I was really upset
today, she said.
I tried to use the
pay phone on the corner
and it ate my token!
I yelled and cursed
at the phone and
beat on it with my shoe.
the passersby all
looked at me like
I was crazy.
I guess in Poland
people are not
accustomed to seeing
women express strong
emotion, she concluded.
it is more likely, I thought,
that people in Poland
are unaccustomed to seeing
a 250 pound American woman
screaming in English and
attacking a pay phone
with her shoe at one of the
busiest intersections in Warsaw.
even in New York City,
this would attract
attention, I thought.
and this woman has
lived here for a year,
teaching a feminist
interpretation of American
literature to Polish
college students, I mused.
and something else,
she continued.
I was walking along
the sidewalk when
someone put his hand
on my shoulder.
I turned around and
saw it was a policeman
and started screaming at
him never to touch me
and who does he think he is.
then someone explained
that he was trying to
prevent me from
walking into a cordoned off
area where there had
been a bomb scare.
do you think maybe
I overreacted? she queried.
gee, I thought. could be.
and that was not all,
she droned on.
I was walking down
the sidewalk holding
hands with my daughter
and these horribly
impolite people just
walked right between
us instead of going
around. where are
their manners in
this country? she queried.
no where you will
ever notice,
at least not until you
pull your head
out of your ass, I thought.
if your 25 year old
daughter is even
half your size, the two
of you walking
hand in hand would
hog most of even
the widest sidewalk
in Warsaw, I thought.
then later I got on
the tram without a
ticket, she added,
and the ticket police
wanted me to pay a fine.
I was so enraged
I screamed at him
and jumped off the tram
at the next stop.
clever strategy, I thought.
I bet no one ever
thought of that before.
my assignment is
finished in three weeks,
she announced. I am
very excited about going
back to the United States.
where you will be
received with a
hero's welcome, no doubt,
and pass along to everyone
your insightful observations
about Poland, I thought.
well, we are all very
excited for you, I said.
sounds like you have
had an interesting year.
sometimes speaking the truth is just a waste of breath.
