I hate pretentious people. I feel that if you have to pretend to be something you are not - you should just fucking kill yourself and rid the earth of your presence! When it comes to people, I don't have a high tolerance for fuckery, as a result, I have a very small circle of friends and am extremely guarded about letting "newbies" into that circle. I am so angry right now - Why? Because last week Saturday I went to celebrate a birthday with one of my best friend's wife - and I was surrounded by a group of "Pretentious Bastards!"
Every nationality has an over-arching culture and several sub-cultures within it. In this instance I am referring to one of Jamaica's ugly sub-cultures, which includes who I would refer to as "pretentious uptowners." You see in Jamaica - although many won't admit it - we have our own issues with race (White being at the top of the totem pole and Blacks at the bottom) but even more prevalent - we have a separation based on class. Because Jamaica is such a small Island, to determine where someone falls as it relates to class, there are certain questions prying people generally ask to determine where you fall. Which high school did you attend? This gives them an idea of how "well educated" they think you are - and what type of people you were surrounded by as an adolescent. What is your last name? This has them checking their personal brain banks to see if you are from a successful or recognized family. And my personal favorite - What do your parents do? Much more direct way of determining if you grew up with or currently have access to money. It also let's the pretentious uptowner know if it's socially acceptable to be seen next to you in public.
O.K. now that you know some of the nuances about this ugly sub-culture, imagine being overwhelmingly immersed into a plague of these pretentious, shallow, self-centered, egotistic - ass wipes. I would rather brush my teeth with goat feces for an hour than be in their presence. I've been to almost every State in the U.S., all over the Caribbean, all over Europe and I can't remember the last time I felt so uncomfortable - with "my own people." They were so unfriendly and unwelcoming - You could feel them trying to size you up from a distance - what is he wearing? who is he with? what is he doing? While trying to determine how much money you have, where you fall on the social ladder and if they should motion to talk to you based on those factors. Just sickening! How do "they" deem hanging out with each other as fun? Even more mind boggling is the fact that they consider each other friends (or do they?). I have learned that people who are so into themselves won't be just a phone call away if you need help. If you surround yourself with these types of people, you are as good as being all alone.
I do have to mention that once the smoke clears - you can actually find some "Real People" among the waste, but they are far and few between. The ones I deem as friends - people within my circle. If for whatever reason you find yourself among this sub-set of people within the Jamaican culture - my advice is to stay far away. There is no take-away gain, upliftment to your soul, or growth and development to your mind when you are around these people. If you don't fit in with them - THAT IS A GOOD THING! All that being said - I have a confession to make. I too was once a part of this group, which is why I know them so well. With maturity and exposure however, I have learned that the drawbacks for sharing their philosophy on life and people on a whole - definitely hurts more than helps you in life. It may sound cliche, but after stepping outside of the sub-culture, I realized how much more there was to a person than what he drives, wears and where he lives. They also taught me the opposite of how I should act towards people on a whole. Knowing what I know now - I hate pretentious people. Unfortunately there are so many of them out there that belong to every race and culture. I ask of you all one special favor. Stay the fuck away from me!
Its been long overdue - these fakers needed to be called out. No one can party hearty in S. Florida without the fakers trying to ruin the mood.
ReplyDeleteWELL SAID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeletelol .. I Love The Descriptives. fi real , fuck em !
ReplyDeleteLove this!!!!!
ReplyDeleteyour article is excellent. this is why i stay in my room and play freecell instead of mingling with my "middle upper class pretentious family and friends". more and more i dispise that sub culture you talk about, so artificial. but Kris, tell me something i don't know? ...i love how u write. just last nite i posted a blog about sean paul and his recent tweeting drama, dissing jamaicans and quite frankly i'm all for speaking up. talk di tings dem mi fren. being quiet got me nowhere! love it, good stuff...more!
ReplyDeleteSlapped the nail on the head bruh.
ReplyDeleteWhat? That's it? That's all to today's blog????? No boss! We want MORE!!!!! After reading the end of the 1st paragraph you had me covering my eyes and shouting, "Oh no he didn't!!!!!" I guess out of respect for the hosts you kept the juicy, slap-in-the-face, descriptive details of the night out. Good on you! You can just send me the unedited version to my e-mail. Hahahaha!!!
ReplyDeleteSo true what you've said though. I've known it all my life growing up in JA, living in Canada, and even here in Japan, and I refuse to be apart of it. I admit, I have quite a few friends that roll like that, but I guess the difference is that they know I am definitely not that type of person, so one on one they display a different character (hopefully what I believe is their true personality).
I believe that the only thing one should have to prove is that they have a good heart and consistently care about my well being as a true friend. If you can do that then we are good to go and the friendship shall grow!
Wow what a post and what a response from the reading public. You pulled them in with the first few sentences, and you never let them go. It's true and evident of the racism and classism in the Jamaican community, in Jamaica, in the states and further abroad. It's unfortunate but I agree with a lot of your other readers. True friends aren't measured in ones wealth or social standing but are in one's heart as indicated by MM4EVA. As others stated fakers need to be called out, and not even given the time of day.
ReplyDeleteI think if more people called others on this shit, it would not be as prevelant. There are power in numbers, Also I think that people need to stop and really look at what is really going on. There are less people with real money and real unblemished social standing now a days. As the past several years have taught us people and money is not what is seems to be. People would have you believe that they are financial stable and affluent but all that glitters isn't gold. The "Rich" are struggling and probably doing worse that the "middle class" but they wouldn't have you believe that. They have to keep up appearances because that's how they were brought up or they have to maintain or sustain the lifestyle that that society says they must. which puts them further into debt.
Which ever they case may be, I think you can take some comfort in the fact that you may be doing a hell of a lot better that your "more privileged". So when at that next social event and some fake person is checking you out to see where you rank socially, take some comfort in the fact that they are actually checking you out because you seem happy and well adjusted. We all have our struggles and what's important in the end is how you touch others and how others impact your life in a positive way. Other than that nothing else really matters! when you pass on, "NO ONE" will talk about how much money you had or how you ranked socially but what type of person and heart you had!
SIDE NOTE: Keep the great post's coming and I encourage even more people to join in on the discussion. Loving it and making it a must Sunday afternoon read.
So where you buy the goat feces toothpaste?
ReplyDeleteI'm not Jamaican but I definitely understand where you are coming from. I also grew up in a country where classism runs rampant...all those pointed questions asked by curious parents and acquaintances, while they seem innocent enough, have that ulterior motive I despise. People like to differentiate themselves from the "masses" and unfortunately, that's one of the ways they do so. It irritates me but I've learned to brush it off and just disassociate myself from those people. Besides, if our ideologies are so different anyway, we probably have nothing to talk about beyond the surface. How can we be friends at all?
ReplyDeleteLol...preach!
ReplyDelete