Strange But Random Events In Your Everyday Life

[John Thomas8]

Silly title, but this is something we dealt with in the past week, and I can't be the only one that this has happened to in their life.

My daughter got a package last Thursday.

So what?

Well, the sender was in a suburb of San Francisco and the receiver lived in a suburb of Los Angeles. How did my daughter get this particular package?

Zip Code. The sender put her (my daughter's) zip code instead of the receivers, and the street address of "333 First Street" looked close enough to "333 Felmet Drive" that the postal crew didn't' bother with the city/state on the address label.

Because I'm a goof, I looked up both the sender's and receiver's address on Google Maps to determine if they both existed and what the receiver's proper zip code is, and stuffed the package in a $7.95 if-it-fits-it-ships USPS envelope and let it go home.

We'll never hear from these two people, I've spent 6+ hours looking both up but they're not available for public view. So, somebody is going to get a surprize on Friday and I'm going to be happy that I had a little hand in making things right.

[John Thomas8]

The only satisfaction I'll get from this is watching the USPS tracking and see that the package gets to where it belongs.

And I'm going to be happy with that.

[neonzx]

Well, we know USPS has been chaos for the past year.

Last week, my regular carrier was on vacation. The sub delivered into my mailbox a certified letter with a green return receipt card on the back... all properly prepared. The sub didn't knock on my door for a signature.

[MN-Skeptic]

My recent strange event involving the post office ended up being a good thing.

My Michigan sister reserved rooms at a retreat for an August family reunion. I told her I'd send a check to cover the charges. As usual, I printed the envelope in my laser printer, enclosed the check, and sent it off. That was Friday, April 9. After almost two weeks, my sister still hadn't received my check. I knew the post office was slow, but this was ridiculous. But right at that point, I discovered that I had written the check to my sister from a recently closed bank account! If she had received it and tried to cash it, it would have bounced! I quickly called her and transferred the money in a different way.

On May 3 I received my original letter back from the post office. My sister's address had smeared on the envelope so that they could not deliver the letter.

So two wrongs ended up making a right in this case.

[bill_g]

Silly title, but this is something we dealt with in the past week, and I can't be the only one that this has happened to in their life.

Great story John. Bless you for doing the work, paying the freight, and trying to make it right. You earned your angel wings.

I've got a ton of stories of random events involving me and strangers. I could write a book. Oh, which one? The school teacher with a broken leg and a flat tire? The hunter stuck in the woods? The retired couple broke down in Central Oregon? The Mexican restaurant? The two girls caught in Lake Huron? The hiker having a heart attack on Mt Hood? The snow mobiler caught in a snow shelf? The people stuck in a forest fire near Crater Lake?

Let's talk about Punky Shelton. She's probably the most expensive friend we've ever made, but worth it.

Back in the 90's after Mrs had recovered from her third round of surgeries, we went on what I like to call a two minute drive to get her out of the house. A minute of travel is approximately a mile in any direction give or take a few thousand feet. So, two minutes isn't very far. But, the point is to not go very far. You don't have to go far to see something new, to be someplace different. There are wonders nearby that you've passed many times, and never realized how close they were. On this day we went to Mount St Helens, about a hundred miles north. It was late fall, off season, very little traffic, and definitely no people around. We had the mountain to ourselves literally.

It's getting late, the sun is going down, the concessions are all closed, and it's a bit of a drive back to Castle Rock WA where we thought we'd spend the night. The paved forestry road is tricky, lumpy, and undulates over the big ripples in the Earth formed by the famous eruption. At the bottom of a ripple, the car suddenly bucked and sputtered. In the mirror I can see we're spewing big clouds of white smoke. Head gasket. Coolant is getting into a cylinder, and we're blowing steam. We are not going to get far.

We are almost back to civilization. We passed through most of the federal forest. A bit further ahead would be private property, and we might find someone at home who could help us. I'm just not sure how far. In the dusk I can see a mailbox. I coax the car to get there. We roll to a stop on the side of the road just before their drive. The lights are on, and I approach the house. My knock goes unanswered. The storm door is closed, but the main door in open. I peer inside, and sitting on the floor braced against a wall is a woman. She has the telephone cord in her hand, but can't reach the dial on the wall mounted phone.

