guilty as hell!

We went to Wendy’s for dinner last night and as we were eating, I noticed an old man who had just bought a coffee.

Faye : Look at the old man… he’s just having coffee. I wonder if he has some money to buy food.
IFC : Some old people are just like that like Tito Bading who enjoys drinking coffee in the afternoon.

Suddenly, the old man approached us…

OM : Do you know the way to Bridgeport?
IFC : Bridgeport, NY?
OM : Bridgeport, Connecticut (CT).

In my mind, I was already thinking of CT before the old man even said it. And since we don't know the way, all we could say was “no”. Then, he started asking other people but no one seems to be of help to him.

Faye : Why don’t we ask him if there’s anyone he’d like to call and we can let him use our phone?
IFC : Do you want to call someone? You can use our phone if you want?
OM : No. I just missed a road that’s why I got here.
IFC : Maybe there’s a map that you can buy at the gasoline station (which happened to be just beside Wendy’s).

And so the old man left and walked towards the gas station. Poor old man! He was walking back and forth asking different people for help but no one did. We decided to talk to him thinking maybe we can help. I was talking to Kuya Chu (on the phone) asking for the directions when we saw the old man walking the other way so we followed him. IFC was yelling at him but he didn’t seem to have heard it. He was also trying to cross but he can’t. That was the time I suspected that maybe he has dementia. I waved at him to come closer when he turned.

Faye : Do you have any children that we can call? Or a relative perhaps?
OM : No. no.
Faye : Where have you been? Where did you come from?
OM : Hungary.
Faye : No. I mean where were you supposed to go?
OM : I’m supposed to go to this garbage place in Hartford but I missed the road.
IFC : But you’re in NY!
Faye : Are you driving?
OM : Yes.
Faye : Are you sure?
OM : Yes. I have the key right here (showing the keys to us). I’ve been here in the United States for 36 years.
Faye : Where did you park your car?
OM : Somewhere here…
Faye : But this is not where we saw you earlier?
OM : Oh I forgot.
Faye : Come on… let us take you to where we saw you.

As we were walking back to Wendy’s,

OM : I just missed the road.
Faye : Do you want us to call the police for you?
OM : No. I’m fine. You’re so kind.

Then, I gave him the directions that Kuya Chu gave earlier and as we reached the parking lot at Wendy’s,

Faye : Is that your car?
OM : Yes that’s my car.

I checked the plate which shows CT. His car didn’t look really old. His windows were down. He also looked neat… with his hair polished and his polo tucked in.

IFC : Are you sure you can still drive? It’s getting dark?
OM : I’m fine. Thank you.
Faye : I don’t want to leave you like this. Are you sure you're going to be ok?
OM : Yes. Thank you. You’re so kind.
Faye : Drive safe ok?
OM : Yes (with a smile on his face).

Then, I saw a police car coming. I tried waving at them but I don't think they saw me until it was too late... the old man started pulling out of the parking. And we just looked at his car until it’s no longer in sight.

Upon reaching home, I felt so disturbed. I felt like crying. I felt like blaming myself for allowing him to do what he wanted to do. I felt so stupid for letting him go. I felt so stupid that I don’t even know how to call a police (I can’t call 911. It’s not an emergency. I just learned later on that the hotline # for the police is 311). I felt so guilty… in fact up to now I feel that way… thinking if he had made it or not. I kept asking myself “what if something happened to him?” I was right there but didn’t do anything. I was just like those people who were not of any help to him.

IFC said “Let’s just hope for the best. He seemed like he knows how to drive because he tried avoiding the car which honked at him.”

All I can do now is to keep on praying for him… wishing that he is safe. I hope he’s alright. I really do.

As for us, this was definitely a lesson learned…

Thank Goodness!

I’m so happy IFC finally found a job. We don’t have the exact details (as to benefits and all) yet other than the “pay” but he is expected to start this coming Monday. Working hours are an hour longer than usual and he might also work some Saturdays. Still, it’s reasonable. And one thing I like the most, the office is located on the east side which means we can go to work together in the AM. :)

Trip to Philadelphia, Delaware (DE), Baltimore, Washington DC and Virginia (VA)

We went to the cities/states mentioned above over the weekend. This was supposed to be a birthday (March 30th) gift for IFC but decided to postpone it for Kuya Lito’s visit to avail of the buy 2 get 1 free promo. I made the reservations online at www.paradiseusa.com where it only includes the bus fare and an overnight stay at a hotel. All entrance tickets and food will have to be extra. My only concern though was that Paradise Vacations is Chinese owned. I was really hoping that there will be some other non-Chinese or at least the tour guide will speak English as well… and we were glad he did. And while this is already the 2nd visit, I was still excited about it knowing IFC was with me. It was my 1st time at DE and Baltimore though.

