Ben & Hovah

If there's one thing you can guarantee about the city of New York, it's the fact that you are never more than one experience away from meeting a very interesting person. Today I met two.

The first occurred on the train. I was headed up to D-Block to say what up to Coffee Bean and I had my chess set and a gift of flowers for her mother. A balding white man (who I later learned was Puerto Rican) took notice and talked to me about the chess, which led to a discussion of the flowers and who they were for. By the end, he was giving me tips as he hit on women of all ages and offered to hook me up with brunch at his dining establishment somewhere in the village. We also share the same alma mater of Bronx Science. He did encourage my chess skills and also my outlook on life.

The next experience occurred as I ascended the stairs to the train to go home. This time the individual who went by the name of Jehovah (I kid you not). As he untangled his bike, this black man with the scraggly beard was giving me tips on chess and life, offering an example that involved looking at the traffic lights 3 blocks down as metaphor for approaching a chess match, and subsequently life. We traded pounds and I felt wonderfully fulfilled. I have no idea why.

Life seems so ripe right now.