I let myself in, and found she was awake but not lucid. There was no one else there as far as I could tell. I hung up the receiver, and then dialed 911 as I searched for a magazine or a bill or something with the house address on it. She had a mail basket on the counter where I got her name and address as the call finally routed to the county emergency operator in Longview. They got the sheriff and an ambulance rolling for her. I went back to the car to tell Mrs what was going on, turned on our flashers, and took her inside with me. We did our best to comfort her. We weren't really sure what was wrong.

It took the sheriff about 20 minutes to get there, and the ambulance wasn't too far behind. They bundled her up and headed to Longview. The deputy that took our statement was kind enough to get us a tow truck, and then waited with us until our car as hooked up. He knew of Mrs. Shelton. They were distant family. He never met her before, but he was grateful we were there. The tow truck driver took us to the Pontiac dealer in Longview. They were closed by now, but he was kind to us as well dropping us at a decent motel in walking distance. We spent the night a little fuzzy from the events wondering what was next.

We made arrangements with the dealer the next day, told him our story, and he was gracious enough to take us to a car rental so we could head home. Fast forward a couple weeks, and we got a box in the mail. The return address was from her, Punky Shelton. She wrote a very nice letter thanking us for being there, and sent several bars of soap she makes for bizarres and fairs. We wrote her back, exchanged phone numbers, visited a few times, and kept in touch with her years afterwards until she passed.

She was worth having as a friend. Make a toast to good friends and happy coincidences.

[Gregg]

My ex-wife lives 3 miles from me and I never see her in Cincinnati.

But I see here in airports, a lot. I travel a lot but she doesn't. Seems like every time she does though, she runs into me in the airport in NYC, or Atlanta or Salt Lake City, Dallas, Detroit. Weird.

[John Thomas8]

All interesting stories, I was hoping it would happen.

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

The only satisfaction I'll get from this is watching the USPS tracking and see that the package gets to where it belongs.

And I'm going to be happy with that.

So glad you started this thread!

[Patagoniagirl]

In 2001, the Mister and I sold everything and took off for Costa Rica. After taking care of legal stuff in San Jose, we drove south the Pacific Coast Highway on our way to Manuel Antonio where we had purchased a house.

It was fucking hot and humid and we were hungry so we stopped in Quepos at a little bar named "Wacky Wanda's " which advertised ice cold a/c. We ordered burgers and beers. The was another gringo couple at the other end of the bar.

The woman asked if we were there on vacation. I told her no, we just bought a place and were here to live. She said they just bought a house and moved there last week. Wow. So, she asked where we moved from and and I said a little island off the coast of FL - probably never heard of it. Turns out they were from Anna Maria Island too and had only lived a quarter mile from our beach shack. The houses we each purchased in Manuel Antonio were wildly different but 1/4 mile apart.

[Azastan]

I had related this story on the old board, but since it is gone, I will repeat it.

I used to work extensively with a couple of horse rescue groups, and met a number of people via those groups, including a woman named 'Sue' (not her real name).

A few years ago the Puyallup Fair became the Washington State Fair, and the Fair Board wanted to introduce a new exhibit--Horse Breeds of the World. I volunteered to take myself and Azastan to be ambassadors of the Arabian breed, and we were there at the fair for part of a week, allowing the public to meet (and illegally pet!) an Arabian horse.

I had many, many people come up to me and tell me how much they missed having a horse around, especially those who had had Arabians in their earlier years. We estimated that over 1200 people had petted and had taken photos of themselves with Azastan in that short partial week.

But one woman stood out in particular. She spent about half an hour, just enjoying being in Az's presence, and reminiscing about her beloved Arabians from many years past. She was so moved by being able to touch Az that she was in tears. I will always encourage people to adopt a rescue--Arabian, preferably--if they have the space and time. She wasn't quite ready for another horse, but you never know.

Several months later I got a message from a friend, asking if I could do an emergency re-home for a Half-Arabian where the owner's husband had cancer and was in hospice, and the owner absolutely had to find a home within a week. I usually have a couple of friends who are casually searching for a horse which will match well with them, but I didn't have any prospects at the time, so although I wasn't panicking, I didn't really have anyone in mind but well, there's always my pasture in a pinch.

The next day I got a message from my friend 'Sue', who told me that an acquaintance of hers ('Bev') had decided that she really would like to have an Arabian or Half-Arabian in her life, preferably older (hmmm, horse needing a home was 23), a mare (hmmm, horse needing a home was a mare), broke to ride (yup), and preferably registered although papers weren't necessary if we knew her name (yeah, got that). Oh, and would be nice if horse was within 50 miles, so that it didn't have to travel far.

