"yellow house" in Russian

[Paul B. Gallagher]

Alex wrote:

> Вполне возможно, что цвет конкретной
> больницы в конкретном городе действительно
> сыграл определенную роль. Хочу добавить, что
> иногда цифра имеет большее значение, чем цвет.
> В Харькове, например, самое знаменитое заведение
> для душевнобольных расположено в старинных
> красно-кирпичных корпусах с толстенными
> казематными стенами и зарешеченными окнами.
> Но харьковчанин моментально поймет, о чем идет
> речь при словах "...тебя что, из пятнадцатой выпустили?"
> или "...по тебе пятнадцатая плачет..."
> Когда-то было еще популярно выражение "Сабурова дача"
> или просто "соборка". Возможно, что это больше
> относится к какому-нибудь другому городу.

Very interesting. I think every area has its own slang terms for the
local houses of detention, psychiatric hospitals, etc.

Growing up on Long Island, I was accustomed to hearing people talk about
so-and-so being in "C.I." (Central Islip State Hospital, a psychiatric
institution, now defunct), and hearing a whole series of secondary terms
spawned from the abbreviation. If you weren't from the area, you would
have no idea what it meant, even if you guessed the name of the town.
Another hospital where alcoholics were sent to dry out was "Pilgrim
State," a slight shortening from "Pilgrim State Hospital."

        A side note: I always found it slightly peculiar
        and more than a little amusing that Long Islanders
        clip the noun from this phrase, as well as "the
        Northern State (Parkway)," the "Southern State
        (Parkway)," but never "the Long Island (Expressway)."
        If an outsider heard that someone should "take the
        Northern State," would it make the slightest bit
        of sense? :-)

And then of course, there was "Bellevue," which I never realized until I
grew up also handled "normal" patients... :-)

Similarly, the Manhattan House of Detention aka Manhattan Detention
Complex aka Manhattan Detention Center in New York has been called "the
Tombs" routinely by nearly everyone in the area for decades. For more on
the history of the term, enter
        tombs detention "New York"
in a google search window and you'll get lots of good hits.

--
War doesn't determine who's right, just who's left.
--
Paul B. Gallagher
pbg translations, inc.
"Russian Translations That Read Like Originals"
http://pbg-translations.com

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