Bikes and Coffee

Today, I worked with the windows open, finally recording final grades on three of four classes of blue books. At 4PM, I realized that I'd been inside all day - inside on a beautiful spring-like day. I stood up, stretched, and put on my shoes. I did not grab my coat or even a jacket. No need. It's early spring - just like General Lee prognosticated. I wasn't sure where I was going, but I was going out.

I decided to drive and see where I ended up. I took my camera along, in case I saw anything worthy of my picture-a-day blog. After a weekend of seemingly endless grading, it felt great to have the sunroof open, music blaring, and no particular destination in mind. (My apologies to readers who are still experiencing winter - which is any temperature below 55 degrees.)

I ended up in Five Points and decided to stop the car to photograph all the Dawgs. I counted 5 in a 3-block area. A veritable Dawg bonanza! As I made my way from the first to the second, I noticed a father and son on bikes approaching me from behind. I didn't pay much attention, and I think I was walking in a straight line. I say this because as I passed a parked Toyota, I heard a crash and felt something hit the back of my leg. I did what anyone would do - I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, ducked my head and raised my arms to cover my head. Yes, I'm sure I looked really foolish, but not more foolish than the kid on his bike.

I looked to my left there he was - kid and his bike on the front of the Toyota. Interestingly, he was still sitting on the bike. He simply steered into the car and came to a stop leaning against the front end of the car. To my credit, I didn't laugh or ask if I could take his picture because he seemed a bit shaken up. His father came right over and apologized to me. "No, no, I think it was my fault," I said, "I think I moved into his path." "No," he assured me, "he's just learning. He wasn't watching where he was going." At this point, the kid, who had peeled himself off the car by now, interjected, "Yes, I was watching where I was going." The embarassment, coupled with his father's betrayal, proved to be too much and he started to cry.

Once again, I tried to take the blame, but the father insisted that his kid - his crying kid - was to blame. I decided to move away and started to walk down the sidewalk, then realized that I was setting the kid up for another round of failure. "You all go ahead," I said. The kid, now snotty from the crying, looked at his dad and sniffled. The dad helped him back on the bike and off they went, kid wobbling and weaving down the sidewalk. I continued to photograph Dawgs.

Then, I headed to Starbucks. I needed coffee for me and coffee for Big City friends. I chose my 2 pounds of coffee and approached the counter. "Get a free tall drink when you buy 2 pounds of coffee" the sign announced. "I get a free tall drink?" I asked, just to make sure that I wasn't hallucinating. "Yes, any tall drink," said the happy barista. "Tall hazelnut latte," I said, still not believing my good fortune. Surely, someone who knocks small children and their bikes into parked cars doesn't deserve a free tall hazelnut latte. But, within minutes, I had my drink and my 2 pounds of coffee - and renewed faith that our God is a forgiving God.