Have you ever had one of those moments where you were completely invested in the moment while simultaneously being totally conscious of how bizarre that moment truly was?
Well, I had one of those moments on Sunday. It was nutty and awesome and surreal and remarkable.
I actually met someone.
(Before I go any further, that album cover has nothing to do with this post. I'm just a huge fan of The Beatnuts and I've always loved that album cover.)
The last few days there's been a convention for the visually impaired. So Baltimore's Inner Harbor has been flooded with service dogs and long canes. When I hit the busstop after work, see two visually impaired people and another younger couple waiting at for the bus.
I had about a 20 minute wait for the next bus. Now usually I'd just walk. I like walking and I like making progress. And I really don't live that far from where I work. But for some reason on that day I stayed and waited.
Almost immediately this young woman catches my eye. She's cute. I try to read the body language between her and the dude and as near as I can tell, they aren't together or it's a first date. But I'm really not in the mood to make any sort of effort.
From my vantage point, I can see virtually every guy that walks past her check her out. I'm talking middle aged white guys, young kids, police officers. It's actually quite entertaining to witness. And naturally, every so often, we exchange glances.
And then something out of the ordinary happens. She flags down one of the Charm City Circulators and convinces them to stop and allow the visually impaired couple to get on, despite them not being at an actual Circulator stop. It's an impressive feat made moreso by the good naturedness of it.
It's equally impressive because the guy she was talking to also takes the opportunity to get on the Circulator, leaving just she and I to wait for the bus.
Immediately I compliment her on her act of altruism. It's a rare enough feat that I'm compelled to applaud it. I mean, I highly doubt that most people would go out of their way to help a complete stranger, but maybe that's just my jaded urban-ness typing.
We make the typical small talk and the essential biographical elements are dispensed. I let two busses pass me by, because I'm enthralled in conversation. I'm completely impressed with every aspect of her and that's huge, because I hate people.
We finally get on her bus and for the first time in a year, I'm kicking myself for having moved to Charles Village, because it means I can literally count the number of stops to my exit on two hands.
I continue talking to her and she continues to make an impression. I probably make an impression on her, but I'm so slayed that I can't be sure. Eventually I get off (one stop passed mine) and I'm so caught up in the moment that I neglect to get her number.
That's right; I didn't get her number.
But I do know where she works and I told her I'd stop by. She didn't seem to believe me.
And the truly nutty thing is that I'd be totally content with platonic friendship. That's how awesome a human being she is; I just want to be in her presence in the hopes that some of her genuine goodness rubs off on me.
Crazy, right?
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