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PERFECT STRANGERS
I guess I never really thought about it before, but each and every day we encounter hundreds if not thousands of strangers. It’s funny how each of us can walk by so many other kindred souls each day without noticing, without acknowledging, and sometimes not even being aware of those around us.
Here we are in the midst of a virtual sea of humanity. Crowds of people just like us. Mothers, fathers, teachers, and friends. Most times they are just a blur in our much too busy lives, like quite music being played in the background. For the most part they will forever be a group of nameless and faceless fellow beings. Each one a potential future teacher, business associate, spouse, or friend. All so different, yet so very much the same. Only chance and circumstance can transform what may be a perfect stranger today into an important friend or loved one tomorrow.
This random choice, a one in a million ‘happenstance”, this spin of the human wheel of chance was about to change my life forever. Unbeknownst to me, fate had chosen to intervene on that bright summer day. Weather you choose to call it luck, or fate, or coincidence, some force had brought us together at that time and place. Ironically, the suddenness with which it started is sadly how it ended, all too soon. This is our story.
Considering everything I’ve been thru lately I decided to take a short vacation in Las Vegas. I was anxious to get out and see the sights so I left the hotel right after breakfast and headed south on the Strip. Vegas plays host to millions of visitors each year and most of them travel the strip by walking or by taxi. Even though it was only 9:30 a.m. it appeared that everyone else had pretty much the same idea. The weather forecast had predicted that today’s temperature would reach 108, and I was certain that it was at least 90 out already.
The sidewalk was already crowed in both directions with people busily going about their day. I had to slow my normally brisk pace due to the crowd and the fact that many of the tourist had stopped to take pictures. I could feel the heat radiating off the road and sidewalk as the desert sun climbed in the morning sky. I’ve heard people say that it’s a dry heat, but I can tell you that once you go over 90 degrees, hot is hot.
As I walked past the beautiful Bellagio hotel hundreds of people were gathered around as music began playing and we were all treated to a wonderful show with water jets pulsating to the music and dancing around the pond carefully choreographed to the music. After the short show, I continued on my walk as the temperature continued to climb.
Just as I passed the Bellagio hotel, the sidewalk took a slight detour and I found myself walking in a sheltered walkway between two rows of heavy concrete road barriers. The unmistakable sounds of heavy construction emanated from the right side of the plywood dividing wall, and the busy traffic of the Las Vegas Strip just to the left. From what I was told a major construction project was underway on this site know as the City Center. The locals told me it was an ambitious (perhaps over ambitious. to the tune of almost 10 billion dollars) partnership between MGM and a heavy dose of foreign investment from Dubai. At this point I felt the heat from the concrete around me and a damp odor where some hoses ran under the plywood wall. The narrow walkway was like a human funnel, forcing all the walkers into a space around 3 foot wide. The pedestrian walkway was filled with people walking in both directions as traffic thundered by only inches to my left and just on the other side of the concrete barrier.
Just ahead of me the barriers stopped and a worker complete with a hard hat and safety vest was directing traffic. He had a small stop and go sign mounted on a pole and had it turned to indicate that the pedestrian traffic should stop at that point. Well those of us toward the front, got the message and decided to stop, however I guess those folks a few yards back failed to see the logic in stopping at such a hot and undesirable spot.
In any case, we stood there in the sweltering heat, waiting for the cement trucks and heavy equipment to dart past the small opening in the pedestrian walkway. It soon became evident to those of us in the front of the line that the throngs of people behind had not seen the point in all this standing and waiting and decided to push forward like a large human wave. Of course, they had no way of knowing that just beyond the opening and the guy with the little pole sign, was a 30’ stretch of treacherous road that was currently packed solid with heavy trucks and equipment that were rushing into and out of the job site while pedestrian sidewalk was closed off.
It only took a few seconds before the weight of hundreds of people pushed forward on the few of us that were closest to the construction entrance and despite our best efforts we were slowly pushed into the intersection. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the guy with the sign grimacing in apparent pain. His eyes wide open and face contorted in painful anticipation. I was later to find out that he was fine but that his extreme facial distortion was caused by the fact that he was the first to see the large crane rounding the corner and quickly heading towards the unlucky few of us that were forced into the roadway.
