Rhinoceros Running

Starbucks is my new home away from home. I crave their iced tea. I’m also a huge fan of egg salad, and their sandwiches are particularly delicious. Yesterday, Ruby and I sat on the patio and watched some construction crews prepare to pour new cement on all four of the corners at the intersection of Montrose and (I think) Wolcott. Whereever the Starbucks is. It’s a good corner for people watching, too. Commuters get off at the train station within sight of the Starbucks, so there’s a steady stream of people. Ruby laid on the patio and received sandwich crusts, appearing supremely content. I thought if I had a little boy, just watching men prepare to pour cement might be a couple hours of entertainment. How about that for a stereotype? I try hard to catch myself when I think stuff like that.

I suppose the construction posed some minor inconvenience to pedestrians, having to walk a yard or so out of the way, around the barricades. It didn’t seem like a big deal to me, but one guy strolled up and was so visibly and verbally put out, I wondered how he reacted to a genuine hardship. I’m curious about what people want . . . we want any number of civic improvements, but want them to happen . . . magically? Performed by elves? In the dark of night?

I’m watching an English sitcom from the 80s, I think. As Time Goes By? Judi Dench is in it. One of the characters is a young woman and she’s wearing a large, somewhat shapeless sweater and loose bluejeans. If this were an American sitcom, the jeans would be formfitting, and there’d be at least some cleavage, and a full face of make-up. Maybe modern English sitcoms are also busy overly sexualizing their women characters.

Despite still having lots of kid-related stuff on my mind, I feel very upbeat and positive and happy. Despite the momentous-ness of these impending changes, I believe we’re going to be more than okay.