This is going to sound bizarre, but if I was to walk around for thirty minutes to an hour or so in Las Vegas and not encounter at least one homeless person, man, I would honestly swear the to you the universe was off kilter or Mad Max was around the corner. It would be a strange feeling for me...a very strange feeling.
An old homeless lady lives, maybe, a hundred and fifty feet from my door step. I walk by her everyday. She hangs out, with her cart, in a little park area across the street. It closes at dusk. After that she moves across the street to a small sidewalk bench and sets up camp.
Whenever I pass by her it is always the same. I'll nod and she will nod back, or vice versa. Never once have we spoken a word to one another, until last night - "Could you get me some ice for my cooler?" There was a soothing sound in the tone of her voice, reminiscent of my grandmothers. I'd always imagined her tone would be gruff. I was mistaken.
My refrigerator has an automatic ice maker that is prone to overflowing - So I told her to give me a minute and I would return. A minute passes and I show with a whole tray of ice. She opens her cooler and I dump it in. She says thanks and turns the other way in her chair. I thought about making small talk and then decided to pass and head back home.
This afternoon I walked past her on my way to the bus stop. I was going to say something, but before I could she gave me the nod and look away. That's been our standard greeting since our first encounter. I don't want to do anything to upset the equilibrium the two of us share, so I reciprocated the gesture and walked past.
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