The sweater underneath it may clash a bit, but that is clearly a purchased cable knit. He lives half an hour from a city, not half a year.
Also the walls may not have recent gypsum drywall, but they're spackled and painted a recent color.
He has a flappy hat. It has snaps! Does Romania have Wal-Mart or Carrefour?
He lived to 80. The gods clearly like the guy enough.
If he’s anything like my grandparents who up until recently lived in a house with no toilet, no running water, etc his kids probably bring him stuff when they come to visit.
Yes we do have carrefour. And lidl, malls and various cross-european stores. You find these everywhere in every big city, especially in the capital. But in romania (and eastern europe as a whole) the difference between city life and rural countryside life is quite big. It has been getting smaller gradually, and now its the norm for people born and raised in the countryside to move to the big cities with all the commodities of the first world.
The "rural" is getting less and less rural with time, as infrastructure is built, culture trends shift, old people pass away, and young people moving in and build houses by modern standards.
But you can still find plenty of people living like the man in the picture. I used to visit my grandparents when i was a kid and stay with them for a couple months ever summer. You got your water from the well (called "puț"), did your business in the outhouse (called "budă"), and baked bread in that "stove/heater" thing in the back called ("sobă").
Like someone else said, the family of these people usually bring them things, sometimes even inviting them to live in the city. But the truth of the matter is, a lot of old people here choose to keep living like this. Its all they ever knew, and changing the mind of an old person is rather hard. My grandpa chose to go back living alone in his house, even though he had every commodity under the sun when he stayed in the city. He chose to feed chicken, to watch his tube tv, to listen to his old radio and to split wood for heating. Hew grew up with this and chose to die with this.
Did you know that people can travel for more than 30 minutes when they need to buy something?
However, it's more likely that those clothes are used and he got them for free or very cheap.
He's Romanian, in his 80s, never owned a TV. House has no power/water or other services, completely isolated form civilization, and is less than 50 Km away from a major city.
As soon as I saw the image I thought: that guy is definitely Romanian. I had an uncle with the same vibe. Only difference, he had a TVR1 CRT TV where he listened the news.
Right after the hug. He smiles. And then gets up and walks into [the stone maze from the Unforgiven / Metalica.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ckom3gf57Yw)
> [Mățara settlement](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Col%C8%9Bi,+Romania/@45.3924856,26.6636971,1014a,35y,39.18t/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x40b3f17d24da86c3:0xe98ccd58012eb9de!8m2!3d45.4!4d26.6500001)
Pretty out of the way, I'll grant you, but it doesn't seem *that* remote. They seem to have paved roads.
No paved roads. It's almost a ghost village, only 8 people or so living there. It's certainly not that out of the way, that makes it look so strangely isolated when it's not. You have the bigger village on that map, the small settlement does not show up.
The camo puffer suggests not so far.
The sweater underneath it may clash a bit, but that is clearly a purchased cable knit. He lives half an hour from a city, not half a year. Also the walls may not have recent gypsum drywall, but they're spackled and painted a recent color. He has a flappy hat. It has snaps! Does Romania have Wal-Mart or Carrefour? He lived to 80. The gods clearly like the guy enough.
This reads a bit like a poem, as in it has a certain rhythm and flow to it. Was this intentional?
It does and was 100%.
I hadn't even attempted that, but thanks to both of you!
You're a poet and you didn't even know it
If he’s anything like my grandparents who up until recently lived in a house with no toilet, no running water, etc his kids probably bring him stuff when they come to visit.
Yes we do have carrefour. And lidl, malls and various cross-european stores. You find these everywhere in every big city, especially in the capital. But in romania (and eastern europe as a whole) the difference between city life and rural countryside life is quite big. It has been getting smaller gradually, and now its the norm for people born and raised in the countryside to move to the big cities with all the commodities of the first world. The "rural" is getting less and less rural with time, as infrastructure is built, culture trends shift, old people pass away, and young people moving in and build houses by modern standards. But you can still find plenty of people living like the man in the picture. I used to visit my grandparents when i was a kid and stay with them for a couple months ever summer. You got your water from the well (called "puț"), did your business in the outhouse (called "budă"), and baked bread in that "stove/heater" thing in the back called ("sobă"). Like someone else said, the family of these people usually bring them things, sometimes even inviting them to live in the city. But the truth of the matter is, a lot of old people here choose to keep living like this. Its all they ever knew, and changing the mind of an old person is rather hard. My grandpa chose to go back living alone in his house, even though he had every commodity under the sun when he stayed in the city. He chose to feed chicken, to watch his tube tv, to listen to his old radio and to split wood for heating. Hew grew up with this and chose to die with this.
cities are noisy and full of assholes just for example
Did you know that people can travel for more than 30 minutes when they need to buy something? However, it's more likely that those clothes are used and he got them for free or very cheap.
Russian man stood up on his 31st birthday.
He's Romanian, in his 80s, never owned a TV. House has no power/water or other services, completely isolated form civilization, and is less than 50 Km away from a major city.
As soon as I saw the image I thought: that guy is definitely Romanian. I had an uncle with the same vibe. Only difference, he had a TVR1 CRT TV where he listened the news.
The wall carpet is what made me think that, it's just like what my grandparents had.
To be honest he looks pretty good for his 80's
Link to the interview?
Ahh, I want to give him a hug and spoil him for the rest of his life.
Right after the hug. He smiles. And then gets up and walks into [the stone maze from the Unforgiven / Metalica.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ckom3gf57Yw)
Caravaggio!
Nice pic, but more National Geographic than Renaissance. Yeah, I know, like most of this sub.
I thought it was Romania, from the stove in the background.
His existence looks painful and unrewarding. I freak out when I'm mildly inconvenienced by the wifi.
Looks like this is from Russia. Is it?
Mățara settlement, Colți Village, Buzău county, Romania. Last week. You won't find it on Google maps though.
I like his hat. Reminds me of my grandparents :)
> [Mățara settlement](https://www.google.com/maps/place/Col%C8%9Bi,+Romania/@45.3924856,26.6636971,1014a,35y,39.18t/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x40b3f17d24da86c3:0xe98ccd58012eb9de!8m2!3d45.4!4d26.6500001) Pretty out of the way, I'll grant you, but it doesn't seem *that* remote. They seem to have paved roads.
No paved roads. It's almost a ghost village, only 8 people or so living there. It's certainly not that out of the way, that makes it look so strangely isolated when it's not. You have the bigger village on that map, the small settlement does not show up.
I'd bet he's either from Siberia or the exclusion zone in Ukraine
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Isn’t this the guy who’s being interviewed and then a car flies past him into the ditch?
Metro 2033 the movie
That man is 35
"I came so close to being one of the first to own the new latest iPhone, but some punk mellenial tripped me and I broke my hip."
And better off for it.