I am home! Home at last!

The cab picked me up this morning with no problems. I hopped in and the driver said, “Are you paying with cash?

I said, “No… I asked on the phone and she said I could use a credit card.”

“Well you can, but not for trips under $20.”  He looked aggrieved. “Sorry. The dispatcher should have told you. We’ve had problems with her.”

“Then we’ll have to find an ATM because I have $1.”

He clearly felt bad and offered to make an exception, but at this point, I just wanted it to be over and took the path of least resistance.  We stopped at an ATM — he turned off the meter while I got cash — and continued to the train station.

I walked up to the front door and there were people standing outside. Smokers, I thought.  Only none of them were smoking. They were standing outside because the station wasn’t open yet.   I only had to wait a few minutes but my brain did go, “Really? Hasn’t there been enough at this point?”

While I was in the station, a young man approached me and asked if he could plug his mp3 player into my computer to charge it.  Sure! I’ve been without a charger before and it’s a pain. We struck up a conversation and agreed to sit together on the way back to Portland.  He asked what I did. I explained the whole writing thing.

I asked what he did.

“I’m disabled.”  He showed me his hand. “I was stabbed and my hand is partially paralyzed.  I used to be a carpenter.”

That. Is. Horrifying.  All of my travel stuff? Sort of puts it into perspective.

Anyway, we had a nice chat on the way down.  Once I got on the train, I had no more problems. I got on the bus in Portland and arrived home safely.  Rob and the cats are happy to see me.

In other news, I have decided that I am my own Infinite Improbability Drive.

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