car lot blues
there are, as far as i can tell, five breeding pairs of canadian geese that have taken residence along the shores of the small pond that sits behind the dealership where i work; five breeding pairs of geese and a duck couple, mallards– i have seen both the drake and the hen. every morning i take a "lot walk" that is, i walk the entire lot, look at the cars we have and see if there is anything new that came in that i might have missed. lately, one of the stops i’ve started making is the pond. it is located at the back of the lot. its not a huge pond, but its a goodly sized. there are three or four good sized boulders that are strategically placed along the shore of the pond. it is actually quite quaint. all it needs is a little row boat and i’d never sell a car, i’d float on the pond and read all day.
i got too close to a goose nest yesterday. ever had a goose hiss at you like a cat and then start to chase you? its a very weird and somewhat frightening experience. i outweigh that feathered critter by probably a 100 to one and i still jogged away after the gander, i think it was the gander, gave chase.
being on the lot almost 11 hours a day i have started to really enjoy the little nature microcosm i have. i’m not sure my other car salesmen appreciate it, but its fascinating. i watch the clouds roll by, watch the sky darken, lighten. i watch the snow fall, the snow melt, the trees turn colors, the leaves fall, the grass wilt, the grass green up; i watch the birds migrate, i watch the starling prepare for their migration. i watch the sun go down, i feel the rain pelt my face, the winter wind freeze my nose. i feel the sun burn my skin and the wind whip it to chapping.
i never thought, in a million years, i’d be a car salesman, really, it never even crossed my mind, and yet, for some unknown reason, i am. i know how i got here, i’m not going to get into that right now, but i still have to pinch myself and say "really?"