Princess And Mermaid Invasion - Film At Eleven.

Last night I stopped off at a specific store in a mall on the way home. I'll get more into the store in a moment but first, a little traffic and weather report ...

The winds in the area were in the 60MPH range. It was waaay beyond gusty ... it was scary. Even my sedan was feeling the wind as it blew across the lanes of the freeway. (Errr - that'd be the wind blowing across the lanes, not the sedan.) The surprisingly not-at-all crowded freeway that I was zipping along. In fact - yeah - where are all the cars with stressed out drivers that I usually share my commute with at a good 20MPH or less crawl?

I turned on the radio to catch a traffic report, which was when I learned that one of the four bridges that serve the area was completely closed down due to an overturned rig on the span. The transportation crew that closed the bridge was, according to the traffic reporter, opening half the bridge for about 10 minutes to let folks turn around, and then they'd close that side and open the other side for the same reason. I presumed this process would take hours as I continued to drive to the mall, saying a quiet "thank you" that I was not stuck mid-span on a bridge.

Ok so yeah, the store. I was on a mission to buy all things princess and mermaid themed for my Nieces. So while I was looking for princess/mermaid dolls and princess/mermaid purses and princess/mermaid ball-gowns and princess/mermaid flip-flops and princess/mermaid beach towels and geez how many shades of pink ARE there anyway??, I was surrounded by extremely stressed out parents who ordinarily would have been stressed out commuters. Each and every one was on their phone, calling (I presume) their homes to explain they'd be late in arriving.

If one could have somehow harnessed the nervous energy in that corner of the mall and converted it to an electric means, it woulda been enough to run an entire princess-and-mermaid inclusive theme park in Los Angeles hosted by a giant mouse.

And just being around all the stressedoutness (apologies to English teachers everywhere on that), I noticed that I was getting a little amped up. I also noticed that as the nice and patient and polite employees worked at this store (and my word they WERE nice and patient and polite) their "guests" - that is to say "those waiting in line to buy the latest princess/mermaid shocking pink portable hair salon complete with actual princess/mermaid comb!!" - started to lighten up. By the time I left about 30 minutes later, a total stranger in the front of the line had even passed special extra savings coupons around that she wasn't able to use.

So - the grand observation? Well, I dunno how grand it is but I've believed for a while now that some situations or moods or frames of mind or whatever are kinda ... catchy. Being in a bookstore with folks who are quietly reading makes me walk a little lighter and talk a little softer. Seeing a group of people gather at their office windows to look at something going on makes me want to join them. Hearing a child giggle uncontrollably makes me smile. And watching these folks in line only confirmed that being nice, even when it's a chore, CAN make a difference.

Granted, in the big scheme of things, nothing had changed. The bridge was still closed and folks would still be getting home later than they'd liked but ... it was still, as far as I'm concerned, something to notice and appreciate. And honestly with all the windy stuff that blows through our lives and uproots us and spins us around, seeing a smile anchor things to place was rather comforting.