i guess they don't get a lot of foreigners around foggy bottom
As I was locking my bike to a lamppost this morning around 20th and Penn, another biker came whizzing by and said "keep riding, goombah." Given his appearance and the location, I'd say he was probably a GW student. He didn't seem to say this with any malice. But what the hell does it mean? Was it an entreaty from a fellow cyclist to throw off the shackles of wage slavery and enjoy the beautiful day? A bizarre, xenophobic assault on my not-actually-Italian heritage? An NES non sequitur?
Exhibit A: my bike's frame was made by an Italian company, so it does have some little Italian flag decals on it.
Exhibit B: I am wearing a ridiculously striped shirt today, a style that I think Catherine has told me got started in Italy. I'm pretty sure this shirt is from the Gap, though. So it's actually more of a Malaysian shirt, if you ask me.
But I guess my appearance this morning probably was unusually eurotrashy. So was it actual xenophobia? From someone in their early twenties? Directed against Italians?! It seems unlikely.
Which leads me to a dire and inescapable conclusion: I just don't understand the kids these days. Already.
Comments
i think you had it right when you said he was entreating you to throw off the shackles of whatever, there is a certain intrinsic bond between bikers and he was just saying somethign akin to 'Don't Stop Believin' (seriously, don't.) He might have gotten the 'goombah' by your trashy italian look but he probably meant it affectionately, like when I call bayes an asshole (although he actually *is* a fucking asshole).
A real Italian never would have buttoned that shirt up as far as you have. This guy clearly wasn't reading deeply enough into your appearance.
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