The women just ahead of me with the sunglasses and red shorts was suddenly push forward into the intersection. Fortunately she dodged her way between vehicles and made it to the other side. The guy right behind her was not so lucky. He made it about halfway thru and then was spun around when the mirror on a passing truck slapped him in the shoulder. His rather abrupt change of direction along with the impact of the mirror and the wet dirt road all contributed to him landing flat on his back in the middle of the roadway.
Somehow the message got back to the people pushing from the rear, that they were causing great bodily harm to those of us in the front of the line, but not before I was thrust out into the roadway myself. I was yelling and had my hands up over my head waiving off the oncoming driver of a large forklift. The driver got the message, but I guess that these large construction forklifts were not designed to stop on a dime. I quickly jumped up and landed right on the extended forks with one foot on each fork. For an instant I locked eyes with the operator and it didn’t take mental telepathy for him to know that I meant stop.
I quickly turned around, still balancing on the forks and extended my hand to the poor guy that was now sitting up on the ground. I spun his body partially so that it aligned right between the huge steel forks that would have surely ran him thru if he had not been moved. In a cloud of dust and confusion the forklift screeched to a halt only inches from the injured man. It seemed like the whole episode ran thru in slow motion and then there was silence for a second or two, immediately followed by the applause and whistles from the onlookers. I had to remind myself to take a breath after that nail bitter.
I’m not really sure how many people probably called 911 at that point, but I can tell you that an ambulance arrived in a matter of minutes, followed by several policemen on bicycles. (perhaps they had one stationed on the dangerous job site as a precaution). The paramedics quickly got out and accessed the situation, as the officers began questioning witnesses as to what happened.
Although it appeared that no one was severely injured, several people suffered some minor bumps and bruises. The guy that I had helped was still lying on the ground in the loose gravel. He was thanking me over and over, but was insisting he was fine. He was being attended to by one of the paramedics and the women in the red shorts.
After inspecting his wounds and taking a few vital signs it was determined that he should be taken in for a few x- rays. It quickly became apparent that the mystery women in the red shorts that was helping him was in some way related to him. As they were attempting to load him into the ambulance she immediately made it clear that she was going with him. At this point he was still thanking me profusely and had a tight grip on my hand.
Although I never met this guy before, we now had a strange kind of bond between us. He asked me if I would please come with them to the hospital. I felt very awkward and was searching for the right words to tell him no, when one of the paramedics said in a very authoritative tone…“get in, we need to roll”. Almost be impulse, I followed her command and the next thing you know we were on our way to the hospital in a very cramped ambulance.
Well, it turned out not to be a very long ride because the ambulance left the job site and made a quick turn down Harmon street to a rather large Urgent Care facility just down the road from the City Center. On the way over, my new friend thanked me again for saving his life and told me his name was Larry. Almost as an awkward after thought, he introduced me to his very attractive sister Lisa.
When we got to the urgent care facility the paramedics brought Larry around to the back entrance on the stretcher. We were instructed to go up front and wait in the waiting room. For some strange reason I felt obligated to stay and make sure that Larry was O.K. Of the course of the next hour and half, Lisa and I got the chance to talk and get to know each other.
It turns out that they are both from Florida and live just across the state from me in Fort Lauderdale. It seems Larry owns several car dealerships over there and Lisa is a lawyer with the District Attorney’s office. The two of sat there and talked for a good hour and a half, without realizing how much time went by.
It was only when Larry walked or should I say limped out the office door before we were jolted back to the here and now. Pleasantly I had just spent some of my vacation time in Vegas at a walk in clinic with two perfect strangers and was quite happy about the experience.
Larry thanked me a gain in the lobby but said he was rather tired and thought it best that they head back to their hotel so that he could rest. Just before he got in his cab he asked if I would be available to meet the two of them for dinner at their hotel and I agreed. “Ok..we will see you at the Mirage at 8 pm, meet us at the Stack steakhouse”. With that they pulled away in their cab, and I decided to head back to relax with a good stiff drink at my hotel pool.
