WHO'S BAG IS IT, ANYWAY?

I was driving the 6 down Hennepin avenue (main street downtown)when I stopped to pick up passengers. It was rush hour and the business-looking man seemed quite eager to get on the bus. Then I saw why. A drunken little man who had a hard time both speaking and standing was following him. As the businessman paid his fare, the drunk stood in the doorway attempting to get his foot on the bottom step. He said "I want you to call the police!" I knew this was going to be good. I asked him what the problem was. He told me the guy paying his fare stole his bag. The business guy did have a plastic bag that I could see through. Inside were a few books. The most noticeable to me being one that was about doing your income taxes. I asked the drunk. "If that's your bag, what's in it?" He seemed a little lost for a minute then as he tried to look through the bag through his foggy eyes he said "I can tell you what's in it." He was having a hard time focusing and couldn't quite make out the contents of the bag. Meanwhile, the yuppie guy looked at me, a little shocked and appearing afraid I really thought he stole the bag from the drunk. He said "But this really is MY bag!" I said, "I know, and I can see what is in it. I really doubt this guy has done any taxes any time recently!" The drunk was still trying to figure out what was in the bag. I told him to step away from the bus. The bag was not his and he needed to move along so we could all go. He tried to argue with me so I put a little bass in my voice and he backed up. I closed the door and left.

Needless to say, the yuppie guy was quite relieved!

FUZZY TIGER, SMILING BOY

I won a stuffed tiger the other day on one of my layovers. I gave it to this adorable little boy. He was about 3 years old. He had the biggest brown eyes I've ever seen. They just lit up when I handed him the tiger. He smiled and played with it the entire bus ride. A lady in the peanut seat said "Oh, wasn't that nice!" I told her I have a dresser piled with stuffed animals. I win them out of the machines all the time and give them to kids on the bus. Makes my day...and theirs. The little boy had a huge smile on as he walked off the bus, waving at me until I pulled away. Another lady came to get off out the front door and said "The smile on his face was definitely worth it, huh? That was really nice." Another guy came up and sat next to the lady in the peanut seat and said "It is really great to see someone give something and not expect something in return!" I told him, seeing the look on that kids face is actually getting something in return. It really makes my day.

I did actually get something even more rewarding giving this tiger away. Seeing people witness and appreciate the joy a small act of kindness can bring. Hopefully, they pass it on.

HE'S ALIVE!!

About a week ago, some fool stepped out in front of a bus on Hennepin avenue and got hit. Rumor was, he died. Actually, I really don't know if it was a man or a woman. I found out today that the person busted their head on the curb, but is alive. That is quite a relief. The guy driving the bus is out of my garage. Really nice ol' guy. I heard he plans to retire this fall. I'm so glad he doesn't have to deal with a death. The latest story is that the pedestrian was drunk and fell into the side of the bus and then to the curb and cracked his/her head. The facts are hard to know since there was only one brief story on one news channel the evening that it happened. Nothing official has been said since then. Nothing on the news or in the paper.

I'm just relieved that the person is alive and the driver is still working and doesn't have a death to deal with.

PICK A TEAM!

As I was driving the bus down the street, I noticed a handicapped man coming out of the Cub Foods. He turned and looked at the bus and tried to run toward the bus stop. He appeared to have some type of cerebral palsy or something and was having a hard time running. As I approached, he still had a good three fourths of a block to the bus stop. I pulled up next to him and opened the door. Some guy behind me said "Good lookin' out, driver." I recognized the man getting on as a frequent rider, one with a great sense of humor. I couldn't help myself. I said "I saw that shirt and I thought you must be a great guy so I thought I'd pick you up. Now that I see that hat, I may have been mistaken. That's a great shirt, but that hat has got to go!" He had on a Minnesota Vikings shirt and a Green Bay Packer cap.

He grinned and thanked me for stopping for him. Then he told me he really liked both teams and all the attention he got when he wore that hat with that shirt. We had some upbeat conversation as he rode. The "Good lookin' out" guy joined in. As the Viking/Packer fan was getting off at his stop I said "Go Vikings!" He turned around and grinned again and said "Go Packers!"

He made my day.

THE BATTLE OF THE BULGE

I was talking with this lady at the end of my route the other day. We chatted like we had known each other for years. We got on the topic of this website and she said she had a story for me. It made me laugh, so I thought I'd share it with you.

She was riding the bus when two guys came running across the street toward the bus. They were both in their 60's. One was some distance in front of the other guy. The first one gets on the bus, pays his fare and tells the driver to go. The driver said he had to wait for the other guy. The first guy goes back and sits down. The second ol' guy gets on, pays his fare and goes back to where the first guy was sitting. He proceeds to start beating the heck out of the first guy.

All the passengers had a laugh, no doubt, when they hear what the fight was about. Seems the first guy took the second guys' last Viagra and slept with the second guys girlfriend. The real funny part was, he wasn't mad about his buddy sleeping with his girl...he was mad because he took his last Viagra!!

Nothing beats the comedy of real, every day life!

STUPIDEST QUESTION THIS WEEK

I was sitting at a bus stop as people got off and on. Just as I was about to close the door, some brilliant guy pokes his head in and asked me the stupidest question I've heard in quite a while. He asked "How far do you go?" ???????????????????huh??????? I didn't know how to answer that. I go ALL the way to the end of the route, of course. Or did he actually want to know how many miles it was from that spot to the end?

Lesson for the day: Think before you speak!