Everybody's got their little quirks. Today I noticed two of mine in particular.
First, as far back as I can remember I have always checked the coin return on every vending machine that I see. One of my earliest memories as a kid was a trip to Sea World. What do you suppose I remember about that day at Sea World? The shows? Aquariums? Shamu? No. I remember that as we were walking out towards the main gate at the end of the night I looked in the coin return of a pay phone and found a quarter. It was easily the highlight of the trip. Flash forward to today - as I left the public library branch inside a little strip mall I spied a promising little Pepsi machine and decided to conduct a closer investigation. My efforts were rewarded with a dime, baby! Score! It's not so much about the money (although it's always nice to accumulate some change for parking meters and such), but rather it's about the thrill of discovery.
I picked up the second quirk much more recently, circa 2000. I had a missionary companion who used to grab leaves off of every tree or bush we'd pass, fold them over a few times, tear them in half, and then smell the torn leaves. Then he'd be all, "You gotta smell this one! It's awesome!" I'd reluctantly smell it and respond, "Yep, that sure is awesome." But once you've smelled enough torn leaves you realize that every leaf has a distinctive and intriguing smell. Flash forward again to present-day Brian and his shiny new dime walking out of the Plymouth Mall - I saw an interesting little tree and decided to check it out. I ripped off a leaf and the smell was okay, but nothing to write home about (wait, I guess I sort of am writing home about it).
So, if you're looking for a couple more quirks to add to your repertoire I'd highly recommend coin return checkin' and leaf sniffin'. If nothing else you'll be negligibly wealthier and have pleasantly aromatic fingers.
14 years ago
6 comments:
I don't know, you could also end up with stinky fingers. That wasn't our companion in common was it? I don't remember him having that quirk, but he had plenty.
Once again showing that taking your kids on vacation is a waste of money. They won't even remember it. Instead, give them a quarter that will change their lives.
You and I would be quite a pair at Chuck E. Cheese's.
I remember the San Diego incident. There was a whole row of pay phones and you checked everyone of them while the whole family waited. Yes,you were really excited when you found that coin, but I'm suprised you remember it. Dad
yes, we can all use more quirks.
I have a new quirk, I look for change on the ground while I walk to and from the bus. I found a nickel today.
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