So I arranged for 'Bev' to get together with the owner of the mare needing to be re-homed, and two days later, that Half-Arabian mare had a great home--still has a great home, because 'Sue' updated me just a month ago to let me know that 'Bev' still had the mare, and just adored her. She was a perfect fit!

So what was the random strange event?

It turned out that 'Bev' was the woman I'd met at the Washington State Fair, and that my talk with her, and her meeting Az that day, was what prompted her to look into getting an Arabian, and 'Bev' just happened to be a friend of 'Sue'!

[MsDaisy]

Not sure if this was supposed to be a gift or a threat from one of the cats but one of them left this little surprise on the doorstep ....

Gore warning... Severed head....

► Show Spoiler

IMG_8244.jpg (158.77 KiB) Viewed 5362 times

My granddaughter thinks it was a mouse and grandson thinks it was a baby rabbit. I remain undecided.

[Gregg]

Luca Bratzi sleep with the birdies.

[Tiredretiredlawyer]

It's a gift!

[Phoenix520]

In ‘96 the Mr and I went on a 3 week private rafting trip down the Colorado through the Grand Canyon with 15 friends.

On the drive there I was struck by the notion that I was going to see someone I knew on the trip, probably our friend, Kevin. Kevin is one of several people who takes credit for getting us together.
The feeling kept growing until by the time we got to the put-in it was a certainty in my mind.

I scoured the faces in each other group we encountered. Nada. By the penultimate day of our trip I’d decided I was wrong.

We’d pulled in to the camp area, one of three there that didn’t require a prior reservation. First come and this was the nicest site.

I’m standing on our raft’s thwart waiting for the Mr to hand me a dry bag when a raft comes sweeping around the turn. It’s full of nekkid rafters! Guiding the raft is a great big bear of a (nekkid) man. It’s Steve, Kevin’s co-worker and housemate!

They visited our camp that night…yup, still nekkid.

[Lani]

I've told this story before, but it vanished with the old Fogbow.

Our son exists because of an encountered in Bali. It resulted because of Ganesha (won't get into that now). His dad and I aren't together any more, but we are close, loving, and grateful every day since then.

I moved to Australia with our son so he would know his family there. While there, we (kiddo & me) would take advantage of cheap flights to Bali during the monsoon season. A Melbourne company contacted me about supplying fabrics for them, which with renting my house while I was gone was a great way to make money.

While I walked from village to village to negotiate with weavers, my kiddo was in a multilingual preschool. For free. Because educating children should be free.

One day I was recovering from a long day at a restaurant. Only two of us were there b/c monsoon. We kept looking at each other, and she finally said where do you come from. We felt that we had met each other, but we couldn't figure out when. I didn't know what to say except "what year?" Then we laughed. And we chatted for a long time about empowering women, microeconomics, and raising international children.

Both of us were involved with Bali textiles. Both of us were from Hawaii. Both of us had children with international relations.

In 2004, her son spoke at the DNC, and four years after, he ran for president.

[bill_g]

A few years ago the Puyallup Fair became the Washington State Fair, and the Fair Board wanted to introduce a new exhibit--Horse Breeds of the World. I volunteered to take myself and Azastan to be ambassadors of the Arabian breed, and we were there at the fair for part of a week, allowing the public to meet (and illegally pet!) an Arabian horse.

Why is it illegal?

[bill_g]

In 2004, her son spoke at the DNC, and four years after, he ran for president.

So, Dennis Kucinich's mom was in Bali with you?

[Slim Cognito]

I told this story in the Slim Cognito thread, forgive me for repeating it here but this seems the better place for it.

I'm adopted. Always known it, never bothered me. My cousin (thru adoption) on my father's side is big into genealogy, long before the ancestry.com thing, and kept pestering me to do a dna test. She's one of the people you can hire to research and explain your findings if you do such a test.

Finally, Karen, (yes, her name is Karen and she's delightful) wrote to tell me she'd bought me a test and to expect it. I followed the instructions, signed up at the website making her my surrogate and pretty much forgot about it.

Until one day, a few weeks ago, Karen got back with me to tell me to sit-down, (figuratively). Turns out we were related biologically. My great grandmother to the fourth power was her great grandmother to the fifth power. She married twice, I descended from her first husband, Karen from the second.

