ni-ni generacion

I recently learned something awesome and then it was reiterated to me today. So now I will relay said information to you and you can promptly forget it. Es perfecto.


So the current generation of los españoles are known as the "ni-ni generacion." This stands for "ni trabaja, ni estudia"... translation: neither work, nor study.


Essentially, these lucky hijos de putas (note: do not use this phrase in a Taco Bell. Probably don't Google translate either) live off their parents until they are 30-40 years old and don't work, study or provide for themselves in any way, shape or form.


This is such a common phenomenon that, besides having a catchy saying to go with it, almost any Spaniard you converse with knows someone in a similar situation. Today, during my teacher's conversation class (consisting of three teachers, my bilingual coordinator and myself all drinking some coffee and shooting the mierda), we were discussing said ni-ni generacion.


My bilingual coordinator told a story about her brother, who was divorced from his wife and had three grown children. These children were about 25-32 years old and he was STILL paying child support. Because in Spain children are not legally considered adults at 18, he was forced to take his wife to court and be like, "Uh listen, Judge... my kids are old. They should have been married, divorced and remarried, with some babies of their own. I think I can stop paying them an allowance now."


But, hey, its Spain. Obviously, the judge ruled against the father and he's still paying for his deadbeat kids. So, we are discussing this, and I was like, "Well, my mom says 18 and luggage. Luckily, I went to college, so I got away with a few summers without paying rent. But yeah, if I was 30 and still living with my parents, I think I would jump off a puente." (Kidding Mom & Dad! Keep collecting puppies and maybe see ya soon!)


Shocking, but most of the teachers agreed with me, saying "Yes, we really need a law like that here in Spain, its ridiculous, etc." However, one of the teachers, let's call him Juan Antonio Carlos (all of those are safe bets here) remained fairly silent.


Finally, another teacher asked, "Well, Juan Antonio Carlos- when did you move out?"


Juan Antonio Carlos: "31."