On the subway the other day I encountered a woman with a message. A message that scared the hell out of me and showed there may be a higher power far below.
It was right after work. I jumped on the A to head down to the LIRR. A woman dressed in average clothes saw a cigarette behind my ear. "Can I bum one?" the woman said. "I lost my pack".
Ordinarily, I am cheap about these things. Cigarettes are very expensive in the city and I get asked about 10 times a day. But, this was a rare case. The woman seemed sane, clean, and above all..stuck next to me at least until the next stop. I better pony up quick to avoid an awkward train ride.
I handed her the cigarette and said "no worries." The woman got off at the next stop. But, not before relaying a little advice to me. She looked right at me and said "be careful out there." She then took a pause and followed up with "I'm serious about that." With that, Yoda exited the train to go creep out her next new friend.
I have never been a superstitious person. But, this really got to me. For the rest of the day I watched my step and paid attention to my surroundings. On the LIRR, a man got on at Flushing and got off at the next stop without presenting a ticket. "What if this guy put a bomb on the train?" I thought. "This could be it. This could be what that crazy woman was talking about!" I actually stayed nervous for the remainder of my voyage.
Why were these woman's words so powerful? Was she really crazy? Or did she really mean it in a general way and I took it to an extreme? I have no idea and I will never know. The day continued without incident. Plans I had later that night did not work out and I wasted a subway ride to Chinatown. Big whoop. I headed home and went to bed without incident.
Last night, I was driving home at Two A.M. from New Jersey. I set my cruise control to 80 MPH and settled into my 30 Minute drive. I suddenly recalled that woman's advice. Maybe it was not relevant, but I was not going to take any chances. I got out of cruise control and decided to go just a bit over the speed limit. Within a few minutes, I ran over a part of a giant truck tire. It came out of nowhere. Hidden on the dark highway by the night sky.
So, had I stayed in cruise control what may have happened? Was that the reason I was warned? Does fate exist? Again, no idea. But, it's interesting to think about. Here's to the freaks on the subway...
Very good story, you should be a mystery rider. I was at the edge of my computer chair waiting to see what may have happened. Very happy nothing did. I find subways very eerie anyway. I guess that is why I only take the train to Madison Square Garden and back home, lol. Keep up the good work, David. This was very enjoyable.
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