It took me a day to absorb that, then realized I hadn't asked, are we biologically related on her maternal (my father's sister) side or her father's side. She told me to sit down again. I'm biologically related to my adoptive father and youngest brother (my parents' only biological child). So I have a brother cousin and an Uncle Dad.

[Patagoniagirl]

I have an Unclebro. Or shortened, a Brunkle. My maternal grandparents adopted a baby in Germany. Always said their maid got pregnant by a GI. Turns out it was my mother's child, born when she was 17.

[Azastan]

A few years ago the Puyallup Fair became the Washington State Fair, and the Fair Board wanted to introduce a new exhibit--Horse Breeds of the World. I volunteered to take myself and Azastan to be ambassadors of the Arabian breed, and we were there at the fair for part of a week, allowing the public to meet (and illegally pet!) an Arabian horse.

Why is it illegal?

There's the possibility of transmitting diseases such as strangles by people petting one horse and then petting another. There's also liability issues in case someone gets bitten. We had a hand washing station by us, and asked everyone to wash their hands after touching Az.

[bill_g]

There's the possibility of transmitting diseases such as strangles by people petting one horse and then petting another. There's also liability issues in case someone gets bitten. We had a hand washing station by us, and asked everyone to wash their hands after touching Az.

Ah. Shows how little I know about horses. Then again, considering the bunny suit I have to put on to enter the "egg farms" I service, I am not surprised that other animals have similar concerns. I have to pass through a bio-shelter, put on their boots and don a disposable paper suit if I need to enter the production area (ie: hen house).

[Reddog]

Most random event I remember was 27 years ago.
We were on vacation in Hawaii, 4,000 miles from home. It had been a long last day. We had been checked out, went to Molokini and snuba’d. Returned car, and caught flight to Honolulu.
It was late, but we were early, airport was almost deserted. We rented a shopping cart to handle our luggage until we could check it.
While waiting my wife noticed a lady struggling with several pieces of luggage, and offered our cart to help with some of her burden. While setting it on the cart, wife noticed the luggage tag and said something like “Oh, Oregan”. I thought to myself “What a coincidence, we’re from the same continent “, and must have looked confused.

At that point the wife said said “No, Oregan Missouri “. Well that was a coincidence, because Oregan is about 25 miles away from our town, and my wife had interviewed for a teaching position there when she graduated. The lady had spent the winter in HI with her sister (reason for all the luggage).
My wife started talking with her (she’s much better than I am at that). It also turned out that she worked with my wife’s aunt.
It was a very nice trip, but 8 year old daughter and I almost missed flight, we lost track of time in museum. Arrived in KC (snowing) still dressed in HI clothes, and still salty from Molokini. Wife’s aunt was there as our pickup and we all laughed about the coincidence.

[sugar magnolia]

When the kids were little, I always took them to New Orleans when they got the Mardi Gras holiday and my son always ran into an adult he knew. Always. Sometimes we knew them, sometimes not. This happened every year, year after year at MG, ad pretty much every other time we went down there. Hundreds of people milling around on Decatur and he'd see someone he knew. Waiting for the streetcar on Canal and we'd hear someone call his name. Eating lunch at Maspero's and yep, someone he knew would stop by the table. It started when he was about 6 or 7 and continued until he was 16 or so and going on his own. I have no doubt it continued even when we weren't there. He eventually wound up living there.

My daughter was teaching in S. Korea and a group of them decided to go to a baseball game in Seoul, which is 3 hours away from their town. Several thousand people sitting in the stands and she hears her name being called. Turned around and saw a guy that graduated the year behind her at the small Catholic school they went to. There were only about 250 students in the entire school at that time from 6th to 12th grade.

Aidan and her soon-to-be husband connected on the internet and talked for a while before actually meeting in person. He comes from a small town north of here and they had no mutual friends on facebook, but they discovered when they finally met face-to-face that they've known each other since they were 11.

[Lani]

In 2004, her son spoke at the DNC, and four years after, he ran for president.

So, Dennis Kucinich's mom was in Bali with you?

Um, no.

[Foggy]

I told my doctor on Thursday that I insist on living at least another 200 years, because the next 200 years are going to be SO interesting. They can put my brain in a jar and hook it up to a computer, and I'll be fine.

He told me we're probably going to be extinct in 200 years.



Maybe I need to revise my plan.