on the run
We went to see my dad's new room. It's only a few blocks away from where we live and it looks quite nice. We went downtown to buy him plates and mugs and ash trays and ate cake. I wonder how long he'll last there.
While we were waiting for the tram, we spotted a peculiar-looking old man on the other side of the road. He was wearing a long, brown, fur coat with long, pointy shoes under them. His sun glasses were way too big for his head and in his arms he was holding a silent little dog. You know, one of those people you just can't help but stare at, because it's such a strange sight. His steps, the clacking of his shoes on the stones creating a funny sound, are confident. He comes over to our side and starts talking to another woman standing there: his voice rich and loud and his pronunciation precise, with a slight posh accent. You have no choice in the matter -- you have to listen.
"Yes, a hundred minks have been killed for this coat!" he laughs. "But I always bring this, in case they attack me." He flashes a stiletto knife and the woman he's talking to doesn't even look surprised. "Yes, it truly is an awful world, nowadays," he continues. "You can't wear fur, you can't drink, you can't smoke -- the other day my neighbour asked me why I smoke. I said to him: if I drive behind your car, I get lung cancer too. This way it's at least 50% my own fault!" He starts laughing and --once more-- I can't help it: I'm chuckling too.
"Yes, laugh!" he says to us, baring a big set of white teeth. "People always laugh, because they know I'm right!"
When we walk past the boutiques and supermarkets and dinner places, I can't help but think how bleak and pale everybody looks in comparison. Everybody looks the same, and with words like "fashion" and "trendy", the industry encourages everyone to harmonize their appearances even more. Fit in, everyone should try to fit in. You must be pretty, skinny, normal, social. Everyone should share the same opinion. "Nederland is verdeeld" they said after the last elections, as if people having different views is a bad thing.
I hope that one day I'll have the guts to be crazy like that old man too. That when I walk down the street half the people will think, "Ugh, freak!" and some will think, "Whatever" and only one or two people will like it. Though I wouldn't care then, of course.
While we were waiting for the tram, we spotted a peculiar-looking old man on the other side of the road. He was wearing a long, brown, fur coat with long, pointy shoes under them. His sun glasses were way too big for his head and in his arms he was holding a silent little dog. You know, one of those people you just can't help but stare at, because it's such a strange sight. His steps, the clacking of his shoes on the stones creating a funny sound, are confident. He comes over to our side and starts talking to another woman standing there: his voice rich and loud and his pronunciation precise, with a slight posh accent. You have no choice in the matter -- you have to listen.
"Yes, a hundred minks have been killed for this coat!" he laughs. "But I always bring this, in case they attack me." He flashes a stiletto knife and the woman he's talking to doesn't even look surprised. "Yes, it truly is an awful world, nowadays," he continues. "You can't wear fur, you can't drink, you can't smoke -- the other day my neighbour asked me why I smoke. I said to him: if I drive behind your car, I get lung cancer too. This way it's at least 50% my own fault!" He starts laughing and --once more-- I can't help it: I'm chuckling too.
"Yes, laugh!" he says to us, baring a big set of white teeth. "People always laugh, because they know I'm right!"
When we walk past the boutiques and supermarkets and dinner places, I can't help but think how bleak and pale everybody looks in comparison. Everybody looks the same, and with words like "fashion" and "trendy", the industry encourages everyone to harmonize their appearances even more. Fit in, everyone should try to fit in. You must be pretty, skinny, normal, social. Everyone should share the same opinion. "Nederland is verdeeld" they said after the last elections, as if people having different views is a bad thing.
I hope that one day I'll have the guts to be crazy like that old man too. That when I walk down the street half the people will think, "Ugh, freak!" and some will think, "Whatever" and only one or two people will like it. Though I wouldn't care then, of course.