Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 498

"I’ve got my own nail polish. It’s mine!"

"I’ve got my own nail polish. It’s mine!"

"My father was a very good man, but he had a lot of...

"My father was a very good man, but he had a lot of shortcomings. He was very singularly focused. He was an expert mason so he was very good at laying bricks. But he wouldn’t apply his energies to anything else. I was very good with my hands too, but I was always wanting to try new things. But he’d always discourage me from attempting anything other than my field of study. I resented him for it.”
"How were you a different father to your children?"
"I encouraged my children to try everything. So much so that they resented me for it."

"It’s easier to raise children in Yemen, but I’m...

"It’s easier to raise children in Yemen, but I’m trying to bring my family here because I want them to learn in American schools."

“Why is it easier to raise children there?”

“Because they listen to you. Take me for example. I am nearly thirty years old, I have a wife and two children. But when my father tells me something, I listen. And when his father tells him something, he listens. In this country, you turn eighteen and it’s ‘fuck you.’”

"We both study architecture.""So who’s better at...

"We both study architecture."
"So who’s better at it?"
"Well, that’s hard to say. But I definitely have the bigger ego."

I asked if he remembered the moment he was proudest of his...

I asked if he remembered the moment he was proudest of his daughter. He started musing in a thick Jamaican accent: “Just seeing her born. That moment when my seed was brought forth on to this earth. It was magic.”

Then the girl, who up to this point had been quiet, screamed: “Preach!”

"If you could give one piece of advice to a large group of...

"If you could give one piece of advice to a large group of people, what would it be?"

“Take care of the youngest and the oldest in your community, and everything else will take care of itself. I was watching this documentary about this isolated community in either India or Africa. When the old people would lose their teeth, the younger members of the community would chew their food for them to keep them healthy. Now that’s devotion. In America, we’re afraid to sip out of the same straw.”

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" “A...

"What do you want to be when you grow up?"

“A fireman.”

“And what about you?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing? You mean you don’t want to grow up?”

“I want to grow up. But I just want to ride on motorcycles.”

These two were excited to have their picture taken, but...

These two were excited to have their picture taken, but didn’t seem to speak much English.

“We are from Mauritania,” they said.

“What do you miss most about Mauritania?” I asked.

“The capital city is Nouakchott,” they said.

At this point, I was thinking that the language barrier was going to keep me from getting much in terms of an interview, but I tried again.

“Tell me more about Mauritania,” I said.

The seated man held out one hand: “Half-Muslim.”

Then he held out his other hand: “Half-African.”

Then he brought both hands together: “No problem.”

"When I was a kid, my dad and I used to stay up all night...

"When I was a kid, my dad and I used to stay up all night playing Tetris. We still send each other high scores."

“Who’s got the highest score?”

“He’s had it for awhile. But he doesn’t play much anymore. He’s getting a little too comfortable.”

"My dad died when I was eight, so I went to live with my...

"My dad died when I was eight, so I went to live with my aunt."
"How did he die?"
"AIDS."
"Where was your mom?"
"She died when I was two."
"AIDS?"
"Yep."
"What’s your best memory of your father?"
"He was always really weak. But I remember one weekend he went to the hospital and got a blood transfusion, and when he got back from the hospital he was feeling really strong and energetic for a few days, so he played with us and ran around."