Is Your Refrigerator Running? Better Go Catch It! (but really...)

Yesterday, I almost had my "traumatic experience in the host family home" experience. I've heard a lot of horror stories about students who have had some pretty bad luck (the worst being the story of a kid who lost the family dog while walking it and it ended up getting hit by a car!) , so I've been extra careful not to make myself one of “those” students. This entry has absolutely nothing to do with integrating myself into Danish culture or traveling somewhere exciting; it is purely for your enjoyment, and will hopefully add an extra laugh to your day. Plus, it's just one of those things that would totally happen to me.

My mornings are very structured and I stick to a tight schedule: wake up, run, shower (3 minutes!), get dressed, eat breakfast while making lunch, bike to train station, don't miss train. There really is not much room for any "mishaps," but now I think I should probably start waking up ten minutes earlier.

Anyways, I went into the kitchen to make something to eat- yogurt and granola (it is essential that I do not go a day without this breakfast staple...it's so good!). In typical fashion, I opened the refrigerator and stared at its contents for a good five minutes, contemplating the possibilities to bring for lunch. All the sudden, I heard the apple on the shelf fall to the floor. I thought, "Huh. That's odd." I was still in the midst of scanning the side compartments and about to grab the pesto off the shelf when all of the drawers seemed to spontaneously open all on their own. I turned my head and saw the drawers, shelves, (okay, who am I kidding...the entire refrigerator) tipping towards me. I was so surprised/horrified/appalled/scared/wide-eyed that I didn’t even know what to think. But I’m pretty sure it was somewhere along the lines of, “Holy crap (PG version)!” “What the heck (PG version) do I do!??!?!?!?!?!”  “Where is Dad when you need him?” “Definitely did not save enough time to deal with the falling refrigerator today.”

So, here I am, now standing in a lunge position, arms outstretched, literally holding the entire refrigerator to prevent it from crashing to the ground (Maybe that lifting paid off after all). I tried giving it a little push, but when I released my hold it began to tip right back towards me. Again, holding the refrigerator, I went through all of the possible outcomes of the situation in my head:

Scenario A) "The preferred outcome": I miraculously have the ability to bench press 200 pounds more than I am capable of and have the strength to push the refrigerator back into its proper position. No one will ever know that anything happened.

Scenario B) "The not-so preferred outcome." I stand there all day holding the refrigerator because I am not strong enough to push it back into place.

Scenario C) "The really-not-so-preferred outcome." I try to push it back into place, and think it is okay, but it really is not. Or, I try to stand there all day but realize I am actually not strong enough to do that. Either way, it will come crashing down and will shatter across the kitchen floor along with all of its contents, ruining not only the refrigerator but everything else in the general vicinity. I don't think my host family gets compensated for students breaking expensive appliances. Oh, and I miss my train.

My arms were beginning to tire rather quickly, so I decided that Scenario A was the best option, although it was probably the least likely to be successful. Somehow though, fate was on my side and while I was not able to put it back in place, I was able to move it just enough so that it didn't fall right on top of me like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_nEr9AWayw ...except a refrigerator would probably hurt a lot more than a door.

I looked up to admire my handy work (must have inherited some good genes from Dad!) and thank God that I was not just killed by a refrigerator and saw that it was still tipped at an angle towards the ground. I gave it a gentle push, and breathed a sigh of relief when it stayed in that position and did not move closer to the ground. Needless to say, my lunch was on the small side, seeing as I did not dare to touch the refrigerator more than necessary. I called my host dad to inform him of the "strange situation," hoping he didn't think that I was just being a little too aggressive for breakfast and actually pulled it out of place myself. I wanted to leave a note to my little host sisters to be careful, but they do not understand that much English, so I figured that was pointless. I crossed my fingers that the same would not happen for them. I think my biggest concern though was for the dog. All I could think about all day was the refrigerator falling down on top of him. Then, not only would I be the host student that broke the refrigerator, but I'd be the host student that broke the refrigerator and crushed the dog.

Thankfully, when I got home, all family members (including the dog) were safe...although, the entire contents of the refrigerator were emptied onto the kitchen counter. Not to fret though, because all is well now!