Nutty neighbour

I'm not arguing with you, but to me it's pretty much a case of "what you see is what you get".

One doesn't hear the term "eccentric" much any more, perhaps because life in general has become increasingly absurd and crazy. But Beck's neighbor X (I can't remember if we ever learn his name) seems like a classic "free spirit" eccentric neighbor.

I don't think the stereotypical "nutty neighbor" is particularly Swedish; it seems to be a universal dramatic/comic stereotype. I don't know if you're familiar with US TV, and the famous "Seinfeld" sitcom, but X is somewhat like Jerry's neighbor Kramer: basically good-hearted, but quirky and too often an intrusive, self-absorbed pest.

My former next-door neighbor, who's long since passed away, was much older than X but a little bit like him. He didn't wear a cervical collar, or conspicuously drink, but he often sat outside on his front porch or rear patio and called me over when he noticed me coming and going.

Typically, as with Beck, he popped up at the most inopportune times. Like Beck with X, I usually humored him-- but when I really wasn't in the mood for his company, I'd try to tiptoe past or cross the street and circle back so I could sneak into my house without him noticing.

Both on TV and in real life, with such characters a little goes a long way.

I wonder how many (if any) of his stories are true.