After a swim, a few drinks, and a couple of hands of poker, I grabbed a cab and pulled up to the Mirage around 15 minutes early. I had never been to the Mirage before and marveled at the lush entrance complete with foliage and artificial ponds. The place was busy, very busy, and there was a good energy emitting from the crowd. Every one seemed to be having fun and enjoying themselves. I made my way over to the steakhouse and looked around for Larry and Lisa. Realizing that I was a bit early I told the hostess that I would wait for my party at the bar. Well, I have to tell you, I’ve been to a lot of great steakhouses in my day, but this place definitely broke the mold. Instead of a dark room with a subdued atmosphere and a heavy wooden look, this place was very contemporary, fashionable, and upbeat.
After my second drink, I began to think that my guests were not going to show up. Just as I turned to see if anyone was waiting at the hostess desk, I felt a light touch on my right shoulder. For a second I thought I was dreaming, it was Lisa. I almost didn’t recognize her and was taken back to see her in a long black dress complimented with a red glossy belt and offset by a double pearl necklace.
She apologized that her brother could not make it because he felt sore all over and could hardly walk. As much as I was looking forward to seeing him again, I had to admit this wasn’t a bad rain check. We had a great dinner and a few drinks to cap off a night that ended all too early. Lisa’s office had left her a message earlier in the day, that the big case she had been working on got pushed forward and she had to catch an early flight out of McCarran in the morning.
We promised to keep in touch when we got home, but the magic of the moment somehow seemed to wear off when we all got home. I guess in retrospect we were just a few strangers that have somehow touched each others lives. Perhaps it was chance or perhaps it was destiny, but we would never have even met if it wasn’t for that brief encounter with death. That chance meeting where fate and circumstance were the glue and chemistry that brought a few perfect strangers together in that brief instant in time. They say life’s randomness is what makes it interesting.
I guess what they say is true. What happens in Vegas….Stays in Vegas
Please feel free to contact me at; pooritalianboy@gmail.com
P.I.B.
I guess I never really thought about it before, but each and every day we encounter hundreds if not thousands of strangers. It’s funny how each of us can walk by so many other kindred souls each day without noticing, without acknowledging, and sometimes not even being aware of those around us.
Here we are in the midst of a virtual sea of humanity. Crowds of people just like us. Mothers, fathers, teachers, and friends. Most times they are just a blur in our much too busy lives, like quite music being played in the background. For the most part they will forever be a group of nameless and faceless fellow beings. Each one a potential future teacher, business associate, spouse, or friend. All so different, yet so very much the same. Only chance and circumstance can transform what may be a perfect stranger today into an important friend or loved one tomorrow.
This random choice, a one in a million ‘happenstance”, this spin of the human wheel of chance was about to change my life forever. Unbeknownst to me, fate had chosen to intervene on that bright summer day. Weather you choose to call it luck, or fate, or coincidence, some force had brought us together at that time and place. Ironically, the suddenness with which it started is sadly how it ended, all too soon. This is our story.
Considering everything I’ve been thru lately I decided to take a short vacation in Las Vegas. I was anxious to get out and see the sights so I left the hotel right after breakfast and headed south on the Strip. Vegas plays host to millions of visitors each year and most of them travel the strip by walking or by taxi. Even though it was only 9:30 a.m. it appeared that everyone else had pretty much the same idea. The weather forecast had predicted that today’s temperature would reach 108, and I was certain that it was at least 90 out already.
The sidewalk was already crowed in both directions with people busily going about their day. I had to slow my normally brisk pace due to the crowd and the fact that many of the tourist had stopped to take pictures. I could feel the heat radiating off the road and sidewalk as the desert sun climbed in the morning sky. I’ve heard people say that it’s a dry heat, but I can tell you that once you go over 90 degrees, hot is hot.
As I walked past the beautiful Bellagio hotel hundreds of people were gathered around as music began playing and we were all treated to a wonderful show with water jets pulsating to the music and dancing around the pond carefully choreographed to the music. After the short show, I continued on my walk as the temperature continued to climb.
