it's a free ride, when you've already paid

so i'm walking back to my car after class today, and i'm thinking about people. people as a whole, not anyone in particular. i've lived in both the north and the south, and one difference is that in the north it's more the norm for people to pass each other and not acknowledge each other's existence (i dont mean to imply that this never happens in the south, it just happens less frequently). some people are ok with that, while others are bothered. i'm ok with that.

then there is the situation where you're kind of walking next to someone, both going in the same direction at the same time, and relatively the same speed. many people will either speed up or slow down so as to not walk next to the other person, while some dont mind. i dont mind. it doesnt make me uncomfortable.

so i was walking back, and this girl was sort of walking next to me. there was no acknowledgment. however, another girl was approaching, and the 2 girls stopped to talk. i walked to the end of the block, and crossed the street. as i did so, the first girl jaywalked diagonally, so we were once again walking side by side. still no acknowledgment. she sped up to walk in front of me. she smelled kind of like pine trees, but authentic ones, not the pine tree air fresheners. well, it was either her or all the pine trees on that street.

she takes the next left, and i follow as i'm also parked on that street. i get to my car, and i'm unlocking the door, and she's the car right in front of mine. i'm thinking how its funny, we walked almost the whole way, and not even eye contact or a nod or anything. but like i said, i'm ok with that. i can generally adjust to however the other person reacts. if they dont acknowledge me, i dont hold it against them. but then

"oh hey. i should tell you, i backed into your car this morning when i parked. your car is fine, but it scratched my bumper."
i look, and sure enough, a big old scratch on the back of her mercedes. then i look at the front of my car. no harm done, she hit the screws that would hold in the front license plate, if the state i live in required one.
"that's ok. there's no harm done. it happens."

then i got in my car and drove off, and that was that. and to answer your questions, no, the irony of the situation didnt escape me, and yes, i did really just bust out some alanis.