It was february 2025, and I even had some videos about eggs (brazilian eggs) that I’ve been buying from various places around here, in a part of Rio de Janeiro. I was planning to make a video about the egg situation — the kind of eggs I’ve been able to find here.

But that february, I felt like doing something different, so I went to a mall in Nova Iguaçu.

I’ve had plenty of annoyances (and not just annoyances) on several occasions when I ate at McDonald’s, so I decided to go to Burger King instead (a fast food chain that I think started in Florida, and was called InstaBurger back in the 1950s).

When I arrived at the restaurant, something caught my attention:

The "collectible items" were a set from "The Addams Family." But here’s the detail: the “toys” (if you can even call them that) looked old — even used. There were scratches, stains, and signs of wear on the items — including Gomez, Morticia, and Uncle Fester… all the items on display at the Burger King counter.

And this was february — February 11th — not November 2nd. It wasn’t the Day of the Dead. I looked at the Burger King screen and saw that the monthly collectible items were not a (used) Addams Family set, but actually Naruto — in the form of a big-headed, small-bodied figure, with a somewhat square head rounded at the corners. One of those modern collectible figurines. Even so, I bought the combo. There was a "promotion," and I got a Rodeio burger and an Atomic (called "Atômico" here in Brazil).

There were some weird things. Before eating, I opened up one of the burgers and saw that part of the patty was missing — with melted cheese covering the area where a chunk had clearly been removed. I asked for a replacement. They gave me a new one.

I sat down at a table to eat.

What happened?

The “meat” didn’t feel like fast food hamburger meat. And the bacon strip? I bit into it, then tried to pull the sandwich away to tear the piece, but I saw the bacon stretching as I pulled the burger — it looked like a viscera, like what you see in documentaries (or even up close, depending on where you are) — a scavenger bird pulling with its beak, the organ stretching as the bird tries to tear off a piece to eat.

I ate it, and I didn’t like it. It was horrible. It wasn’t the only experience of this kind I’ve had around here, but this wasn’t some little corner shop or dive bar — this was an American company. That’s where the name of this site comes from: nearandfarfromme.com

What can I say? I wonder if I’m expected to say something like:

"It wasn’t november 2nd, but still, someone (or a crew) just stick around (the burger king) to deliver this message — and not just that — deeply macabre"?

Again, I can’t say that bad experiences like this only happen at certain “establishments” or “types of businesses” in these neighborhoods.

That’s where the name of this site comes from: nearandfarfromme.com