Something cool happened today...

I know that the title of today's entry mentions the word "cool." I was thinking that the weather is outright frigid today, so maybe using cool is kind of stupid, but I'll use it anyway. I was a witness of an act of kindness today that I want to share with you guys-and the act, in my opinion, was very cool.
I take a commuter bus from an outlying suburb here in the twin cities, called Shakopee. This is a very new bus service, therefore there are a very few buses in the morning and evening. The last bus in the morning leaves promptly at 8:05. If you miss that bus, you have to drive up to Eden Prairie to a busy transit station...it's a pain in the ass...I've missed my bus a couple of times. When I do miss it, I'm grumbling and cursing all the way to the other bus station. Usually, I'm on an earlier bus, but since the college I work for has a graduation ceremony today, there's not much going on. I decided to take my time and just jump on the late bus. This morning, I got to the park and ride about ten minutes early and just sat on the bus, plugged in the ipod, relaxed, and vegged out.

I gotta give you some background here...So, I have to move away from the timeline of this morning for a moment...forgive me.

The driver of the late bus is a gregarious woman in her late thirties or early forties. She is constantly joking and laughing with her riders. I usally sit in the first few seats, so even though I've got my ipod on, I can hear most of what she says. I have to say, she is a pleasant person that makes the most of her driving experience. She also drives the last bus home on Friday evenings...the passengers on that bus are always laughing and it's a great trip. If I'm on that bus, I would have had to work until 6:00 on a Friday evening...which also makes me "Mr. Crabby Pants." Here's the thing...I climb into her bus thinking like a cranky a-hole on a dark Friday evening, but by the time she drops us off, I'm laughing and joking with my fellow commuters. A few weeks ago, as we were getting off, she was giving us an airline safety briefing on the microphone...finishing off with..."In the event of a water landing, there is a vest under your seat..." So, you guys get the idea that she loves her job and working with people...

So, anyway...back to this morning...She spent the ten minutes before leaving talking to these two older ladies, who'd decided to take the bus downtown to do some shopping. They were new to bus travel downtown, so she gave them the rundown and was her usual fun self with them. The time to depart came and she pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street to begin the drive to downtown Minneapolis. She got about a hundred yards on the road when she saw a car that she knew was one of her regular riders. She stopped the bus, opened up her window and started talking to the woman driving the car...It turns out that the woman was dropping off her husband (the regular commuter) and she was late. I could see the woman was desperate to get her husband on the bus and she had that pleading look on her face. The driver just smiled, shook her head up and down (smiling all the time) , and opened up the door. The woman's husband rolled out of the car and climbed aboard and we were on our way. It was so nice to see something like that.

I have been the victim of bus drivers that have kept to their exact schedule. They've seen me running to their buses, screaming for them to wait or stop. They've just ignored me and driven on. This woman didn't do that. She knew she would be late, but she still took care of that woman and her husband.

So...what's my takeaway from today's little episode? Take the time...be the good guy...smile...and it can change how people feel for the day.