Alan is recognized

Met Alan today. He's the proud owner of two Westies. He lives around the corner from us, with his wife Jan. Natalie absolutely loves those dogs. They hang out in their windows and if we have the trolley (hand cart for groceries) they will bark their fool heads off. They won't bark if we don't have the trolley! They also are quite fierce to anyone wearing red... which means they go after the Post man as he walks by.

How did I meet Alan? Formally? On the bus. I think that one day, while Natalie was throwing a fit on the sidewalk, he walked by and asked if she was okay. This was back in August.

He was very funny and sadly, because I didn't have a thing to write with or on, I can't remember what he said so that I can share with you. We did talk about his Westies (Flora and Bella) are handling the weather and lack of outdoor exercise. We talked about how convenient Langley Moor is as far as its location and amenities. We got off the bus at the same stop and he walked with me as far as the Tesco. It was there that I introduced myself finally.

The bus today was of middling size, so for the Durham to Brandon loop, which Langley Moor is on, it's a bit small. I was one of the first people on, so I got prime real estate location; up front, with leg room. The bus filled up and of course I was going to have to share my seat. No objections there...except that your seat partner may smell or be offensive in some other way. One of the last passengers to get on the bus, second to last even, was this gentleman who looked vaguely familiar. He had kind eyes. I would rather have him sit with me with his three small bags than the harried tight-eyed woman with the mean mouth and the overstuffed, over large bag containing her Christmas shopping. He was surprised that I moved over and called me "duck".

So I started to talk to him. Thank God I'm not too far gone in my head that I can still reach out and make the small connections. After asking if those were his dogs, I told him that Natalie loves looking to see if the 'puppies' (they're full grown but small dogs) are in the window. He chuckled of course. Everyone laughs at my three year old, but in a good way. He seemed pleased to be recognized.  I think we're all pleased when we're recognized by others...Not in the creepy stalker way, just in the fact that there's something that about me that you remembered as you observed me passing through a corner of your life

***

I had a pre-Christmas drinky in the pub today with Ruth. Originally we thought to meet for coffee at Joannie's Cafe, but why kid ourselves? As I was leaving to go run my errands, the two gentlemen two tables over wished us a Happy Christmas. Then one of them asked me if I was Canadian since I sounded Canadian. That's a first. Usually, I get Australian. Go figure. Anyways, I said no, that I was from Oklahoma. And he'd never heard of it. This is a first too. Sometimes I get people who don't know where it is, but they immediately begin belching out the glorious state song, "Oklahoma". So I do what I normally do when the person doesn't know where it is...I ask them, 'do you know where Texas is?' He didn't know that either. So I asked, 'you know the Gulf of Mexico?' A vague apprehensive look, but eventually affirmative.

Me: "Okay {gestures to the side} Here's the Gulf. {raise hand} Here's Texas. {raise hand further} Here's Oklahoma."

The Guy's Friend who's been very quiet: "He knew where it is, pet. I know where it is too. Happy Christmas, ladies."

I LOVE GEORDIES AND THEIR NICKNAMES FOR WOMEN!

Also, I think that Ruth may have had a slight fear/intimidation issue with Peter from the pub which is why I never saw her there before. But now, since I've basically explained about Peter to her (and Brian), we may have more meet-ups in the pub, her and me.