1999 - Too Many Choices

In this country we enjoy the opportunity to pick and choose from a wide range of varied products. In most of our memories that's how things have always been or have evolved to become...but what if you went from few choices to a multitude of choices overnight... would the effect be a surplus of joy at your good fortune or frustration at not being able to choose the one you desire TODAY in lieu of all the rest.

1999 – Too Many Choices

“Ok, Lairry, ve go get drink after verk, ok?”

“Sure, Alex,” I replied. Alex was a fairly new employee and the Maintenance Manager in charge of a good sized building and 8 employees. His office was immediately next to mine and, as there was a quarter wall of glass between each office we saw each other and spoke frequently. His heavy Russian accent was apparent but he had a fairly good command of the English language even though his syntax and enunciation was not perfect. We had spoken earlier in the week during our morning break and touched on his emigration to this country. “How long have you been here, then?” I inquired.

“4-Yearrs,” he rolled his R’s in a distinctly Russian manner, “My vife, tshe decide to moof to be close to tsizter. So we moof to US.” He paused, considering his next statement, “Yez, I vould be happier in Russia but after vife’s mother die tshe decide tshe vant to be close to tsizter.” He shrugged.

“Sounds like my house,” I said, “When my wife and I got married we decided right away that I would make the big decisions and she could make all of the little ones. So she decides if we buy a car or where we live and I decide if we go to war with Canada. So far war hasn’t become an issue. She says I'm doing a great job.” Alex looked at me wondering if he should smile...he finally decided I was joking and joined me in the joke. Fascinated by Alex’s statement regarding is desire to have stayed in Russia, and as break was ending I said, “We should get together some time for a drink after work, Alex. I’d like to know more about Russia and your story.”

“Yes, our vifes tsould tsimilar, Lairry. Tsure, ve tshould geet drrrink tsometime, Lairry.” We parted for our separate responsibilities.

That had been a few days ago, now he was confirming the current day as a good time to have a short get-together. We agreed to meet at the neighborhood bar at 4:00.

* * * * *

“Vood you like 'nother gin, Lairry?” I had bought the last round. Alex signaled the table girl and we continued our conversation.

“So you didn’t really want to leave home, huh? Do you like it here in the US?”

“Eess nice here but everything eez too different. Tings are mush tsempler in Russia.” He leaned forward. “I giff you example: Een Russia we haff two kinds of tsausage. Ve haff de regular tsausage dot efferevon eat for normal meals. Then we haff tsausage dot ees for tspecial occasions. Iz cozt more,” he shrugged, “but eez tspecial.” Alex paused. “Problem eez, in US eez tsimply too many choice uff tsausage. The other day I come home from tstore and my vife ask 'vhy you take tso long to tshop today?' I tell her I look for tsausage! I go to tsausage department! I see many, many tsausages! I tell her ‘After half-hour I am tstill trying to decide which tsausage!!’ Een US – eez too many choices! Eez much eazier in Russia!” Alex shook his head.

I had recently read articles about this. It seems too-many choices can serve to simply slow everything down because an overabundance of choices can make the decision less clear. For someone used to only limited choices an overabundance of selections can offer choices that look so desirable...or undesirable... that "this looks so good, but that looks so good and so does that, but that one over there is bigger where the smaller ones are more tender..." can make any choice at-all a challenge beyond the talents of some individuals. I hadn’t expected to hear such a vivid example so soon after reading about this condition.

I asked Alex, “What other things do you find different in this country…what things are the same?”

“Ahh,” said Alex, “Many things tstill tsame but maybe juzt little difference.”

“Like what?” I asked.

“Ve have vize tsayings from, I think you tsay, old-vives advice.” I noticed this was a slightly sideways way of identifying the source of old-standard sayings and cliches we all have all heard. “Een US, for instance you tsay ‘Don’t count chickens before hatch.’ Een Russia we haff tsimilar advize but juzt little differrent. In Russia ve tsay ‘Don’t try on coat while you are tstill hunting bear.’ Eez tsame but different.” Alex (t)smiled.

It didn’t take long to find Alex and I had much more in common than we had different.

From my observations and experiences: day-by-day people are pretty much the same…around the round world.