Skip navigation

Tag Archives: commute

Walk-by Shouting

Last night, leaving the office, headed to the train, near the corner of Erie and Orleans and two kids round the corner. The one closer to me says to the other, “Watch this,” so I’m immediately on my guard cuz I know he means -me-….

As he passes me, he kinda stumbles at me and shouts, “Oh jesus! Fuck!” or something to that effect….

…a testament to my sanity that I didn’t do anything back, especially considering the events of yesterday. What? You don’t know what happened yesterday? Yeah, that’s what I thought, bubba.

Nothing Left to Lose

Last night on the way from the office to the train, I see a guy waving and smiling towards me — but I don’t recognize him, know him, so I figure he’s waving to someone behind me. I don’t acknowledge him, but as I walk past, he starts talking to me. I can smell the booze on his breath (of course) and can’t understand more than a third of the words he’s saying. I manage to pick out “brother” “unemployment office” and a few other words from a hard-luck story….

He tells me I look like a “smart guy;” like an “officer” and I wonder if my buzz cut (and my sheer buffitude) makes me look like I’m in the military or something.

But I’m not worried until he says he’s “got nothing left to lose” because those have got to be the words most often heard immeditately prior to a murder. Oy yoy yoy.

He never asks me for money though, so I don’t give him any and make it into the train station no worries.

Bizarre? Indeed!