Another Day In Paradise

I was walking towards a pet food store in the shopping mall. A usual Sunday morning up to that moment, and I was feeling almost completely recharged due to the extra hour I had last night. The shopping mall was quiet and empty. A woman was on the public phone discussing something about “mental illness”. Two little girls were playing on the wooden horses while their mother was supervising them nearby.

A man in his sixties approached me from a corner and asked, “Sir, Can you help me?”
“Yes?” I stopped, expecting a normal question about time or directions.

“Are you a Chinese?”

An unexpected question from a stranger. I was alerted. I unconsciously straightened up my back and looked at him closely. An old man with a friendly red face and red nose, a black baseball hat with a word spelled something like “Young***” on the front, an unzipped black jacket that could hardly cover his big beer tummy.

“Yes, I am. How can I help you?”

“I need an honest opinion from you. I was here having a happy chat with a Chinese lady for about twenty minutes. And she said she's going to call me next Friday. I'm not quite sure if she meant what she said or she won't call me at all? You have the same culture background. Do you think she's going to call me? From my past experience, I usually have 80 percent success rate...”

He's standing uncomfortably close to me. All my attention was on his right hand in his jacket pocket. What's he's holding in his pocket?

“I really don't know what to say. She might, or she might not...”

He looked at my maple leave baseball hat. “Are you born in China? You can better understand how these Chinese ladies think. You are born in China, right? She's bigger than the other one, she's 5'3''. Her English is not as good as that Filipino's. But she can understand what I say. I like big women. I think she knew I'm friendly. You know, I live on pension. I'm looking for companionship. I like Chinese girls. There are not many Chinese girls here. I was happy chatting with her...”

“So you've asked for her phone number?”

“Yes, she didn't give it me. So I wrote down my phone number to her.” He took out his right hand out of his pocket and showed me the writing gesture with both his hands. “She said she will call me instead. So what do you think? I have no experience with these Chinese ladies. They may say something quite different from what they really think inside. She knew I am a nice person but she may find my face not attractive...”

The fellow did have some knowledge on Chinese thinking. I may not be the first Chinese he consulted with. “Based on what you told me, I feel she might just want to be polite and she didn't mean to call you back.”

“SO you think I have a 50-50 chance?”

The old man was obviously still not done with his talk and not satisfied with my answer. Or my answer was not really that important. All he wanted is just to talk to somebody, even to a stranger like me. I felt sad for him. He's obviously a very lonely person. He kept going on and on and on... He repeated the same stuff over and over... It seems the old man was having a mental problem, probably even drunk. Most likely he's suffering from bipolar disorder or obsessive-compulsive disorder. I began to feel more uncomfortable...

“I noticed you have a small stomach.” He pointed at my waist.

“What?? I'm sorry?” I didn't quite catch what he had said. Did I forget to zip my door? I looked down.

“I'm getting old, I have a big tummy. Not like you,..”

“Oh, I see.., I'm sorry, I have to go now.” In his mind obsessed by love, was I to become his potential competitor? Was he envying me for being a young Chinese? I need to get out of here as quick as possible.

“You look quite young, in your twenties, thirties? You are a nice man... It's good talking to you..”

“Thanks.” I walked into the pet store with mixed feelings.

Twenty minutes later, I walked across the shopping mall back to my car. He was still there, walking back and forth, waiting and dreaming. Poor old fellow... I wish he can be happy..

Oh think twice...
Oh lord, is there nothing more anybody can do
Oh lord, there must be something you can say