Video

[recognize_an_opportunity]

[Despite the fact that he'd largely been managing to avoid them, he's not without his own balloon companions today, and while he's been able to get rid of some of them, some of them are still following him around. And that's why, of course, this video is entirely accidental, inadvertently posted while he's dealing someone a round of cards at the casino.

The balloons are alternating languages -- sometimes they're speaking Yiddish, sometimes Russian, sometimes English, sometimes even Italian, but their messages are all very similar.]

You'll never amount to anything
You're no better than your father
You'll never succeed
You're pathetic
You're a cheater and a liar
You're wasting your time
Why would anyone trust you?

[The odd thing is, his balloons aren't speaking particularly loudly. No, they're almost whispering their comments, insidious and irritating as they are, and he casts a particularly dour look over his shoulder at them, before realizing his video is recording and shutting it off with a long-suffering sigh.]

Comments

Late in the day;

[candothat]

But surely they are exaggerating in all languages.

Ai, I hope this ends at midnight. More than one day of this would be maddening.

Re: Late in the day;

[recognize_an_opportunity]

As far as I'm concerned, they're exaggerating. There may be those who disagree.

[candothat]

Then you are not taking this personally? Good.

[recognize_an_opportunity]

I'd be hard pressed to take anything a talking balloon says seriously.

[candothat]

So I have said, although I find the content of what they say hard to ignore.

[recognize_an_opportunity]

You don't seriously believe anything any of yours said, do you?

[candothat]

Only the things that are true.

[Which is basically everything, but.]

[recognize_an_opportunity]

I was under the impression that none of what they were saying was true.

[candothat]

Perhaps it varies from one person to another.

[recognize_an_opportunity]

Yours didn't strike me as true in the least.

[candothat]

Truth are relative. Some of what they say is relatively true.

[recognize_an_opportunity]

Some of what mine say are relatively true, too, but that doesn't mean I have to listen to them.

[candothat]

Mm. The impact of what they say must vary from one individual to another.

[AKA Meyer probably sleeps well at night because his conscience isn't bothering him.]

[recognize_an_opportunity]

If you're the type of person to blame yourself for everything, then yes, I suppose so.

[AKA Chekov obviously takes on too much guilt.]

[candothat]

[Touché.]

What language was it that you had an interest in? German?

[recognize_an_opportunity]

German, yes; given the fact that Yiddish is my first language, I find it easy enough to understand, but I can't say I speak it with any proficiency.

[candothat]

I speak it proficiently, but German speakers never find me easy to understand. Neither do English speakers, so maybe this is a problem for me across all languages.

[recognize_an_opportunity]

You do have a very... distinctive accent, I admit. I don't find you hard to understand, however.

[candothat]

But everyone finds you easy to understand. How do you do that?

[recognize_an_opportunity]

Not everyone does. I've had quite a bit of grief for my distinctive New York accent, in the time I've been here.

[Although that's not finding him difficult to understand so much as mocking the almost stereotypical-gangster way he speaks.]

When I came to New York, as a child, I concerted all of my efforts into erasing the Russian accent entirely from my speech.

[candothat]

Distinctive? You sound American to me.

[But Chekov's definition of an "American" accent is a broad one, so...]

Why would you do that? Are Russians disliked in your time?

[recognize_an_opportunity]

Immigrants are, in general, looked down upon. I've made every attempt to sound American, like you say.

[That's not the only reason, though.]

And I wasn't particularly interested in sounding like I came from a country that I had no great love for.

[candothat]

Diversity is unwelcomed?

[Almost inconceivable! But not as inconceivable as Meyer's next sentence.]

You don't like Russia?

[recognize_an_opportunity]

Diversity isn't exactly applauded, no.

[A very quiet laugh.]

Put more accurately, Russia doesn't like me.

[candothat]

You time makes no sense to me.

How do you mean?