Perhaps Reverie

what kind of luck that is

Sometimes I take the bus to work. Sometimes I take line 6 because it drops me three blocks from my workplace, but it requires a nine block walk to get to. Today I took the 44 because it was arriving in three minutes (though the 4 will work exactly the same, has more frequent service and is 200 feet closer to my house). Either of these two buses require a transfer downtown, which is why I like them: downtown is foggy and it wakes up with me in the morning.

So I’m downtown in 11 minutes and I walk a block north to Burnside because I know that all of the 12, 19, and 20 lines stop between 5th and 6th on Burnside. Any one of these buses will roll three blocks away from my work. At this rate, I’m likely to be on time.

During the entirety of this first half of my two block walk from one bus to another I hear sirens and they are growing louder. I get to the corner. I hear a woman scream. I look across the street. I see a middle aged woman, likely homeless, screaming at her tiny dog as it runs into street.

Into the middle of Burnside.

Two or three lanes of traffic in each direction. A major train crossing. Tons of buses coming from every direction.

Its not even safe for people.

And there’s an ambulance bearing down on us all, coming from a direction I cannot seem to place.

The dog is yipping and barking and running in nonsensical circles, its leash flying all over the place. The ambulance comes ripping into the middle of the intersection. Everything is stopped except for the frantic dog and its frantic owner and the screeching tires as the huge vehicle comes to a halt. The sirens are howling at the dog, the dog is running in tight, jump riddled circles, the woman is screaming like a lunatic.

The dog turns and trots back to its owner.

The ambulance wails off towards the bridge.

I cross the street, and watch the woman scoop up her dog. She says to it, “you’re lucky that was an ambulance” and I wonder what kind of luck that is.

My bus comes within 30 seconds and the rest of my day is colored by what kind of luck it all is.

be bold

Years later, I’m still chasing simplicity and its still evasive as ever.