a place to live

juggertown, that's what it's called. it's a small town with beautiful scenery. colorful flowers spreading all around forming cashmere rug view, humid air, trustful neighborhood, cute little kids on their bikes. a town of future hope, a town of happy living.

now edie somehow found out about juggertown by accident. he was being hooked by a real estate agent to live in the middle of the city's nonstop rush living when he decided to take a random trip south. he'd been pulled aside by an officer for reason unknown, and just when the inspection clarified as the officer's mistake and he started the engine to do a u-turn back to the city, he took a look to his left, and there it was: juggertown.

he drove all the way around juggertown and exchanged some friendly smiles with the people. he thought: 'this is a place where I can achieve my goals.'

now yes, there is an unpopular belief that had been in his mind since he didn't know exactly when. contradictory to his beer-buddies' choice of life, edie had always thought how wonderful it would be to live among friendly people, not paying any attention to the stockmarket updates, be the person his neighborhood can always count on for doing small-yet-not-everyone-can-do things, and live to do a thing he had always been passionate about: painting.

rather impulsively, edie agreed to sign the paper which declared that he was the new owner of a small three-bedrooms house around the corner of a small street in juggertown. three days after, he was all packed, he quit being a lawyer, bought medium-sized canvases, and became one of the juggertown's happy people.

while falling in love to juggertown takes a split second, surviving it is a whole different story.

well, there's always a possibility that edie is rather slow in adapting to a new place. but there is also a possibility that juggertown gives no mercy for a newbie. in this case, it's more likely the second possibility that happened.

juggertown is friendly: to its people.
juggertown is pretty: that's why it's hard to fit in.
juggertown provides comfort and peaceful living: if you could manage to survive the first two points.
and juggertown can, and definitely will, kick someone out if it feels like he/she is inappropriate, or in another phrase: 'not juggertown enough'.

that made all the reason for edie to hide his true self. ironically, the only place where he thought could deliver himself the life he had always wanted was 'not edie enough'. it didn't pay much respect to single guys with no wife and kids nor to his interest in painting. they worshiped family people. and he had to pretend he was one, you know, for the sake of getting along.

but then what is a place to live if it can't give you the life you have always wanted? at one point you will feel safe from people around you, but how long will it last? and somewhere along the road, won't you feel tired of pretending to be anyone that you're not? what is 'safe'? what is 'happy'? should we always choose either one or the other?