Nail Polish on Boys: Acceptable?

I painted my 2 year old son's nails pink. Fingers and toes baby. The little man saw Mommy decorating her fingers in the bright color and wanted it for himself. What two year old doesn't like bright colors painted somewhere on their body? 

Of course I am living in a machismo country, and an especially machismo city. You don't paint boys' finger nails. You don't give your boys baby dolls. And you definitely clarify that pink is a girls' color... if you are not me. 

And while I was prepared for some comments, I didn't realize that EVERYONE in this city would notice his tiny nails. 

On our way home from the park, three street girls of about 12 years old stopped me to ask if I had anything I could give them. Since we had walked I really didn't and I told them sorry. We all chatted for a minute about how it is getting cold, I made a mental note to bring out a blanket to give the next time, and we went to enter our building. That's when I heard the:

"Tia?" It means Aunt and is a common way kids refer to unknown women here for some reason. 

I turned to listen and all the girls were giggling. The oldest asked "Did YOU paint his nails pink?!" I said yes I did and the Menace, hearing the conversation, turned to proudly show them his nails. "But he's a boy!" 

Apparently the machismo societal standards are enforced even by those that very society rejects. Go figure. 

Would you paint your toddler's son's nails if he asked?

An Unfortunate Meeting with Street Children

Sorry guys, no cutesy Easter post here. Today there was some action in Rio de Janeiro and it involved a little ranter you all know and love.

So it all started when I was heading home from Copacabana. The cab driver had stopped at a light when some crazy street kid started beating on the taxi windows and trying to open the door.

Of course the cab driver had locked the door once I was inside so no harm and no foul. I watched them walk back towards the sidewalk once the cars had started moving. That's when noticed three foreigners quickly walking by. Obviously they were going to be the next target of this group of rowdy street children.

I watched intently as we passed, not knowing what I would do if the kids tried something. That's when I realized that one of these "foreigners" is a close friend of mine! At this exact moment group of street children had somewhat taken them over.

I yelled to the driver to stop the car. I screamed "STOP THE CAR STOP THE CAR STOP THE CAR!"

Once we stopped I threw open the door and yelled my friend's name. She was standing in the middle of the first of 3 lanes of traffic trying to get a cab and get away. There were two kids sticking their hands into pockets and basically all over her trying to get anything they could. It was not a good situation.

Luckily my friend's friends heard me calling her name and got her attention. She turned and I yelled, in English, for them to get their ass in my cab.

Sounds like an easy save, right? Wrong. One of the older kids ran to the cab as well. She attempted to throw herself in after my friend. She looked straight at me and I could tell she was not all there. I don't know what this girl was on but it was something that caused crazy, or the accentuation of it. There was yelling and pushing and she finally vacated the vehicle.

Of course she did not go quietly and started slamming the door on the last entering gringa as she threw herself in.

Freaking bitch as kid, pardon my language, was forcefully slammed the door on the woman's leg and said Desculpa (sorry). It happened twice before we managed to get her in without getting a part of her slammed.  The doors were locked and we were off.

Crisis adverted.

As it turns out, this group had been following my friend and her group for a bit. They had passed the street children as they were sniffing glue on the street.

I guess we found the source of the crazy.

My friend had been looking for a way out as the street children had gotten quite aggressive and she had never experienced anything like it before.  I can tell you that I haven't either!

But everyone was ok and we had a laugh at how ironic it was that I happened to be passing by her in a cab at that exact moment. What were the odds that two people who live in two different neighborhoods of Zona Sul would bump into each other in a 3rd neighborhood in a situation like this? Random!

What upset me the most was that I was the only one that did stop. What the hell Rio de Janeiro! What gives!

5 Things I Want To Do in Rio de Janeiro but Don't

A fellow expat blogger inspired this post with her 5 Things I want to Do in São Paulo but Don't.  I have, in turn, done the same thing for the fabulous city of Rio de Janeiro!

 Photo by: http://picasaweb.google.com/113778570177659494936/VilaMimosa#

1. Talk to the transvestites working the streets in Gloria. I have always been in awe of them and would love to interview/talk to them. I bet they have one hell of a story to tell.

For more information: http://www.hostelriodejaneiro.com/things2do.php

2. Go hang gliding. I didn't have the balls to do it before having kids and now I feel like it's too risky because I have them.

Photo by and For more information on street kids:http://www.flickr.com/groups/hummingbird_xmas_2006

3. Adopt a street kid. It breaks my heart to see these guys sleeping in the street. Hell, even when the are harassing me, I want to take them home. A good bath, a safe home, and lots of cuddles. If only it could be that easy.

4. Buy all the American magazines I come across. With the inflated prices it would be a quick way to go broke.

5. Get a boob job. I still debate about eventually doing this, just filling the old girls back up again. Of course a friend of mine had to go and ruin it for me by giving me facts and such. Ah well, these girls still have quite a few miles left in them. 

Street kids of Rio de Janeiro

I saw a street kid sleeping near the supermarket this morning when I was out running errands with the boys. It doesn't matter how many I see, it still breaks my heart every time. 

I would love to pull a Leigh Anne Tuohy and bring at least one of these kids home but it's just not safe.  In the movie, she wondered if Michael was going to steal something.  In the Rio de Janeiro reality, I have to wonder if the kid is going to leave my home, get his friends, come back with guns and clean us dry, possibly killing someone in the process.

Yes, I know, that's a slightly negative way at looking at things.  It is.  But Rio de Janeiro has a tendency of having some slightly negative things happen. I try to avoid bad things, that includes strangers in my house. Hell, if the phone company (in uniform and with van) show up without my marking an appointment, neither the doorman or I let them in.  That's just how it works here.

On my way back by, the kid had woken up and there were two adults talking to him. It's quite normal to see. I bet these kids get questioned by 50 people a day.  They ask where their parents are, why they aren't at school, if they have a home, etc.  I've even seen people go get public social workers and bring them back to where the kids are hanging out so they can talk to them about the help available. 


Sadly, some of these kids don't want help. They don't want limits, they don't want structure. Some are addicted to drugs, some spend days on the street and return home when they want, and some were born there.  I can't imagine anyone wanting to live on the street but it's been pointed out to me that, in some cases, home life is even worse. 

And then there's the violent breed. The street kids that band together to jump unsuspecting people.  The ones who find guns and use them.  Survival of the fittest gone bad.

You'd like to think the government would take an aggressive approach to this.  They'd take the kids and put them into foster care or group care facilities.  They'd force school attendance and employ therapists to help them adjust and overcome the traumas they've already faced in their young lives.  You'd love to see that happen.  Unfortunately, the government of Rio de Janeiro is spread a little thin right now. They have other crime issues, development concerns for the upcoming games, and already overflowing class rooms in most public schools. It'd take a lot of money, no corruption, and a hell of a lot of time. 

I found this link about helping street kids for those interested:
Help Street Children in Brazil

I volunteered briefly for this group:
Dreams Can Be

Here's a link to a horrible story of the Death squad.  I didn't realize that street kids have to worry about getting killed by police at night while they sleep.  It's an old article but I found other articles saying it still happens.  Candelaria Massacre

Overall, a sad post. Sorry for that but it's one of the sad realities of living down here.  I just felt the need to share my feelings.  I guess misery loves company.