recurring characters

I see the same three people every morning on my way to work. I don't know them, they just happen to be engaged in their morning rituals on the same road that I happen to take for my short commute. I guess there's not much to do in a car on the way to work, so I people-watch. I have named them all – each one gets their very own uncreative name. The recurring characters in my little world are:

Smoker Lady – like clockwork, the smoker lady waits for her bus on the side of the road. When I'm driving to work in the winter when the mornings are still dark, I can see the glow of her cigarette long before I can actually see her. She takes up the exact same burly stance with the exact same expression on her face as if staring straight ahead and down the road will somehow cause her bus to arrive more quickly. She's the only person who is ever waiting at that particular bus stop. She guards her post. She waits inside a nicotine cloud.

Energy-Waster Guy – he backs into his parking spot every morning. Maybe he's perpetually in need of a speedy getaway. He is always sitting and waiting inside his parked car and he leaves his headlights on even if the sun is already up. I don't know if he leaves his engine running while waiting in that car. Something tells me he does. I judge him for wasting fuel and energy. And I want to know why he thinks it's necessary to leave his lights on.

The Running Lady – she is motivated and runs every morning. She reminds me that I am lazy. She runs as if she has a thirty pound weight attached to each foot (an observation, not a criticism). I have never seen anyone else run in this particular manner. It is unnerving. I should start running. But not at six in the morning.

{ photo by: ME }