A Cold Day

Ever since I exchanged my hotel job in town for a corporate job in the city, I've been dreading this day: The day I would have to take the bus and train to work in the freezing cold. On Tuesday morning, I wore wool trousers and a coat over my jacket, a scarf and two pairs of gloves. It was in the low 20's, with gusty winds, and an inch of snow on the ground; but it's only a ten minute walk to the bus stop. I thought I was prepared ... but I wasn't even close.

The 7:20am bus never showed. At 7: 30am I started pacing around to keep warm. It would be ten more minutes until the next bus arrived. My fingers and toes started to get cold and my face was freezing; but the 7:40am bus didn't show either. I waited another ten minutes, but at 7:50am there was still no bus in sight. I'd been outside for forty minutes, the wind was cutting right through my pants, and I could feel my core body temperature dropping. I had to do something! I considered going back home and starting over; instead I decided to walk to the country store about a half mile up the road. I could warm up in the store, get a hot cup of coffee, and catch the bus at the stop out front.

I walked along the shoulder past cars sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic as far as the eye could see. Once in a while they would move a little ... but not very much. I heard someone call out, "Hey, do you need a ride?" I turned to see a woman in a late model sedan driving up along side. I tried to say "No", but my face was so cold that what came out was, "Umm ... a ... Of course, that would be wonderful, I think I'm slowly freezing to death." I asked if she could drop me at the country store; she said she'd be happy to drop me at Metro since it was on her way to work - and since she was already late, a few extra minutes wouldn't really matter.

When you ride the bus or train, you don't talk to people. It's rude. There are even signs warning that unwanted conversation with passengers is a basis for being ejected; but when you ride in someone's car, you can't really avoid conversation. And she didn't have her radio on, so conversation was kinda' necessary. We spent the next forty minutes together in traffic; and it should have been awkward ... but it wasn't. It was more like two friends who hadn't seen each other in years catching up on each others' lives. At Metro, I thanked her for her kindness and ran to catch the train. What a strange morning. By the time I arrived at the office, it was past 9:00am. It had taken almost two hours to go twenty miles. Wednesday morning looks like it will be even worse. I wonder if I'll survive the winter?