cs

Sheldon Mackenzie
Berlin

. So I went to Berlin on exchange and a week and
a half into the experience I ruptured my left lung by
breathing in coal dust. It was quite painful, in fact, and it
was quite strange, and when I went to the emergency
room they were apprehensive about taking me. They were
like, "Have you been to Africa? Have you been in contact
with the AIDS virus?" And I’m like, "No, this is my first
time east of North America. Just check me out." So they
took blood and they took an x-ray, and the picture came
back with my left lung about the size of two toonies. They
told me that my left lung was ruptured and I laughed. But
that hospital was really good because they specialized in
lung malfunctions and stuff like that, so I was fine. They
stuck a tube in my chest with a vacuum hooked up to it to
suck the air out from around the cavity to reinflate my
lung. After two days it was seventy-five percent better.
They said there was no use for me to be in that hospital
any more cause it was really expensive, fourteen patients
for the floor, seven nurses. So they shipped me to anoth-
er hospital in south Berlin. That’s where all the problems
started. I get there and the next day the surgeons come
around and they’re like, "Oh, Mr. McKenzie, you know
that your left lung was ruptured." And they called it a
spontaneous thing because they don’t know that there’s
coal dust floating around in the air in Berlin, because
every apartment is heated by coal. They said, "You might
want to think about surgery." And I was like, "What?
Surgery?" They were like, "Yeah, well, you know, it could
happen again." And I’m thinking, well, my lung is already
seventy-five percent better after two days. I don’t really
want surgery. And so they said, "Yeah, so just think about
it." So I thought about it, and meanwhile people are com-
ing in with big smiles saying, "So! Have you thought about
the surgery? It could happen again." So when I decided
not to have the surgery three people came in, one after the
other, asking me if I was sure I didn’t want to have the
surgery with frowns on their faces. And I was like, these
guys really want to cut me. Uh-huh, you guys want to cut
me badly. So after that; I decided, no, P’ll take the thera-
py. They took the tube out of my chest and replaced it
with a huge one in my back, and they stuck it too far
down, so it was rubbing against my organs. I was in a
massive amount of pain. I was like that for two days until
they x-rayed me and found out that it was too low, so they
said, "Oh, we have to pull it out." So they pulled it out a
little bit and I was like, "Uuuooonnngh." And finally they
got it right and they shipped me downstairs to the rehab.
Rehab was another story...

But I'd like to say that the exchange experience
was the best experience of my life, so don’t let that hospi-
tal story discourage you from going to Berlin cause it’s a
wicked school, the school of design.

Tara Rudnickas
Paris

My school, basically it was like -I’ve told this
story to everyone already- it was kind of like a big old
museum. You walk in and there’s these big pillars kind of
fallen in the grass and all these old statues falling apart.
Very romantic. And then you walk in and everybody kind
of acts like they’re already famous artists. That and the
only other thing I can think of to tell you is how everybody
smoked. I walked into the cafeteria and everybody’s
smoking, like working, smoking, whatever. You go into all
the studios, everyone’s smoking. Like, in the printmaking
rooms they’re smoking. Hazardous chemicals? That’s
okay, you know. And then in the classroom, like in cri-
tiques, the artist or the teacher who was there was just,
like, chain-smoking as she’s critiquing the work, making
sure the ash is away from the photos. That was really
good, yep. And basically the only way to get around that
was to take up chain-smoking. Healthy city.

someone in Germany

poor Sheldon with a tube in his chest

Andrew Bryden
Edinburgh

After I finished school in Scotland I flew to Paris
with my bike and rode to Amsterdam, and I took all the
backroads through Northern France, Belgium, and
Holland and slept wherever I could. And one night I slept
in the ruins of a thirteenth century cathedral inside the
walls of a castle. I just wrapped up, I had woolly socks on
my hands, no sleeping bag, no tent, no pillow, just behind a
hedge, and I had my rain jacket over my legs and my fleece
just on top of me. And my touque, luckily I had my touque.
Then this fog came rolling in and it was so, so cold. The
fog came in and I woke up at about three in the morning
and it was just too cold, so I walked around the castle walls
looking into people’s apartments and stuff cause it was real-
ly high up. I was so tired that I finally just descended down
into the city, Caan, and slept in the doorway of a bank the
rest of the night, then woke up at four or five in the morn-
ing. Got on my way. Then another two nights I slept just
in the forest where I could find a spot. Then one night I
came rolling into the town of Bavee, way up in Northern
France, and it looked like a huge storm was coming in. But

it was about six o’clock on a Sunday so nothing was open
except for this little museum in this guy’s house. So I went
into the museum, started talking to him. He said there’s no
hotels or hostels or anything like that, but he directed me to
this guy who runs the bicycle club. He gave me a map and
wrote me a little note for the guy and I rode down to his
house and knocked on the door and talked to him. He said,
"Yeah, we’ve got an old schoolhouse, an old abandoned
schoolhouse that we use for meetings." So he got on his
bike and took me down there and gave me the key. There
was one bed in the whole place. He said, "In the morning
just take this key to the guy across the street." I spent the
night there and there was a fridge full of beer, and he said
to just leave two francs on the counter if I had anything.
And so there’s this fridge full of beer, and there was a t.v.
and a shower and kitchen and everything. There was also
food, like bags of chips and stuff like that. I just spent the
night in there and about eight in the morning took off on
my way to Amsterdam. So that was good.

