Maija Merilahti, 39, is desperately seeking a new job after the sawmill where she used to work is destroyed in a fire. Life is really crappy. It seems impossible to find work in the small town of Lahti, Finland, and everybody is too busy to celebrate Maija's fortieth birthday, even her own mother and sister. To cheer herself up, Maija buys a pair of red boots. They are awfully tight though, so tight Maija can't get them off. Just another squeeze Maija finds herself in.