Good Citizens

After yesterday’s Cookie Decorating event, I headed to Starbucks to place a traveler order for today’s Holiday Potluck.

On the way back to the complex, stopped at the light, I saw something big roll from the sidewalk, in front of the bus stop, into the street at the curb.

“What was that?”, thought I as the light changed and I pulled alongside to check it out.

It was a man, lying flat on his back, arms and hands flailing in the air.

To tell you the truth, the world being what it is now, when I hear of Good Samaritans being tricked out of their cars to help, only to be harmed, I was skeptical of what I was seeing, but nevertheless dialed 911, as I pulled to the curb to park, and reported a man lying in the street at such and such a location.

Once out of the car, trying to decide if I was safe to approach, I noticed a number of other cars pulling over, people jumping out to help.

A trickle of blood was coming from the guy’s mouth, along with some sort of foam.

One Good Citizen said, “He’s having a seizure”.

Another Good Citizen knew to roll him onto his side so he’d not choke.

It felt like the ambulance was taking forever.

So forever, that the guy finally opened his eyes and appeared to be coming out of the seizure. He looked dazed and attempted to try to get up, but another Good Citizen got down on his knees and gently held the guy down saying, “Don’t move. You’ve had a seizure. Don’t move”.

I left when I heard the sirens approach, but I was so proud of the neighborhood for so many stopping to help instead of stopping to roll him for his wallet, steal his backpack.

It happens.

Yesterday’s Cookie Decorating event was a success.

I’d taken that sweater kit I’d been hoarding but, not really in the mood, I mostly watched others decorate and ended up giving three of the four sets of sweater cookies to The Baker’s great-granddaughter and two little great grandsons.

I’m saving the last sweater set for when the mood does hit.

Not that I didn’t decorate at all. I did put one of the gingerbread cookies from that family kit, and a smaller female-looking cookie, on a plate to work on.

The big cookie would have come out better had I been in a more centered frame of mind – hair, earrings, more color, less brown. I did the bare minimum to it, but it came out okay looking. The smaller cookie reflected my being tired and not much caring. It was such a disaster that it ended up in the Community Room’s trash receptacle.

The Baker’s great-granddaughter hard at work on her sweater cookies.

One of her little brothers did a rushed job.

The other was a little more focused.

The boys had two sweater cookies each, so what happened that only one was decorated is the boys probably ate the others plain. They were shortbread and shortbread beats gingerbread any day of the week. Besides, the boys were more interested in getting decorating out-of-the-way, so they could get to bouncing on the furniture, which is what they ended up doing. LOL.

During the event, I spied a little girl looking through the glass door and invited her mom to let her decorate cookies with us. I didn't even ask who they were, why they were here. I just saw an interested look in the little girl's eyes and invited her in.

Fortunately, after they were seated and the little girl had gotten started, someone asked, "Who are you?"

Turned out, it was the wife and youngest daughter of Assistant Maintenance Guy.

They’d stopped by to drop off his lunch.

Their little girl had the best time eating and decorating cookies. She even made a Black Gingerbread Man.

I wish I’d have thought of that color as a base for my big cookie.

Next time.

At any rate, I survived Cookie Decorating, the neighborhood did itself proud in the street by the bus stop and, after I get through today's  Holiday Potluck, I might not be called upon to interact with others until after the first of the new year.