Stupid cosmos

This is a two-part story that starts happy, turns bad, then ends somewhere in the middle.

I was sitting on a bench in the underground shopping center near the subway entrance after saying goodbye to Andy (he was off to work, and I didn't have to be at my office for another hour). I was doing the usual: listening to music, writing, tapping my feet, and staring at people around me. This Korean business man was sitting next to me, talking on his cell phone, when suddenly he dropped an envelope and dozens of pens fell out onto the floor. I helped him pick them up, then went back to my music-listening-toe-tapping time.

A moment later, he stood up. I thought he had left, but after a few minutes he comes back to the bench with two smoothies in his hand. He extended one to me and explained in rough English that it was to thank me for helping him. We talked a little, and then I had to go. He gave me one of the pens as well.

So I was in this pleasant glowing state of existence, one where you're just filled with love for humanity. I got on the subway without paying much attention to exactly which train I was taking. Turns out I got on the train going the wrong way. I didn't realize this for two stops, and to get off the train I had to barrel football player-style through a wall of un-budging people. I ran up the stairs, across, then down the stairs on the other side - my smoothie sloshing around all the time. I caught the right train, and managed to get to work exactly at 6:00.

So the story ends in the middle. Not good, not bad, but acceptable. I'm always supposed to be at work 15 minutes early, and my first lesson was at 6. So I wasn't on time, but I wasn't late either.

Stupid cosmic balances.