The Krude Experience - 6/29/15

Greetings. I had already written a new blog for bumwinebob.com for this week when harsh reality managed to grab hold of my soul during a recent commute to work. This incident was as real as it gets,in America 2015.Equal parts drama and booze. And sadness and laughter. At 8am on an overcast saturday morning. We begin....

I was waiting for a bus on a busy street in Hackensack,NJ to get to my job in NYC. Nothing unusual about that. I just stand and wait while listening to music. I was alone at this bus stop,until from my left,a man was jogging towards me. He was carrying a brown booze bag,while smoking a cigarette. He procedes to sit down at the stop to catch his breath. Then asks me "How do I get to St.Marys hospital?". I take my earbuds out and tell him which bus to catch. What struck me as odd was the brown bag he was carrying. He was drinking a cold,tall Bud.The only place to get a cold,brown bagged Bud around there at 8am would be a place around 1.5 miles from where he was sitting. In essence,he just ran a mile and a half while drinking and smoking to catch a bus. He was already cool with me.

My bus wasn't due for another 5 minutes. So when this man starting talking to me,I was listening. " I'm from South Carolina. I just got here an hour ago on a bus. I need to see my daughter. She has slipped into a coma. She is at St Mary's hospital.". And then offered me some of his bagged hooch. I politely decline. He lights up another cigarette,and continues talking. " This is fucked up shit. I have family here (NJ) but they don't want to help me get to the hospital." I don't know what to say at this point,so I said: "I'd be joining you with having a beer for breakfast,but there's no bathroom on my bus". He laughs. I'm glad he smiling.

I see his bus coming and tell him to have exact change of $1.50 for the ride. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out around $6 worth of quarters and dimes. As his bus pulls in next to us,I reach into my front pocket and pull out a $20 dollar bill. As he starts to board the bus, I say " Take a cab back here later". Then hand him the $20. "And I'm saying prayers for your daughter". He says " Thanks man,God bless." Then fist bumps me. He gets on the bus,waves again. Then rides away. I never got his name. My bus has now arrived. I'm off to work.

It's not often I give $ to total strangers. He didn't even ask for money. I didn't even ask why his daughter was in a coma. It didn't matter. I hope he bought more booze and smokes with the money I gave him. Something tells me he did. Something tells me he needed to.

If you have kids (like I do) who live a distance from you (like I do),then I think you would've done the same thing I did. I've been through tough times in relation to my son and his health. And seeing him during his health related ordeals was made possible by creating small miracles every step along the way. And with the help of some good friends.

I hope this man's daughter is going to be alright. I'm toasting my bourbon on the rocks to them as I type this blog.

Godspeed

KK

@kapn_krude

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