Off topic

I debated sharing this earlier but thought it may be a good idea. Today was a reminder for me again of how fortunate all of us are to be able to enjoy the small luxuries in life, such as relaxing in a remote hot spring away from life's every day challenges.

I was having somewhat of a frustrating day at work, and although a hot spring would have been welcomed, decided to take a break and head over to a sandwich shop mid afternoon. When I exited back to the parking lot, there is a man that approached me and asked for help. He was of a smaller frame and thin. This is not the best part of town so I assumed he wanted money. However, I noticed he had a bandage on his arm and was carrying paper in one hand. That's about it. He asked how far Orange County was from where we were. I told him about a 40 minute drive, not sure how long by bus. So he looked down and said that "they" told him that there was a valley bus around there but he got lost trying to find it. So I asked him to explain how he got there in the first place if he wasn't sure how to get back home. Well, it turns out there was no "real" home. Apparently he collapsed while on his bicycle in Orange, was air lifted to a certain hospital in LA that accepts patients without insurance and following surgery and a recovery stay, they just released him back onto the street. I confirmed he was holding the discharge papers in his hand. I asked him if a social worker provided him with any guidance. He said no just where the nearest bus stop was. He had no money on him.

I told him to hold a minute while I cancelled my remaining meeting for the day. On the way to Orange, the traffic was horrible as usual in spots, but it didn't bother me that much any more. Had some good company as well, which was a welcomed break from the pressure of work earlier, and probably more of what I needed than a stop over at a sandwich shop. I used to work on a project in Orange a few years back so we stopped for dinner at one of my favorite places off of Chapman which brought back memories, called the shelter he usually says at and make arrangements. I had to apologize that we didn't have an opportunity to see what happened to his bike, but the staff there said they would try to locate it. The lady we met at the shelter told me at least 15,000 folks are out on the streets each night in Orange County alone. Of course, you will never see that on an episode of Real House Wives of Orange County.