Amused Musings On A Slightly Absurd World

On Wednesday evening, August 26, my car broke down near the corner of North Highland and Ponce de Leon Ave, during the height of rush hour. I thought I had pushed my luck and simply run out of gas, but as it turned out my fuel pump was broken and the gas was not getting to where it needed to be. The car wouldn’t drive. So I did what any responsible adult would do. I maneuvered the car as far to the right as possible, put on my hazard lights, and called for help.

I’m sure the people behind me were frustrated, but most of them simply went around me and went on their way. And then you drove up on your silver scooter and matchy, matchy silver helmet. You were on the other side of the street, waiting for the light to change, traveling in the other direction and totally unaffected by my circumstances. Yet, you felt the need to assert yourself in my business and to yell at me from across the street, chastising me for “parking” where I didn’t belong, and calling me a F—ing B. Well, that did it. You broke my resolve when I was trying to work through a situation that was out of my control. And so I spewed forth a few choice words for you too and invited you to come push my car. You did to me what I should have done to you–turned your head and completely ignored me. I was angry at myself for letting you get to me. And your toxicity invaded my spirit for the rest of the night.

Fortunately, not everyone is like you. As I said before, most people just went around me, and a few people even offered to help. In fact, a few minutes after you left, two homeless men, and a 11 or 12 year-old boy, who was walking by with his mother, helped my father push my car out of the heavy traffic onto a side street. And so I was reminded of the kindness of strangers. Those three strangers who helped push my car, the man who towed my car, and the staff of the Pep Boys on Piedmont all treated me with courtesy and respect, behaviors which you seemingly could not muster.

I won’t lie, matchy, matchy ScooterBoy [and I do mean "boy" because no real man would have treated me as you did], for the past few days I have conjured up a few choice scenarios featuring you and a ditch. But stewing in that type of negativity is draining and unproductive. And anyway, my car is fixed now, and everything worked out okay.

But here are my final thoughts for you. If you should ever find yourself in a situation in which you need help or a kind word or just silence, I hope the people around you will treat you with calm, courtesy, and kindness. And for your future travels in this life, I hope you learn to be more kind.

Sincerely,

Amused0472