Crazy People
My visit to Texas was, if nothing else, at least entertaining. I spent the night at a T/A truck stop in Denton on I-35 north of Dallas. It was hot, miserable hot and I needed a place to get my grub on. So I headed inside, bypassing the Taco Bell/Pizza Hut express and going straight into the sit down restaurant.
Usually I get a kind of sixth sense about a place when I walk in and take a gander around. But I guess the scorching Texas heat was messing with my weird sensors and strange receptors. I sat down and waited for a waitress to approach to take my drink order. I waited... and waited... and when I was just about to give the Taco Bell/Pizza Hut serious reconsideration a young lady appeared out of nowhere.
I looked up and she smiled and leaned in close... tooooo close and asked me softly what I wanted to drink. I stumbled over my standard "water with lemon" response, shocked at how CLOSE her face was to me. A slight movement and we'd probably end up kissing! (mind outta the gutters fellas)
She repeated my order back to me, I noticed that she smelled like strawberries, and then she removed herself from my comfort zone and went to get my beverage.
Weird!
After a few patient moments, she arrived with my drink in hand and a little dish of lemon slices. Which I totally appreciated because one slice is really never enough. She sat the drink on the table and got right back up in my grill again to take my order. I felt odd, allowing her into my inner sphere without question, but hey... maybe she was just hard of hearing! I didn't want to tell her to back up and offend her or something. (which I am sure she heard just fine but she was just weird about getting up close and personal with customers)
I was just glad that she smelled nice. She could've had cigarette breath or terrible BO. So I wasn't too worried about the closeness. I placed my order, pulled out my iPhone and waited for my food to arrive.
The restaurant wasn't too busy. There were a few people scattered around the room but generally most of the seats were empty. From where I sat I could see not just the restaurants' entrance, but also the stores'.
As I grew bored of the iPhone I just sat and watched as people came and went from the truck stop. Nothing odd right away, of course. It wasn't until the waitress returned with my spread of food plates that the first interesting character entered the room. He was disheveled and sweating profusely, dirty white NASCAR t-shirt and ripped/stained blue jean cutoffs, with filthy white sneakers (no socks). He was carrying a plastic cup filled with some sort of red liquid probably mixed with liquor, I'd assume as he staggered more than walked in.
He barreled in the entrance and crossed the dining room with apparent purpose. He found a booth near the back wall, sat and grabbed the phone on the wall. Now as far as I know those phones are only good for 800 numbers, phone card calls and collect calls. He put the receiver p to his ear, listened for a few moments, then put the receiver back on to its cradle. He then got up, ambled across the room to the other wall of booths and sat, grabbed a phone and did the same thing. Only this time, instead of hanging it up, he appeared to be talking to someone, though I never saw him dial any numbers.
After a couple minutes, he stood up, still on the phone and just kept pacing the few steps that the short tethering cord allowed until a waitress approached him and offered him a menu. At that, he hung up and walked out. All in all... odd but whatever.
Flash forward to the next afternoon. I had delivered one load, picked up another and made my way back to the T/A in Denton for lunch. I opted for the Taco Bell/Pizza Hut express this go 'round, getting a couple of crunchy tacos and some chips and cheese. Tasty.
With the sun out in full force I chose to sit at one of the 4 small tables provided in front of the fast food windows to consume my miserly meal. As I sat I watched people milling about the store to my left, folks finding tables or scanning the buffet in the restaurant to my right and of course folks ordering from Taco Bell/Pizza Hut right in front of me.
I noticed a man enter through the truck stop convenience store to my left walking with the most swagger I've seen in months. He was well built, confident and knew he looked good. I watched him swagger through the store and disappear behind a row of potato chips. Going back to my taco's I continued to watch others' around me. Nothing too interesting.
After a few minutes I noticed Mr. Swagger return into view as he made he way towards me, eyes focused on the restaurant to my right. He strutted past and I nearly burst out in insane laughter as I got a butt shot... the man had a paper toilet seat cover hanging out of the top of his trousers. Kid you not! The man with the most extreme swagger ever was lookin' a'fool with an a$$ gasket hanging out of his butt!
I was dying on the inside and I knew I couldn't stifle the laughter much longer. Shaking my head and suppressing the giggles I noticed a man at the table next to me nodding and looking at me intently as if saying, "let it out sister... let it out". And so I did... I just laughed like I'd just heard the funniest joke ever.
Mr. Swagger... oblivious. He continued on his journey towards the restaurant, then back to place an order with Taco Bell.
After I'd had enough entertainment for one day I headed back out to the truck to hit the road. I had to drive down into Dallas to pick up my next work assignment so I cruised down I-35E at a leisurely pace.
Getting close to downtown, I saw an oddity in the road ahead. Traffic was slowing down as passersby had to get a glimpse of what turned out to be a man playing monkey in the middle. I was thinking... WTF this guy must be crazy. And as I approached I realized he was. It was the man with the dirty clothes and cup of mysterious red fluid from the T/A the day before. He was talking to himself, clearly not sane in any way shape or form. He was in the middle of the highway, leaning up against the median barrier wall, seemingly in his own little world.
