Writer's Block

The USA is the place I was born. Canada is the place I was raised. Taiwan is the place in my heart.

Wednesday, December 01, 2010

Umbrella Karma

As I braved through the raging rain today, I saw the old familiar sight of umbrella carnage out on the streets. The sidewalks were littered with abandoned, dismembered black umbrellas. I always seem to be in need of a sturdier umbrella that will stand up to the elements, but I'm always forever losing them or forgetting them somewhere, so why bother I think. I just need one to keep me dry as I go from point A to point B.

But this past spring when New York was having a particularly long stretch of rain, I actually went out and bought a nice full sized umbrella. As with most of my umbrellas I didn't manage to keep it within my possession for long.

Whatever happened to it I'll never know for sure. I had brought it with me to a networking event at an upscale restaurant bar in the Flatiron district of New York. At the end of the night, when I went to the umbrella bucket to retrieve it, it was no where to be found. The bucket previously crowded with umbrellas was now as empty as the restaurant. Upset to think that it had been nabbed from someone amongst the well dressed crowd of professionals that I'd just mingled with, I hastily grabbed another umbrella of approximately the same size for the walk home. Outside, I opened the clear plastic umbrella, but the spring was broken, so I had to hold my hand up to keep it open and the metal frame had rusted. It was falling apart, so I ended up throwing it away and grudgingly walking home in the drizzle.

I vowed to never buy another nice umbrella. What's the point? Worse than losing it, it had been stolen or taken!

So I went back to buying cheap, disposable, nondescript, black retractable umbrellas, the kind you'd pick up in a drugstore or from the guy out on the corner selling them for $5 a piece.

There would be no retribution for the disappearance of my umbrella, or so I thought.

Today, as I was leaving the yoga studio, I fished for my umbrella out of the communal umbrella bucket, but I couldn't find it. Oh sh-- someone had mistakenly grabbed my umbrella I thought! Assuming that someone had simply made an honest mistake by grabbing my nondescript, black umbrella by accident, I just grabbed another umbrella that looked approximately like mine. I knew I'd need an umbrella since it was still pouring outside.

Out in the rain, I pressed the umbrella's button to open it up and to my surprise it opened up to twice the size of what you'd expect for a retractable umbrella! This was a NICE umbrella with a sturdy metal frame, and it retracts to the same size as most retractables! This umbrella is even better than the one I "lost" in the spring. You bet I'll be hanging on to this one.

In fact, if I ever need to buy a new umbrella, I would definitely consider buying this one- the ShedRain umbrella.

Too bad for the owner of this umbrella, I certainly know how he/she probably feels.

Guess that's umbrella karma for you.

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