Crossways

This morning, everyone was walking to work. On this side of the Hill, the metro is in one direction, and everyone on all the sidewalks on every street was headed towards it, like pre-programed robots on their way to punch their card. I was either walking directly in the opposite direction or on cross streets, and I thought, 'Well, this is pretty typical.' I've been moving in cross directions from the general public my entire life. I didn't even have a dog or a stroller to use as an excuse, just going against the flow for no apparent reason: looking at the sky, talking to myself a little bit ('geez, what is this, pedestrian rush hour?'), touching trees (a random flare-up of my fascination with bark), and listening to cicadas while the humidity argued and fought with the cool breeze and otherwise pleasant weather.  People even smelled like morning, all fresh and clean, hints of cologne and toothpaste, bright and airy before the day turned stale and people wilted from the unkind, stagnant atmosphere of office buildings.