Just as I passed the Bellagio hotel, the sidewalk took a slight detour and I found myself walking in a sheltered walkway between two rows of heavy concrete road barriers. The unmistakable sounds of heavy construction emanated from the right side of the plywood dividing wall, and the busy traffic of the Las Vegas Strip just to the left. From what I was told a major construction project was underway on this site know as the City Center. The locals told me it was an ambitious (perhaps over ambitious. to the tune of almost 10 billion dollars) partnership between MGM and a heavy dose of foreign investment from Dubai. At this point I felt the heat from the concrete around me and a damp odor where some hoses ran under the plywood wall. The narrow walkway was like a human funnel, forcing all the walkers into a space around 3 foot wide. The pedestrian walkway was filled with people walking in both directions as traffic thundered by only inches to my left and just on the other side of the concrete barrier.
Just ahead of me the barriers stopped and a worker complete with a hard hat and safety vest was directing traffic. He had a small stop and go sign mounted on a pole and had it turned to indicate that the pedestrian traffic should stop at that point. Well those of us toward the front, got the message and decided to stop, however I guess those folks a few yards back failed to see the logic in stopping at such a hot and undesirable spot.
In any case, we stood there in the sweltering heat, waiting for the cement trucks and heavy equipment to dart past the small opening in the pedestrian walkway. It soon became evident to those of us in the front of the line that the throngs of people behind had not seen the point in all this standing and waiting and decided to push forward like a large human wave. Of course, they had no way of knowing that just beyond the opening and the guy with the little pole sign, was a 30’ stretch of treacherous road that was currently packed solid with heavy trucks and equipment that were rushing into and out of the job site while pedestrian sidewalk was closed off.
It only took a few seconds before the weight of hundreds of people pushed forward on the few of us that were closest to the construction entrance and despite our best efforts we were slowly pushed into the intersection. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the guy with the sign grimacing in apparent pain. His eyes wide open and face contorted in painful anticipation. I was later to find out that he was fine but that his extreme facial distortion was caused by the fact that he was the first to see the large crane rounding the corner and quickly heading towards the unlucky few of us that were forced into the roadway.
The women just ahead of me with the sunglasses and red shorts was suddenly push forward into the intersection. Fortunately she dodged her way between vehicles and made it to the other side. The guy right behind her was not so lucky. He made it about halfway thru and then was spun around when the mirror on a passing truck slapped him in the shoulder. His rather abrupt change of direction along with the impact of the mirror and the wet dirt road all contributed to him landing flat on his back in the middle of the roadway.
Somehow the message got back to the people pushing from the rear, that they were causing great bodily harm to those of us in the front of the line, but not before I was thrust out into the roadway myself. I was yelling and had my hands up over my head waiving off the oncoming driver of a large forklift. The driver got the message, but I guess that these large construction forklifts were not designed to stop on a dime. I quickly jumped up and landed right on the extended forks with one foot on each fork. For an instant I locked eyes with the operator and it didn’t take mental telepathy for him to know that I meant stop.
I quickly turned around, still balancing on the forks and extended my hand to the poor guy that was now sitting up on the ground. I spun his body partially so that it aligned right between the huge steel forks that would have surely ran him thru if he had not been moved. In a cloud of dust and confusion the forklift screeched to a halt only inches from the injured man. It seemed like the whole episode ran thru in slow motion and then there was silence for a second or two, immediately followed by the applause and whistles from the onlookers. I had to remind myself to take a breath after that nail bitter.
I’m not really sure how many people probably called 911 at that point, but I can tell you that an ambulance arrived in a matter of minutes, followed by several policemen on bicycles. (perhaps they had one stationed on the dangerous job site as a precaution). The paramedics quickly got out and accessed the situation, as the officers began questioning witnesses as to what happened.
Although it appeared that no one was severely injured, several people suffered some minor bumps and bruises. The guy that I had helped was still lying on the ground in the loose gravel. He was thanking me over and over, but was insisting he was fine. He was being attended to by one of the paramedics and the women in the red shorts.
