressed.  She said, heels hurt my feet.  Fair enough!

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

...I am going to need a vacation after this vacation.

I know the feeling. I'm doing some work in a "holiday country" for a bit and walking around the "back streets" I noticed what a total dump it is - fast food outlets, boarded up shops, unoccupied buildings with broken windows and some people looking destitute.  Tourists don't see all that as they hang around in their hotel complexes and only venture out when they want to see the bits tour companies want them to see. Definitely need a vacation - a different one to the one others pay to have.

fluffy2560 wrote:

In fact they were all miserable people at that border.  They must have specialist being miserable training or it's a job they hate or they really hate people or they do it to intimidate.  Last time I was there they were pretty friendly and told me to enjoy my time but that was a long time ago (more than 20 years ago).

20 years ago, people were not crammed into a tube at the most cut rate prices, in lousy seats, with bad food, to simply transport them form point A to point B for the cheapest possible fare.

Travel use to be... well fun. The old saying, "It's all about the Journey, Not the Destination" meant something.

But not today.

Today it is about getting the cheapest fare, even if one is miserable,  to get somewhere and then expecting the destination will be "worth it". Usually, it isn't. Because by missing the point of the journey, people miss.... well the point of the travel.

So, today, having to deal with tens of thousands of grumpy, mistreated travelers, even someone with a smiley pin and rainbow ribbon is probably "fed up" with humanity.

Sad. Isn't it? What cheapness has done to the world.

Personally, I am always pleasant to immigration officials. And thank them, and say "Have a nice day" when they are done processing me. Maybe I can be the 1 in 1,000 to remind them that the entire world is not screwed up.

I'm the same way, always say thank you to immigration officers at the airport even if I'm about to pass out from a long haul flight.
Guess growing up in Cali where it is expected for a young lady to always smile has really gotten deep in my conscience.

When my mom flew across the US in 1962 it was glamorous.
She bought a new traveling suit, got a perm and new hairdo, wore stockings and high heels with her makeup on in perfect form.
We all thought our mom had turned into a movie star.
I have clothing for travel, comfy but still semi- alright.
Black mostly, can't go wrong with black unless the cheap airline blanket decides to be linty.
This last flight for the first time ever I wore tennis shoes, I usually wear nice black leather shoes but this time I decided I didn't care and of course this one time only they didn't force us to take off our shoes, seems I can't win!

I noticed the same thing our first time in Budapest in 1978.
After a long long train ride from Frankfurt to Budapest, switching trains in Vienna and arriving at Keliti station, noticed so many "farmer" types wearing what was probably the "family suit". Men with a ill fitting suit on that looked worn out with overly polished old shoes on.
All "dolled" up like a "city slicker". It was really sad.
When I travel we always under dress and don't wear much flash.
I only wear one good ring because I at least know where it is, don't wish to experience having some sticky fingered airport worker digging into my bag and finding it missing later on.

I.m actually today very disappointed with Hungary.
ATM I am mad at the whole place.
I'm not exactly missing it one bit.
I applied half hearted to the HU Social Security Services like we were told to do for a senior citizen retired person travel discount pass.
Not a free pass , a discount one.
Went through all their hopps, even was asked to come in a second time and drop off more papers, was told they would be sent out for translation etc.
Well, my husband found out but wouldn't tell me because he knows how pissed off I'd be ( rightly so) that they finally after months of waiting informed me that to get that discount I'd need to be a citizen of HU.
Well WTF?? Don't they know that at their front desk?
Bunch of sadistic idiots, Why make people run around for nothing, doesn't anyone know the rules in the offices where they work?It's like they pull people off the st. and give them a day job at the front desk of these official offices.
In more ways then I care to say HU hasn't really changed much in the past 30 years. Same old same old.
It's all good however, now I know where we stand as foreigners in Hungary, second class people with little to no rights or respect.
I'll put that knowledge in my back pocket for later use.
Like I'd become a citizen just for a discount bus pass, what a joke.
In the US though since our spare car has been on the blink we went downtown to the main office of the RTC, the bus co. in Vegas.
No questions asked, no hassle just show your ID from anywhere showing you are over aged 60 and they issue on the spot a 50% off travel pass to anyone from anywhere on earth.
That's the difference between the US and HU, the US treats everyone the same, like a human.
I don't expect special service but I really get mad at the games that are played in Hungary with people, everyone seems on a power trip to mess everyone up if possible, an evil attitude in almost every key post.
My husband and I don't care on one hand because we can afford a bus pass, don't even like riding the public transportation , ha5dly ever do. I walk everywhere I possible can. I have the time and love the exercise.
Am grateful to be able to walk on my own two feet.
( no thanks to the ortho knee surgeon in HU)...
My husband was thinking of writing in a US/HU blog about our experiences in Hungary as seniors, one being a HU citizen who brought his non HU wife with him.
He decided it would have to be a actual book and his blood pressure would go through the roof if he recalled all the BS that we have gone through in Hungary.
Most people moving to Hungary are not yet senior citizens bringing into Hungary funds from outside of the country. Perhaps by the time they are older things will change to take into consideration foreigners in the country but for now, no way,they don't care about people from 3rd countries at all.
Willing to take our money but not willing to treat us ( me) like anyone else. I take rejection very personal I suppose.
I wanted to make HU my home but seems they don't really want me.
Time to seriously think over living there long term after all, can't even imagine being at their mercy if one of us was disabled and needed real aid.
Not the great place to retire in after all unless you are a HU citizen and even then, well wait for the book we have tales.
I know of older foreigners living in Hungary who think they can just leave in an emergency situation when they get older or ill. No, sometimes you are too bad off to travel or get to your home country, Then they will find out what's real and what's a bubble.
If the cold weather doesn't do you in then the doctors will.
HU is a cold hearted place,not exactly the Godly place it claims to be.
Until they treat everyone equal there will always be discord in Hungary,or anywhere.
Why care about Hungary when Hungary doesn't care about you?
Rant over... Oh wait, is that another kock on the door... who can it be? Not again!