this morning #974.

this morning, when we crossed paths, she seemed to be in desperate deal-making mode. she literally cried “why god why?” my ears perked up. i approached her, put on my persuasion pants. in retrospect, trying to take advantage of her obvious distress probably wasn’t the kindest move. in that moment, i was mostly focused on proving to myself that i still had it, still had the same set of skills i’d had back in my thirties & forties. back then, i was a seafaring man. had a way with the ladies. friends called me “the smooth sailor.” marriage had smothered that persona. when she looked up & saw me, her look was more “who the hell are you” & less “oh. hello there.” i pressed on regardless.