Have you ever been judged by a random stranger based on your convenience store purchases? That’s what happened to me last night. I went to the nearby 7-11 to buy cigarettes and also picked up a few essentials — butterfinger candy, mineral water, toothbrush and fat burning pills.  I was doing my business at the check-out counter and this guy came up beside me, looked at me and somehow found entertainment value in my selections. Only in America when random people feel the need to talk to you as if you’re long-lost friends. There’s no time for chit chat because Rumi was waiting inside the car.

After telling her what just happened, I thought that it would be fun to turn the tables. I asked Rumi to  open the car window. We screamed at the guy as he exited the store to come to us and lo and behold, we played a little show-and-tell. He got a huge ass can of beer, some starbucks drink-in-a-can, coconut water and chewing gum.

He introduced himself as Paxton, asked what our names are and that was the end of it. Didn’t exchange contact details, nada. When he left, I couldn’t help but ask Rumi what the chances are of us bumping into him. He seemed like a cool person. She said she probably lives around the area but we’ll probably never see him again.

Strangers.