Chicken Sandwiches with Perfect Strangers

What a haul! Everything but the mouse pad I got. The travel agent provided the door prize. 

Maria, my sister-in-law, is one of those larger than life people who knows everyone. Walking around Los Angeles last week, she ran into folks who knew her, or knew mutual friends of theirs. It was slightly surreal. I mean, how many people live in the greater Los Angeles area? Maria isn't in show business, in fact she is currently (temporarily) disabled and isn't working at all. But she is getting out, handicapped or not.

I have always envied the Marias of the world for their boldness. People aren't scary critters to be avoided, at least to her. I, on the other hand, go into hyperventilation when faced with the realization I have two social events in a week. This week I have five of them, so you can only imagine what a delight I am right now.

Anyway, after a heart-to-heart with Maria, I confessed what had been bothering me. Ever since the accidental business closed and especially ever since Bonus Mom passed on, I have kept myself in a small bubble. I do well in small circles of like-minded folks who realize I am consumed with grief and have subsequently become socially frail. These fabulous friends don't expect too much from me. But there comes a point, especially because I SELL REAL ESTATE, where I kinda need to get out and stretch a teensy bit more and be slightly more sociable.

That's where Maria's challenge came in. Maria, bless her, doesn't gently nudge. For that matter, Maria doesn't gently anything. Maria demanded I get out and meet a few folks. I suggested a chess club--which, I thought was a perfectly reasonable idea, after all 1) it is chess 2) people don't tend to do much talking in a really great chess game and 3) I can still hold my own, even though I haven't played in a tournament in more than 30 years. Maria scoffed, "NO! Meet people who will talk to you!" she charged. I wasn't sure how I felt about it, but finally through Maria's loving bullying nudging, I set up to go to one of these lunch thingys. And then I prayed for an onset of a stomach flu.

Unfortunately, Fate did not give me the stomach flu. Fate wasn't even kind enough to provide me indigestion. And my final excuse of the restaurant being full of food I was allergic to, didn't even pan out. Damn. It was a sandwich joint.

I had a nice time by the way. I managed to say and handle all sorts of pleasantries. I talked to Mark, Merri, Mary, Erica, Kyle, Neil, Karen, Steve and Creepy Lloyd who hit on me the entire time. I exchanged business cards with folks. There were people from many different vocations--even a stand-up comic whose name I recognized but couldn't tell you anything about his show. (Maria might know him for all I know.)  I was one of a few real estate agents, but the only designated broker--ha! (to be fair I wasn't there to look for clients, just interact with humans). I even laughed and told people about Maria and how she demanded I eat lunch with them that day. They all seemed to enjoy my company as much as I enjoyed theirs. I might even go to the next if it isn't at a seafood restaurant. And, I won the door prize and now Buckaroo has a mouse pad. But best of all, I expanded my bubble just a little bit more and found out it didn't kill me.