I saw Crazy Carl again today. I was just rounding the corner at the bottom of my street, headed for the store to buy some tortilla chips because mine were missing and the two bags I found were stale. Not "oh these are stale" stale, but "I can't swallow this so instead I will spit it into the trash" stale. And there was ol' Carl, wearing the same clothes as before. I didn't check to see if he bought new socks with my money. Instead I tugged my baseball cap lower across my eyes and sped past him. There was a bit of a crowd there, thanks to the bus stop, and his gaze was cast downward, so I think I got away without him recognizing me. Or at least without him knowing I recognized him.
As I returned from the store, I looked cautiously about. No Carl down the street. No carl visible around the corner (the two glass walls of the café allow for such foresight). I turned onto my street and there he was, up the road, walking towards me. I immediately (and obviously) changed direction and bolted across the street. I didn't feel quite secure on the other side, though, so I actually walked three blocks out of my way so as not to pass him.
Not that I'm afraid of Crazy Carl, even with his pipe (the metal hitting people in the head kind, not the crack kind). I just wasn't feeling another hour-plus conversation.
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