Friend Finder

I recall some time ago ruminating on the matter of spotting a city bus coming down the street as I stand there wringing my hands in fear of being late for some engagement. It's not easy, for the reasons that I then outlined. A similarly difficult search came to my attention in the very bar I spoke of yesterday. It was exceptionally crowded, but I trust that the occupancy of the place fell within legal limits because I prefer to believe the best in people.

I was at this bar with several friends, and as much fun as I have there, I would never go there or be there alone. It was for that reason that I considered it to be of paramount importance that I keep those friends within sight. I would say that I managed to do it mostly. It was impossible to keep an eye on all of them, particularly as I was engaged in similar activities to those which repeatedly took them out of my sight. I did my best.

Most of them were of such stature that a crowd easily swallowed them up when they were distant. Only one is of such size that the eye could pick him out no matter where in the room he stood. In a crushing mob or behind a load-bearing column, still there he was- a landmark to provoke a sigh of relief. I think of him as something like a life-saving St. Bernard, right down to the receptacle of warming liquor. Regrettable that he alone should have such an attribute.

Happily, others in our contingent made it easy to keep tabs on them in their own way. Those were the people who mainly were static in their positioning. So it is that we see wallflowers in fact have some utility, and ought to be considered a valuable member of any expeditionary party. So too are those who devote themselves to watching over the groups personal items, and those who spend most of their time dancing instead of making trips to the bar or the bathroom. With the aid of those people, I managed to stay in contact and return home alive once again.