I chuckled, shook my head and continued on.
Usually I get a kind of sixth sense about a place when I walk in and take a gander around. But I guess the scorching Texas heat was messing with my weird sensors and strange receptors. I sat down and waited for a waitress to approach to take my drink order. I waited... and waited... and when I was just about to give the Taco Bell/Pizza Hut serious reconsideration a young lady appeared out of nowhere.
I looked up and she smiled and leaned in close... tooooo close and asked me softly what I wanted to drink. I stumbled over my standard "water with lemon" response, shocked at how CLOSE her face was to me. A slight movement and we'd probably end up kissing! (mind outta the gutters fellas)
She repeated my order back to me, I noticed that she smelled like strawberries, and then she removed herself from my comfort zone and went to get my beverage.
Weird!
After a few patient moments, she arrived with my drink in hand and a little dish of lemon slices. Which I totally appreciated because one slice is really never enough. She sat the drink on the table and got right back up in my grill again to take my order. I felt odd, allowing her into my inner sphere without question, but hey... maybe she was just hard of hearing! I didn't want to tell her to back up and offend her or something. (which I am sure she heard just fine but she was just weird about getting up close and personal with customers)
I was just glad that she smelled nice. She could've had cigarette breath or terrible BO. So I wasn't too worried about the closeness. I placed my order, pulled out my iPhone and waited for my food to arrive.
The restaurant wasn't too busy. There were a few people scattered around the room but generally most of the seats were empty. From where I sat I could see not just the restaurants' entrance, but also the stores'.
As I grew bored of the iPhone I just sat and watched as people came and went from the truck stop. Nothing odd right away, of course. It wasn't until the waitress returned with my spread of food plates that the first interesting character entered the room. He was disheveled and sweating profusely, dirty white NASCAR t-shirt and ripped/stained blue jean cutoffs, with filthy white sneakers (no socks). He was carrying a plastic cup filled with some sort of red liquid probably mixed with liquor, I'd assume as he staggered more than walked in.
He barreled in the entrance and crossed the dining room with apparent purpose. He found a booth near the back wall, sat and grabbed the phone on the wall. Now as far as I know those phones are only good for 800 numbers, phone card calls and collect calls. He put the receiver p to his ear, listened for a few moments, then put the receiver back on to its cradle. He then got up, ambled across the room to the other wall of booths and sat, grabbed a phone and did the same thing. Only this time, instead of hanging it up, he appeared to be talking to someone, though I never saw him dial any numbers.
After a couple minutes, he stood up, still on the phone and just kept pacing the few steps that the short tethering cord allowed until a waitress approached him and offered him a menu. At that, he hung up and walked out. All in all... odd but whatever.
Flash forward to the next afternoon. I had delivered one load, picked up another and made my way back to the T/A in Denton for lunch. I opted for the Taco Bell/Pizza Hut express this go 'round, getting a couple of crunchy tacos and some chips and cheese. Tasty.
With the sun out in full force I chose to sit at one of the 4 small tables provided in front of the fast food windows to consume my miserly meal. As I sat I watched people milling about the store to my left, folks finding tables or scanning the buffet in the restaurant to my right and of course folks ordering from Taco Bell/Pizza Hut right in front of me.
I noticed a man enter through the truck stop convenience store to my left walking with the most swagger I've seen in months. He was well built, confident and knew he looked good. I watched him swagger through the store and disappear behind a row of potato chips. Going back to my taco's I continued to watch others' around me. Nothing too interesting.
After a few minutes I noticed Mr. Swagger return into view as he made he way towards me, eyes focused on the restaurant to my right. He strutted past and I nearly burst out in insane laughter as I got a butt shot... the man had a paper toilet seat cover hanging out of the top of his trousers. Kid you not! The man with the most extreme swagger ever was lookin' a'fool with an a$$ gasket hanging out of his butt!
I was dying on the inside and I knew I couldn't stifle the laughter much longer. Shaking my head and suppressing the giggles I noticed a man at the table next to me nodding and looking at me intently as if saying, "let it out sister... let it out". And so I did... I just laughed like I'd just heard the funniest joke ever.
Mr. Swagger... oblivious. He continued on his journey towards the restaurant, then back to place an order with Taco Bell.
After I'd had enough entertainment for one day I headed back out to the truck to hit the road. I had to drive down into Dallas to pick up my next work assignment so I cruised down I-35E at a leisurely pace.
Getting close to downtown, I saw an oddity in the road ahead. Traffic was slowing down as passersby had to get a glimpse of what turned out to be a man playing monkey in the middle. I was thinking... WTF this guy must be crazy. And as I approached I realized he was. It was the man with the dirty clothes and cup of mysterious red fluid from the T/A the day before. He was talking to himself, clearly not sane in any way shape or form. He was in the middle of the highway, leaning up against the median barrier wall, seemingly in his own little world.
I chuckled, shook my head and continued on.
Comments
I order my water the same way and totally love it when they bring extra lemons, otherwise, I steal Kendall's :)