Between the two of us, Best Friend and I own several wristwatches.  It’s not so much that time is so important to us, but we like the fashion and some of the pieces are sentimental.

Over time, one by one, the batteries in each watch died, and by the time the last of Best Friend’s watches stopped working, batteries were need for all the watches. So, one Saturday, we gathered most of our watches (all mine died out, too) and we made a trip downtown to a jeweler’s shop.  It’s an old business that’s been around since a time when ladies wore long dresses and large hats, and the building is from that same turn-of-the-century timeframe.

We parked our car about 2 blocks away that Saturday morning and reveled in the cool air coming off the bay.  We sauntered into the store and made our way past the sparkling gems and brilliant metals in perfectly clean glass cases, all under the white-painted original tin ceiling.  One of the jewelers asked that we come back in a few hours while she changed out all the batteries, and that we did.

After we returned to the jeweler’s and paid for the replacement batteries, I didn’t want to put all the watches back in my pocket.  So, we both placed our them on our wrists — about 2 on each wrist – or 8 total – and we left the store.

About halfway home, we were waiting at a stoplight.  Our windows were rolled down since the weather was nice enough.  Best Friend and I were looking at each other’s watches and admiring them while we waited for the light to change.

“Excuse me!”

I turned and looked out the car window.

“Excuse me!  Do you know what time it is?”

It was a woman in the car next to us.

Mechanically, I raised my left wrist and started to speak.

“It’s tw—”

Then, Best Friend started laughing and held up both of his arms towards the lady in the car next to us.

I started laughing, too, and held up my arms.

And the lady in the car next to us was laughing hysterically.

At that moment, the light turned green, and we continued onward.

From time to time, it’s a pleasure to encounter people with a great sense of humor!

©2022 Colcannon Metropolis, “Life is Funny,” “Aren’t They Just!” “Tales from Yodel-O Land,” and “Thoughts on the Terrace on a Rainy Day”