Anyway, the call time was at 715AM on Saturday. We left Flushing 10-15 minutes late not to mention that we had to transfer to another bus in Chinatown and didn’t leave till 9AM.

1st stop was at Philadelphia where we saw the Independence Hall (previously known as the Pennsylvania State House) and the Liberty Bell. They consider this place as the birthplace of the US… where the Declaration of Independence was adopted and the Constitution of the US was debated, drafted and signed. I also learned that there were only 13 states in the beginning compared to the 50 states and 1 district now. We didn’t get to go in though as the line was very long.

Lunch was at King Buffet’s Chinese Restaurant in Delaware.

Then, we headed off to Baltimore. I was amazed with the many great views at the Harbor area. People were enjoying the nice sunny weather, dining outdoors and taking pictures at every angle of the place.

Next stop was at DC. We went to the American Museum of Natural History… which I think is similar to the one we went to at Central Park NYC. There were so many people. Tourists were everywhere. I’m sure you will also enjoy the old structures of the buildings there. It’s really a nice place to see especially for 1st timers. We also went to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial… who is known for his inspiring words to US citizens and where it signifies liberty; and US Capitol which serves as the “seat of government” for the US Congress. There were many more museums that we just passed by not having a lot of time to go to.

We stayed at the Comfort Inn in Herndon, VA for the night. I didn’t expect the hotel to be that nice. I mean I even brought towels, soap and shampoo just to make sure. If I remember it right, we had to use our own when we stayed at a hotel (which the name I can’t remember) in downtown DC back in 2004. Comfort Inn provided all these including hangers, hair dryer and a vault. The room was so neat and nice. They even had a complimentary breakfast.

Dinner was at McDonald’s. We also stopped by K-Mart and bought some things.

1st stop on Sunday was at the Lincoln Memorial. Abraham Lincoln is the 16th president of the US. This place basically “attracts anyone who seeks inspiration and hope”. Across was the Washington Monument which was built in honor of George Washington being the 1st president of the US and the one who led them to independence. 1/3 of the height of this monument has a different color compared to the other 2/3. The tour guide said something like they couldn’t complete it (for whatever reason I can’t recall) till 20 years later and they can’t anymore find the same kind of material they previously used. We also got to see the Korean War Veterans Memorial and Vietnam War Veterans Memorial. People sometimes think that Korean War was not as significant since it only lasted 3 years compared to the Vietnam War which went on for 16 years. Statistically speaking, 54,246 soldiers died within those 3 years… and 58,226 in 16 years.

We were taking pictures of the White House just outside its gates when a ranger approached us and said tickets are free for the day to enter the garden. It wasn’t part of the day’s activities but the tour guide was nice enough to have squeezed it in. We went back there before 1215PM and there we were… very close to the White House. It was right in front of us. What’s even more exciting were those “secret service agents” (with the “wires” on their ears) that I used to see only on TV. The garden was nice and the flowers were gorgeous. We also took pictures of the Department of Treasury which was in sight.

One thing that the “boys” enjoyed was the National Air and Space Museum. I wouldn’t talk much about it but you can explore their website in the link provided for more.

In between these historic sites hopping, we had lunch at China Garden in Arlington, VA. It was some sort of “ala-carte” where there were 10 of us in a table. We didn’t really enjoy the food. Let’s just say some of those served were “authentic” dishes. We also saw The Pentagon, headquarters for the US Department of Defense, from afar. Pictures were taken only while inside the bus.

We reached home at 8PM.

Overall… the tour was tiring but… fun! We got to see and learn new things. The tour guide was good… very hard working. And if you’re going to ask how the Chinese were in the bus, then that’s another story.

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Days of fun with Kuya Lito & Ate Irmee!

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You can also visit Ate Irmee's blog for the details. Sorry I'm still tired, thus, too lazy to blog! :)