Good Good Good

I study with my friend after midnight at the all-night McDonald's--it's no big deal--we had been studying in the morning, but she works till very late, so it was hard for her to keep the schedule. In order to make it easier, I said I would push my sleeping schedule back and study at night, when she's available, instead of the morning.

Along the walk back home tonight, I encountered a man sleeping in a sitting position on the line dividing the shoulder of the road from the traffic lane, with his back to the road. Sometimes men crash outside after drinking--here it's not so dangerous. So normally I would have just walked on. But, when someone's in the road, there's no walking on.  

Still, I was expecting the worst. When you try to help intoxicated people, things can go awry. But after some coaxing, he was able to stand on his own power and come out of the road. He started off in the same direction as I was. We talked and walked for a bit, and he told me about his life. He was 66 years old and didn't have any children. He asked me my age, etc. He said good-bye when we reached an outdoor advertising tent set up along the sidewalk. Perhaps he intended to crash underneath it--I don't know. But in any case, he said he would stop, and that I should go on. He said he was happy to have met me, and smiled and waved as we parted. I was happy to have met him, too.

Good night, world. Much love to you from far away.