david j. garcia

I have a wonderful job. They take good care of us, I work with good people, and the work is enjoyable most of the time.

It is, however, occasionally unpredictable. I only knew for certain that I would be taking this job a mere three days before I hit the road to come out here.

Our trip to San Francisco happened even quicker. We had heard talk for a few days that they would want us to go, but we only actually knew the details (including when) the day before we left. Thankfully, they were understanding of the issues caused by the short notice, and we were able to work around our weekend plans. We actually made the six-hour drive four times in only a week and a half.

San Francisco, short notice or not, was a good experience. I could hardly believe that I was getting paid so well to spend a day visiting the restaurants on Fisherman’s Wharf. That area was actually a little difficult to do our job in because it’s so busy (and quite liberal, politically). I was able to find enough helpful people to do a good job, and we enjoyed our time there.

Perhaps one of our favorite attractions in San Francisco was “the bushman”, a street performer who–quite literally–pretends he’s a bush. He sits on a stool on a busy sidewalk and holds a few small, leafy branches in front of himself. When unsuspecting tourists wander along, he startles them. He doesn’t scream, make faces, or leap at them. It’s just a little twitch and a grunt, or a small “boo” with a shake of the branches, but, despite the fact that he’s hiding in plain sight with only a sham attempt at camouflage, he almost always gets a good jump out of his previously oblivious victims.

As we watched, a crowd gathered in the sidewalk, looking directly at him and at the approaching marks. Many in the crowd had cameras out. Despite the clear indications of something there, he had continued success. He collected donations, and, I noticed, was very respectful of the elderly or anyone else who might be sensitive. He had a touch for administering (or not) the right amount of surprise.

Now a question: How often do you go through your day caught in your own thoughts, busy with your plans, or distracted by whatever or whoever actively seeks your attention? It’s easy to get so involved in these things that we forget to notice what’s right in front of and around us. It might be a bit of beauty in an unexpected place, a person who needs our attention, or (like on that sidewalk) a chance to avoid an unpleasant surprise, but we all tend to miss those things too often. Slow down. Pay just a little better attention to your surroundings. You might be pleasantly surprised by what you notice.