The Case Of The Mistaken Identity

Looks can be deceiving

There was an acrid smell emanating from the room. It was enough to knock you flat on the floor. As I opened the door, the stench wafted up to my nose. As I stood there, I thought I was going to be sick. Whatever had been in the garbage was now decomposing at an alarming rate. It was time to hurry up and remove the offender. As I cinched up the small bag, I started to gag. Quickly, I placed the small bag into a large white garbage bag.

I opened the blue front door of my condo and exited into the hallway. I walked down the hallway and around the corner. The hallway is only a couple of steps from the long hallway. In the middle of the building you will find the two elevators. I hit the button to access the elevator. After a few seconds, the elevator on the right opened. I got in with my garbage bag and the recycling bag. I pressed the button for the first floor.

As the elevator descended, I felt a jolt and it stopped on the second floor.

What Happened First

Before I tell you what happened, I need to fill you in on what transpired first. Then we’ll get back to what happened when the door opened.

About three years ago, a moving truck parked in front of the building. The workers delivered the contents to one of our recently vacated condo units. The man who moved in had white hair with a bald spot on top of his head. He had two small white dogs. Every time he walked with them, you would want to see the dogs because they were so cute. He drove an orange SUV. He had a look about it him that was unmistakable. He looked like the U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont. So when I talk about him, I refer to him as “Bernie” or “orange guy” or “the guy with two dogs”. When I say talking about him, it’s only to my Mother. She can’t move around very well, so if I see someone and say what we call them, then she knows who I’m talking about. I do know his real name. If I say his real name, then it would be harder to explain to her. She wouldn’t remember who I was talking about.

So the first time I saw “Bernie” was when I had taken the groceries up to my unit. I came down the stairs and he was at the back of his car preparing to get his groceries out. I passed behind him and said hello. He said the same to me. But I didn’t see his face. I was rushing back to the car.

The second time I saw him, I was in the elevator. I thought it had stopped on the ground floor. It had not. It stopped on the second floor. I got out and said hi as I passed him. I didn’t get a good look at him because I was going back to the car in a hurry from getting the groceries again. Once I started going down the hall, I realized something was wrong. I said, “this doesn’t look right”. I usually see the same doormat in front of this one condo unit. I pass by there all the time. Once I turned the corner and saw the stairs, I found out I was on the second floor. I knew I screwed up. I hadn’t looked at the floor number in the elevator. So I went down the stairs and back to the car.

On To The Conclusion

Now we are back to the story.

To reset, I am going down in the elevator when a jolt occurs and it stops on the second floor. The door opens and “Bernie” walks into the elevator. I can now see him up close and in the flesh. I say to myself, “He doesn’t look anything like Bernie Sanders.” We chatted briefly. The elevator door opens and we both go on our way.

It’s funny how you think someone looks but when you actually can see them up close, it’s a different story. I had only seen him from my third floor window except for those brief other moments.

I got a laugh out of it.