A tour of the "no speakie English" ghetto (Miami: upper-class, mortgages)

[crisp444]

Originally Posted by vpcats

Who wants some mangos from MY very own tree in my very own yard?
Cat not included.

The mangos are actually very tiny here. The picture is more than a month old and they're much bigger now.

It's pretty obvious that you photoshopped that. There are no trees west of US1 between Sunset Drive and the Broward County line. ¡No me puedes engañar a mí, señora!

In all seriousness, that is cool. When I was a child, we had a couple lime trees and my mom used to use the fruit to make key lime pie

[vpcats]

Originally Posted by crisp444

It's pretty obvious that you photoshopped that. There are no trees west of US1 between Sunset Drive and the Broward County line. ¡No me puedes engañar a mí, señora!

In all seriousness, that is cool. When I was a child, we had a couple lime trees and my mom used to use the fruit to make key lime pie

LOLLLLL
Here's the sour orange tree (good cooking stuff).

[crisp444]

Originally Posted by vpcats

LOLLLLL
Here's the sour orange tree (good cooking stuff).

So you make your own mojo? I like to cook, too, but if I need mojo I just buy the La Lechonera bottled kind. One thing I'd really like to start doing is growing my own herbs in the window sill. I use a lot of dried thyme and oregano and it would be nice to have those fresh. The one thing I miss living in a highrise building without a balcony is the ability to garden. I used to plant all kinds of stuff when I lived down there!

[vpcats]

Originally Posted by crisp444

So you make your own mojo? I like to cook, too, but if I need mojo I just buy the La Lechonera bottled kind. One thing I'd really like to start doing is growing my own herbs in the window sill. I use a lot of dried thyme and oregano and it would be nice to have those fresh. The one thing I miss living in a highrise building without a balcony is the ability to garden. I used to plant all kinds of stuff when I lived down there!

No. I buy the bottle stuff too. I can't really cook. More like I can't cook at all. If it weren't for the cats & dogs, I would never go in the kitchen.

Everyone once in a while I will take the sour oranges and squeeze them and save the liquid for that rare occasion. Or I give them to the neighbors.

I have a "sapote" tree (or "nispero") also in the front. I can't remember what that's called in English (maybe because I no speakie english so good) LOLLLL
My neighbor picks those and eats them. I've heard they're delicious.

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by vpcats

So....if you arrived here 20, 30, 40 years ago, you are not a working class Cuban? What is working class? Minimum wage? Six figures? Business owner? Car mechanic, secretary, nurse?

I think we are drowning in a glass of water here ... the reason I have some knowledge of the Cuban experience is because my wife is Cuban on her Mother's side ... we were both born and raised in NYC .. I am Italian American ... I spent many summers as a kid in Miami and Ft.Lauderdale and have many second and third generation Cuban American friends and simply stated there is a vast difference between the Cubans who have been here for many , many years and have assimilated and those who have been coming over the past few years . There is a different work ethic , they do not share the same family values , they speak and even look different . These recent arrivals having been raised in an authoritarian society have little work ethic and have been raised scheming and scraping to survive coming from that repressive little island and it shows in their behavior down in Miami ... they are very ghetto for the most part and again I insist that they are very , I mean very different from the original Cuban immigrants from 35 -45 years ago .... I mean no offense it is how I see it ... unlike your familes who came here to escape a respressive regime who left you with nothing many of these recent arrivals actually will defend "the beard " and his revolution and are only here for economic reasons , not political persecution that is why I think wet foot dry foot and the Cuban Adjustment Act is bogus and should cease .

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by crisp444

VPCats, he specifically said "Cubans that have arrived in Miami in the last ten - fifteen years" - to me, this seems to imply working-class Cubans. If my assumption is correct, then I have to agree with Rock. You, Rock, and I all know that upper-income Cuban areas aren't veritable deserts when it comes to landscaping

Yup we are on the same page .... you got it .

[Doctor Octagon]

Originally Posted by Rock Newman

I think we are drowning in a glass of water here ... the reason I have some knowledge of the Cuban experience is because my wife is Cuban on her Mother's side ... we were both born and raised in NYC .. I am Italian American ... I spent many summers as a kid in Miami and Ft.Lauderdale and have many second and third generation Cuban American friends and simply stated there is a vast difference between the Cubans who have been here for many , many years and have assimilated and those who have been coming over the past few years . There is a different work ethic , they do not share the same family values , they speak and even look different . These recent arrivals having been raised in an authoritarian society have little work ethic and have been raised scheming and scraping to survive coming from that repressive little island and it shows in their behavior down in Miami ... they are very ghetto for the most part and again I insist that they are very , I mean very different from the original Cuban immigrants from 35 -45 years ago .... I mean no offense it is how I see it ... unlike your familes who came here to escape a respressive regime who left you with nothing many of these recent arrivals actually will defend "the beard " and his revolution and are only here for economic reasons , not political persecution that is why I think wet foot dry foot and the Cuban Adjustment Act is bogus and should cease .

