Catcher in the University #1

I’m staying at Pécs for a half year now. A nice little town in southern Hungary. I applied for this abroad scholarship and all and I got it! Pretty big deal huh?

I’ve already been here for a couple of weeks now and I sort of start to like it you know. I mean the town and the university are pretty allright and there are some helluva nice folks to horse around with. Like good old Ezio! He’s my roommate now, a Greek scolarship student. Boy, is he a crazy one! He’s at the art department. He can draw like a bastard! He really can! I mean not just like any of those phony artist morons, creating something pretty good then getting stuck-up with themselves. Those guys just give me the pain in the ass. But Ezio is different. We make a lot of fun together, like always kidding each other and all. He has his funny little artist habbit of his though: he sort of lifts his little finger whenever he’drinks something. God I hate that! I mean why do you have to do that? It’s like needlessly making fun of yourself or something. Actually a lot of people do that kind of stuff.

Anyway, our dorm is not too far away from the university, which is a good thing for I don’t feel like walking down my goddam feet just to get to those dumpy German classes! I started to learn German here. It’s not that I like German or anything, in fact I kind of hate it, but we – scholarship students – had to choose what we will study while being here and still, I figured this would be the best among the other lousy subjects. Truly, there was no other thing on that damn list that I would have prefered. No kidding! Now I can run around at the German department with all the Hans, Rudolf, and Eric type of guys. Great.

Anyways, when it comes to lunch time, or I just get hungry and all, I can easily satisfy my needs at the shop in front of the university. Told you it’s a good place. Only problem is: the lack of knowledge in language: the dopey shop assistants just cannot understand a word from me, no matter how hard I try! That drives me crazy! Moreover they are so touchy that they start to freking shout at you, just because they don’t understand you! People always shout at you if they don’t understand something. Luckily, there are some English department guys hanging around everywhere near the university and they are happy to help in such lousy situations. One of them was this Attila guy I’ve met the other day. He's a pretty good fellow! - a bit muckle-mouthed though, which sometimes knocks me out, but otherwise he’s okay. We have some nice conversations every now and then. He once even told me about this one teacher of him, called Joe, which was funny, because for good old Joe's lesson, you have to write a blog and all, he said. Boy! It would kill me if I had such a task!

Old Attila was the one that introduced me this girl lately called Dóra. They were classmates in secondary school. We just kind of bumped into her in a corridor of the university. I have to tell you about this girl! Boy, I wish you could see her! She has this blond hair and all, with shiny blue eyes looking at you and she’s smiling like a phony! I mean she’s not a phony or something, you just get the feeling that she’s one, because of that steady smile on her face. God I love that! I decided to give her a good impression, so what I did, I introduced myself as the senior lecturer of the English Literature Department. She gave me a funny look and said: „Really? Well that’s nice, I’ve just been at your lecture then. Strange.. You looked a bit shorter in the classroom, not to mention the pony tale you were wearing..” God! I was so embarrassed that I couldn’t say a goddam word! I sort of strated to stammer: „Well.. I.. I..” Then she really started to laugh, old Dóra. „Well, I’m sorry guys, but I have to rush now for my next lecture, was nice meeting you anyway Mr. Caulfield, I hope we will meet again sometimes, maybe at your next lecture?” –she said in a funny way and left with that lovely wide smile on her face. I was still standing there, you know, shocked and all when I said to Attila: „Why on earth didn’t you tell me that she is also studying English for Chrissake?” „Probably ’cuz you never asked?..” –was his answer and I realized that I can’t get sore at him just because of that. How could he know that I’m a hopeless liar and all. So we just went on our way out of the building. Meanwhile I couldn’t get her out of my mind old Dóra for I really wanted to meet her again.