Hello,
I'm Mervi Eskelinen!
An artist, nerd and sorcerer, dedicated to make world softer and better for everyone, and to get you to make more art. Make art, change the world!
Life as viewed by a short person
I'm short. Just a tad over one and a half meter, that's about 5 feet.
When I hear tall people complaining about being tall I want to punch them in face. If I wasn't too short to be able to do that, that is. Tall people look so grand and awesome to me. Like some fantastic fairytale creatures. How I wish I had long legs!
Being a shorty isn't always a total misery, but it comes with interesting side effects. When I was a teen the mean kids called me (amongst other things) a fire extinguisher. It wasn't meant to be a cute pet name, trust me.
I also learned to hate all the group sports, when the bigger girls kept charging over like a herd of wild animals. That's how it seemed and felt for the tiny girl.
Talking with other's hurts my neck. If you talk to me and I seem to be watching elsewhere, it might be because you are taller than me and keeping my eyes fixed to yours is a restrain. I'm not kidding here, it really is. Being short also means that taller people always look me down. Whether they meant it or not.
I tend to be mistaken as a younger person than I am. Considerably younger. I also have a young face, but the size is a big factor in this. It doesn't really help that I'm also skinny. Recently someone mistook me as a 20 year old (I'm 32). Perhaps I will later write about looking younger than you are.
People also tend to see me harmless. They are very very wrong. Beware of the small ones.
Since teenage I haven't been able to find pants that wouldn't have too long legs for me. In some cases I can leave them as is, but certain types of pants must always be cut down. On the other hand I cannot wear capris, cause they tend to be too long (for a capri) or they "cut my legs and make me look even shorter.
Long dresses and skirts are usually out of question, unless they are really easy to shorten down. Coats are also a problem, especially winter coats. Long coats are too long, like the long skirts and mid length have the same problem as the capri pants. Though clothing seems to be a problem in general if you aren't the average height and width. Who is, I wonder.
The strangest thing is that sometimes clothing stores decide to put the smaller clothes to upper shelves and bigger ones down. I don't know how does that make really any sense. Well, in case they have any small clothes in store. Anyways, that's probably something for another post as well.
Speaking of stores: Shopping tends to be problematic for me. Upper shelves are out of my reach. Hint for all the shop assistants: If a short person asks for help in reaching for something, don't offer one of those step thingies for them. They might have a bad balance. Just help, it's good for the sales. In time to time I ask other shoppers to help me. Men are especially helpful. The help often comes with an amused look.
Drunk guys have a tendency of finding my shortness especially cute. With a slur they go: "You are so small!" Yes, I know, I've been like this forever.
Going to see a movie in a theater is exiting. What if someone really tall sits in front of me? Will someone have a high hairdo, which I will be seeing through the movie, blocking the subtitles partially. I have watched movies sitting on my winter coat or just sitting in a very straight posture. Sorry for those behind me, it's a ripple effect.
I've noticed a funny difference in when I wear high heels and when I don't. Short people get walked over all the time. I don't mean (only) figuratively, I mean seriously walked over. If I wouldn't jump of the way of some people, I'd be bruised and hurt all the time. Wearing high heels on the other hand makes folks see me and steer clear.
Taller people don't always realize that a short person sees the world from a very different point of view than them. A short person cannot see over other people or shelves or things like that. On the other hand we may notice things you don't, seeing things from the lower level.
Homes and furniture are built for taller people in general. The kitchen cupboards are too high for someone with restricted height, closets have shelves that are totally out of reach and I have never in my life been able to install a lamp on a ceiling. The work table and chair combos leave me wrapping my legs under myself rather than let them hang above the floor.
Public transportation also can be problematic if I don't get a seat. There's a limited amount of things to hang on for someone shorter than average and the ones you can reach are slightly too high to be comfortable or really useful. As a plus side the seats located on the tyre aren't as much of a problem, if your legs aren't very long.
I feel sympathy for other short people. When I found out Carrie Fisher is from the shorter side, I was so happy I had at least something in common with Princess Leia. You've seen Return of the Jedi (1983), haven't you? She's HOT!
Being short comes with some career related restrictions too. I couldn't be a model. They are usually tall or at least taller than me. Not that I would be a very good model, but the height is the first problem. I also cannot become a flight attendant, for being one requires taller frame than mine. Jockeys are often short and small, though. There's a job for me!
This post isn't meant to be a complaint. Many things in this world are built for taller people nowadays and it can be a problem for us shorter ones. However I only wanted to explane to you "normal" sized and tall ones how us short people see the world. It's a different view for us.
As a matter of fact I have mostly learned to embrace my shortness and take everything out of it. I mean, it's cute, you know. I'm a pocket sized goddess.
Are you shorter than the average? What sort of problems do you have? What are the perks of being short? Do tell in the comments section!
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