Moving As A Child Part 2 Conversation.pdf

Moving As A Child Part 2 Conversation

Michigan: a state in

America

Kristin: That makes me think, um, when we moved, I was, we were living in

Michigan . At the time we always considered it “the North”. But actually it’s the north

of the Midwestern states . But then moving to a southern state, I definitely had a

northern accent . And some of the words I used were different, too, like “ pop ” for,

for…

Midwestern states:

states in the middle of

America

accent: the way it sounds

when someone speaks

Joe: Soda .

pop: a drink

soda: a drink; same as

pop

Kristin: …soda. So I was, I was ridiculed by kids for my accent, for sure.

ridiculed: made a mean

joke about someone

Joe: Yeah, you know another difficult thing for me was that the area that we moved

to was affluent . And, I mean, we certainly were not rich. So, y’know, uh, and you

could see it from the clothes we wore to the cars that my parents drove. I mean…

affluent: rich

old clunkers: old cars

that have a lot of

problems and look bad

Kristin: [laugh]

neighborhood: the area

where you live

Joe: …y’know, we had these old clunkers and everyone else in the neighborhood

has these brand new cars, y’know. So it was pretty obvious , like, we would turn a

lot of heads driving past people.

brand new: completely

new

pretty obvious: really

easy to understand

Kristin: Oh my god, that sounds so much like, like my situation. We moved from a

very blue collar area - my, my parents being teachers, were very blue collar as well -

to a very affluent area, a lot of doctors and lawyers. And I can remember moving.

We [laugh]… My mom drove this yellow and black Gremlin [laugh]…

turn a lot of heads: get a

lot of attention; make

people look

blue collar: the people

have jobs that do not

make a lot of money

Joe: [laugh] Yeah, they don’t make those anymore…

Gremlin: the name of an

of American car that is no

longer made

Kristin: [laugh] No. I….

Joe: …and there’s a reason for it.

designer clothes:

expensive clothes

Kristin: [laugh] I would get dropped off at school from… come in the Gremlin. I

would be so embarrassed. And then, y’know, we didn’t have the designer clothes

that all the kids we went to school with wore. So, we w-, it just was very stressful

trying to keep up with the Joneses and buying these designer clothes. It was, uh,

very stressful for me and my brothers. But also we put a lot of pressure on our

parents to buy these. And they just couldn’t afford it .

keep up with the

Joneses: to try to own all

the same things as people

you know in order to

seem as good as them

stressful: makes you

worry

couldn’t afford it: did not

have enough money

Joe: Yeah, that sounds familiar.

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Moving As A Child Part 2 Conversation

knickers: a type of girls

pants that do not go

below the knees

Kristin: I c-, I gotta tell you one story I can remember. My mom actually, she can’t

sew. And she had sewn me this pair of knickers … Knickers at one point were back

in style . Do you know what those are?

back in style: to be

fashionable again

Joe: Yes, yeah.

horrible: very bad

Kristin: And they were horrible looking. And I wore ‘em to school and all the kids

were makin’ fun of me on the playground .

playground: a place

where children play

Joe: Oh, my gosh.

standing in the corner:

standing away from the

other children

Kristin: I was just standing in the corner by myself about to cry. And then I went

home and I was like “Mom, I want real knickers. I want you to buy ‘em in the store for

me.”

cruel: mean

Joe: Yeah, kids can be cruel .

Kristin: [laugh]

I’ll tell you what: this is

what I think

Joe: I know kids can be cruel because, I’ll tell you what , I had to, uh… I had a

really bad experience right before I started school the summer that I moved to

Pennsylvania . I’m playin’ football with the kids in the neighborhood…

Pennsylvania: a state in

America

Kristin: Uh-huh.

tackled: thrown to the

ground

Joe: …and, of course, what happens is, I get tackled and someone falls on my leg

and it breaks my ankle.

Kristin: [laugh] Oh no.

cryin’ wolf: to try to get

attention by saying

something that is not true

Joe: I couldn’t believe it. So I’m sittin’ there, tryin’ to, y’know, act as, uh, if, like, it

doesn’t hurt that much. But, I mean, it hurt a lot. And then, y’know, the kids thought I

was cryin’ wolf . They didn’t really think I was hurt at all.

Kristin: [laugh]

screamin’ at the top of

my lungs: yelling very

loud

Joe: So I have to walk away and, uh, walk home on a broken ankle. And, I mean, I

just felt like screamin’ at the top of my lungs . I was in so much pain. But I

couldn’t. I couldn’t do it because I didn’t want the kids to think I was, like, some

wimp .

wimp: someone who is

weak

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Moving As A Child Part 2 Conversation

Kristin: [laugh] Oh, oh…

cast: something that is

put on you’re arm or leg

when it is broken

Joe: So, it gets worse [laugh]. I have to go to school with a cast on my leg to start

the school year.

Kristin: [laugh]

look out of place: to look

like you do not belong or

fit in

Joe: So I’m the new kid with the thick accent, the clothes that look out of place ,

y’know. Nobody knows me and I have a cast on my foot. And my, y’know, I can’t

take a shower, y’know. I can’t shower the leg so my toes are a little dirty…

Kristin: [laugh]

Joe: …I mean I wanted nothin’ more than to move back to New York that very

moment, the first day of school.

stuck out like a sore

thumb: look out of place:

to look like you do not

belong or fit in; same as

look out of place

Kristin: God, I bet you stuck out like a sore thumb .

Joe: Oh ma-, you can’t imagine. It was the worst. I, I mean I think for the first two

years I lived in Pennsylvania I just wanted to hop on a bus and get back to New

York as fast as I could.

hop on a bus: get on a

bus

Kristin: Yep, that was me… wanting to move back to Michigan, too.

getting familiar with:

getting to know

Joe: Wh- [laugh]…

combined: to put

together

Kristin: [laugh]

elementary schools:

primary school; school for

children between ages 5

and 10

Joe: But, uh, y’know, I, at least you moved at an earlier age. It’s a lot easier

because, y’know, when you’re younger it’s just, uh… Y’know, all the kids are getting

familiar with each other. But when you move, and you’re a little older, the kids

already know each other. Y’know, they’ve already combined the elementary

schools into the middle school , uh, for when I had moved there.

middle school: school

after primary school; for

children between ages 11

and 13

ironically: something you

would not think is true but

it is

Kristin: Yeah, but you know, ironically enough, um, my older brother, I think, had

an easier time adapting . And he was starting seventh grade. I was starting third

grade. My younger brother was starting second grade. And my younger brother and

I had a really rough time.

adapting: getting used to

rough: difficult

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Moving As A Child Part 2 Conversation

looking back: to think of

a time in the past

Joe: Yeah, well, y’know, as much as I hated it when I first, uh, had moved to

Pennsylvania, now in looking back , I think it was really a blessing in disguise . I

mean there were so many other opportunities that came available to us from living in

Pennsylvania and going to a school district that, y’know, was, uh, had a lot more

money. And the education that we got was better. And it just provided me, uh, with a

much better starting point for, uh, college.

a blessing in disguise:

something that is good

that you do not think is

good at first

Kristin: Right.

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