Никоненко Тамара Петрівна

mole [maul] — кріт
inhabitant— житель
solitude— усамітнювання, самотність
runaway— втікач
menial— зневажлив. слуга, лакей
perception— сприйняття, відчуття
scared— наляканий
hostility— ворожість
dweller — житель
   New York is famous for its 24-hour street life. But below street level, in New York’s thousands of tunnels, there is a very different city with a population of around 14,000. This is where the “Mole People” live. The “Mole People” don’t like being called “Mole People”. Many don’t like being called “the underground homeless” either because they have finally found somewhere to call home in the network of subway and railroad tunnels. In some areas these tunnels are often seven levels below the street. Unlike most American homes, the smell of waste hits you in face. But the people that live there get used to that quite quickly and learn the places where there’s less of a smell… and fewer rats! (although, some actually eat the rats!)
   People live here for a variety of reasons; two very common ones are that it’s safer and warmer than the streets or they are hiding from abusive family members. Some inhabitants say they were attacked when they were homeless on the streets and are too scared to live there again. Other more “extreme” tunnel in­habitants simply reject the outside world and “the system”. Although some live  in solitude, the population generally divides into different communities. Runa­ways and drug addicts are two large groups but there are more. Some inhabit­ants are mentally ill. Some are women who don’t want their children taken away from them, so they take them to live in the tunnels. Many inhabitants criticize mothers doing this, saying that it’s a terrible place for children to live in. It’s not most adults’ choice either.
   The best place to live is not too near the surface because there can be too much noise from the trains (and the rats live at the top), but not too deep either. “There are some who live so deep down that nobody sees them and they don’t re­ally speak”, says one inhabitant. This is many people’s perception of how most of the tunnel people are, but this is incorrect; some have menial jobs above ground, in some tunnels there are fresh water pipes, and although it is dark most of the time in the tunnels, some have power cables so that electrical devices and lights can be used. Some tunnels even have their own mayor or representative. Although some tunnel inhabitants never leave, others beg for food during the day. In theo­ry, it’s hard to starve in New York because people and restaurants tend to throw so much food away.
   Another way of surviving is to collect cans. Some stores will give a couple of cents per can collected.
   The outside world is not invited into the tunnels, visitors are not welcome and are often treated with suspicion and hostility. It is for this reason there is not much written about them. Many tunnels have “guards”, others require a “code” to get in. As the tunnel dwellers are not part of “the official city”, they are not given much help with their health or welfare.

   Academy Awards is the name for prizes given annually in the United States by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for excellence in the crea­tion and production of motion pictures. First presented in 1929 for films shown in 1927 and 1928, the Academy Awards, commonly known as Oscars, are among the film industry’s most coveted prizes.