influx: Magazine, October 1999 31

Sheldon Mackenzie
Berlin

So I went to Berlin on exchange and a week and
‘half into the experience I ruptured my left lung by
breathing in coal dust. It was quite painful, infact, and it
was quite strange, and when T went to the emergency
room they were apprehensive about taking me. They were
, "Have you been to Africa? Have you been in contact
No, this is my frst
time east of North America. Just check me out." So they
took blood and they took an ray, and the picture came
back with my left lung about the sizeof two toonies. They
told me that my left ung was ruptured and I laughed. But
that hospital was really good because they specialized in
lung malfunctions and stuff ike that, 0 Iwas fine. They
stuck a tube in my chest with a vacuuim hooked up to i t0
suck the air out from around the cavity to reinflate my
lung. After two days it was seventy-five percent better
They said there was no use for me to be in that hospital
any more cause it was realy expensive, fourteen patients
for the floor, seven nurses, So they shipped me to anoth-
er hospital in south Berlin. ‘That's where all the problems
started. I get there and the next day the surgeons come
around and they're like, "Oh, Mr. McKenzie, you know
that your left lung was ruptured.” And they called it a
spontaneous thing because they don’t know that there's
coal dust floating around in the air in Berlin, because
every apartment is heated by coal. They said, "You might
want to think about surgery.” And T was like, "What?
Surgery?" They were like, "Yeah, well, you know, it could
hhappen again." And I'm thinking, well, my lung is already
seventy-five percent better after two days, I don’t really
want surgery. And so they said, "Yeah, so just think about
it.” So I thought about it, and meanwhile people are com-
ing in with big smiles saying, "So! Have you thought about
the surgery? It could happen again." So when I decided
‘otto have the surgery three people came in, one after the
other, asking me if T was sure I didn't want to have the
surgery with frowns on their faces. And I was like, these
guys really want to cut me. Uh-hub, you guys want to cut
‘me badly. So after that; I decided, no, Vl take the thera-
py. They took the tube out of my chest and replaced it
With a huge one i’ my back, and they stuck it too far
down, so it was rubbing against my organs. T was in a
‘massive amount of pain, Iwas like that for two days until
they x-rayed me and found out that it was to0 low; so they
said, “Oh, we have to pul it out.” So they pulled it out a
Title bit and Iwas like, "Uuuooonnngh." And finally they
got it right and they shipped me downstairs to the rehab.
Rehab was another story

But [a like to say that the exchange experience
was the best experience of my life, 50 don't let that hospi-
tal story discourage you from going to Berlin cause it's @
wicked school, the schoo! of design

Tara Rudnickas
Paris

My school, basically it was like -I've told this
story to everyone already. it was kind of like a big old
‘museum, You walk in and there's these big pillars kind of
fallen in the grass and all these old statues falling apart.
ery romantic, And then you walk in and everybody kind
of acts like they're already famous artists. ‘That and the
‘only other thing I can think of to tell you is how everybody
smoked, I walked into the cafeteria and everybody's
smoking, like working, smoking, whatever. You go into all
the studios, everyone's smoking. Like, inthe printmaking
rooms they're smoking. Hazardous chemicals? Thats
‘okay, you know. And then in the classroom, like in cri
tiques, the artist or the teacher who was there was just,
like, chain-smoking as she's critiquing the work, making
sure the ash is away from the photos. ‘That was really
‘good, yep. And basically the only way to get around that
‘was to take up chain-smoking, Healthy city

“poor

Andrew Bryden
Edinburgh

‘After [finished school in Scotland I flew to Paris
with my bike and rode to Amsterdam, and I took all the
backroads through Northern France, Belgium, and
Holland and slept wherever I could, And one night I slept
in the ruins of a thirteenth century cathedral inside the
walls of a castle. I just wrapped up, I had woolly socks on
miy hands, no sleeping bag, no tent, no pillow just behind a
hedge, and I had my rain jacket over my legs and my fleece
just on top of me. And my rouque, luckily had my tougue.
‘Then this fog came rolling in and it was $0, s0 cold.

fog came in and I woke up at about three in the morning
and it was just too cold, s0 I walked around the castle walls
looking into people's apartments and stuff cause it was real-
Iy high up. Iwas so tired that I finally just descended down
into the city, Caan, and slept in the doorway of a bank the
rest of the night, then woke up at four or five in the morn-
ing. Got on my way. ‘Then another two nights I slept just
in the forest where T could find a spot. Then one night
came rolling into the town of Bavee, way up in Northern
France, and it looked like a huge storm was coming in. But

it was about six o'clock on a Sunday so nothing was open
except for this litte museum in this guy’s house. So I went
into the museum, started talking to him. He said there's no
hhotels or hostels or anything like that, bur he directed me to
this guy who runs the bicycle club. He gave me a map and
wrote me a litte note for the guy and I rode down to his
house and knocked on the door and talked to him. He said,
‘Yeah, we've got an old schoolhouse, an old abandoned
schoolhouse that we use for mectings.” So he got on his
bike and took me down there and gave me the key. There
was one bed in the whole place. He said, "In the morning
just take this key tothe guy across the street.” I spent the
night there and there was a fridge fll of beer, and he said
to just leave two francs on the counter if I had anything,
And so there's this fridge full of beer, and there was a tv
land a shower and kitchen and everything. There was also
food, like bags of chips and stuff ike that. I just spent the
night in there and about eight in the morning took off on
‘my way to Amsterdam. So that was good.

influx Magazine. October 1999 31