Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Familiar strangers

Do you meet often same faces on your way to work, on the bus or at the groceries? Strangers, you don't really know but seem to hang around at the same time as you? Good, then I haven't entered the Twilight zone yet.

First time I heard about familiar strangers was at psychology class and since then I've had quite few of them. Faces you meet so often you feel like starting to say hello. Luckily you remember you do live in Slovenia, a small country where inhabitants don't really appreciate spontaneousness or greetings from random strangers. So what if they are familiar, I guess everyone is once your population count stops at about 2 million.

By now I had enough familiar strangers to have a small dinner party and I'd definitely invite these ones:

  • Elevator man: He was my daily deja vu experience. Eventually we politely nodded our heads when he entered and stared at our feet until we hit the ground floor. Occasionally we meet in the street and politely try to avoid each other. I guess it's just not the same without an elevator.

  • Alternative darker: Older man I still meet quite often on different occasions and locations. Only after I found out he's a member of one of my favourite bands is when I started feeling like a stalker. Fetalij probably knows best how that is ;).

  • Overdressed chick: Though it is very nice to see people who look like people early in the morning, I couldn't help admiring her ability to walk in those high hills and such a short skirt. My attempt to pull something similar in long but tight dress ended up after 10 minutes in nearest shoe shop. I bought a pair of plain sandals and threw away the chic ones I was wearing. I give up, I'm just not a lady material.

  • Older couple: They are possibly the most romantic couple in their 60's or 70's I've ever met. Guy is walking with crutches so they have this slow long walks through the city but still hold hands every time. They just make me wanna hug them.

  • A photographer: First time I saw her was on a Depeche mode concert and since then she just keeps on appearing around on almost daily bases. OK, I admit she is kinda good looking and that might be the reason I remembered her.

  • Artist on a bike: or at least that is how he looks like to me. Tall skinny hippy looking like guy who doesn't wear shoes no matter what the season. Even though he could be considered as fair critique of shoe industry he probably just like his foot bare. With latest shoe fashion who could blame him.

Of course these are not all. There are many more but enough about mine, let's hear about yours. Any familiars in your life?

8 comments:

adj. said...

Older man, indeed. He looks ancient.

Anonymous said...

I get a lot of that. I actually say hello to a lot of people that I haven't officially met and i don't know their names. It's a way of acknowledging their existance.

Black Betty said...

ha.. ne boš verjela un bos artist on a bike živi nekje blizu mene.
za fotografinjo pa sumim, da je ena kodrolasa Nada. A je? A je??

Jah. Kwa čmo, če živimo na malce večji vasi ;)

Anonymous said...

Haha, dobra tema in mimogrede obožujem tvojo angleščino.

Drugače pa mi je en znan tujec prišel na pamet. Tip je pogosto na Metelkovi, ima daljše temne lasje zvezane v čop in je večje postave. Občasno ga zafleša v smislu da se med hojo ustavi, naredi nekakšen move in gre naprej, vsaj na Metelkovi je to počel. Srečeval sem ga vsepovsod, največ v Šiški, vendar ga zadnje čase nekako ni opaziti, mogoče je kam šel ali pa sem jaz postal zapečkar.

adj. said...

Re: Overdressed chick - you must try harder, you know you must.

Karmen said...

@mašinca - interesting idea. I might try it too. Če me dolgo ne bo na spregled, so me verjetno odpeljali možički v belem ;)

@Betty - I'm not telling :P. Sicer sem pa bla skor prepičana, da tist artist ne živi nikjer. How very stereotipical and primitive of me :D

@Štrudl - hvala. Metelkova skriva mnoge znamenitosti in posebneže. Vendar tegale še res nisem opazila. Bom naslednjič bolj pozorna.

@dino - that's gonna me the day... čeprav vem, da se zarečenega kriha največ poje. Hoja v petkah je ubijalska. Wanna try it ;)?

Black Betty said...

Ojej...ljudje.. vaši znani neznanci so tudi moji znani neznanci.

Štrudl: tudi jaz sem že večkrat "srečala" enga podobnga tvojmu opisu. Sicer mal dvomim, da je isti... Na meti ga vidm, učasih je tm še nek regi vrtel, nek rastafarjanc. Zdej si pa pomoje biblijo ponavla na pamet. ;)

Skeri šit. ;)

Karmen said...

No, zate Betty tko vemo, da si magnet za čudake ;)