"Fitting In" without Fitting in: a User-Unfriendly Life
Stranger in a strange land
Noel Runyan
Issue date: 10/29/08 Section: Lifestyles
I could say much in favor of Budapest. I've done so in the past. It's not that hard, really. But now I sit here with rage in my heart, a veritable misanthrope convinced that the transition to a post-communist society left something to be desired. Sure, you can get all excited about political and economic liberalization if that's your idea of a good time, but it seems that in the mad dash to actually make their country work the Hungarians never got around to one important aspect of modernization. It doesn't fit big people. That is to say, after only a short stay in the country, even slightly-above-average-sized American men end up feeling like Gulliver in Lilliput.
The bed in my apartment is composed completely out of plywood, including the slats that support the mattress. I didn't give it a second thought until I sat down on it my first night of residency there and the whole thing promptly exploded beneath my not inconsiderable weight. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that more than half of the wooden slats were now splintered in various pieces across the floor. But I was philosophical about it and welcomed the chance to sleep with my legs at a lower elevation than my torso. I was less measured in my response after the rest of the bed imploded beneath me last week. I have since moved the mattress onto the floor and am hoping for a little more stability in the future.
I'm not sure this was entirely an accident, either. Authoritarian rule might be at an end here, but it left bitter people in its wake. The general population here was terrorized and inconvenienced for more than 50 years. Now that they're in control of their own destiny, they couldn't resist the temptation to wreak a little havoc on their own terms. But really, who could?
Of course, this is a democracy now, so they traded secret police for collapsing beds and tables that are too short and doors that don't open all the way.
I recently had the misfortune of visiting the university's library of Medieval Studies, a journey which is perhaps best summarized by Kurtz's parting words in 'Heart of Darkness': "the horror, the horror…"
The bed in my apartment is composed completely out of plywood, including the slats that support the mattress. I didn't give it a second thought until I sat down on it my first night of residency there and the whole thing promptly exploded beneath my not inconsiderable weight. Upon closer inspection, I discovered that more than half of the wooden slats were now splintered in various pieces across the floor. But I was philosophical about it and welcomed the chance to sleep with my legs at a lower elevation than my torso. I was less measured in my response after the rest of the bed imploded beneath me last week. I have since moved the mattress onto the floor and am hoping for a little more stability in the future.
I'm not sure this was entirely an accident, either. Authoritarian rule might be at an end here, but it left bitter people in its wake. The general population here was terrorized and inconvenienced for more than 50 years. Now that they're in control of their own destiny, they couldn't resist the temptation to wreak a little havoc on their own terms. But really, who could?
Of course, this is a democracy now, so they traded secret police for collapsing beds and tables that are too short and doors that don't open all the way.
I recently had the misfortune of visiting the university's library of Medieval Studies, a journey which is perhaps best summarized by Kurtz's parting words in 'Heart of Darkness': "the horror, the horror…"
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Allison
posted 10/29/08 @ 10:19 AM CST
Great article! I love your castle metaphor.
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