Yikes! It looks like those childhood boogeyman stories about being kidnapped by the Gypsies might have some truth in them. Did you know we have our own Gypsies here in the US? Theyre not related to the Roma people in Europe, though. Theyre from Ireland and theyre called the Travellers. Theyve been a distinct ethnic population there for probably a thousand years. Some think they are descendants from the Vikings, who raped and pillaged Irish villages back then. I became interested in them years ago, Im not exactly sure why, but I have collected a number of books on their background and culture. They live in several clannish communities across the US. The menfolk are reputed to travel around the country in the summer (theyre called Travellers, after all) defrauding suburbanites with phony asphalt resurfacing and tree trimming schemes. (Rosemary, tell Kym about this when you read it. She doesnt do Facebook.) They seem to drive around and even live in pick-up trucks with caps on the back. You dont see them very often any more. They also have a cultural tradition of bare-knuckle fighting. (Im attaching some links, just FYI.) I remember how upset my Mother used to get when my brothers, Dad, and I would fight and wrestle with each other. So did my Aunt Joan, when her boys and Uncle Skin wrestled, come to think of it. My Mom once confided in me that she got so upset because it reminded her of family gatherings when she was a child and the men and boys would get drunk and fight each other on the front lawn. She also told me that when she talked to her psychiatrist about this, he told her that was just our male way of physically displaying affection for each other. Maybe weve got some Travellers blood in us. Can you check that out on Ancestory, Brion? en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Travellers youtube/watch?v=MZs7uZxk_4w
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 03:00:49 +0000
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