A Funny Thing Happened…

…on the way to Chapters.  So, I decide to take a walk up the hill the other night, and take a peek at The Gospel of Judas.  (I ended up not buying it, as I wasn't willing to pay $30 for something that thin, but that's another story.)

Anyways, back on topic: it's a little chilly out, so I grab a jacket — my beat up old Soviet one — before I leave.  As I'm crossing the bridge over the highway, I spot a rather grimy looking, crouched-over man stumbling along the sidewalk towards me.  Drunk, stoned, just generally out of it — I don't know what he was, but he certainly was stumbling along.  Partway along the bridge, we get close to each other.  He looks up, spots me, and promptly straightens himself up and salutes.  (Well, straightened himself up is relative.  He was hardly straightened up by any standard except when compared to his previous posture.)

I should point out that, despite being an army jacket, I don't look the slightest bit military in it.  It's obviously old, always half-unbuttoned (the high collar irritates my neck if it's done up all the way), and I was wearing the same faded old jeans I always wear.  Once it dawned on me what had just happened, I was even more confused than normal.