Good post Rock Newman, and I have heard the very same thing over and over again from others.

[Thomas Jefferson]

Originally Posted by Rock Newman

I think we are drowning in a glass of water here ... the reason I have some knowledge of the Cuban experience is because my wife is Cuban on her Mother's side ... we were both born and raised in NYC .. I am Italian American ... I spent many summers as a kid in Miami and Ft.Lauderdale and have many second and third generation Cuban American friends and simply stated there is a vast difference between the Cubans who have been here for many , many years and have assimilated and those who have been coming over the past few years . There is a different work ethic , they do not share the same family values , they speak and even look different . These recent arrivals having been raised in an authoritarian society have little work ethic and have been raised scheming and scraping to survive coming from that repressive little island and it shows in their behavior down in Miami ... they are very ghetto for the most part and again I insist that they are very , I mean very different from the original Cuban immigrants from 35 -45 years ago .... I mean no offense it is how I see it ... unlike your familes who came here to escape a respressive regime who left you with nothing many of these recent arrivals actually will defend "the beard " and his revolution and are only here for economic reasons , not political persecution that is why I think wet foot dry foot and the Cuban Adjustment Act is bogus and should cease .

LOL, How old are you? Did you live in the time when the "older" cubans started to arrive in droves( after 59)? Ask you girlfriend when her mother came to Miami and there were house rentals with signs stating "No Blacks, No Cubans, No Dogs," and those same older cubans were considered also the stink of Miami; at least thats what said the other older cubans; the ones who were here before Castro took place. I guess your perception will change when the recent Cubans(Me included ) start to make big money; of couse excluding Medicare and Medicaid fraudulent businesses . Although, I do not neglect your points because sometimes when I heard a balsero stating his idea of how life should be I say to myself "WTF this regretful commie is saying!"

[vpcats]

Originally Posted by Rock Newman

I think we are drowning in a glass of water here ... the reason I have some knowledge of the Cuban experience is because my wife is Cuban on her Mother's side ... we were both born and raised in NYC .. I am Italian American ... I spent many summers as a kid in Miami and Ft.Lauderdale and have many second and third generation Cuban American friends and simply stated there is a vast difference between the Cubans who have been here for many , many years and have assimilated and those who have been coming over the past few years . There is a different work ethic , they do not share the same family values , they speak and even look different . These recent arrivals having been raised in an authoritarian society have little work ethic and have been raised scheming and scraping to survive coming from that repressive little island and it shows in their behavior down in Miami ... they are very ghetto for the most part and again I insist that they are very , I mean very different from the original Cuban immigrants from 35 -45 years ago .... I mean no offense it is how I see it ... unlike your familes who came here to escape a respressive regime who left you with nothing many of these recent arrivals actually will defend "the beard " and his revolution and are only here for economic reasons , not political persecution that is why I think wet foot dry foot and the Cuban Adjustment Act is bogus and should cease .

I do agree with about 98% of what you have written here. I do know quite a few exceptional recent arrivals. Overall, however, they are a whole new lot.
I just have issues with generalizations and get a bit anal about some things.

[Rock Newman]

Originally Posted by Thomas Jefferson

LOL, How old are you? Did you live in the time when the "older" cubans started to arrive in droves( after 59)? Ask you girlfriend when her mother came to Miami and there were house rentals with signs stating "No Blacks, No Cubans, No Dogs," and those same older cubans were considered also the stink of Miami; at least thats what said the other older cubans; the ones who were here before Castro took place. I guess your perception will change when the recent Cubans(Me included ) start to make big money; of couse excluding Medicare and Medicaid fraudulent businesses . Although, I do not neglect your points because sometimes when I heard a balsero stating his idea of how life should be I say to myself "WTF this regretful commie is saying!"

I am 44 ( last week !! ) and I have many Cuban American friends in my age group who were either born here or in NYC and are professionals .. some are lawyers , a few doctors and many successful businessmen and they ALL share my feelings . Big money has nothing to do with it ... you either have ethics and values and a little class is nice or you do not . I think the original Cuban immigrants were a beautiful people .. I remember being invited to my Cuban friend's family gatherings as a kid during the summers in Miami and thinking how warm every one was and how similar they were to the Italians I was raised with in NYC ... there are exceptions you probably being one of them ... but I do not see this in the newer Cuban arrivals ... it is all about partying , materialism , gold chains , salsa and reggaeton and last taking advantage of the "system" to get ahead .. again they are here for economic reason nothing else .. just the same as a Mexican immigrant , a Haitian immigrant or a Chinese immigrant .

"Big Money " does not buy class , ethics or more important values .