After inspecting his wounds and taking a few vital signs it was determined that he should be taken in for a few x- rays. It quickly became apparent that the mystery women in the red shorts that was helping him was in some way related to him. As they were attempting to load him into the ambulance she immediately made it clear that she was going with him. At this point he was still thanking me profusely and had a tight grip on my hand.
Although I never met this guy before, we now had a strange kind of bond between us. He asked me if I would please come with them to the hospital. I felt very awkward and was searching for the right words to tell him no, when one of the paramedics said in a very authoritative tone…“get in, we need to roll”. Almost be impulse, I followed her command and the next thing you know we were on our way to the hospital in a very cramped ambulance.
Well, it turned out not to be a very long ride because the ambulance left the job site and made a quick turn down Harmon street to a rather large Urgent Care facility just down the road from the City Center. On the way over, my new friend thanked me again for saving his life and told me his name was Larry. Almost as an awkward after thought, he introduced me to his very attractive sister Lisa.
When we got to the urgent care facility the paramedics brought Larry around to the back entrance on the stretcher. We were instructed to go up front and wait in the waiting room. For some strange reason I felt obligated to stay and make sure that Larry was O.K. Of the course of the next hour and half, Lisa and I got the chance to talk and get to know each other.
It turns out that they are both from Florida and live just across the state from me in Fort Lauderdale. It seems Larry owns several car dealerships over there and Lisa is a lawyer with the District Attorney’s office. The two of sat there and talked for a good hour and a half, without realizing how much time went by.
It was only when Larry walked or should I say limped out the office door before we were jolted back to the here and now. Pleasantly I had just spent some of my vacation time in Vegas at a walk in clinic with two perfect strangers and was quite happy about the experience.
Larry thanked me a gain in the lobby but said he was rather tired and thought it best that they head back to their hotel so that he could rest. Just before he got in his cab he asked if I would be available to meet the two of them for dinner at their hotel and I agreed. “Ok..we will see you at the Mirage at 8 pm, meet us at the Stack steakhouse”. With that they pulled away in their cab, and I decided to head back to relax with a good stiff drink at my hotel pool.
After a swim, a few drinks, and a couple of hands of poker, I grabbed a cab and pulled up to the Mirage around 15 minutes early. I had never been to the Mirage before and marveled at the lush entrance complete with foliage and artificial ponds. The place was busy, very busy, and there was a good energy emitting from the crowd. Every one seemed to be having fun and enjoying themselves. I made my way over to the steakhouse and looked around for Larry and Lisa. Realizing that I was a bit early I told the hostess that I would wait for my party at the bar. Well, I have to tell you, I’ve been to a lot of great steakhouses in my day, but this place definitely broke the mold. Instead of a dark room with a subdued atmosphere and a heavy wooden look, this place was very contemporary, fashionable, and upbeat.
After my second drink, I began to think that my guests were not going to show up. Just as I turned to see if anyone was waiting at the hostess desk, I felt a light touch on my right shoulder. For a second I thought I was dreaming, it was Lisa. I almost didn’t recognize her and was taken back to see her in a long black dress complimented with a red glossy belt and offset by a double pearl necklace.
She apologized that her brother could not make it because he felt sore all over and could hardly walk. As much as I was looking forward to seeing him again, I had to admit this wasn’t a bad rain check. We had a great dinner and a few drinks to cap off a night that ended all too early. Lisa’s office had left her a message earlier in the day, that the big case she had been working on got pushed forward and she had to catch an early flight out of McCarran in the morning.
We promised to keep in touch when we got home, but the magic of the moment somehow seemed to wear off when we all got home. I guess in retrospect we were just a few strangers that have somehow touched each others lives. Perhaps it was chance or perhaps it was destiny, but we would never have even met if it wasn’t for that brief encounter with death. That chance meeting where fate and circumstance were the glue and chemistry that brought a few perfect strangers together in that brief instant in time. They say life’s randomness is what makes it interesting.
I guess what they say is true. What happens in Vegas….Stays in Vegas
Please feel free to contact me at; pooritalianboy@gmail.com
P.I.B.
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