Wednesday, May 19, 2010

I meet the strangest people

I am a freak magnet. Everywhere I go, they find me. I was at the book store perusing writing magazines. There was a heavy breathing, balding, pale, thin man about 65 sitting next to me reading Popular Mechanics. I knew better than to look up. I remember in college; the
psychology professor said when you make eye contact with someone for over three seconds they interpret it as you are showing an interest. I should have kept my nose in the book. This man stood in front of me and said, "Did you ever try this?"

I thought he meant talking to strangers. I smiled. Another wrong move on my part. He showed me a picture of a person parchuting.

"No, heights bother me (like you are)."

Then he poked the book under my nose and said, "What do you think about this? They put webs between your legs and under your arms and you soar off a cliff, fly like a bird."

"Not for me." I said and tried my best to ignore him.

"Well look at this." It was a person wearing a rocket suit. "It isn't ever going to happen for me unless I win the lottery, these suits cost $100,000. Twenty years ago they said we'd be strapping rocket packs to our backs and flying to work. It hasn't happened, has it! But this! I could do this. It would be so much easier to rocket through the sky for 12 minutes than to drive the twenty minutes it takes me to get to work."

I figured if he couldn't do the math calculations, he'd never be able to spend his lottery winnings, and if he did zoom for twelve minutes through the sky in a rocket suit, he'd overshoot his work by miles! So, I politely stood up, and flew out of there.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, Linda! Yet another thing we have in common! I've always been a weirdo-magnet. Even in high school, the kids nobody else would talk to seemed to gravitate towards me. Maybe they could sense the fellow weirdo lurking beneath the surface ...

Donna Volkenannt said...

How funny. I feel the same way. It must be a writer thing. We are curious and open-minded by nature and some unusual folks (freaks or weirdos) interpret that as being one of them.
Donna
http://donnasbookpub.blogspot.com

Beth M. Wood said...

He was sent to you for inspiration - not that you needed something to write about, but, there you go...
And speaking of weirdo-magnets, boy do I have a few post-divorce dating stories for you... ; )
Thanks for the smiles!

Bookie said...

Count me in on the magnet issues too, Linda. I have another side to my story though. I hear people's confessions. For some reason, people tell me their most intimate details of their lives. Sometimes I know the people, but often they are strangers. Once I went to fireworks with a friend who introduced me to someone she knew. We all sat on a blanketwaiting for the dark, and I hear it ALL. My friend said she had known the woman for a while and had never heard any of it...how did I get her to open up and spill her life? I have no idea.

Linda O'Connell said...

Mary,
I know exactly what you mean; it was the same with me.

Linda O'Connell said...

Donna, I think you've hit on something there. We are curious and maybe we attract odd folks.

Linda O'Connell said...

Beth, confess!

Linda O'Connell said...

Claudia,
It is the same with me. Maybe we just make people feel at ease. I have always been a Dear Abby. It really must be the writer in all of us.

Cathy C. Hall said...

Okay, I'm getting a very bad feeling here...'cause I think I might be one of those weirdo types. I didn't used to be a random chatter; now I am.

Oh, and I blame MY strange behavior on being a writer, too.

Pat Wahler said...

Out of weirdos come many wonderful stories!

Pat
www.critteralley.blogspot.com

BECKY said...

I've BEEN WITH LINDA when the weirdos walk up and begin talking....and won't go away!! THAT is something that never happens to me...thank goodness!

Lisa Ricard Claro said...

Too funny! But, hey, you got a story out of it, right? That makes it a good encounter...sorta...

Tammy said...

I'm a member of both of those clubs, too! But the older I get, the less sorry I am about that. And I LOVED the way you captured that conversation!!!

Linda O'Connell said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Linda O'Connell said...

Pat,
You are right. My mother always said we never know when we are entertaining angels unaware. Si do try to be nice to everyone, even the odd birds.