The Light in the Fridge
Of course, I’m chatting with the driver of the shuttle from the parking lot to the Boston airport terminals. The minute I walked up to the bus he said, “Look … Continue reading
Black and Gray
His set is winding down, but the guy with the guitar has a few more songs in him. The women who were singing along with his 90s rock covers have … Continue reading
Hey, Hi, Nice to See You Again
Sometimes you want to go where everybody knows which giant cookie has your name on it. The old man in a baseball cap shuffles in and waits patiently behind the … Continue reading
How To Get Rid of the Hiccups
Originally posted on The Nice Thing About Strangers:
She has the hiccups. Her husband wears a golf cap. They are extremely slow in shuffling to their Buick. The snow has…
Hoşçakal to Life as You Know It.
Originally posted on The Nice Thing About Strangers:
You’ve thrown away your chance for a normal life…This is what makes you such an exceptional person. -Orhan Pamuk. Snow. Near Orhan…
Bundles
The family of four will be the last out of the bus and they are taking their merry time departing. Dad exits first with the clunky stroller, but he can’t … Continue reading
Hana and Sarajevo
I hope you won’t mind a poem. This tale is attached to the photo from Wednesday’s post, but I couldn’t find a better way to explain the scene than in … Continue reading
Every Meal
With this feast I drank most of a bottle of Muscadet out of my modest ‘cellar’. I ate and drank slowly as one should (cook fast, eat slowly) and without … Continue reading
Stealth
The little boy entertains himself with a paper airplane. People with boarding passes wait on a flight that’s full-sized, but sit with quiet smiles and watch the boy’s take-offs in … Continue reading
The Ladies of Wifi
In the Italian restaurant overlooking a busy bus station and the remarkable Hungarian parliament building, three women exclaim, “Hotspot? Hotspot?” in unison. The waiter gives them the password and they … Continue reading
Livin’ on a Prayer
He doesn’t speak English, but he speaks Bon Jovi. He wears a black button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a necklace with some sort of animal tooth or … Continue reading
On Gratitude
Originally posted on The Nice Thing About Strangers:
It is an intensely long line at passport control. Flights keep arriving and people keep cutting. A tall man and I are…
Compassion
She chooses her clothes carefully, this seems clear. Her shoes are leather, the hat on her head is fashionable, the hair underneath well-kept. She is staring ahead and muttering, shaking … Continue reading
Just Say It
These winter stories are starting to bother me, because there’s only so much interaction anyone wants to do in the snow. I am bundled with a scarf over my chin … Continue reading
Mapmaking
“The life of an individual is in many respects like a child’s dissected map. If I could life a hundred years, keeping my intelligence to the last, I feel as … Continue reading
Layla La La La
There are only four of us in the bus. The driver and I smile as I show him my pass, and I take a seat on the left side and … Continue reading
To Slow Down, Change Locations
Originally posted on The Nice Thing About Strangers:
He wanted to slow life up and he quite rightly felt that by traveling he would make time move with less rapidity.…
A New Season
“See that tree?” he said. I nodded “What color is it?” I knew he was leading me to an obvious answer that I couldn’t yet see. “Green” I said. “It’s … Continue reading
Super
For a 6 am flight, there is a nice camaraderie in the airport. People seem too groggy to have their defenses up. We trade bleary-eyed glances. We stifle or release … Continue reading
Watching the Watcher
“If you don’t like the weather, wait a few minutes,” the lady says conspiratorially when she approaches me at a crosswalk. I chuckle as a sign of pedestrian solidarity. I’ve … Continue reading
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