on the bus 021807

I'm late, she thought
as she finished her taxes,
and closed her laptop,
and headed upstairs.

She grabbed her bag -
no time to change,
bare legs are fine,
as she raced out the door.
no thought of the cold
had crossed her mind.

I'm warm, she thought,
as she ran for the bus
cutting off corners
and heading for 8th.

He'll wait, she thought
as she crossed 6th Ave
and started running
and running and running

He'll wait, she thought
from a half block away
as he paused for a moment
longer than normal
then signaled and pulled away.

I'm mad, she thought,
as she got to the stop
and contemplated her options
as she caught her breath.

I'm mad, she thought,
as she berated herself
for doing her taxes
in shuch a short timeframe.

I shouldn't have
stopped to look at the sale
and flipped through the books
at Urban Outfitters.

I could have been
sitting in Starbucks and
doing my taxes
a half hour sooner...

But what to do
next? it had to be answered -
still catching her breath -
the next bus in in a half hour.

I'm tired, she thought,
as she headed for Pine
to go back to 4th
and wait for the bus.

There are benches
there and I can sit down
and try to call Beth
so I can get to meeting

I'm cold, she thought
as she sat on the bench
and discussed bus schedules
and snow with two ladies
in a row

The wind's picking
up and the sun's going down
but at least it's warmer
than upstate New York
and we haven't the snow

But finally
along came the 255
inside it was warm
and nearly half empty

And Beth had called
so to gospel she would make it
even though a bit late
and still with bare legs
and work to be done...