5 Will Get You...........

I had a doctor's appointment on Tuesday, between 2 and 3. I know I have a car, but traffic in and out of New Brunswick is a disaster, and parking is worse. There's always the hospital's garage, but that's usually jammed. I prefer to take the bus. It leaves from Woodbridge Center every hour on the hour, and comes up from New Brunswick every hour on the hour. No muss, no fuss, and it only costs $2.25. I think I actually save money.

What I do is drive to Woodbridge Center, and park there. Since I hate to be late, and I'm always afraid something will cause a bus to be cancelled, I always get there early. Tuesday, I got there around 10:15 for the 11 o'clock bus. I parked behind the strip where the buses pull in, and where the 3 shelters are. (There are 3 buses that actually stop here. The 810 goes straight to New Brunswick, so I get on the first stop and get off the last, and it takes about an hour. The 815 also goes to New Brunswick, but it meanders through Perth Amboy, South River, and a few other small cities, takes an hour and a half, and costs $3.35. The 62 goes to Newark, and since I have no desire to go there, that's all I know about it.)

Since I was early, I decided to walk around a little in the mall. As I passed the shelters, I noticed that there was an older woman waiting in the middle one. I don't think they're set up for the specific buses so I didn't know where she was going, nor did I care. I wandered through the mall, then exited through Sears to wait at the shelters. As I walked over, I noticed that the woman was still there. She sat still, with her head down, as if thinking on something.

I looked around. No cars moving in or out, no people walking. I kept closing the distance. Kept checking around, as carefully as I could. My timing must've been great. The mall had been open for a while, and it was too early for the lunch crowd so things seem to have settled down. As I got nearer, I took out the Flasher. Since I was going to the hospital, I had my shoulder bag with me, to carry down my paper work, and a few things to occupy my time when I'm there (you always have to wait). I came up to her, resting the Flasher on the top of the bag. Point, press, Flash, and no discernible change to her position. I moved past and sat in the last shelter on the strip.

For the next 15 minutes, I watched the other 2 buses stop, and unload passengers, then load up and leave. No one paid the woman any mind. A couple of younger women even sat in the same shelter as the older woman and didn't react at all, as far as I could see. They just continued to talk to each other until the 810 showed up. I got on right after the 2 women, and as we pulled away, I saw the that the old woman was still there. She wasn't going to be going anywhere any time soon.

By the time I got home, I had heard from Doyle three times. The Event had been put under review since they weren't sure that the women hadn't been dead before I used the Flasher. They ultimately decided to confirm it, and I'm almost to the half-way mark. The doctor's visit went well, also.