OK....so it's been a while since I've been here. I'm not convinced I am letting down a single soul (other than myself), so I'm not exactly penitant.
On a side note, my girlfriend of five and a half years is in the process of leaving, so things 'round the old homestead have sort of taken precedence over coming here to hang out. Naah mean? (read that as "You know what I mean?" City slang attributed to teaching junior high/high school English for way too many years)
Anyhoo...
I met two guys this morning. Town workers who happened to be paving in the area and happened to be walking toward the entrance of the grocery store coffee shop at the exact time that I happened to be exiting my Jeep to do the same. The younger guy--somewhere in his early to mid 20s--was dressed in a chartreuse town shirt and jeans and the older guy dressed similarly in an orange town shirt. I smiled at them as I exited the Jeep...y'see...here's the thing. The red Jeep--the (ex?) g/f's--has been lifted approximately six or so inches. Not much in the big scheme of things, but considering that Jeeps already sit a tiny bit higher than cars, that six inches might as well be a mile. Where as I can exit my own Jeep sideways, one leg at a time, this Jeep, I sort of have to hop out of. If I try to slide out one leg at a time, I end up having to hold onto the steering wheel and sliding out like an infant trying to get off the couch. What I have chosen to do, instead, is turn myself sideways in the seat so that both legs are hanging out of the door at the same time and just hop out.
Here's the rub.
Depending on how far forward I've ratcheted the seat, sometimes the distance between myself and the steering wheel isn't exactly great enough for me to make a smooth egress. Yeah...It's not real graceful.
So, as I ungracefully made my way out of the Jeep, I glanced up at the two guys that were looking at me and grinned.
Arriving at the entrance door at about the same time, the older of the two guys swept open the door for me in a chivalrous gesture.
Fast forward to our simultaneous approach to the coffee counter where he, once again, chivalrously offered a "ladies first". For the next few minutes, we made small talk as we waited for my drink and his turn to order. He told me that he'd eaten WAY too much seafood the night before (and, in rattling off his fare, I couldn't do anything but agree with him) and I told him of a recent weight loss that a meal like that would have destroyed. Younger guy rolled up at that point and stood to the side listening to our conversation, but not adding anything of his own.
When it came time for older guy to place his order, he went with a "Mango/Pineapple Protein Smoothie" with a banana thrown in for good measure. I thought he was joking, and wound up looking at him like his was joking.
He wasn't.
And he told me that I now had to wait around until it was finished so that I could try a taste.
I gotta admit; I was a little stressed about the familiarity of the action with such an unfamiliar person. But, as I am 40...and recently singled, I informed myself that I would be doing a lot more things than I have historically done. Add to that mix that I really hate telling people "no," and well...there you have it.
We continued to make small talk for the next few minutes...about his job, flying and motorcycling (which he doesn't do because he fears "blue-haired old ladies in the welding goggles, late for their hair appointments - which were yesterday--that were going to be the ones to take his leg off." Point taken.)
He peeled the end wrapping off a straw and extended it to me and when he dropped the paper on the floor and I bent to pick it up, he, in a friendly way, jostled me out of the way and told me not to dare. I jostled him back and let him pick the paper up.
Evidently, the girl behind the counter was listening to everything we'd said, as, when she handed him his drink, she handed me a small one of my own. It was a tasty as he said it would be. And, at this point, the younger guy spoke up and added, "They have strawberry/banana too," and nodded.
So, there's the story. I'll not comment, and leave you to your own comments on it. Suffice to say, Western new York really does have some really nice people.
No comments:
Post a Comment