what can i say?

i have this daily routine, this cycle i follow every morning.
come to work, turn on the lights, turn on the phones, put away my lunch, and sit down at the computer. i currently six tabs up on my screen (I love tabs, i've decided) and check each one of them. then, i get to my blog. i'll check to see if anyone has anything to say about my (Profound?) words, but nothing so far. then, i'll look to see who else in the world there is.

the thing that i love so much about blogs is that i find bits and pieces of myself in each person i meet. to read their words and their honesty gives me this rush, and i know i'm not as alone as i feel i am.

like, today. i was checking out who else in Colorado likes to blog, and came across this girl that had gone to Ethiopia. It was so crazy to hear her talk about it, since I have been wanting to go to Africa for awhile now. It was like a future me writing and saying how much fun it was.
today in general, i am loving people. i just want to sit down and have a good long talk with a total stranger over coffee.

strangers are one of my favorite things. if you think about it, 99% of our lives are spent with people we will never meet again. to stop and make something out of those once-in-a-lifetime (And if you're lucky like me, two or three times) encounters. to smile at the person in line next to you in the store, or to help someone with a door, or tell someone you like their shirt. those are some of my favorite moments in life.
the ones that can never be repeated. it's a chance to do all the good things you would never do otherwise.

one of my favorite times was when i was shopping. i saw a guy about my age sitting on the edge of a utility truck, and he looked like he was waiting for someone. i smiled at him, and almost said something but decided not to. so i went into the store for awhile. then, about half an hour later, i found him still out there so i walked over and asked him if he was having fun. he said he was waiting for his boss. we made small talk for a few minutes, and then i left, smiling. how strange that something like that would make me so happy, but it did. to connect.
later that week, i saw him in the same gas station as me, 30 minutes from the place i saw him before! I laughed out loud. :) he looked over and smiled this huge smile; he remembered! unfortunately, i wasn't able to speak to him again, because i was just leaving, but it was so funny to see him again.
and, don't laugh, i think i gave him a piece of my heart. the way you only can with a stranger, if that makes any sense at all.

so, to all my strange and stranger friends, thank you. you have brightened my life more than ever, and you will never know.